BUYERS REMORSE-

[tucsonk1200s]

New to the forum. picked up a 08 k12s with 16000mi. from local bmw dealer. i absolutely love the bike the looks, comfort, power, brakes, EVERYTHING. i did do some research before buying and seemed like a good choice for me and my needs. Now that i start digging a little deeper i am coming across one story after another of final drive, clutches, transmissions and other things going wrong. it has me very worried and riding the bike VERY cautiously. So now i am starting to question giving up my Honda VTR which was perfectly fine and never gave me a single problem and i did all the servicing myself. At this point i dont know what to think i bought a BMW because i thought it was reliable and refined. Maybe should have saved a few more bucks for the VFR1200?

[ssduc]

Step 1. Quit the Internet and quit worrying about what might happen.
Step 2. Spend new found free time riding the bike you say you love everything about.

[allikanbe]

+1 what he said. My 07 has more than 55K miles and no problems. the internet will give you demons.

[Gimpyz]

Step 1. Quit the Internet and quit worrying about what might happen.
Step 2. Spend new found free time riding the bike you say you love everything about.

I agree with this. Let's face facts, people that have problems complain. People that don't have problems don't complain. There for it stands to reason that you will hear more comlaints than good stuff.
I know you say you had a Honda VTR that you never had problems with. I am on the other side of that coin. My wife had 2 of them. Got the first one new. It was great the first year, then problems. Finally got rid of it. But the wife really liked it. Figured it must have be a fluke, every one says that they are great bikes. I mean it's a Honda right? I have had several VFRs with no problems. Got another one (this time a used one that the owner said was in "Great condition with no problems") after 3 months and over a $1000 at the dealer even they could not get it to go down the highway at steady throttle without surging. Sold it. NEVER AGAIN will I or my wife own another VTR. I'm not saying they are bad bikes, but I sure haven't had good luck with them. Your experience was different than mine, In the same as your K bike experence will most likley be different than that of those that are complaining.

[Ed F K]

30K plus miles on my 07... And planning a multi-state solo run on it in July without hesitation.

[r1 Convert]

24k on mine, jobs I have had completed and ongoing costs below:

1) serviced regularly
2) clutch cage thingy (£80)
3) timing chain tensioner (£90)
4) lots of tyres
5) £3.50 every week at the car wash
6) £20 every week for coffee stops
7) have to put fuel in it
massive cost for hotels on big trips (£1300 last trip !!)
9) a bit of grief from the wife when I want to go out both days on the weekend !
10) im really running out of stuff to say ..... Erm, no, can't think of ...... Hang on, 130 Euro's for a speeding fine in Germany
11) nah, I've run out.

Dont worry, you only ever hear about stuff going wrong on here !

[badger]

Sorry dude - I don't often say this on forums and point the finger - but TROLL

Anyone with any clue would read up on the issues of the VFR1200. My god, you would then kiss every inch of the K12.

It's not like I am rabid supporter of the mark - I don't even own one anymore (more's the pity), and you should see my anguish with the troubles I'm having with my replacement bike.

If it really does bug you, then simply think what else (ok, VFR1200) and then spend as much time looking at it's issues as the K12.

OR - just get out and ride it.....

[SHIVA]

TROLL

interesting observation. You know we don't get trolls on our community anymore, because they know we are too smart for them.

[AK Addict]

Sorry dude - I don't often say this on forums and point the finger - but TROLL

I wouldn't be so sure of that, I just bought my K1200S in February and have been having the same concerns till I decided to stop worrying and ride more. I still have concerns but I'm feeling more confident in my purchase with every mile.

[badger]

Sorry dude - I don't often say this on forums and point the finger - but TROLL

I wouldn't be so sure of that, I just bought my K1200S in February and have been having the same concerns till I decided to stop worrying and ride more. I still have concerns but I'm feeling more confident in my purchase with every mile.

- has bike, but little miles
- reads internet getting worried of issues
- names maybe the most issue-ridden bike as something should have chosen?!

Hmmm.

Well yes, but each to their own, and no hard feelings or issues. At least the OP can be certain if any issue at all arises then I will try to post any tips or tricks I know to help them out.

