Were early K100 designed for leaded fuel?

[75450]

Were the early K100 designed for leaded fuel and if so do they have valve (seat?) problems when run on modern fuels? If they did have this restriction, what year did BMW change the alloys to handle unleaded fuels? What about the K75?

 

[pglaves]

Were the early K100 designed for leaded fuel and if so do they have valve (seat?) problems when run on modern fuels? If they did have this restriction, what year did BMW change the alloys to handle unleaded fuels? What about the K75?

No. All K bikes were designed to run well on non-leaded fuel.

 

[75450]

No. All K bikes were designed to run well on non-leaded fuel.

Thank you.

(I also saw your response over on the airhead sub-forum.)

 

[jpdicarlo]

Germany actually started the lead phase out before the US did; early 70s. Due to the frequency of cross-border driving, they may have keep kept it available on a limited basis longer than we did.
Luckily those smart BMW engineers saw the future and designed their new engines accordingly.