[dasher]

My plan at this time is to buy the $50 silver cap, fit it on there, see if the sound goes away, if it does not then refit the black cap and go the this is now going to get very expensive route. Dilemma, I do not want to preemptively fit the silver cap, over-tension the chain, and cause far worse damage.

That's a reasonable dilemma! Don't place too much stock on the 6,500 miles, as there are many ways to get there. For example, if the 6,500 miles are track miles, then that's the equivalent of 2x/3x (at least) on the street.

You may want to pop in the silver cam tensioner, and then take the bike to the dyno to see if anything changes in the power curve. My 2015 bone stock (Yosh pipe, factory headers) topped out at 176.65, and with careful fueling (Bazzazz ZFi) we took her to 185, before dialing it down to 180 but putting down loads more hp down low where I could use it on the track.

My cam chain went at around 10k miles (I posted about this, would have to check) and they had to change the whole chain, not just the tensioner. Would have been big bucks, had BMW Motorrad not stepped in and honored the warranty (it was just a month past its expiration).

Good idea to post here - let's see what the actual mechanics/engineers on this board have to say about this. Good luck!

 

[QuikSanD]

Don't place too much stock on the 6,500 miles.

Fortunately all the miles are mine, I bought the bike brand new in Germany in '12. She spent time on the autobahn and Nürburgring, but most the miles are just cruisin around at 4-7k. Unfortunately, I'm really far out of warranty now even though the miles are low, so things inside the gray box make me nervous. I was out of town for a long time so she didn't get ridden much the last few years, and now I want to ensure everything is in proper shape mechanically. Hell maybe the fuel system is upset about sitting for too long and I need some cleaner / plugs. First weird rattles though, then other stuff. Seriously sucks that something as important as a cam chain would go out at 10k! that's.... totally unsat. Makes me want to dig in there and replace it now.

 

[dasher]

Seriously sucks that something as important as a cam chain would go out at 10k!

Well, mine did not spend most miles cruising at 4-7k. Two racing seasons, multiple track days, and ridden like I stole it in the mountain roads, so 10k feels about right. Full-time racing motors generally need serious rebuilding after about 5,000 miles.
This is BMW's fault, you know? Up until 2008, the Superbike world had been in stasis for several years, with 1000cc engines putting out power in the 160-175hp (manufacturer marketing crank, not rear wheel) range, and engines being pretty much bulletproof. Then BMW decided to market a 199hp (crank) monster, and the arms race got properly underway again. It was always possible to coax 200+ out of the inline 4s, but at a price. The price being reliability. Want something to last you longer? Get a "cow" (big GS). Although my R1250GS, with the "shift cam" and other gewgaws may also be paying that reliability price. We are now living in the world of throwaway vehicles.
But when the RR hits that song north of 9k... aaah, then all practical thoughts of reliability go out the window and you just ride the missile.
Sorry for the digression. Hope that you sort out your issues and get more useful comments than mine!

 

[Nicco Nation]

New member comes in with all the wrong info. Great. They all come with the black cap. The silver cap is longer and pushes the tensioner in further and can be fitted only after 15,000kms. If it is still noisy, then in some cases the tensioners fail. But that's rare. After high kms the chain, sprockets and guides need to be replaced if sufficient force from the tensioner cannot be achieved.

The silver cap must not be fitted prior to 15,000kms. If it is fitted and makes no difference to sound then the black one must be put back in. Some people have got the ape manual tensioners and love them. I have never had an issue with mine. Mine did get noisy and I fitted the silver one and its all good now.

Hey appreciate the info so far what you say lines up the most with what bmw had told me just to confirm it’s just the black cap that I need to replace to the silver one. So I can reuse the old tensioner ?

 

[bennymx]

@Nicco Nation Silver replaces black yes.

 

[Nicco Nation]

Thank you just did it and it sounds much better!

 

[Lawrence Christopher]

Thank you just did it and it sounds much better!

I didn’t see anything in this thread about replacing the hydraulic tensioner with the adjustable unit. I did this a few years ago on my 2013 and have had no noise issues since. I have not needed to adjust it yet. Don’t know anything about the upgrade.

 

[foler]

any diy how to replace this with silver?

 

[SimonUK]

any diy how to replace this with silver?

remove some panels
remove 'black' plug
insert 'silver' plug

 

[foler]

remove some panels
remove 'black' plug
insert 'silver' plug

nothing to adjust, only screw new in to some torque?

 

[SimonUK]

yep, just be careful screwing in as it has a fine thread pitch so easy to cross thread if a little ham fisted. you'll need to take the plunger from black to put on silver but that is straight forward

 

[Danno]

Hi would someone be kind enough to post the silver cap part number.
Cheers

 

[SimonUK]

Hi would someone be kind enough to post the silver cap part number.
Cheers

Have a look in the very 1st post of this thread - Updated S1000RR/S1000R Cam Chain Tensioner Screw Plug Info

 

[Danno]

Have a look in the very 1st post of this thread - Updated S1000RR/S1000R Cam Chain Tensioner Screw Plug Info

Hi Simon, thank you I’m very grateful.
Regards

 

[Michlen]

My track bike rattles as a maracas. Thinking to get the Alpha racing adjustable tensioner. But how do you know that you don't over tight the chain?
Anybody knows? Just so It's quiet? Is there not a risk that it get's to tight and snap off?

 

[Michlen]

Found this:

Have anyone experience of using a adjustable tesioner?

Yeah or Neay?

 

[SimonUK]

if you do a 'search' for 'APE cam' lots of threads will come up

 

[paolo75]

Right. This information is old hat and dealer's should be aware of it. It is not a secret.

The bike comes with a Black screw plug for the cam chain tensioner. The problem is a noisy cam chain at start up where it rattles quite loudly. The chain stretches over time and the tensioner no longer provides enough pressure to keep the chain tight.

An updated screw plug that is longer is the fix. The new screw plug is Silver. This can only be fitted after 15,000kms. It is not the tensioner itself but a longer screw plug that puts more pressure on the tensioner.

It's only if the bike has a start up cam chain rattle. This is not a be all and end all noisy fix as most people seem to have a problem with the noise on these bikes. The dealer would not just replace it if you ask. They would have to determine it has a start up rattle and then proceed accordingly. You would need to take the bike to a dealer complaining of the start up rattle. Do not replace the part if the bike is not rattling on start up. It's not an automatic replacement once you hit 15,000kms. Read my original post carefully before anyone starts jumping to conclusions. Replacing it prematurely could also cause damage and make the chain too tight.

THIS IS NOT A FIX FOR NOISY OR TICKING ENGINES IN GENERAL.

Sorry to resume this post with this stupid question; for those who have problems with noisy cam chain at start up, is it
enough to purchase only the screw plug (image number 8) or is necessary to buy the complete parts including chain tensioner and o-ring set (images 5, 6 and 7)?
Thanks in advance for you replies

 

[bennymx]

@paolo75 just the cap. Number 8.

 

[paolo75]

@paolo75 just the cap. Number 8.

Thank you so much for the answer