Rick

[tucsonk1200s]

thanks guys makes me feel a whole lot better .I love the bike more and more every ride its soo smooth. And i am aware of the issues with the VFR- driveline, ect. But i still think it is a nice bike and that Honda builds quality bikes. maybe i should have said newest Blackbird i could find and put Givi's and some heated grips?? I have had nothing but Honda's and have been very satisfied. So this is a change, And i know the k 12s a good choice but all the bad stories had me second guessing myself. And i have been out riding it. riding the hell out of it, and i have to say this thing rips!! what suprised me was how hard i can charge corners being such a big bike.... But my favorite thing about my K12s is oulling up to a stop light and another 25 year old dude is on a brand new R1 and he thinks its a lame old man bike. and i give him a serious run for the money until the speed gets stupid... For the record i am happy with bike but when you sign on a pretty big loan and then read horror stories and about expensive servicing you wonder if u made the right decision- is that understandable? and oh yeah im only 25 and all my buddies are on CBRS1000 and ZX10Rs And u get the idea. taking the heat from them too-

[winger]

Well I've read this with interest,there isn't a single right or wrong post here all of them have some relevence,but I run 4 bikes an XT660x/955 Tiger/R1100s and my K1200r Sport,while the websites that cover the first 3 have posts about mechanical and electrical problems from time to time,NOTHING absolutely comes close to the K1200's sites and there are many(sites that is),you can draw any conclusion you like depending on how you want to bend the info on here,but the odds of hassle are a lot higher with a K.


You will find plenty of postings UK related about the extended warranty that BMW UK run and I wouldn't dream of running my K without it(I've used it enough) and as a contrast my XT was never even taken back for it's first service,and my 1100s hasn't seen the inside of a dealers work shop in 10 years,you may well get lucky that you have a good K plenty do,but the odds are not as high compared to buying a Honda thats for sure,were it got complicated for me,I'd ridden Jap bikes for 30+ years and had just had enough of the same old same old,but buying the K was a risk that I was prepared to take,and the important bit,because I could afford to!!.

[badger]

thanks guys makes me feel a whole lot better .I love the bike more and more every ride its soo smooth. And i am aware of the issues with the VFR- driveline, ect. But i still think it is a nice bike and that Honda builds quality bikes. maybe i should have said newest Blackbird i could find and put Givi's and some heated grips?? I have had nothing but Honda's and have been very satisfied. So this is a change, And i know the k 12s a good choice but all the bad stories had me second guessing myself. And i have been out riding it. riding the hell out of it, and i have to say this thing rips!! what suprised me was how hard i can charge corners being such a big bike.... But my favorite thing about my K12s is oulling up to a stop light and another 25 year old dude is on a brand new R1 and he thinks its a lame old man bike. and i give him a serious run for the money until the speed gets stupid... For the record i am happy with bike but when you sign on a pretty big loan and then read horror stories and about expensive servicing you wonder if u made the right decision- is that understandable? and oh yeah im only 25 and all my buddies are on CBRS1000 and ZX10Rs And u get the idea. taking the heat from them too-

Way-hey, you have got the BUG proper now!!

There is no going back now. 25 years old on a VFR1200? You would never live that one down matey - a close call if you were thinking of it (may as well get a GS! )

Rick

[cbr629]

Just ride it to the wheels fall off...lol it will be fine.

[scrannel]

Goddamn-it! My '06 K1200R has perfect throttle response -- no vibes in the handle bars -- a clutch so smooth it feels like it's mechanical -- ABS is flawless -- no trouble at all with the timing chain!!! Comfortable, fast and trouble-free! None of the things that are supposed to go bad are! Who do I complain to!?

[Gonzoduc]

As a recent 06 k1200s buyer I feel your pain on this one. I bought a bike from a reputable local shop a few months ago and am now petrified of the bike. When I bought the bike the guy told me nothing of the past history of the bike even though I of course asked. I thought him not saying anyting meant it didn't have any bad history, or they didn't know of any, wow was I wrong. A few weeks after purchase I am digging through the stack of stuff they gave me and found pages and pages of repair notices for this bike. So not only did they know about the history, they purposely hid it from me, the repair sheets were stuffed inside an old sales brochure for the bike in the stack of stuff they gave me. After talking to the sales rep this week he said they would do nothing for me about the bike. My question then is what do you guys think I should do about this one? I absolutely hate lawyers, but I feel like it might be my only option. So for the record the list of what has gone wrong with it is as follows. Thanks in advance for the advice. Ps I have been riding for about 25 years and have had many bikes so no freaked out newb here.
Final drive replaced
Transmission replaced-twice
Clutch and clutch basket replaced-twice
Ignition coils replaced-twice
Cam chain replaced at least three times- the last because it jumped causing the head to eat itself, and the dented pistons were left in the bike.

