There is a recall on fuel pumps recall # 20v‑471. My fuel pump needs to be replaced as it is failing. The recall includes bikes up to model year 2011. While my bike is a 2012, it was manufactured in 2011 and should be included in the recall. I have only 6000 miles on my bike and the part has failed way to early for it not to be included with the recall. Thank you
The worst 2012 BMW R 1200 R problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Fuel system8
- Transmission2
- Engine1
- Visibility1
Specific symptoms reported on the 2012 BMW R 1200 R
Recalls 1
Fuel system, gasoline: delivery: fuel pump
- What is wrong
- BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2011-2014 S 1000 RR/R/ HP4, R 1200 GS/GS Adventure/R/RT, K 1300 S, K 1600 GT/GTL/GTL Exclusive and 2014 R nine T motorcycles. The fuel pump, and auxiliary fuel pump in certain models, may crack and leak fuel during vehicle operation.
- Risk
- A fuel leak, in the presence of an ignition source, may result in a fire.
- Remedy
- BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the fuel pump, free of charge. The recall began March 17, 2021. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417.
Recall number 21V060000 · Recall details
Technical service bulletins for the 2012 BMW R 1200 R 33
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few...
- Since October 2023, a new maintenance schedule is valid for all K5x models
- BMW Motorrad USA has become aware of a potential durability issue with the film type fuel level sender...
- BMW Motorrad is aware of a number of cases in which the screw connections of the Paralever link and/or the...
- One of the following situations can occur when connecting to BN2000 motorcycles: 1. The installed control...
- BMW Motorrad has ascertained that in isolated cases the fuse for the voltage regulator is not correctly...
- When diagnosing fault codes (0x3A13D7, 0x3A13D9), technicians erroneously condemn the electronic throttle...
- The bike does not shut down with a short press of the keyless ride button
- The hill start control operation may be sporadic.
- Ticking noises from the cylinder hood.
What 2012 BMW R 1200 R owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
Tl* the contact owns a 2012 bmw r1200 r. The contact stated that the vehicle was leaking fuel from the fuel pump. There were no warning indicators illuminated on the instrument panel. The vehicle was not diagnosed or repaired. The dealer was not contacted. The manufacturer was contacted and advised the contact to have the vehicle diagnosed. The failure mileage was 40,000.
Left side mirror glass fell out. While on the highway, the lef side mirror glass fell out. It was held in by a few small dabs of silicone from the factory. Another disappointment courtesy of bmw, not covered by the warranty. Poor design and shoddy workmanship are the cause of the glass falling out under normal use conditions. The date below is a rough estimate. I do not have the receipt with the replacement date handy at this time. Lack of the left mirror made lane changes less safe.
Stalling engine. I bought the motorcycle new and it has had a stalling problem since it was new and continues until today. The engine will stall at idle or on deceleration. At its worst it will hesitate and surge when accelerating from a stop as well. I have complained to the dealer about the issue and have not had any resolution to the problem. I made a complaint to bmw corporate regarding the unresolved issue and pressure was placed on the dealer to fix the problem but the problem persisted and the dealer expressed their dismay with my complaint to corporate. I payed for repairs (while under warranty) that did not solve the stalling problem. Now the motorcycle is out of warranty and I do not have the financial means to keep forking money over to the dealer service department for no results. I tried going through the normal channels to remedy this persistent problem without success. I am not sure if it is related, but I took the motorcycle in for scheduled maintenance when it was only a month or two old. While it was getting the oil change and other adjustments, it would not restart. The dealer held it for about a month trying to get it started again. The mechanic told me that they swapped almost all of the major parts trying to diagnose it. When I finally got the call to pick it up, the dealer didn't tell me what the problem was. I was curious what went wrong on a new bike with such little use. The dealer never told me what the problem or solution was and only said that its back alive and running again. As mentioned earlier, I'm not sure if the problems are related but I believe they may be stemming from the same glitch.
Fuel leak from broken plastic "quick disconnect" fitting on the left side of the motorcycle. I noticed the issue when I was riding the motorcycle on the highway and raw fuel was spraying onto my leg and onto the cylinder & cylinder head of the engine. I pulled off the highway into a gas station to determine the source of the leak. After removing some plastic trim/covers I found the source was the plastic 90 degree fitting had cracked. The fuel fitting did not fail due to any impact, tampering or abuse; it is in a protected area at the lower edge of the fuel tank and covered by a piece of plastic trim. After inspecting the failed part, I noticed how thin the plastic is and how it broke on the groove (a stress riser). I believe the part is poorly designed and poses a serious safety and fire hazard to the vehicle operator. In my opinion, such components should be made of higher quality material such as stainless steel for strength and corrosion resistance. After checking with the bmw dealer for a replacement fitting, I decided to replace the fuel connector with a barbed 90 degree stainless steel fitting to prevent the possibility of a re-occurrence because I believe the bmw supplied part to be flawed and inherently dangerous.
My fuel gauge failed due to the failure of the fuel level sending "strip" - this is common on many bmw motorcycle models from 2004-2014. As a result of the failure I ran out of fuel on a busy highway. This created a dangerous situation.
Motorcycle engine stopped running on highway off ramp. Engine would crank, but not restart. Fuel gauge on electronic readout showed 78 miles until refill. No warning lights were flashing. Put fuel in the tank, started right up. In-tank fuel sensor is faulty.
I had been on the road for about 30 minutes and had been in heavy stop and go traffic for about 10 minutes. My fuel gauge went from half tank to empty with the "low fuel" warning light flashing between. This happened between glances at the instrument cluster. Since it was a 90 degree day and in stop and go traffic I was watching the engine temperature gauge closely. The engine temperature gauge is part of the same cluster as the fuel gauge so I know the change from a half tank of fuel to no fuel was almost if not instantaneous. It is the result of a bad fuel sensor in the fuel tank that is a known issue with this type of strip sensor. With hundreds of these sensors going bad inside the fuel tank how long will it be before one has a serious fault and blows up the fuel tank sitting between the motorcycle riders legs. Never say never.
Motorcycle ran out of gas. Fuel gauge showed full. Display said I had 226 miles to go to empty. I was traveling in an unfamiliar highway with no services within a fifty mile range. The motorcycle gas gauge remained at full for the remainder 2,100 mile of the trip to phoenix from florida. Dealer said they have ordered a fuel strip to replace the faulty one under warranty.
The fuel gauge stopped working. This happened twice. The second time it LED to running out of gas while under operation. The fuel strip that senses gas in the tank was replaced on both occasions. However, this kind of failure is unsafe, because running out of fuel while you are moving on a motorcycle can cause lead to loss of control.
Compare the 2012 BMW R 1200 R
Other model years
Questions about the 2012 BMW R 1200 R
Is the 2012 BMW R 1200 R reliable?
Owners have filed 10 complaints about the 2012 BMW R 1200 R, 1.7 times a typical R 1200 R model year.
What is the most common problem with the 2012 BMW R 1200 R?
Fuel and propulsion system, with 8 complaints, typically around 6,000 miles. Next is transmission (2).
How many recalls does the 2012 BMW R 1200 R have?
1 recall, covering fuel system, gasoline.
Was there a recall on the 2012 BMW R 1200 R fuel system?
Yes, 1 recall: 21V060000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
VIN decoder
See the problems and recalls for an exact car
Buying a used 2012 BMW R 1200 R?
Check the exact car before you pay: accidents, salvage or flood titles, odometer readings and previous owners.
Check its history