BMW K bikes (Bricks)


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1Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 9:40 am

yamaguzzi

yamaguzzi
Life time member
Life time member
Hi all ,Been absent for a few months but still riding my K . She's running great and trouble free.I'm just wondering about changing out all the cooling system hoses in prep of taking a very long trip if I survive the corona  garbage and can travel this summer. Not sure which bike I am going on yet, the 1988 K100rs or my old reliable 75 Moto Guzzi 850-T so I'm getting both of them up to the task while I'm stuck at home hunkered down.The question I have is about the coolant . Is there any good reason to use the BMW stuff over regular green automotive coolant? What Coolant To Use Dsc03012
 What Coolant To Use Img_4712


__________________________________________________
1988 K 100RS ,1975 Moto Guzzi 850-T , 1971 BMW R60/5 , 1971 Yamaha R5B,1969 Yamaha DS6C ,1966 Yamaha YM1 , 1965 Yamaha YDS3
https://motoguzzi850t.blogspot.com/
    

2Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 10:15 am

Point-Seven-five

Point-Seven-five
Life time member
Life time member
Coolant?  The BMW stuff provides the funding for the dealer's spawn to attend an expensive university. They also want the dealer to do the change.  $$$$

Personally, I use Peak Long Life Coolant.  Been using it for 6 years now in 5 different bricks with no issues.  I change every other year which translates to about 6,000 miles on my commuter bikes and 12,000 to 15,000 on my touring K75RT.

As far as hoses, I had a bike with over 125,000 miles on it and the original hoses were still looking good.  The only hose I ever had go bad was the one on the right side of my RT that goes outside of the crank cover that got scraped open when the bike low sided on a turn.  From what I've seen, you could probably get along nicely on the hoses you have now.


__________________________________________________
Present: 1991 K100RS "Moby Brick Too"
 
Past:
1994 K75RT "Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS"
1988 K100RS SE "Special Ed"
1994 K75S "Cheetos"
1992 K100RS "Moby Brick" R.I.P.
1982 Honda FT500
1979 Honda XR185
1977 Honda XL125
1974 Honda XL125
1972 OSSA Pioneer 250
1968 Kawasaki 175
    

3Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 10:32 am

yamaguzzi

yamaguzzi
Life time member
Life time member
Thanks for the quick reply.I was thinking that I could use a good quality automotive product . Thing with the hoses is just that when I'm 6000 miles from home I don't want to have to deal with anything so I'm thinking new just so I don't have to worry about it.Gets hot out in the southwest in September when I plan on passing thru there and if they are going to go that's when it will happen ,way out in the desert in the middle of nowhere .


__________________________________________________
1988 K 100RS ,1975 Moto Guzzi 850-T , 1971 BMW R60/5 , 1971 Yamaha R5B,1969 Yamaha DS6C ,1966 Yamaha YM1 , 1965 Yamaha YDS3
https://motoguzzi850t.blogspot.com/
    

4Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 10:40 am

duck

duck
Life time member
Life time member
Carry a roll of rescue tape for the hoses. (That's what I do.) The hoses generally last "forever" but I have had one go on me. (I was only 800 miles from home in The Bay Area and it happened on a Monday so all of the three nearby BMW dealers were closed. Arghhhh!!!!)

https://www.amazon.com/Rescue-Tape-RT01019-BRK-RT1000201201USCO/dp/B00AEBKYPG/ref=sr_1_3?dchild=1&keywords=rescue+tape+black&qid=1585661752&s=sporting-goods&sr=1-3

Any decent automotive anti-freeze will do.  Long ago you had to make sure that it was compatible with an aluminum alloy block but just about all are these days.

All of the premixed stuff is 50/50 but if you decide to mix yourself (with DISTILLED water) then I go with 60/40 water/coolant.


