RoadVitals

2009 BMW K1200LT

Recalls, owner-reported complaints, investigations and safety data

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
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Latest Oct 4, 2015
Safety recallsA safety recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle has a safety-related defect or does not comply with a federal motor vehicle safety standard. Recall repairs are free. Whether a specific vehicle is covered depends on its VIN — a recall listed for a model year does not necessarily apply to every vehicle of that year.
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InvestigationsNHTSA opens an investigation to examine whether a safety defect may exist. An open investigation is not a determination that a defect exists, and many investigations close without a recall. Investigations can, however, lead to one.
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Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
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Overview

Our database contains 4 NHTSA owner-reported complaints for the 2009 BMW K1200LT, most frequently naming the brakes, fuel system and powertrain (other) categories. 7 manufacturer communications are on file.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

What owners report

Complaints grouped by the component NHTSA recorded

  • Brakes250.0%
  • Fuel system125.0%
  • Powertrain (other)125.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Safety recalls

No recalls in our database for this model year

That does not guarantee a specific vehicle is unaffected — recalls are issued against VINs, and new campaigns are announced regularly. Check a VIN on NHTSA.gov.

Recent owner complaints

Reports submitted to NHTSA, shown in the owner's own words

Brakes
Filed Oct 4, 2015

ABS MODULE FAILED WHILE THE BIKE WAS MOSTLY SITTING OVER THE LAST TWO YEARS. WHEN I CONTACTED AN IDAHO COMPANY RUMORED TO REPAIR THE INTEGRAL ABS AKA IABS AKA ABS III MODULE, I LEARNED THEY HAVE OVER 100 CORES (BROKEN UNITS) ALREADY IN STOCK AWAITING THE POSSIBILITY THROUGH EXPERIMENTATION THEY MIGHT EVENTUALLY BE ABLE TO REPAIR THESE. APPARENTLY, THESE HAVE FAILED NOTORIOUSLY SINCE ABOUT 7500 MILES AND I CANNOT UNDERSTAND WHY THERE ARE SO FEW COMPLAINTS TO THE NHTSA ABOUT THEM. BMW DOES NOT SELL ANY REPAIR PARTS FOR THIS UNIT AND THE MSRP IS OVER $2500 JUST FOR THE PART. THEREFORE, THERE ARE A LARGE NUMBER OF 853 LB. BIKES DESIGNED TO STOP WITH ABS BRAKES RUNNING WITHOUT THEM.

NHTSA ID
10779545
Incident
Jul 1, 2015
Mileage
50,030 mi
Brakes
Filed Apr 8, 2014

BRAKE WARNING LIGHT FLASHING, I HAD BRAKES, NO LEAKS, AND FIRM HARD BRAKE LEVER. I TRAVELED HOME, A 98 MILE TRIP ONE-WAY. THREE MILES FROM HOME, I SQUEEZED BRAKE LEVER AND HAD NO BRAKES, AFTER STOPPING I REALIZED I HAD BRAKES, BUT I HAD TO SQUEEZE BRAKE LEVER VERY HARD, SAME WITH FOOT BRAKE. I TRAILERED THE BIKE TO MY BMW DEALER, AND WAS INFORMED I NEEDED A NEW SERVO MOTOR. *TR

NHTSA ID
10578237
Incident
Sep 9, 2013
Mileage
35,000 mi
Fuel system
Filed Jun 28, 2012

FUEL TANK LEAK AT FUEL PUMP FLANGE. CAUSED BY FUEL TANK DISTORTION, FROM REACTION TO US FUEL. BMW DOESN'T WANT TO REPLACE THE FUEL TANK. THE DEALER IS STILL TRYING TO GET BMW TO REPLACE THE TANK. RAZEE MOTORCYCLE CENTER. RHODE ISLAND THE DEALER IS THE BEST DEALER I HAVE EVER DEALT WITH. CONTACT [XXX] THERE ARE OTHER MOTORCYCLE COMPANY'S HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM AND ARE REPLACING THE TANKS WITH METAL ONES. INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6). *TR

