2003 BMW K1200 GT Problems
Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component
Data refreshed
What this page shows
Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2003 BMW K1200 GT, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.
Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.
Reports by component
Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category
- Fuel system2100.0%
Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.
Each component in detail
What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words
Fuel system
Reports naming fuel storage or delivery — tanks, pumps, lines, injectors and fuel leaks.
From owner reports, verbatim
TL* THE CONTACT OWNS A 2003 BMW K1200 GT MOTORCYCLE. THE CONTACT STATED THAT WHILE ATTEMPTING TO ACCELERATE AT 3 MPH, THE VEHICLE SLID FROM UNDER HIM AND CRASHED. THE CONTACT SUSTAINED BRUISES AND A POLICE REPORT WAS NOT FILED OF THE INCIDENT. THE VEHICLE WAS INDEPENDENTLY INSPECTED AND A FUEL LEAK WAS DISCOVERED. THE VEHICLE WAS NOT REPAIRED. THE MANUFACTURER WAS MADE AWARE OF THE INCIDENT. THE APPROXIMATE FAILURE MILEAGE WAS 28,082.
I FOUND A 4 FT DIAMETER PUDDLE OF GASOLINE ON MY GARAGE FLOOR. THE AIR IN THE GARAGE WAS ALSO VERY THICK WITH GASOLINE FUMES. I NOTICED A STEADY DRIPPING FROM THE BMW MOTORCYCLE AS THE SOURCE OF THE GASOLINE, WHICH HAD BEEN DRIPPING OVERNIGHT. I FEEL FORTUNATE TO HAVE CAUGHT THIS ISSUE BEFORE THE GAS IGNITED AND BURNED THE MOTORCYCLE AND POSSIBLY THE GARAGE. THERE WAS NO WAY TO STOP THE DRIPPING AND SO I REMOVED THE FAIRING THAT COVERS THE ENGINE (NOT A SIMPLE JOB) AND FOUND ONE OF THE PLASTIC FUEL DISCONNECTS HAD BROKEN AND WAS LEAKING GAS. UPON INSPECTING THE FITTING, I FOUND THAT A PLASTIC MALE QUICK DISCONNECT FUEL FITTING HAD BROKEN CLEANLY, IF EXPOSED TO FULL SYSTEM PRESSURE, GASOLINE WOULD HAVE GUSHED ONTO THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE MOTOR AND MY RIGHT LEG HAD I ATTEMPTED TO START THE CYCLE, IN RESEARCHING THIS ISSUE, I FIND IT IS VERY COMMONPLACE. THERE IS AN ACTION THAT DEALERS ARE SUPPOSED TO TAKE TO "INSPECT" THE FITTINGS AND REPLACE IF LEAKING. MY CYCLE WAS IN FOR SERVICE AT AN AUTHORIZED DEALER AT 8211 MILES. LESS THAN 500 MILES PRIOR TO THE FAILURE. THE INSPECTION SOLUTION DID NOT SOLVE THE PROBLEM AS THE FITTING FAILED SUDDENLY AND CATASTROPHICALLY. UNTIL THAT POINT, THEY MAY NOT LEAK. MINE SHOWED NO EVIDENCE OF LEAKING UNTIL IT FAILED COMPLETELY. ALSO, THE WAY THE FUEL LINES ARE SECURED PLACES BENDING STRESS ON THE FITTINGS THAT MAY ENCOURAGE THE BREAKING OF THE MALE FITTING AT THE NARROW DIAMETER OF THE CONNECTOR WHERE THE PLASTIC IS VERY THIN. GIVEN THE NATURE OF THE FAILURE, ITS FREQUENCY, AND THE POSSIBLE CONSEQUENCES OF PUMPING FUEL AT FULL CAPACITY ONTO THE RIDER AND HOT ENGINE, I FEEL THE INSPECTION SOLUTION IS INADEQUATE AND ALL OF THESE PLASTIC FITTINGS SHOULD BE REPLACED WITH THE METAL FITTING THAT IS NOW BEING USED ON LATE MODELS. *TR
Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.
Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.
Elsewhere on this vehicle
Data sources
- NHTSA Office of Defects Investigation — owner-reported complaints and the components recorded on them
Data on this page last refreshed .