Overheating.

[nightrider]

The bike got hot and stopped again in traffic. It's ok on the open road but doesn't like riding through town.
I took the bike bike to the where it came from,small independent dealer,and he thinks it's the thermostat. He doesn't think it's the radiator due to it running well on the open road.
He says he will take the fairing off and have a look. My worries are that he will misdiagnose it ,say it's ok ,take £200 of me only for the same problem to arise shortly after.
I do like the bike,however I also like reaching my destination without a dead bike in traffic.

[black-k1]

It's the rad. I bet the "key speed" is about 40mph. Below it overheats. Above it's fine.

[raesewell]

It will not be the thermostat, your radiator will be partially blocked and my bet will be, you need a new one.
If you don't need a new radiator come along on the Wrinklies trip and I'll buy you a beer or two 

[Phmode]

So, have you actually checked the coolant level?

And if you have, have you also checked to see if the fan is working? The fan will only cut in in traffic or when you are parked up.

And if you take it back to the guy, does he have the gear to do the vacuum refilling and the understanding to know why it needs doing. Oh, and the thermostat is a specific BMW item. And if you buy a new rad it comes with thermostat  fitted.

Do the simple stuff first, that way you won't get ripped off and your bike won't get buggered.

[nightrider]

It's the rad. I bet the "key speed" is about 40mph. Below it overheats. Above it's fine.

Correct,anything below say 30 is worrying. When I showed the mechanic the bike the temperature was about midway. A few minutes at trickier and it climbed up. I think the radiator was dodgy when I got the bike and I failed to notice because the weather has been so cool. My commute includes about 15 minutes urban riding.
The mechanic says he sometimes disconnects thermostats. I have doubts about his ability.

[raesewell]

Don't let this "mechanic" touch your bike 

[nightrider]

I might have to bite the bullet and take it to a BMW dealer,or find some independent mechanic who knows about BMWs.

[Phmode]

Why go to an independent 'who knows something about BMW's'?

The rad will cost the same, plus his uplift and I doubt his costs will be much lower than the dealer's.

Get it fixed by someone who really knows about BMW's and also knows how to correctly vacuum fill the system.

[TomL]

It's the rad. I bet the "key speed" is about 40mph. Below it overheats. Above it's fine.

Correct,anything below say 30 is worrying. When I showed the mechanic the bike the temperature was about midway. A few minutes at trickier and it climbed up. I think the radiator was dodgy when I got the bike and I failed to notice because the weather has been so cool. My commute includes about 15 minutes urban riding.
The mechanic says he sometimes disconnects thermostats. I have doubts about his ability.

You can remove this thermostat but you can't disconnect it. Somehow I doubt the ability of this mechanic. If he is not familier with the vacuum filling procedure you might end up with a cracked cylinder head as well. Get it to a BMW mechanic for a proper diagnosis.

[TomL]

The bike got hot and stopped again in traffic. It's ok on the open road but doesn't like riding through town.
I took the bike bike to the where it came from,small independent dealer,and he thinks it's the thermostat. He doesn't think it's the radiator due to it running well on the open road.
He says he will take the fairing off and have a look. My worries are that he will misdiagnose it ,say it's ok ,take £200 of me only for the same problem to arise shortly after.
I do like the bike,however I also like reaching my destination without a dead bike in traffic.

What is he going to take £200 off you for?

[nightrider]

The cost of stripping the fairing off and investigating.Possibly to be told "nah nothing wrong with that mate,running sweet as a nut".

[Blobby]

So, have you actually checked the coolant level?

And if you have, have you also checked to see if the fan is working? The fan will only cut in in traffic or when you are parked up.

And if you take it back to the guy, does he have the gear to do the vacuum refilling and the understanding to know why it needs doing. Oh, and the thermostat is a specific BMW item. And if you buy a new rad it comes with thermostat  fitted.

Do the simple stuff first, that way you won't get ripped off and your bike won't get buggered.

It's the rad. I bet the "key speed" is about 40mph. Below it overheats. Above it's fine.

Correct,anything below say 30 is worrying. When I showed the mechanic the bike the temperature was about midway. A few minutes at trickier and it climbed up. I think the radiator was dodgy when I got the bike and I failed to notice because the weather has been so cool. My commute includes about 15 minutes urban riding.
The mechanic says he sometimes disconnects thermostats. I have doubts about his ability.

We still don't know if the fan works 

[black-k1]

So, have you actually checked the coolant level?

And if you have, have you also checked to see if the fan is working? The fan will only cut in in traffic or when you are parked up.

And if you take it back to the guy, does he have the gear to do the vacuum refilling and the understanding to know why it needs doing. Oh, and the thermostat is a specific BMW item. And if you buy a new rad it comes with thermostat  fitted.

Do the simple stuff first, that way you won't get ripped off and your bike won't get buggered.

It's the rad. I bet the "key speed" is about 40mph. Below it overheats. Above it's fine.

Correct,anything below say 30 is worrying. When I showed the mechanic the bike the temperature was about midway. A few minutes at trickier and it climbed up. I think the radiator was dodgy when I got the bike and I failed to notice because the weather has been so cool. My commute includes about 15 minutes urban riding.
The mechanic says he sometimes disconnects thermostats. I have doubts about his ability.

We still don't know if the fan works 

We don't know if the fan works but it's pretty easy to test. Warm the bike up then let it tick over while standing beside it. You'll hear the fan coming on.

I very much doubt the fan will be the problem. The symptoms are all "classic" knackered rad. and the K1?00 bikes are not that well known for breaking their fans.

A trip to a BMW dealer to get a formal report of the problem might then help in discussions with the dealer that sold the bike.

[nightrider]

Yes,the fan works ok and the coolant level is fine. Thanks for the advice you have been great.
I think I will phone up a proper BMW specialist today and report back. I do have the extended warranty,not that helps much in this case.

[raesewell]

It is worth giving a clean as described by Brian, it will extend the life of the rad if the crud isn't too well embedded. I did mine a couple of times before I needed a new rad.