ESA fork on R1200R

[TwoWheelTherapy]

I'm working on my friend's bike now, and I'm curious about what's gonna happen to the ESA fork leg if I kick the bucket or I unplug the ESA?

Will it get super stiff, super soft, or just stay wherever it was last? How's the bike gonna handle?

I know only the left fork leg does the ESA thing, so the right one shouldn't be affected.

I'm currently having a heck of a time trying to hook up his R1200R ESA fork to the ESA controller from a K1600.

They're totally different! The R1200R fork's got two wires, and the K1600's got four, even though the K1600 doesn't even have preload adjustment on the front.

 

[Tightropehorn]

Hey that sounds dangerous since they are different systems! If R1200R ESA dies, it'll probably just stay where it was.

K1600 controller wires are different because it's a different setup. Don't try to swap them and stick to the right parts!

 

[Rantz0]

Whoa, that's a tricky setup, if you unplug or mess with the ESA, the fork will likely just stay where it was last set. No stiff or soft extremes and as for the wiring, yeah, the K1600 and R1200R have totally different systems, you gotta love the wiring puzzles! Haha

 

[BoxerTorque]

Haha, definitely. ESA setups can be quite tricky, if you unplug it, the settings just freeze, and you can't make any changes. Plus, the differences in wiring between models just add to the challenge! Have you ever tried tracing the wires to see if that helps?

 

[unCrowned65]

Trying to hook up the R1200R fork to a K1600 ESA controller wont work at all since they have different wiring and features, no wonder you're having a tough time. If you really wanna make it happen though, try to look for a proper adapter rather than trying to mix and match.

 

[sprocketrocketriders163]

went thru a similar situation a few years back with my friend's old RT. The ESA rear shock gave out during our trip and ended up locking at max preload. It felt like riding a cinder block all the way home. From what I've gathered, if you disconnect it, it just stays at the setting it was on last,there's no sudden shift to stiff or soft. But yeah, mixing ESA parts from different models is a wiring nightmare you want to avoid. It's a smart move to stick with compatible components, or at the very least, look for an adapter if you really want to make the swap

 

[TunaSandwch]

I'm working on my friend's bike now, and I'm curious about what's gonna happen to the ESA fork leg if I kick the bucket or I unplug the ESA?

Will it get super stiff, super soft, or just stay wherever it was last? How's the bike gonna handle?

I know only the left fork leg does the ESA thing, so the right one shouldn't be affected.

I'm currently having a heck of a time trying to hook up his R1200R ESA fork to the ESA controller from a K1600.

They're totally different! The R1200R fork's got two wires, and the K1600's got four, even though the K1600 doesn't even have preload adjustment on the front.

Man, you're kind of deep in the BMW wiring rabbit hole trying to mix those ESA controllers! honestly, that's a tough one
If you just unplug the ESA fork leg on the R1200R, the common understanding is that it defaults to its stiffest (or 'hard') damping setting
It essentially loses the electronic control and the internal valve closes down to max out the damping
The bike will definitely feel a lot more rigid up front, less compliant over bumps