NHTSA ID
10463408
Incident
Jun 18, 2012
Mileage
6,000 mi
Powertrain (other)
Filed May 25, 2012

MOTORCYCLE HAD BEEN HAVING PROBLEMS FOR SEVERAL WEEKS GETTING PROGRESSIVELY WORSE. CLUTCH WOULD NOT ENGAGE AS IT SHOULD. NOTICED PROBLEM RIGHT AFTER 24,000 SERVICE, BUT COULDN'T SAY WHAT WAS WRONG; BY TIME I CONVINCED MY HUSBAND TO RIDE THE BIKE, HE JUST BARELY GOT IT TO DEALERSHIP WHEN CLUTCH WENT OUT COMPLETELY. MECHANIC AT SHOP WAS ABLE TO PUSH BIKE IN FIRST GEAR WITH ONLY A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF EFFORT. BIKE IS ONLY 3 YEARS OLD AND HAS HAD THE ACTUATOR REPLACED TWICE, REAR SEAL REPLACED, 3 SETS OF BRAKES AND NOW A COMPLETE CLUTCH ASSEMBLY. RESEARCH ON-LINE SHOWS PROBLEMS WITH A "DRY CLUTCH" BY BMW GOING BACK 20+ YEARS. EVERY TIME I TOOK IT IN FOR SERVICE, THERE WERE COMMENTS ON THE DUST ON THE REAR AXLE AND TIRE AND IT WAS ASSUMED THAT IT WAS BRAKE DUST; WHEN CLUTCH FINALLY WENT OUT, DUST WAS FROM WEAR OF THE METAL ON THE CLUTCH. *TR

NHTSA ID
10459687
Incident
Apr 18, 2012
Mileage
28,596 mi

Manufacturer communications

A bulletin sent by a manufacturer to its dealers. Not a recall, and repairs are not necessarily free.

MC650125

STRUCTURE:BODY

Central locking does not work with DWA part number 7 678 934 (DWA 5.1 with central locking).

B611305

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM

The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. This has led to increased demands being placed on the battery. This document covers important information for the dealer on how to handle “discharged battery” complaints.

MC160214

FUEL SYSTEM, GASOLINE

BMW Motorrad USA has become aware of a potential durability issue with the film type fuel level sender “Fuel Strip” equipped on certain model year 2005 to 2013 R and K series motorcycles.

MC611104

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY

With the introduction of the new watertight fuse box a change was made from large type fuses to mini fuses. While the correct fuses are installed in the fuse box, the older, large type fuses were supplied in the on-board tool kit.

B611305

ELECTRICAL SYSTEM; EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT ADAPTIVE/MOBILITY

Discharged Battery Energy Diagnosis Must Be Performed: The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. This has led to increased demands being placed on the battery. This document covers important information for the dealer on how to handle "discharged battery" complaints. In order to properly repair the vehicle the first time in the workshop, it is very important that the diagnostic test plans are performed to completion, with all results taken into consideration. Without performing the energy diagnosis test plan, the root cause of the discharged battery cannot be identified. This increases the chances of a repeat repair.

MC62133778

EQUIPMENT; EQUIPMENT:ELECTRICAL:NAVIGATIONAL SYSTEM(GLOBAL POSITIONING SYSTEM)

Map data should be stored on a 64 GB SD card. In GARMIN Express the note appears that a maximum of 32 GB is possible.

Manufacturers file copies of the bulletins they send to dealers with NHTSA. These often describe diagnostic or repair procedures for a known condition. They are not recalls: repairs described in a bulletin are usually only free if the vehicle is still under warranty or the manufacturer has extended coverage.

Compare model years

Complaint and recall counts across every year of this model

BMW K1200LT by model year
YearComplaintsRecallsInvestigationsIssue Index
2009Viewing400—
2008400—
2006100—
2005192153.9
2004401—
2003210144.9
2002370138.4
2001250238.3
2000510239.0
1999500141.3

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. Older model years have had longer for reports to accumulate.