Bargain K1300S Motorsport?

[Forcefield]

That sounds like a cop-out by the cops. So, I only have four years to go before I can ride round knocking youngsters off their bikes and getting away with it 'cos I'm too old to prosecute'?

I had a good look at the one in Wigan, just in case, but the clutch cover and rear drive hub seemed to be badly affected by the rot under the paint, which, along with the front wheel carrier (forks in non-BMW speak) is the one thing that lets the looks of the K down. I know they can be touched up (OK, a major strip down and full repaint) but mileage and condition are the big things for me after a full BMWSH.

It is getting difficult to find ones in really good condition but the black one does look very tidy. And it is the fastest colour by far...

Did you see it in person? I cant see those things from the pictures...

I was really hoping to have a go on it to set a standard to compare the black one against as Ive never riden a K before and have nothing to gauge how it should feel other than general common sense.

[Forcefield]

Good ones are getting rare, agreed. Sub-10k miles is unusual, but you do have to consider whether you want a bike that's been sat mostly unused - perished rubber, possible moisture, etc.

On the plus side, Ks are becoming very affordable compared to Euro 4 bikes, i.e. 2017 onwards. Yes, the tech is 14 years old, but it's still usable. The power is abundant, the handling is plenty good enough for the road.

£5-6k for a well sorted 175 bhp bike is something of a bargain. I just have to keep repeating the mantra:
'I don't need a spare just in case. I don't need a spare just in case...'

Have you seen the one with 3k miles on it over in halifax?. i was really tempted go and se it, but with it being a 2010, having sat most its life and the bubbling paint on shaft drive cover etc really put me off

[Forcefield]

Can anyone clarify the switchgear issue please? Is this something that all bikes should have had sorted? Is there something I should be looking for? was it a recal? or just fixed under warranty?

[richtea]

Fixed under warranty - not a recall. Its not dangerous, just annoying.

I've had 3 bikes, only one was affected - 2011. The other two later ones (2015, 2016) were/are fine.
In general if the switchgear was going to go wrong, I reckon it would have done so by now.

[richtea]

Which reminds me, the 'hot start' mod is worth checking for / asking about.
Some bikes don't suffer it, but all my 3 have been affected. It's probably £500 or so to get BMW to fix it, but there are online instructions if you're handy.

If you take off the battery cover off (on the top of the tank - 2 Torx screws, 30 seconds tops) you can look for it - there will two chunky leads to each terminal, not just one:

[Phmode]

That sounds like a cop-out by the cops. So, I only have four years to go before I can ride round knocking youngsters off their bikes and getting away with it 'cos I'm too old to prosecute'?

I had a good look at the one in Wigan, just in case, but the clutch cover and rear drive hub seemed to be badly affected by the rot under the paint, which, along with the front wheel carrier (forks in non-BMW speak) is the one thing that lets the looks of the K down. I know they can be touched up (OK, a major strip down and full repaint) but mileage and condition are the big things for me after a full BMWSH.

It is getting difficult to find ones in really good condition but the black one does look very tidy. And it is the fastest colour by far...

Did you see it in person? I cant see those things from the pictures...

I was really hoping to have a go on it to set a standard to compare the black one against as Ive never riden a K before and have nothing to gauge how it should feel other than general common sense.

Didn't bother as it was too far north for me. Had I been serious I would have asked for a video walk around showing specifically the clutch cover, final drive and front forks, normally just around the mudguard mounting screws.

The bubbling paint can be seen on the clutch cover just above and around the clutch slave cylinder top mounting bolt. If you compare that bubbliness with the cover on the black one you can see the difference.

Of course, the dodgy looking paint could have been water droplets but the rest of the bike was perfectly dry. The front forks also looked OK in the pics and it was hard to tell about the final drive.

[richtea]

Of course, the dodgy looking paint could have been water droplets but the rest of the bike was perfectly dry. The front forks also looked OK in the pics and it was hard to tell about the final drive.

Good spot. But it's definitely water. Here's the enhanced WaterCam^tm image.
But it's gone. Next bike!



Orig:

[Phmode]

Yeah, but it was the bubbling around the clutch slave that put me off, (apart from having to get a passport to put my 'oop north' visa in) otherwise I was quite tempted.

[chriscanning]

After reading the OP’s post and as someone who can hardly remember the last time he rode a bike one up and with what I’ve learned over the last 13/15 years of owning a K,if I was starting again my front runner by the proverbial mile would be a K1300R preferably without ESA cuz the Sus would be going in the bin anyway to be replaced with either Wilber’s or Ohlins.

[Phmode]

...and I'm not sure I can even remember how to ride with a pillion...

I think the R was a niche bike within a niche demographic and not my cup of tea at all. But it does mean there are more secondhand spares lying around for those of us who prefer a dustbin in front of us to fend off flying snakes and stuff. Apart from all those parts that we really need of course, like rads and zorsts.

[chriscanning]

If your into 3/400 mile days then you may have a point but anything less your way off,and when I bought my 94r SpeedTriple earlier this year had the same change of thought pattern,never mind the fact the bucket and sponge merchants have no plastic to hide behind when buyers turn up.

Interestingly when searching for ‘R’s see the dealers think the same judging by the salty prices 😳

[Forcefield]

Soooo... I did it.. i got the black one !! 

Turns out it was the main BMW dealer in Preston.  Bike is super super clean. Not immaculate, but probably as close as its going to get for 10yrs/17k miles. They sold the bike from new to a guy they know well and have worked on the bike themselves over the years. Main technician came out and said anything thats ever needed done will have been done. They pulled up the BMW service record and the only thing showing was a new battery.
I Wasn't allowd to take to for a spin but they assured me eveything was sorted and gave me 12 months warranty in the deal to cover any of the potential issues

I think the bike has barley seen a wet day and I couldn't find anything wrong with it t haggle on price. Even the radiator looked ok, but I will be pulling the fairing off next week and giving it full going over!

Ive tried attaching a photo, hope it works. Thanks for all the info you guys gave me... it gave me a lot of confidence walking in there and the sales guy was impressed with the knowledge of the bike I seemingly had

Il continue on the other thread the journey of cleaning/enhancing and protecting the bodywork etc and Im sure I will have many questions to follow!

[raesewell]

For posting photos take a look at the How To section.

[Matt]

Congrats!

I see you tried to use a Google drive link, however it's throwing up an access request dialogue when I try the yrl directly. So I reckon it's private. You can probably make a shareable link but I'd just use imgbb or the like to keep it simple .

[Forcefield]

For posting photos take a look at the How To section.

i did that initially but I just didnt set to public in drive. Has it worked? It seems ok on my end