What owners say…
WHO BUYS A K1300S? Experienced, mature riders as a rule — the average age of our sample was 48 and almost all were long-term bikers with a back catalogue of big sportsbikes and tourers. Lachlan Maclennan, at 49 and with 33 years’ riding, was pretty typical in that respect, though unique in having swapped his native Isle of Lewis for Malaysia: “I sold my Hayabusa before I went, thinking I’d buy another there but to my horror, the price for a new one was £30,000, as import duty is so high. I bought the K13 at auction — it had plenty of problems like switchgear failure, the quickshifter was dead, as were the TPS monitors and the ABS module, but most were recalls which were fixed for free. It’s fast — not Hayabusa fast but almost. Very smooth, linear power. I’m short so it’s a stretch to the bars for me but still comfortable. The screen was terrible though — the buffeting was so bad, my wife on the back almost vomited… I tried various screens including an MRA Vario – no difference, then I turned the Vario spoiler upside-down and that made a big difference. The quickshifter is amazing, so slick and very addictive, I’ve got the Akrapovic silencer and it sounds fantastic. If you want to go fast or slow, touring or blasting in the countryside, solo or two up, this is the bike for you.”
It’s definitely the bike for Emily Knight — by far the youngest of our owners and coming from an F800ST after a decade on various Hondas and Triumphs: “The F800GT didn’t do it for me when it was time to change, so I took a K1300S for a test ride and haven’t stopped grinning since! I find it really comfortable to ride; bang in the middle of a supersports and an all-out tourer. The engine will pull in any gear and it’s superb for crushing motorway miles on the way somewhere more interesting. Mine has lots of extras; panniers, luggage rack, heated grips, quickshifter, electronically adjustable suspension, Akrapovic exhaust and adjustable rearsets. It’s surprisingly narrow so I can almost
“It does it all with ease – I love my K” Emily Knight BMW K1300S owner
flat-foot it (I’m 5ft 7in tall) and its centre of gravity is low, hiding its weight well. I take it fully-loaded for fortnight holidays to the Isle of Man TT, commute to work on it and ride with friends — and it does it all with ease. I love my K.”
Darren Barnes made the jump from an old-school 1989 Yamaha FJ1200 to the high-tech K1300S and hasn’t regretted it: “The electronic suspension is great for easy adjusting on the go, with the added safety of ABS and the stability control — which for a bike nearly a decade old, is really good! The quickshifter provides a wide grin factor (especially with a Blue Flame exhaust fitted) and the tyrepressure sensor was a godsend when in Luxembourg this year, when the rear tyre collected a nail. Both sides’ switchgear have needed replacing though — BMW needs to stop making the switches from Play-doh! My old FJ never needed new switches…”