BMW defect petition DP12001
M/C final drive ball bearing failure. NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation opened this defect petition about the differential unit on 7 model years (1999–2005). Opened Jan 20, 2012, closed Jun 20, 2013 after 17 months without a recall. closed
What NHTSA says
Source: Office of Defects Investigation, as filedThe Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) received a defect petition requesting that it open an investigation into model year (MY) 1998-2009 BMW KLT series motorcycles for final drive bearing failures. The petitioner asked NHTSA to issue an order that [BMW] be required to recall the affected models for inspection ofcomponent wear and proper assembly of the [final drive] bearing. ODI has reviewed the petition, assessed relevant consumer complaints, and gathered other data in the course of investigating this issue. Based on its review, ODI does not believe that a safety-related defect trend currently exists for final drive bearing failures in the subject motorcycles. Therefore, in view of the need to allocate and prioritize NHTSA's limited resources to accomplish the agency's safety mission, the petition is denied. However, the agency will continue to monitor information related to this issue and will take further action if warranted. For detailed information, see the Federal Register notice: https://federalregister.gov/a/2013-13779.
A Defect Petition is a petition from a member of the public asking NHTSA to open a defect investigation; the agency grants or denies it and publishes the reasons. The summary is the agency’s own text from its investigation file, unedited; the opening and closing resumes with the full reasoning are on NHTSA’s site under this number.
What this means for an owner
Source: and what happens nextAn investigation is not a finding that a defect exists, and it puts no duty on anyone. NHTSA opens a Preliminary Evaluation when complaints and other reports suggest a condition worth asking the manufacturer about; it upgrades to an Engineering Analysis when the answers warrant testing; it closes either when it recommends a recall, when the manufacturer recalls on its own, or when no defect trend is found. The agency’s own goals are about four months for a petition, eight for a Preliminary Evaluation or a Recall Query and eighteen for an Engineering Analysis; many run longer.
This one closed without a recall. That means NHTSA found no defect trend it chose to act on at the time, or the manufacturer addressed the condition another way (a service campaign or a bulletin, which have their own pages). A closed file can be reopened if new reports arrive.
Model years it names
Source: as NHTSA filed themAlso named: 2005 BMW K1200 LT; 1999 BMW K1200LT; 2000 BMW K1200LT; 2001 BMW K1200LT; 2002 BMW K1200LT; 2003 BMW K1200LT; 2004 BMW K1200LT.
A vehicle page’s investigation list carries the same action; a name here is the scope NHTSA opened, not a list of affected VINs.
Common questions
Source: NHTSA Office of Defects InvestigationIs DP12001 a recall?
No. A defect petition is NHTSA asking questions, not a recall. A safety recall carries an NHTSA campaign number and a duty to repair for free; this one closed without one. Whether one particular vehicle has an open recall is a VIN question at nhtsa.gov/recalls.
Is DP12001 still open?
No. It closed on Jun 20, 2013 without a recall.
Which vehicles does DP12001 cover?
NHTSA opened it on 7 model years: 2005 BMW K1200 LT, 1999 BMW K1200LT, 2000 BMW K1200LT, 2001 BMW K1200LT, 2002 BMW K1200LT, 2003 BMW K1200LT and more. That is the scope of the inquiry, not a list of affected vehicles; a recall, if one follows, defines its own population by VIN.