BMW K1600 - Me?

[Checkswrecks]

Tombstone picking up a GoldWing project bike got me thinking that for how much 2-up I'm now riding. https://www.yamahasupertenere.com/index.php?threads/project-bike.32125/

The Tenere IS my bike and no plans to sell it but I have NBS - New Bike Syndrome - plus my tall lady wants to ride more and gets cramped back there on longer rides. What I would REALLY like is the new (2018+) Wings but can't justify dropping that much money on a bike I only use for 2-up. Mentioned this to some of my Maryland friends and one pointed out that Bobs BMW has a 2012 K1600GTL project bike for only $4,500. What are friends for, but to spend the money of other friends, right?

Bobs is a half hour from my place and less than 2 miles from a visit to my 2 y.o. grand daughter so off I went the next morning after an evening on the K1600 forum to do research.

The bike is pretty and appearance-wise in great shape with the usual wear of being 10 years old. The 90,000 miles really isn't bad for a bike that spends most of its time on interstates and this one is long past the water pump and other teething problems these things had. They are expensive maintenance hogs if letting the dealer do the work and valve checks are a big deal but being semi-retired and having the Tenere to ride I wasn't too worried. The reason it is a project is that it needs the front ball joints, rear shock rebuilt, tires, brake pads and a rotor. Absolutely beyond what it would be worth to have the dealer do the work.

Hmmmm - I could handle those. Things were going well until . . .

[drum roll please]

I sat on it.
Ever have one of those bikes where you instantly KNEW it just was't meant for you? This was one of those with the long tank sloping away, the swept back cruiser bars, and how sitting on it just wasn't "me."

Oh well - If anybody else is interested, here's the ad for it. https://www.bobsbmw.com/motorcycle-inventory/pre-owned-motorcycles/2012-bmw-k1600gtl-project-bike/

 

[MileageMonster]

Not even if it was for free!

 

[AZMike]

I rode one and the leg room for tall riders wasn't there. I wanna love it but i just can't

 

[bimota]

not ridden one, but really like the k1600

rob

 

[Squibb]

They are a nice ride, with that super smooth 6, but a heavy old bus that eats tyres if ridden spiritedly. Mine was a 2012 GT, later chopped in for an FJR1300ES.

On the face of it this seems like a good deal if servicing is otherwise UTD. The front BJ is an awkward job, with high torques, special tools & heat involved. The rear ES unit is ridiculously expensive, but many prefer to switch to Wilbers. The rest is straightforward stuff, but whether it can be made to work in terms of value remains questionable; most traders tend to blanch at 90k.

 

[Dirt_Dad]

That K is not a good looking bike. Yes, I have seen my bike.

I'm still a fan of you getting a Goldwing. It a wonderfully sporty bike. No reason it has to be limited to 2-up rides.

Plus I'll have a friend who will let ride his Goldwing. I can't have one because DM refuses to ride 2-up.

 

[Sierra1]

. . . . I can't have one because DM refuses to ride 2-up.

I wouldn't ride with you wheelin' ass either.

 

[Dirt_Dad]

That made DM laugh. She is one of the very few who have seen me aledgidly wheelie on the street.

 

[magic]

That BMW with 90,000 miles is going to be a money pit. Honda Gold Wings are wonderful machines, but don't really fit tall riders and passengers. My buddy tells me a 1500 was better than a 1800 for taller riders and passengers. The most comfortable motorcycles that I ever rode were Harley Davidson Electra Glides. Tallboy seat, floorboards relocated forward, tourpack with backrest, arm rests for passenger etc... no complaints from any passenger short or tall.

 

[Madhatter]

harley electra glides , the only Harley that appeals to me . but the wife won't ride and she won't let me have a girl friend so what's the point. and at my age I would fit right in with that crowd. I will enjoy from afar.

 

[~TABASCO~]

The K is a great bike, I would like to own one as well one day. I had a friend a few years ago buy a new one and it was a beast. It’s so hard to walk away from the tried and true Yamaha product that has severed me very well for more than 20++ years with zero (major) issues.
That’s pretty hard to beat.

 

[Donk]

Think I'd go back to an FJR before a K bike. Cost aside the K is bigger and heavier than the FJR and not much different in the ergos. The new GoldWings are great and won't stay expensive forever. The market she's a changing... for the last couple of years the auction has averaged 200 bikes weekly for the last 5 or 6 weeks been close to 800 bikes a week.

 

[Sierra1]

After seeing the new 'Wing up close in person, I now know why they cancelled the ST1300. The new 'Wing reminds me of the ST, to the point I initially thought they had brought it back. So, if they still had the ST13, and had kept updating it, it would have been similar to the newest 'Wing. And considering the difference in price? They would hard pressed to sell the 'Wing over the ST. 'Cuz, apparently the 'Wing of old, is not what you get today. For $23K, you get the ST look alike. To get what I remember the 'Wing to look like, that's another $5k. And that makes the K1600 priced right in competition with it, and even kinda styled like it at the different trim levels.

 

[Dirt_Dad]

The market she's a changing ... for the last couple of years the auction has averaged 200 bikes weekly for the last 5 or 6 weeks been close to 800 bikes a week.

Could be all those bikes purchased during the height of COVID moving on from their first time bike owners.

And you're right. Talking to my dealership GM buddy this weekend. The market has definitely changed beyond the normal seasonal change.