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'06 K1200GT, advice from those that know?

robday

New member
Hi folks-
I'm going for a test ride on Tuesday. I'm looking at a very clean (immaculate?) '06 K1200GT to add to my stable (no, I'm not getting rid of the '92 K75S!).

The asking price is $10,995 and the bike has 27k miles on it. I'm hoping to talk the dealer down to $10k if possible.

Does this sound like a reasonable price? The bike has many extras; large trunk, driver's backrest, and all of the options that were available at the time including onboard computer, heated grips and seats, etc.

I know I'll be paying a slight premium buying from a dealer, but their financing is very attractive. I already called my insurance company, and with the multi-bike discount I'm looking at an extra $300/year...not bad for full coverage.

So please tell me what you think of the price? Um, hopefully before Tuesday?;)

Thanks all!
Rob

p.s. any warnings about failures or difficult service would be welcome as well, I plan to do most of the work (if any) myself. Thanks again!
 
I've been looking at a similar bike from my local dealer. It is a 2008, 9800 miles, has all the options - fully loaded, warranty still has 1 year to go, $12,995.

That said, your dealer should lower the price $1000 without question. I'll bet you could get it for $9500 or less. 27K isn't a deal breaker on a BMW but dealers have a hard time selling bikes with over 20,000 miles.
 
I bought it...

Wow, what a fantastic bike!
Here's a picture, it came with lots of extras.
I left my truck at the dealership (an hour away) and rode the bike home. Went back tonight with my wife to get the truck.

The salesman may have been getting worried...'cause I went on the test ride and didn't bring it back very soon. I was having too much fun! After riding around town for a while, I jumped on the freeway and took a cruise. I made a lap of 3 freeways, then headed back to the dealer...but as I got close, all I could think was, "I don't want to give it back yet." So I made a few more freeway laps, maybe 30 or so miles. It's really a joy to ride, nimble, light, FULL OF POWER, in some respects it's easier to ride than my K75S. Low speed maneuvering is excellent, acceleration is, well, awe-inspiring!

It came with a bunch of nice extras, too. The trunk and backrest, liners for all of the saddlebags and trunk, a tank bag, a mini air-compressor, patch kit. It has an Aeroflow windscreen (a little wider and taller than stock) with extra Aeroflow side screens along the fairing edges. And all of the available accessories offered. The backrest is coming off (it bugs me) and the trunk will only be for longer trips.

It's in really beautiful condition, one previous owner and all service records, all work done at the dealer where I bought it. They couldn't find the owner's manual though, but are supposed to be mailing it to me when it turns up.

Unfortunately, this means I have to clean out the garage. :(
The K75S has owned that space for years, and now it's time to move over and share the love. I have to remember not to neglect the 75...
 

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Beautiful bike - CONGRATULATIONS!!

I totally enjoy my GT, it is a very "rangeable" bike, it will go slow when you want, fast when you want, everything in between.

I got the same Aeroflow set up and it makes it essentially impervious to the weather.

Have fun with it.

:thumb
 
Thanks SF, and I will definitely have fun with it!
Got up early this morning to clear out some garage space, but the weather looks good...still deciding. It's parked under a tent shade in the driveway, behind a locked gate, with a cover on it right now. Dang it, why does mother nature toy with me this way?

OK, compromise...make enough room in the garage to park (and do it fast), then go for a ride before I need to get ready for work (I work nights). Yeah, that's the ticket.
 
Well now you need to update your avatar and sig line :brow

Oh, good catch...

Hey, got a question for ya:
Is there a "trick" for getting it off the center stand? When I test rode it, it was easy (parked on concrete), or at least it seemed that way. After the test ride and before riding it home, I had parked it on asphalt. The stand sunk in just a little bit, and I could not get it off the center stand (I was worried about bonking my face on the windscreen). It was embarrassing, the salesman had to give me a push...ugh.

