BMW K1200s/1300s owners

[KrisZ]

Any K1200/1300s owners here?
I recently got a 2005 K1200S and I must say these are wonderful machines. Lots of low end torque and a pretty decent top end.

Reading up on them they have their quirks but overall they seem to hold up pretty well and are reliable. Mine has 41k miles and runs very well. The suspension is nice and tight, but perhaps that’s because it’s the base version and not the electronically controlled one. I love that it has a shaft drive. And it has a center stand, which is awesome.

The only thing that is broken is the fuel gauge, which is a known problem on pretty much all BMW motorcycles of that era.

Who on here owns/ed one of these? What is/was your experience with it? Share your thoughts and pics if you have any.

Here is mine

 

[maineiac]

I had an '04 LT that I rode for many years. The brick engine may be one of the most reliable MC engine ever made. I had friends with 200K+ miles and they were still running strong, not burning oil or anything like that. There were some issues with improper shimming of the drive shaft which resulted in misalignment and total failure. It wasn't a common failure but it was definitely "there". I had a mechanic friend in North Carolina check mine when I was at his place and mine was just fine.

I loved that motor and gearing - 3rd gear was great in the twisties and I could out-pull my buddies on their much lighter GSs and RTs. I also loved the fueling - perfectly progressive and no bad manners (unlike my later 1200GT which was notchy enough that I traded it in after having it remapped by the dealer a couple of times with no improvement). The bike felt like it was carved out of a block of unobtanium - just totally solid with no shakes, rattles or the "looseness" of Japanese bikes. Sort of like a Bimmer vs Toyota feel. Airflow management was superb and the cockpit was extremely well protected, esp. with the electrically operated windscreen. Downside to the bike (and pretty much all the bricks) was that it was very heavy. That was OK when putting on the big miles on wide open roads, but was a handful in town, especially with the LT which was the heaviest of all the brick bikes. Also, BMW makes some of the crappiest seats ever to find their way onto motorcycles. I went aftermarket as did virtually everyone I knew who rode a BMW. The aftermarket seat market for these is vast as a consequence.

I traded mine in for (another) 1200GS as I'm not doing the big rides so much anymore, but I did pick up an unmolested, low mile '04 GL1600 (Goldwing) for short money and even though it's not nearly as solid as the LT, I'm enjoying it and it's got a really fabulous engine.

Never had any issues with the fuel gauge!

Enjoy your ride!

That's me headed out on a 14,000 mile trip around the circumference (roughly) of the United States. The bike was flawless.

 

[maineiac]

And its (sort of) replacement:

 

[KrisZ]

Nice! Those 1200LTs are beasts. I almost got one few years ago, but a nice Honda Valkyrie came up so I went with a Honda as I liked the looks better.

You are right about the Japanese bikes feeling loose and rattly. The top box on that Valkyrie rattled very badly, even though everything was fastened correctly. The front fairing also moved quite a bit on bumpy roads, fortunately it didn’t rattle.

The suspension was cheap too for such a big bike.

But overall it was a nice machine. That flat six engine was sweet!

 

[RevRider]

Nice! Those 1200LTs are beasts. I almost got one few years ago, but a nice Honda Valkyrie came up so I went with a Honda as I liked the looks better.

You are right about the Japanese bikes feeling loose and rattly. The top box on that Valkyrie rattled very badly, even though everything was fastened correctly. The front fairing also moved quite a bit on bumpy roads, fortunately it didn’t rattle.

The suspension was cheap too for such a big bike.

But overall it was a nice machine. That flat six engine was sweet!
View attachment 210584

I love the Valkyrie, I have one also.

 

[Son of a Jack]

Never seem to take a half decent picture of bikes I've owned but here is the one that let go a few years back.
That is a K1200R handle bar that I put on for little different ergos. I liked the change.
Mine was a base model too; the only one I ever saw up here in my neck of the woods actually

As for the bike, she was a beauty; I thought it was a proper hot rod.
Super nice tracking whether on straights or banked going fast. Side winds didn't faze it much either.

Sport tires with a sharper profile gave the bike a sketchy feel at lower speed; not recommended, especially since, im my experience anyway, the bike chewed through front tires at a good pace. More rounded sport touring tires felt much better.

Rode a buddy's K1300S and felt like his bike had a little different geometry because it was faster steering in tighter/slower speed curves. Maybe the 1300 had a higher frame height at the rear???

Read a lot of **** on the web about harsh shifting from N to 1st; my bike didnt do that, but what it did do a couple of times when newer was pop out of 3rd gear twice at full rip. After 20,000 KM, never happened again though.

My assessment is this; I don't care what anybody says, these things were ****ing wicked machines and it is one of those bikes that makes me feel like a fool for having sold it.