Concerns about buying K1600GT the first year

[beemerdons]

After 1800 miles,there are a few glitches. My XM has stopped working. There is a propietary BMW cable to connect your Ipod. However,due to the close proximity of the IPOD location,lower right fairing pocket,it overheats the ipod after about 20 minutes of use. Other than those electronic gremlins and poor design,this bike rocks. I;ve owned my share of bmw's as well as everything else out there.

57525, I fully agree with you: Our BMW K1600GT is the finest motorcycle I've ever owned.

I started riding on the street in March of 1969 on a used 1959 Triumph Speed Twin 500.

In March of 1969 I bought my 1966 BMW R60/2 from my off the base German Landlord while stationed in the US Army at Reisse Kaserne, Augsburg. That started a lasting love affair with BMW that has lasted for 43 years and over 500,000 miles on Boxer Twins.

My Son Seth (15) and I are crazy about "Gisele" and were putting 1.5K miles a month on her until the deer strike. I just hope as my Forum Friend and Fellow BMW Rider /
Owner that you'll not need any parts until the year 2013, because you'll not get them!

I do have some good news to report though, I received shipping information on Gisele:

She is in the hands of AA Transport, Shipment # JA 2335 and she should be here 3/2!

I did not receive that information from BMW Motorcycles of SLC, they were a real joke!

[57525]

I use to hang out at Butler and Smith when I was teen in the early 70's. Back when Udo Geitl,Todd Schuster and Dave Braunstein were there. AMOL Precision was my other haunt before kurt had his issues. Sometimes having the best and newest isn't always a good idea. Good Luck and I'll stay away from the Deer

[motorcop@wi.rr.com]

Hi Don: I know I have seen a few threads on the various BMW websites where GT/GTL owners have crashed/totalled their bikes. Two stick out in my mind but I don't know what happened to the bikes. I know you were just given some info on a "possible" but if it doesn't pan out let me know and I will do some checking. Good Luck...Rick

[beemerdons]

Hi Don: I know I have seen a few threads on the various BMW websites where GT/GTL owners have crashed/totalled their bikes. Two stick out in my mind but I don't know what happened to the bikes. I know you were just given some info on a "possible" but if it doesn't pan out let me know and I will do some checking. Good Luck...Rick

Many thanks to you, Rick! Since there are now seven K1600's in our AZ Beemers Club, last weekend we K16 Guys discussed buying a crashed/totalled K1600 bike.

We plan on splitting the buy costs 7 ways and then this is our "BMW Parts Store"!

[beemerdons]

I use to hang out at Butler and Smith when I was teen in the early 70's. Back when Udo Geitl,Todd Schuster and Dave Braunstein were there. AMOL Precision was my other haunt before kurt had his issues. Sometimes having the best and newest isn't always a good idea. Good Luck and I'll stay away from the Deer

57525, I have always been spooked by deer and now I am terrified of those rats!

You should see the front of my R1150RT, I put on 6 deer whistles just before the BMW MOA International Rally held in Essex Junction, Vermont back in 2006. After super slabbing it back to the Northeast, I rode two laners all across O Canada.

I turned South to Arizona in Edmonton and saw so many doggone deer I had nightmares about forest vermin for weeks. Son Seth and I leave for a month ride to Alaska on June 5. Ha, ha! I wonder if there is a Guinness World Book Record for the most deer whistles on the front of a K1600GT. I'll find out my BMW Friends!

You'll get a kick out of this 57525! Last Summer my Son Seth (then 14) and his DaddyDon rode 8,100 miles in 18 days back to Cabot Trail in Nova Scotia, Canada. We rounded a tight curve at speed between Ingonish Bay and Neil Harbor and there stood "The World's Largest Moose"!

We stopped so close to his big belly and he was so tall my Son Seth told me to just "ride under him"! What a story Seth had for his school chums!

[bogthebasher]

Wow! I lived in northern Alberta near the same latitude as southern Alaska for twenty years and never quite got that close to a moose but did develop a healthy respect for their horns in rutting season. They are mean by nature and in rutting season will charge you snapping 3" saplings like they aren't even in the way... moose are actually very dangerous to cage drivers because of their height since the hood will go right under the belly leaving a full body strike right into the windshield that the occupants do not often survive.