This morning I removed the backrest (it bugged me) and tried a couple of transitions from the center stand on my concrete driveway. It took a few tries, and I don't think I'll ever be able to have kids after this...I knocked my "nethers" on the tank a couple of times. Surely there is a better way that doesn't involve wearing a cup?

Thanks bro, and I'm assuming you're Marine (or ex), so Semper Fi right back atcha! (I was "Semper Paratus", just a Coast Guardsman, but have many Marine buddies). Always support the troops, regardless of your politics!!!:dance
 
Oh, good catch...

Hey, got a question for ya:
Is there a "trick" for getting it off the center stand? When I test rode it, it was easy (parked on concrete), or at least it seemed that way. After the test ride and before riding it home, I had parked it on asphalt. The stand sunk in just a little bit, and I could not get it off the center stand (I was worried about bonking my face on the windscreen). It was embarrassing, the salesman had to give me a push...ugh.

Sometimes it hangs on me too - what I usually do is sit back in the drivers seat until my butt is resting on the front on the pillion (and the boys from the tank) and lean and push forward hard with locked arms at the same time - usually I get it on the first or second time - just a little practice


Thanks bro, and I'm assuming you're Marine (or ex), so Semper Fi right back atcha! (I was "Semper Paratus", just a Coast Guardsman, but have many Marine buddies). Always support the troops, regardless of your politics!!!:dance

Yes - former and my sentiments exactly - it's not where you served its that you served!
 
Low speed practice

This morning was low speed practice day.
Took the GT out around town (Los Angeles) in heavy traffic. It behaved perfectly. I ended up down at the beach to enjoy some cool air, then back around town again. Stopped in at work to show it off to the day crew, then back in the traffic again until coming to work at 3.
I noticed no bad tendencies, it was rock solid and completely controllable at speeds below walking speed.
It did take a little practice to get used to the transition from throttle-off to roll-on, the extra power is apparent in all ranges. The throttle response is far better than my 75, and the GT doesn't suffer from the extra long throttle twist of the 75. So I learned to be very precise with it to avoid lurching, and judicious use of the clutch helped in certain situations.
I could easily take the driving test on this bike, it behaves so well at slow speeds.

I'm untra-happy, completely satisfied, and itching for my next day off to hit the open road. My wife is also happy that she'll have a backrest when the trunk is on; she was scared to get on the back of the 75 after I put a gunfighter seat on it...and now she's asking about learning to ride and possibly riding the 75. So, I had her sit on it. She can't touch the ground. I feigned dissappointment and changed the subject...and told her how comfy she'll be on the back of the GT.

One of my riding buddies has a nice Goldwing, and after seeing the GT he's talking about going down to the same dealer and making a trade. I can't say I blame him!
 
Seats...

Ok, my only complaint so far is the seat. I'm not diggin' it.

So I looked around to see what's available.
I really like the way the Corbin looks, but you have to buy both halves and it comes to $1k. Ouch.
I also looked at the Sargent, and it looks ok (and I've heard others speak well of it), but it's over $700.
I'm looking at a Rick Mayer as well, and he covers the back seat to match the new front seat. Cost is about $550. Ok, now we're getting somewhere...
A riding buddy has a Rick Mayer on his R1200RT and says if he could fit the bike in his living room, he'd sit on it to watch TV because it's THAT comfortable. The drawback? It's pretty ugly.
But I can live with ugly since my butt will be covering it most of the time.

What is everybody else sitting on?

If money was not an issue, I think I would go with the Corbin. It appears to hug the butt in the same way as my Gunfighter does, and I love that seat. Does anyone have the Corbin on a GT?

I have plenty of time to decide. I'm dropping big "hint-bombs" on the wife for Christmas, but when she saw the price of the Corbin she flipped.
In the meantime I'm trying to get used to the stock seat. One of the things I don't like about it is the slight forward tilt. I like to sit a little further back, and the stock seat seems like it's trying to make me sit more forward. And when I get in the right spot, I can feel the back edge of the seat on my butt.
My seat has a custom cover on it that could be partly to blame; it's a mesh material that breathes well, but isn't as "grippy" as normal seat materials. I've also considered cutting down the rider's seat rear rubbers by 1/2" to see if this eliminates the perception of sliding forward. Has anyone tried anything similar?
BTW, I ride with the seat in the high position because it seemed more sloped in the low position. And I notice that almost all of the aftermarket seats have eliminated this forward slope.

