In the process of buying a K1300 S

[FlyingKiwi121]

Hi guys n girls,

Rode a friends' K1300 GT the other day and realised I needed to change my Speed Triple 1050! Found a 2011 K1300 S that looks like it will do the trick. Thought a collection of other K riders might provide useful info  guess that remains to be seen

[richtea]

Welcome Kiwi,

Have you bought it already, or do you need some pre-puchase guidance?

[chriscanning]

With both a K1200r Sport and an a 1050 Ohlins Speed Triple I wish you the very best trying sort those pair out,anything less than 100 miles I’ll take the Speed Triple over that hmm,for no other reason no chain to look after then probably the K.

[Phmode]

Hi Chris and welcome to the madhouse that is EuroKClub!

Plenty of advice in here about the K, some which might delight you and some which might not, depending on whether you have done the deed or not.

If not, good luck with the search and a look over the buying advice compiled by #richtea, in one of the threads which I can never find 

There's a message in there somewhere, even though I don't really need the advice, it does need finding and pinning!!

[FlyingKiwi121]

Welcome Kiwi,

Have you bought it already, or do you need some pre-puchase guidance?

I will negotiate terms tomorrow. Looks like a good deal 20k miles, fsh, minimal blemishes, panniers, grips, traction, abs, esa, quoted a good trade in on the Speed, so I'm happy with the difference dependent on level of service history

[FlyingKiwi121]

With both a K1200r Sport and an a 1050 Ohlins Speed Triple I wish you the very best trying sort those pair out,anything less than 100 miles I’ll take the Speed Triple over that hmm,for no other reason no chain to look after then probably the K.

Ha ha, getting older and lazier fed up with the Chain drive!!

[FlyingKiwi121]

Hi Chris and welcome to the madhouse that is EuroKClub!

Plenty of advice in here about the K, some which might delight you and some which might not, depending on whether you have done the deed or not.

If not, good luck with the search and a look over the buying advice compiled by #richtea, in one of the threads which I can never find 

There's a message in there somewhere, even though I don't really need the advice, it does need finding and pinning!!

I think I might have stumbled on the buying advice and things look ok. Little bit worried about the whole radiator situation but money and a good technician will sort that!!

[chriscanning]

With both a K1200r Sport and an a 1050 Ohlins Speed Triple I wish you the very best trying sort those pair out,anything less than 100 miles I’ll take the Speed Triple over that hmm,for no other reason no chain to look after then probably the K.

Ha ha, getting older and lazier fed up with the Chain drive!!

Ha ha

With 6 bikes currently on the go more than enough choice,and if was starting out again I’d be going K1300r.

[Phmode]

Hi Chris and welcome to the madhouse that is EuroKClub!

Plenty of advice in here about the K, some which might delight you and some which might not, depending on whether you have done the deed or not.

If not, good luck with the search and a look over the buying advice compiled by #richtea, in one of the threads which I can never find 

There's a message in there somewhere, even though I don't really need the advice, it does need finding and pinning!!

I think I might have stumbled on the buying advice and things look ok. Little bit worried about the whole radiator situation but money and a good technician will sort that!!

Well, money and a new radiator perhaps. Mine cleaned up well with about the same mileage as your prospective bike but a spare radiator or two always comes in handy...

[raesewell]

There is a thread on radiator cleaning, it can be done on the bike but I suppose off the bike would be better, but remember it MUST be vacuum filled.

[GlynH]

Talking vacuum filling it doesn’t have to be an expensive job either.

A quick search on Amazon turns up a couple under £30 like this one for example;

https://amzn.eu/d/0erz15ty

I’ve not purchased one so can’t vouch for its quality nor effectiveness…it was just the price that grabbed my attention.

I’ve seen a video where it was recommended not to use the cone type bung that goes in the coolant tank but this one seems to use the parallel expansion sleeve bung that looks identical to the Sealey VS0042 that costs @£100 more.

If anyone is holding off purchasing one of these due to price it could prove an attractive purchase.

-=Glyn=-

[richtea]

20k? Just run in, that is.

I've had three K1300S that have gone beyond 38k on the original radiator, so they don't fall apart instantly.
It takes winter riding + no annual (external) radiator cleaning to clog them. That or bad luck. Who knows.

A hint of 'winter riding + no cleaning' can be identified by peeling shaft drive and front wheel holder paint.
They all bubble eventually, but if it's dropping off rather than bubbling then consider a price drop or another bike. Just bubbling - yup, that's par for the course.

The current radiator (39k) is definitely sub-optimal in looks, but it still works.

New ones are around £500 mark plus labour.

[black-k1]

20k? Just run in, that is.

I've had three K1300S that have gone beyond 38k on the original radiator, so they don't fall apart instantly.
It takes winter riding + no annual (external) radiator cleaning to clog them. That or bad luck. Who knows.

A hint of 'winter riding + no cleaning' can be identified by peeling shaft drive and front wheel holder paint.
They all bubble eventually, but if it's dropping off rather than bubbling then consider a price drop or another bike. Just bubbling - yup, that's par for the course.

The current radiator (39k) is definitely sub-optimal in looks, but it still works.

New ones are around £500 mark plus labour.

As a counter to that, I had two K1300Ss. While I didn't take a rad off either bike to clean, both bikes had their rads replaced at less than 2 years old, under the BMW from new warranty. Both bikes had done about 30k miles and were used from early April to early October (so mucky roads).

Do the test described in the buying guide and use the results in your price negotiation.

[richtea]

Do the test described in the buying guide and use the results in your price negotiation.