[motorcop@wi.rr.com]

Your welcome Don. That's actually not a bad idea to buy a crashed bike for parts as long as the bike isn't too crashed. Let us know if you go that route as I would like to know what the bike will end up costing you guys and what ends up being damaged on it. Just sitting here I could swear somone had a silver 1600 that he crashed and was a total but I think it was on a different site. He had pictures of the bike but I don't recall the details. I will have to check.......

Rick

[PittsDriver]

After 1800 miles,there are a few glitches. My XM has stopped working. There is a propietary BMW cable to connect your Ipod. However,due to the close proximity of the IPOD location,lower right fairing pocket,it overheats the ipod after about 20 minutes of use. Other than those electronic gremlins and poor design,this bike rocks. I;ve owned my share of bmw's as well as everything else out there.

Overheating isn't the main problem - it won't play more than about 1.5 songs before issuing a 'no usb' regardless of the temperature. It's an acknowledged bug in the radio according to my dealer with no date for resolution. But, that whole solution of putting the iPod/iPhone connection in that hot pocket by the engine was not the most intelligent design I've ever seen. I'm going to try to relocate the cable to my tank bag location.

[57525]

57525, I have always been spooked by deer and now I am terrified of those rats!

You should see the front of my R1150RT, I put on 6 deer whistles just before the BMW MOA International Rally held in Essex Junction, Vermont back in 2006. After super slabbing it back to the Northeast, I rode two laners all across O Canada.

I turned South to Arizona in Edmonton and saw so many doggone deer I had nightmares about forest vermin for weeks. Son Seth and I leave for a month ride to Alaska on June 5. Ha, ha! I wonder if there is a Guinness World Book Record for the most deer whistles on the front of a K1600GT. I'll find out my BMW Friends!

You'll get a kick out of this 57525! Last Summer my Son Seth (then 14) and his DaddyDon rode 8,100 miles in 18 days back to Cabot Trail in Nova Scotia, Canada. We rounded a tight curve at speed between Ingonish Bay and Neil Harbor and there stood "The World's Largest Moose"!

We stopped so close to his big belly and he was so tall my Son Seth told me to just "ride under him"! What a story Seth had for his school chums!

The trick is putting them on facing the correct direction. Otherwise they be come deer callers. And there is no solution if you come across deaf deer.

[57525]

Update: BMW says they do not know what to do about the Sirius no worky. Looks like there may be a new radio in my future and then a can of worms for software uprades. The windshield up and down operation is also timed to the radio function. So alas,my windshield is in the low position until the Sirius is fixed.Looks like this is gonna get interesting. Still no word on the IPOD USB issue either.

[beemerdons]

Mein Beautiful Fraulein Gisele is back home to me, after five months later. But, she's finally home!

I believe in providing Credit where Credit is Due! First, I'd like to thank Mr. Dean Lear; Dean is a Mover and Shaker in the World of BMW and he used his many contacts to expedite my bike's return.

Dean was the Founder of BMW Motorcycles of San Jose, California; Dean actively raced BMW motos and he's basically Lived the Life BMW for the last 4 decades. Thanks so very much, My Friend Dean.

Dean's a very active Member of BMW Riders Association and "On The Level" magazine contributor.

Second, I'd like to immensely thank Mr. Cavanaugh, BMW of North America Motorrad Team Leader.

I feel that Anthony did everything he possibly could do, under the structure of BMW NA, to get my K16 returned to me as soon as he was able to.

Anthony Cavanaugh was the Man who "Thought Outside of the BMW Box" to come up with the idea to take the expansion tank off of a demo bike.

Third, I'd like to thank BMW Roadside Assistance folks, they were so courteous and helpful to us.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Now let me lastly mention BMW Motorcycles of Salt Lake City, Utah. On the morning of the deer strike, my Son Seth and his DaddyDon had given our "Gisele" a thorough washing. We always stay at The Torrey Inn and if we travel with a group, they set up a wash station for us: Garden hose, soap, rags, towels and brushes. I highly recommend that your Utah moto visit includes The Torrey Inn.