Hopefully those with aftermarket seats will chime in and give me some good advice.
Thanks folks!
 
One of the ugliest best fitting, most comfortable seats out there is the RDL--Russel Day Long. Once you experience the day long, you'll never settle for anything less in comfort.

The Sargent is good.

The Corbin is extremely firm, and if you ever need customer service from them, well good luck.

Get the RDL.
 
Ok, my only complaint so far is the seat. I'm not diggin' it.

So I looked around to see what's available.
I really like the way the Corbin looks, but you have to buy both halves and it comes to $1k. Ouch.
I also looked at the Sargent, and it looks ok (and I've heard others speak well of it), but it's over $700.
I'm looking at a Rick Mayer as well, and he covers the back seat to match the new front seat. Cost is about $550. Ok, now we're getting somewhere...
A riding buddy has a Rick Mayer on his R1200RT and says if he could fit the bike in his living room, he'd sit on it to watch TV because it's THAT comfortable. The drawback? It's pretty ugly.
But I can live with ugly since my butt will be covering it most of the time.

What is everybody else sitting on?

If money was not an issue, I think I would go with the Corbin. It appears to hug the butt in the same way as my Gunfighter does, and I love that seat. Does anyone have the Corbin on a GT?

I have plenty of time to decide. I'm dropping big "hint-bombs" on the wife for Christmas, but when she saw the price of the Corbin she flipped.
In the meantime I'm trying to get used to the stock seat. One of the things I don't like about it is the slight forward tilt. I like to sit a little further back, and the stock seat seems like it's trying to make me sit more forward. And when I get in the right spot, I can feel the back edge of the seat on my butt.
My seat has a custom cover on it that could be partly to blame; it's a mesh material that breathes well, but isn't as "grippy" as normal seat materials. I've also considered cutting down the rider's seat rear rubbers by 1/2" to see if this eliminates the perception of sliding forward. Has anyone tried anything similar?
BTW, I ride with the seat in the high position because it seemed more sloped in the low position. And I notice that almost all of the aftermarket seats have eliminated this forward slope.

Hopefully those with aftermarket seats will chime in and give me some good advice.
Thanks folks!

I have the Corbin. It's beautiful!

Buy the Sargent. It's comfortable!
 
Getting frustrated...

Ok, looking further into the seat issue I've come to a couple of conclusions:

First, one rider's "ultra-comfortable" seat is another rider's "ungodly rock".

I've heard good and bad about most of the aftermarket seats available.
I was leaning towards the Russell Day-Long, but it does not incorporate the BMW heat controls; it has to be wired to your battery, and it uses it's own switches. I would abandon the stock controls on the handlebar as well as the passenger switch, and use additional switches for the RDL. I don't like this idea, so am still looking.

I'd like to take a different approach to this.

Are there any riders (of a GT) in the Los Angeles area with an aftermarket seat that would be willing to let me sit on their bike? I'll come to you!
I can't think of any other way to be sure I'm going to like whichever seat I go with.
And at this point, price is pretty far down the list of priorities.

One of the guys I ride with tried a Sargent on his R1200RT and hated it, sent it back. He says it was uncomfortable. He currently rides on a Rick Mayer and swears by it.
But others have said the Sargent is very comfortable...

Another buddy has a Wunderlich on his R1150RT and loves it. But it doesn't look like Wunderlich is making seats anymore (or at least I couldn't find them on the Wunderlich America website).

I really need to sit on a couple of examples. If any of you SoCal GT riders can help me out, I would really appreciate it.
Feel free to PM me...

Rob
 
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