[sundog]

i would be more worried if they HADN'T replaced those parts !

See the positive side.. At least you know most of the parts are brand new!
As long as its running well, don't worry.

At one point i also used to get panic attacks after reading so much negative comment about the bike on this forum.
I learned to ignore most of it and only read the posts that are relevant to me.
There is a lot of unintentional scare mongering on forums - its the nature of the beast.
eg 1: my final drive was leaking oil, someone said "same happened to me, and shortly after it died and needed replacing" - turns out it needed a new seal.
eg 2: my bike was leaking coolant, someone said, probably the head gasket needs replacing! - turns out a pipe had come loose during service.

I'm not saying people intentionally try to scare monger, but often just speak from their past experience and often bring worst case scenarios to the table unnecessarily.

[Eka]

If it has all that history, then it has been extremely bad one, but your bike is fixed... right? What is the problem? The only disturbing part is this:

Cam chain replaced at least three times- the last because it jumped causing the head to eat itself, and the dented pistons were left in the bike

How you know pistons are dented? Is there jump guard? Doesn't it run properly?

[allikanbe]

I agree with Eka. I'd be more concerned about the pistons.
I bought a used Audi last year that had the motor replaced by the dealership a few thousand miles before I bought it. That was actually a selling point to me. I'd let BMW replace my trans today if they did it for free.

[Gonzoduc]

I know the pistons are dented because I found about 15 pages of posts on another forum from the former owner. He said they paid to redo the head even though it was way out of warranty but left the dented pistons in it.

My concern is that yes this looks to have been a really bad bike, and if the drivetrain goes again the repairs won't be done under warranty this time, and it will cost me just about as much as I spent on the bike.

[throttlemeister]

and my 1100s hasn't seen the inside of a dealers work shop in 10 years

You should see the list of things that can go wrong or break on the 1100s

[winger]

and my 1100s hasn't seen the inside of a dealers work shop in 10 years

You should see the list of things that can go wrong or break on the 1100s

And then compare it to the K1200 list ,and strangely the two things that don't crop up are warranty and dealer because their DIY,yea yea I know you do your own K1200,but your an oddity in the nicest possible way of course

[Tr0jan]

i would be more worried if they HADN'T replaced those parts !

See the positive side.. At least you know most of the parts are brand new!
As long as its running well, don't worry.

At one point i also used to get panic attacks after reading so much negative comment about the bike on this forum.
I learned to ignore most of it and only read the posts that are relevant to me.
There is a lot of unintentional scare mongering on forums - its the nature of the beast.
eg 1: my final drive was leaking oil, someone said "same happened to me, and shortly after it died and needed replacing" - turns out it needed a new seal.
eg 2: my bike was leaking coolant, someone said, probably the head gasket needs replacing! - turns out a pipe had come loose during service.

I'm not saying people intentionally try to scare monger, but often just speak from their past experience and often bring worst case scenarios to the table unnecessarily.

Most probably the above two items for the other party went completely sour because they saw it leaking oil, and left it be. Also, using water, aaa, lets just top it up, over heat... Problems.

My motto is to keep the bike absolutely 100% and no nasty down the line suprizes will pop up.

[throttlemeister]

I've decided I have buyers remorse too. Spend a lot of money on a new clutch, spend months to get the fueling sorted with the RB3 to no avail - though that was quickly fixed with the purchase of a PCV, had the airbox replaced. Spend more money on repairs in one year of ownership than all my other bikes over the past 20 years of riding.

But f* me when this bike is good, it is GOOD.

My buyers remorse? I should have bought the damn thing sooner. I've wasted years of my life i could have been enjoying this bike.

[winger]

Repairs like what?