__________________________________________________
Current stable:
86 Custom K100 (standard fairing, K75 Belly pan, Ceramic chromed engine covers, paralever)
K75 Frankenbrick (Paralever, K11 front end, hybrid ABS, K1100RS fairing, radial tires)
86 K75C Turbo w/ paralever
94 K1100RS
93 K1100LT
91 K1
93 K75S (K11 front end)
91 K75S (K1 front end)
14 Yamaha WR250R
98 Taxi Cab K1200RS
14 K1600GT
http://www.ClassicKBikes.com
    

5Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 10:52 am

Point-Seven-five

Point-Seven-five
Life time member
Life time member
I've been out in New Mexico in 120F with original hoses and done another 20,000 miles since.  Brick hoses are pretty indestructible as far as I can tell.  They certainly aren't made of the same crap rubber they use for the clutch rod boot or the Z-tube.

Duck's rescue tape is an excellent idea, I carry a roll of it in my tool kit.

If you are going down to the southwest, mix the coolant with 60% water for the best cooling.  I would do a good flush with radiator flush and a couple gallons of distilled water.  I also cleaned the insects out of the radiator fins by removing it and soaking in a pan of vinegar overnight. Rinse from the back to the front.  I got enough protein out of my fins to open a stall at the Wuhan meat market.

None of my bikes has ever had a cooling issue after doing this stuff.


__________________________________________________
Present: 1991 K100RS "Moby Brick Too"
 
Past:
1994 K75RT "Ilsa, She Wolf of the SS"
1988 K100RS SE "Special Ed"
1994 K75S "Cheetos"
1992 K100RS "Moby Brick" R.I.P.
1982 Honda FT500
1979 Honda XR185
1977 Honda XL125
1974 Honda XL125
1972 OSSA Pioneer 250
1968 Kawasaki 175
    

6Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 11:06 am

duck

duck
Life time member
Life time member
Also, if you want to not worry about the cooling system then you might consider getting a new cap - part 17111464720 - as those do get old and fail.  Only $28 and includes new rubber washers.


__________________________________________________
Current stable:
86 Custom K100 (standard fairing, K75 Belly pan, Ceramic chromed engine covers, paralever)
K75 Frankenbrick (Paralever, K11 front end, hybrid ABS, K1100RS fairing, radial tires)
86 K75C Turbo w/ paralever
94 K1100RS
93 K1100LT
91 K1
93 K75S (K11 front end)
91 K75S (K1 front end)
14 Yamaha WR250R
98 Taxi Cab K1200RS
14 K1600GT
http://www.ClassicKBikes.com
    

7Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:04 pm

brickrider2

brickrider2
Life time member
Life time member
Yamaguzzi, did you see the recent post re the very economical Volvo radiator hose being a suitable replacement for the K-bike hose that passes through the crank cover?


__________________________________________________
1996 K1100LT
    

8Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:09 pm

yamaguzzi

yamaguzzi
Life time member
Life time member
brickrider2 wrote:Yamaguzzi, did you see the recent post re the very economical Volvo radiator hose being a suitable replacement for the K-bike hose that passes through the crank cover?
No I didn't see that.That is something I am going to search out now just so I know what else I can use in a pinch.


__________________________________________________
1988 K 100RS ,1975 Moto Guzzi 850-T , 1971 BMW R60/5 , 1971 Yamaha R5B,1969 Yamaha DS6C ,1966 Yamaha YM1 , 1965 Yamaha YDS3
https://motoguzzi850t.blogspot.com/
    

9Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:15 pm

duck

duck
Life time member
Life time member


__________________________________________________
Current stable:
86 Custom K100 (standard fairing, K75 Belly pan, Ceramic chromed engine covers, paralever)
K75 Frankenbrick (Paralever, K11 front end, hybrid ABS, K1100RS fairing, radial tires)
86 K75C Turbo w/ paralever
94 K1100RS
93 K1100LT
91 K1
93 K75S (K11 front end)
91 K75S (K1 front end)
14 Yamaha WR250R
98 Taxi Cab K1200RS
14 K1600GT
http://www.ClassicKBikes.com
    

10Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:44 pm

duck

duck
Life time member
Life time member
Getting the front hose through the crank case cover more easily with zip ties:

 What Coolant To Use WLYci27


__________________________________________________
Current stable:
86 Custom K100 (standard fairing, K75 Belly pan, Ceramic chromed engine covers, paralever)
K75 Frankenbrick (Paralever, K11 front end, hybrid ABS, K1100RS fairing, radial tires)
86 K75C Turbo w/ paralever
94 K1100RS
93 K1100LT
91 K1
93 K75S (K11 front end)
91 K75S (K1 front end)
14 Yamaha WR250R
98 Taxi Cab K1200RS
14 K1600GT
http://www.ClassicKBikes.com
    

11Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 1:51 pm

Two Wheels Better

Two Wheels Better
Moderator
Moderator
I went to Taiwan (Taipei) once. I wandered round in a few different areas of the city, from glistening high tech glass and chrome buildings to modest rough-built shacks, looking at the variety of food stalls, scooter and car repair shops, and mini-factories all jumbled together making everything and anything in the dirty streets and behind the patchy fences. There might even have been a silicone hose factory next to that soup joint I ate at down that back alley.
 What Coolant To Use 652573


__________________________________________________
The forest was shrinking, but the trees kept voting for the axe, for the axe was clever, and convinced the trees that because his handle was made of wood, he was one of them. -Turkish proverb
1977 R75/7-100, '93 K11/K12 Big Block, '93 K1100RS, '95 R100 Mystic, '96 K1100RS, 2 x '98 K1200RS, '06 K1200R & '09 K1300GT
    

12Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Tue Mar 31, 2020 4:32 pm

MartinW

MartinW
Life time member
Life time member
With long distance touring I have a mate that has heaps of parts and knows where may spares are. If I have a breakdown I can ring him and get anything I'm not carrying sent. I do carry a roll of self sealing silicone tape. For some reason OEM coolant in OZ is just as cheap as the non OEM. You do have to mix it with distilled water but I prefer to mix my own.
Regards Martin.


__________________________________________________
1992 K75s
    

13Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Wed Apr 01, 2020 10:33 am

yamaguzzi

yamaguzzi
Life time member
Life time member
duck wrote:Getting the front hose through the crank case cover more easily with zip ties:

 What Coolant To Use WLYci27
I like this ! Thanks . Always looking for easier ways to do things .When my clutch cable broke last spring I learned the wire trick.It also worked great !


__________________________________________________
1988 K 100RS ,1975 Moto Guzzi 850-T , 1971 BMW R60/5 , 1971 Yamaha R5B,1969 Yamaha DS6C ,1966 Yamaha YM1 , 1965 Yamaha YDS3
https://motoguzzi850t.blogspot.com/
    

14Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Wed Apr 01, 2020 11:27 am

volador

volador
Platinum member
Platinum member


__________________________________________________
1984 K100RS  1991 K100RS  Reap The Wild Wind... Ever Commute Is An Adventure
    

15Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Wed Apr 01, 2020 11:34 am

volador

volador
Platinum member
Platinum member
duck wrote:Getting the front hose through the crank case cover more easily with zip ties:

 What Coolant To Use WLYci27


Little KY slips right in

 What Coolant To Use Ky_jel10


__________________________________________________
1984 K100RS  1991 K100RS  Reap The Wild Wind... Ever Commute Is An Adventure
    

16Back to top Go down    What Coolant To Use Empty Re: What Coolant To Use Thu Apr 02, 2020 3:22 pm

stanthomas

stanthomas
Silver member
Silver member
I like this waterless coolant:
Evans PowerSports R

I've used it in Jap bikes and it seems to live up to its claims. Well regarded amongst my classic car friends too.

The main attraction for me is corrosion proofing in bikes that do low mileage and are often parked up for many months. But from what I read about the K100's cooling system, the other benefits might be significant too. More expensive than regular anti-freeze but it does last a long time so should even out.

Will be putting in my K once I'm sure it's good to go.

    

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