Forums > Motorcycle Discussion > New BMW K 1300s released

Thanks for the update.   My impressions are that although it looks like a nice bike, it doesn't look much different than anything the big four have to offer.  Turn signals?  HD have had self-cancelling blinkers for over a decade.  It would have seemed to me that BMW would have picked up on that by now.  Also, and I know this is sounding like a negative post, and I don;t mean it to, but this move makes the 1200 cc 4 cyl bikes a relatively short-run oddity and the value of those on show room floors and late-model trade ins will certainly be impacted.

The BMW signals do auto cancel, but the 3 button setup is just too much.  I do prefer the HD setup (at least the one on the roadking) to all the others.

Interesting idea about the K12s.  I wonder if it will result in a price cut if inventory is left on the floor.

As pointed out by another, the turn signals are already self cancelling.

As for the idea that this bike will seriously diminish the value of the current K1200R or S, I doubt it.  The difference between these engines is modest.  If the specs are right, its only about 10% more peak torque and less than 10% more peak bhp.  I'll bet they try to hold close to msrp on the K1300, and this will give lots of room for the K1200s.

The K1200 series was already diminished when BMW made the foolish marketting error of identifying them with the concept of the "ultimate hooligan bike."  BMW buyers aren't hooligans.  They had to blow these out with significant stocks of leftovers, and the magazines even picked things like the ratty campy Suzuki Bandit as the superior naked bike.  I bought my K1200Rsport when they blew them out at four dealerships last Fall, and at the price point, I think it represented the best deal I've ever gotten on a new bike.

There were several lines in the story that sounded odd to me.  Like the idea that it was an automatic, which meant you could just slam the gears home.  Automatics shift themselves, so if you are busy slamming gears home, its not an automatic.  The idea that the final drive is maintenance free was troubling too.  They already tried this with the 2006 GS bikes, to ill effect.  I thought the release sounded half baked.

Frankly, I've got to wonder if the release is real, or a hoax.... or just a desparate measure to have a 1300 now that Kawasaki and Suzuki are up getting close to or at 1400.

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Die Entropie des Motorrads wird immer groesser. Most roaches are created unintentionally. IBA #27546

Motorcycle Daily doesn't post hoaxes!

Here's some more info and pics.

http://news.motorbiker.org/blogs.nsf/dx/intermot-2008---bmw-motorcycles.htm

I agree to about the final drive thing.  No service = replacement!

 

No hoax... they are on the floor @ the intermot show.  

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The older i get the faster i was.

My first reaction to his was, "Ha-ha, people have been doing clutchless shifting forever."
I think what they mean is, you can upshift without declutching and without closing the throttle. I wonder if they're using the same speed shifters that racers have been using for a long time, or if they (over?) engineered something new.

Steven

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Holy cow, they finally got a good turn signal switch! If the 2009 R1200R comes with that, I'll trade my '08 in for that alone.

 

Kevin

Diminished? I don't think so. BMW is attempting to change its staid image. The K1200 market positioning is spot on.

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1994 K1100RS & 2005 Harley Electra Glide

I didn't say that!  But I would say that if they put out a bike that is more similar to the competition, they will have a harder time justifying the price differential.

Hmmmm......

... I can't imagine anyone wanting a K1200R who doesn't have some hooligan DNA....and a fat roll of cash for future tickets.... and no, I'm not naming names....

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******Mike****** "We choose our joys and our sorrows long before we experience them."

BMW offers bikes that are similar to the competition. Consider the GS, a bike similar to the Buell Ulysses, KTM 990 and others. Despite its class-leading price, the GS is the leading seller in the adventure bike segment. It is also the most successful BMW of all time. BMW's unique selling proposition is not price. It's innovation, quality and reliability.  BMW aficionados aren't afraid to reach deep into their pockets (and pocketbooks) to buy into the products.

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1994 K1100RS & 2005 Harley Electra Glide

You are absolutely correct, the 1200GS is the exception that proves my point.  It represents the evolution of the segment that BMW pioneered.  It still employs the same basic components as its predecessors, air-cooled boxer, suspension, shaft-drive, in a refined form.  It's competition are quite dissimilar in form and function.  The GS's success is due, in part, to the fact that BMW has been able to identify a niche and fulfill it better than anyone else. 

The sport-bike niche is already well covered and by some very capable bikes.  IMHO, BMW will have a much more difficult time selling the price/value story to these riders.

Hmm, I see good points on both sides. 

I think it's good that BMW should build speed bikes. And I think it's excellent that they will be in WSBK next year.

On the other hand, I tend to agree with Larry that the speed bikes won't sell in great numbers. I very much doubt the K1300 will be appreciably faster than the Busa or the ZX-14. If the beemer doesn't have a speed advantage, maybe reliability and engineering will be its selling point... Except that transmission and final drive failures have put an end to that.

The one area where the beemer may have an advantage is all the computer gadgets they hang on the bike. Personally I think things like electronic tire pressure sensors are stupid, but I'm sure there are people out there who like that sort of stuff.

Actually, there is one very important area where beemer still kicks everybody else's arse, and that is honoring its warranty. As far as I know, when something breaks on a beemer, the factory steps up and makes things right. Whether this is enough to motivate people whose primary concern is pure speed to pay the extra buckage for the K1300 remains to be seen. I guess time will tell.

Steven

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The GS story is great one and has much to do with bmw's creation of

a sizeable niche. We will of course never know the answer to this but

it would be interesting to speculate how KTM might be doing in that category

today had they not slipped the bird to Ewan and Charlie.

The sport bike arena brings with it a whole new set of challenges for BMW.

It would be a large mistake to think that Japan's success in this area is driven

solely by price. I'm guessing that a long history of outright performance... win on

Sunday... sell on Monday is a huge driver in the category.

I would guess that there are a fair number of people who can well afford Ducatis,

BMW's and KTMs ( RC8 ) who are not riding them because they are enjoying the

performance advantages of current Japanese liter and super sport bikes.

 

I think BMW's foray into WSBK will pay dividends for the company.

The mere fact that bmw is on the grid will add new cred to the brand which

should be ultimately felt across the board. 

Regular appearances on the podium should help draw sales from those who

might be considering Japanese hardware. Regular podium appearances should also

cause the crew from Bologna more than a few sleepless nights. 

 

 

 

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The older i get the faster i was.