K1300S demo ride

Let it be said that I am not a sport bike rider. Let it also be said that August 15, 2009 was the day that I rode a wonderful sport bike that cemented my migration away from cruiser motorcycles to their more sportier cousins.
I have been thinking about changing to a more standard motorcycle for quite some time now. I talk about motorcycles so much that I annoy not only my wife but even myself at times. I just love to ride.
Wagner Motorsports hosted a demo ride event this past weekend. I was hoping to ride an R1200R since that is the bike that seems the most practical and fits with my riding needs and style. If you have ever been to a demo event, you never know what you are going to get until you get there. Upon my arrival, there was no R1200R in the demo fleet but there was a K1300S which I wanted to ride for the fun of it and happened to signup for it 5 seconds before the next guy in line and therefore only had to wait one hour instead of two.
There are many more professional reviews (onewheeldrive.com and motorcycle.com to name two) out there on the K1300S and I will not try to duplicate them. Also my limited experience on sport bikes makes it difficult to compare. I will say that the bike is quite a looker.
I really like this GSX-R inspired paint scheme.

I didn’t have my camera crew (my wife) with me so the only picture I got was one on my iPhone.

My helmet goes so well with the paint scheme they should have just given me the bike.

The ride, in general, was much better than the Harley ride. The BMW ride lasted about 35 minutes and allowed the riders to open it up a couple of times. The Harley demo ride was a 15 minute meander through the local neighborhood. The behavior (and communication signals) of the BMW riders displays that BMW riders are much more technical riders than the average Harley rider. Also, much more interested in safety. (ATGATT)
On to the ride….. Let me start out by saying that I am surprised at how comfortable this bike is. It is not a painful Ducati. It is a well thought out hunk of German engineering. The bike starts and idles wonderfully. I toggle through the various electronic options available at my finger tips (heated grips, Electronic Suspension Adjustment (ESA), On-board computer) and fall in love with the gadgetry of it all.
We set off and there is less clutch slip required than I expected. It feels nice and the engine feels amazing when accelerating through corners. The clutch is not necessary (I recommend not using it) when up shifting while accelerating. With the Gear Shift Assistant the shifting is wonderfully quick and smooth with a quick lift of the left foot. Above 5k the vibration can be felt in your thighs and the stronger than expected engine breaking increases the vibration in the frame.
At one point I did get the engine to about 8k and the handles bars really started to vibrate. It was quite intrusive since a significant portion of my weight is transfered to the bars. I found that squeezing the tank with my knees helped support my back and lift some weight off my hands.
I also played with the ESA while on the ride. The COMFort setting really softened up the suspension, perhaps too much. The SPORT mode stiffened slightly though since I couldn’t foresee when we would be “sport” riding on this ride the SPORT setting wasn’t really put to the test. I left it on NORMal for most of the ride and found it to be quite comfortable when cruising and adequate in the turns.
It was all too soon when we reached the dealer on the return route. I could have ridden that bike for hours. At a price of $19k I would hope to be able to ride it for a long time. The seat height worked well for my 30in inseam and the weight didn’t seem to be a factor. Sixth gear should not be street legal as I hardly got out of third (and we got up to 80mph at one point). I would need a lot more money to pay for speeding tickets if I owned this bike.
While it is true that the bike is not perfect (mostly vibration issues) and everything is not right with it. However, it was a great bike to reveal to me everything that was wrong with my sportster when I got back on my trusty donkey of a bike to ride home. My back started to cramp up after mere minutes and my left hip bone was seriously aching by the time I finished my 70min ride home.
Within hours I had decided to list my sportster up for sale. I am not in a position to purchase a BMW motorcycle at the moment so I am researching some good alternatives to get me through the next few years. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated and submittable as comments.

Conclusion: The K1300S is an awesome bike if you can afford it and want to be pampered with electronic gadgetry.

8 thoughts on “K1300S demo ride

  1. I'm surprised to hear about vibration, as these transverse fours are so universally noted for their smoothness. I'll be curious to hear what your take is on the FZ1 when you get out here in a coupla weeks.

    I'm really happy for you to get a frame of reference for some late model non-Harley bikes (remembering that's where you started, but not on the most shining examples).

    It took me about a month to get my first (in 30+ years) speeding ticket on the FZ1. Way too complacent. I'm much more careful, now, if not any better behaved.

    Woohoo! And Vroom-vroom!

  2. I really enjoyed your review of the BMW! I have several bikes, a couple of small sport bikes and a larger cruiser! Love the sport bikes around the city and the cruiser for longer treks! Good luck as you try to find another bike, have you considered a Honda ST1300 or a Kawasaki Concours?

  3. I think I am looking more at standard bikes for everyday riding. Like the Suzuki Bandit. We'll see what I end up with.

  4. Good honest review. I didn't expect vibrations to be an issue on BMWs, but I have never ridden on.
    If you are looking for suggestions for your next bike, you may want to look at the Triumph Sprint ST. It's basically a more upright and standard Daytona with a 955i triple. Very comfortable, and great power/handling.

  5. Great review. I'm surprised about the vibrations – was the engine under 2,000mi? My boxer engine ran like a tractor until it broke in around 3,000km. The BMW manual claims the engine isn't properly broken in until 10,000km. Agree – the Triumph Sprint could be a good sport/tour option as well.

  6. Thanks for the comments. I don't think that it did have 2000mi on it. I remember noting that it did have over 600mi on it, though I do not remember the specific number. Also 10000km seems like a long time before the engine is fully broken in.

    I've been day dreaming about this bike ever since I rode it.

  7. That is a good video. I remember watching those just a couple months ago. We'll have to wait and see what type of riding/commuting I'll need to do when I graduate in May. That will greatly influence whether I go R12R (for inner city) or K13S (for longer highway stretches).

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