Going to look at a 2005 K1200S

This Sunday I'm going to look at a 2005 K1200S with 18K miles.

Is there anything I should ask the current owner? Recalls? Known problems? Etc.?

They had a few service bulletins maybe a recall.

You can call him tonight and get the full vin , be sure he gives it correctly mind your zeros and "oh's" and you can enter th VIN on the NHTSA website.

Since most bmw dealers are closed on Sundays ,especially in winter this way you can see what recalls were called for .

If you are serious about th bike call a local dealer that's open on Mondays give the last 7 of the VIN and have them see if they show anything open.

If you can do this today or tomorrow while they may be open ( you don't show a location) even better.

They are solid bikes but like many performance bikes the fuel and tire mileage can't compare to say, an RT.

They had a few service bulletins maybe a recall.

You can call him tonight and get the full vin , be sure he gives it correctly mind your zeros and "oh's" and you can enter th VIN on the NHTSA website.

Thank you! Thank you!

The VIN is in the ad. I just entered the VIN (WB10591A15ZM26194) at the NHTSA site and got this:

2005

BMW K1200S US

2005 BMW K1200S US

VIN: WB10591A15ZM26194

Recall data refreshed on Dec 29,2017

0 Recalls associated with this VIN

I would still call a dealer tomorrow with last 7 of vin . ask for service dept. NOT first thing in the am or during lunch hours . say 10-11am and ask them to run it for anything they have .

reminder, they will not have anything in the main bmw system on services, just recalls and bulletins .

and they most likely won't give you any info on service even if they have it unless they know you and you are a trusted good dude.

if memory serves , the 2007 > had a change in the front end that made it steer a whole lot better than the early ones .

I rode them back to back and the diff was big .

FYI if the color is that matte gray it was a pain to maintain and easily scratched, very thin . there are products that are made specifically to apply to matte paint to make it look nice.

FYI if the color is that matte gray it was a pain to maintain and easily scratched, very thin . there are products that are made specifically to apply to matte paint to make it look nice.

Here's a picture of the bike. I think this is some sort of custom paint, but not sure. Maybe you would know . . .

FYI if the color is that matte gray it was a pain to maintain and easily scratched, very thin . there are products that are made specifically to apply to matte paint to make it look nice.

Here's a picture of the bike. I think this is some sort of custom paint, but not sure. Maybe you would know . . .

 

Ohhhh is definitely get a ticket or two riding that ...

Ohhhh is definitely get a ticket or two riding that ...

 

In my younger days, probably. But in my younger days I couldn't afford a bike this nice.

I'm now an old guy who rides like an old guy. Maybe I'll get a ticket for holding up traffic . . .

I was looking thru the owner's (rider's) manual online and saw that the K1200S employs a dry-sump engine. I've only had a few bikes with dry-sump engines: My Harleys and a Honda XR650L dual-sport bike. Interesting . . .

Wow, yeah, that's some custom paint alright.

Also, it has an aftermarket tubular handlebar instead of the factory 2 pc above the triple tree clip ons.

Sometimes, that means prior accident, but I don't want to be that guy.

See if he has the stock bars and get them with the deal if you get the bike.

Pull the seat and see how tidy it is under there. Look for crimp on wire connectors, paint overspray, anything that looks out of character.

Inspect very carefully the underside of the pegs, shifter, fork legs, etc.

The seller scanned his invoice and sent me a copy. He bought the bike in 2006. It sat on the showroom floor for a year because no one wanted to buck up an extra $3000 for the BMW factory custom paint. The seller was able to get the dealer to come down some. He has the original OEM bars and seat -- it was stated in the ad that they went with the bike.

This bike will make a fitting companion for my 2004 R1100S. Picture . . .

...I'm sensing a pattern here.

I've never seen that paint scheme from BMWNA. I was in dealership 98-2014

But anything' possible .

I had an 05, great bike for eating miles at a brisk pace. Ask about repair history of course, and from my anecdotal experience ask about clutches and transmissions. I understand there was an update around 2007 to correct an issue where the transmission pops out of second momentarily under hard acceleration. My 05 had it on the original and the replacement trans - the third trans (a 2007 update) did the trick. All warranty at the time.

I would have it checked for codes (ESA etc).

Finally, under idle, does it sound a little wobbly? Like mechanically? Because mine always did, made a litle judder at idle sometimes. ‘Normal'... For 40k miles I just got used to it, then it threw a rod. I have no correlation other than observation.

But I loved that bike.

BTW the dry sump oil change isn't bad, but it helps to have a fluid evacuator witha skinny hose for the tank.

BTW the dry sump oil change isn't bad, but it helps to have a fluid evacuator witha skinny hose for the tank.

I haven't looked at the service manual yet -- still waiting on it being shipped.

I've changed oil with dry-sump engines before (my Harleys) and it's a bit tricky trying to scavenge as much oil as possible from the sump to the oil tank. If you leave too much oil in the sump (usually by not having the engine warm enough) then you end up not getting enough of the old oil out.

BTW, this bike is now sitting in my garage, along with it's friend, the 2004 R1100S.