$6,400 was spent at BMW SLC to repair "Gisele". As we unloaded her off of the truck 1 hour ago, there was still deer pee, saliva specks, and blood on my bike. They never even washed my Gisele.

Can you imagine spending that kind of $$$ and not even getting your bike back clean from a shop!!!

[motorcop@wi.rr.com]

Congrats on getting your bike back Don! I can understand your frustration with the dealer not washing your bike. I almost would have thought they would have done that BEFORE they started working on it just to have a clean platform instead of it being covered in deer goo. Deer strikes are really common in my area and the usual course is to get the junk off before working on a vehicle that took out a deer or vice versa.

I am surprised that BMW doesn't have an emergency part procurement process for downed customer vehicles. When I worked for Harley they had one but it had to be instituted by a dealer order to the factory. They would go so far as to pull a part off the assembly line if needed to get the customer back up and running. Worst case scenario was to take the needed part off another bike but if that was the only option it was done that way. Five months seems like a very long time for a current production part, no, five months IS a very long time...period.

I guess in the future I will have to keep tuned into remembering where totalled out 1600's are at. That way if I ever need a part, or someone else does at least we would have a starting point. Was the coolant tank the only part they couldn't get for you or were there other parts MIA?

Rick

P.S. How does your bike run and handle now???

[beemerdons]

Congrats on getting your bike back Don! I can understand your frustration with the dealer not washing your bike. I almost would have thought they would have done that BEFORE they started working on it just to have a clean platform instead of it being covered in deer goo. Deer strikes are really common in my area and the usual course is to get the junk off before working on a vehicle that took out a deer or vice versa.

I am surprised that BMW doesn't have an emergency part procurement process for downed customer vehicles. When I worked for Harley they had one but it had to be instituted by a dealer order to the factory. They would go so far as to pull a part off the assembly line if needed to get the customer back up and running. Worst case scenario was to take the needed part off another bike but if that was the only option it was done that way. Five months seems like a very long time for a current production part, no, five months IS a very long time...period.

I guess in the future I will have to keep tuned into remembering where totalled out 1600's are at. That way if I ever need a part, or someone else does at least we would have a starting point. Was the coolant tank the only part they couldn't get for you or were there other parts MIA?

Rick

P.S. How does your bike run and handle now???

Hi Rick, Many thanks for your congratulations and also to the many others here!

Actually, coolant tank is still not expected to be available until October this year.

Unbelievably, the left muffler will not be available from BMW until January of 2013.

I also own a Harley-Davidson FXD Super Glide and while I was out riding Gisele yesterday I swung into my local shop, Chester's Harley-Davidson of Mesa, AZ. Great Guys!

They confirmed what a lot of folks have said here, they said if it had been a Harley with this situation occurring: They would have pulled the part off the assembly line ASAP!

Rick, you have made an incredibly brilliant suggestion. I am going to go to our K1600 Sub-Forum here and proceed with this. Starting a thread identifying available salvage K1600's.

Since it's readily apparent and proven BMW Motorrad AG Germany cannot provide parts for our K1600's, we BMW MOA Members need to band together for our own protection!

[motorcop@wi.rr.com]

I was hoping you would pick up on my suggestion Don. The more eyes and ears watching for these salvaged bikes the better at least in the short term till parts are available from Mother BMW.

Rick

[PittsDriver]

Before we give BMW too big of a black eye, I wonder if the problem had been related to a warranty service claim if they would have indeed pulled whatever parts off the line that were required. But, because this was the result of an accident, i.e. not BMW's fault, that they were less cooperative? I'm not suggesting that it's good service on their part - just wondering if that's their rationale?

After all, if the delay was related to a warranty claim that took the bike down that long, wouldn't the lemon law have required them to give you a new bike?

I'm also curious to hear what your insurance company had to say about your bike being down for that long? Was that not part of a rationale to total it? Your bike was essentially crashed so at what point is the problem your insurance company's and not BMW's?

Again, I'm not defending the lack of parts availability or your treatment - just asking some critical thinking type questions that might have a bearing on your result.