www.boxertrix.com

Sorry if this is old hat.

I'm ashamed to say I havn't used my R1100ss since summer 2005 when I went to France. (Black 2001 - 10,000 miles only - disgraceful).
The battery has been poor for a couple of years. I was put off by BMW (B.....d, Moronic, W....r) dealers who quoted £95 to over £100 just for supply. My eforts in the past had found list after list not showing the R1100 let alone the R1100ss (same battery, worse suspension setup). But at last found Batteries UK (www.batteriesuk.com). All BMW batteries listed including the ss. Ordered 3:00pm 17th, delivered 11:00am 19th.
£30 including delivery! Then deciding I was a cheapskate I ordered an Optimate RS III (latest) from Ebay £35 including delivery). I suppose BMW have got overheads (and 7 series for the directors) but so have I.
I was a bit surprised at the size of the battery when it arrived as it looked immense, 50% taller, compared to the BMW one I had grown to hate. But it fitted like a dream (requires undoing the two tank allen bolts and raising the tank to allow entry). I assume it must be the eqivalent of the BMW heavy duty battery (even dearer).
And finally a question: Where is the best (cheapest) place to get a replacement strut for the rear suspension to improve the ss's inferior (to the standard R1100s) handling?

If you haven't used your bike for over a year and hadn't been using an optimate I'm not surprised your battery is poor! The taller battery is fitted as standard to bikes with heated grips, according to winger. If you had the smaller battery originally you'll need a longer strap to secure the new one.

When you talk about a rear 'strut' what do you mean? Do you mean the rear spring/damper unit? Or do you mean the torque arm that attaches to the bottom of the rear drive housing? If you mean the latter, an 1150GS one is about 20mm shorter and makes a big difference to the handling on a standard bike - I don't see why it should be any different on an SS.

As for where you can get one, check out ebay, UKGSER.com or Motorworks who break bikes. It's an easy swap if you don't have a cat, less easy if you do, I understand.

leitzscope - You could have got a superior Odyssey battery for the money you've just spent. Too late now though. Not sure why you think the standard S is better handling than the SS unless you prefer slower steering.

Sproggy - It's the other way round. Rear shock is a piece of cake to change with the Cat but a Y piece invariably means you can't get the bottom bolt out.

Adam

adamski49 wrote:Sproggy - It's the other way round. Rear shock is a piece of cake to change with the Cat but a Y piece invariably means you can't get the bottom bolt out.

But I was talking about the torque arm, not the strut

Don't think the torque arm is affected either way, just a nut and bolt affair with the nut being towards the cat. Easy peasy