New Bike Day - 2011 BMW K1600 GT
Discussion
Just "upgraded" from a 2006 BMW K1200S.
I commute one to two days a week to airports and occasional visits to central London. The commute is between 125 and 150 miles each way depending on where I go and takes between 2.5 and 3.5 hours. Riding is all on trunk roads and mostly dual carriage ways or motorways. Ride all year round (rain included) unless -2 or below. At the moment doing around 15k per year.
The K1600 is the bike I should have bought in the first place. Perfect for what I use it for. Gives great wind protection, super smooth, 250+ mile tank range and 3 hours riding is no bother. Filtering is a bit harder though. With the K1200 I could go for most gaps and only held back if cars were super close. Can't do that for the K1600 and you need drivers to notice you when next to a lorry etc and allow the space for you to pass. The K1200 feels a much quicker bike also especially at the top of the rev range.
No regrets and super pleased.
Looking to get the foot and leg guards for the winter. If anyone has tried these I would welcome any feedback.
The really nice but not as comfortable K1200.
I commute one to two days a week to airports and occasional visits to central London. The commute is between 125 and 150 miles each way depending on where I go and takes between 2.5 and 3.5 hours. Riding is all on trunk roads and mostly dual carriage ways or motorways. Ride all year round (rain included) unless -2 or below. At the moment doing around 15k per year.
The K1600 is the bike I should have bought in the first place. Perfect for what I use it for. Gives great wind protection, super smooth, 250+ mile tank range and 3 hours riding is no bother. Filtering is a bit harder though. With the K1200 I could go for most gaps and only held back if cars were super close. Can't do that for the K1600 and you need drivers to notice you when next to a lorry etc and allow the space for you to pass. The K1200 feels a much quicker bike also especially at the top of the rev range.
No regrets and super pleased.
Looking to get the foot and leg guards for the winter. If anyone has tried these I would welcome any feedback.
The really nice but not as comfortable K1200.
I use mine for longer trips or when I need the luggage capacity and am always surprised by how much fun it is to hassle when I get back on it. The biggest downside for me is that it will quickly get to the upper reaches of the temperature guage when in traffic on a hot day.
I put foot pegs on the engine bars of mine which meant getting rid of the cubby holes but I find having the option to switch foot position really helps on longer trips as I think the standard foot position is surprisingly cramped
I think the wind protection is better on the r1250rt, it's quieter and you're in more of a cocoon but I really like the movable vents on the k1600 for a blast of air on a hot day
I put foot pegs on the engine bars of mine which meant getting rid of the cubby holes but I find having the option to switch foot position really helps on longer trips as I think the standard foot position is surprisingly cramped
I think the wind protection is better on the r1250rt, it's quieter and you're in more of a cocoon but I really like the movable vents on the k1600 for a blast of air on a hot day
Edited by GreaseNipple on Sunday 31st August 23:12
Edited by GreaseNipple on Sunday 31st August 23:14
Check the radiator is super, super clean on them. I know a few who went from the K1200/K1300 to one of these and some got stung badly by the radiator (which, tbf, was still a huge problem on the 1200/1300 as I know all too well.....).
T Tech Suspension (used to be Croydon but now I think in Haywards Heath) works wonders at refreshing the ESA suspension on these.
T Tech Suspension (used to be Croydon but now I think in Haywards Heath) works wonders at refreshing the ESA suspension on these.
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