Okay, I'm gonna get on my soapbox here...
[Rant On]
Why would you even consider buying this thing given the following:
1. An increasing number of final drive failures, not related to age or miles driven. Ken Meese lost this year's SPANK rally because of it; Jerry White lost his on the drive home from the same rally; a couple from Milwaukee lost theirs on a 48/10 ride; friend of mine lost his in CO on a vacation this year. OTOH, others have ridden 1000s of miles with no problems. Do you want to take the risk?
The worst part of the issue is that BMW Germany denies that there is any problem and without a lot of pressure will do nothing to make the owner whole financially.
2. A decreasing dealer network - 'nuff said.
3. Expensive service. You can't do much on the bike without voiding the warranty.
4. On top of #3 above, you will probably have problems attaching any non-OEM electrical stuff to it because of their CANBUS system.
5. Linked brakes and ABS have been a problem for BMW in the past and continue to be - touchy and erratic. Don't even think of trail braking in a corner.
6. What happens when you drop this expensive piece of plastic - no tip over wings - and the mirrors, saddlebags and side cowls take major hits, all probably VERY expensive?
Here on this forum, we talk and carp about oil, tires, gas mileage, etc., etc. but we do NOT appear to have major failures that leave people on the side of the road. Even the T-stat issue doesn't leave you stranded.
My '04 ST, Tigress, has 120,000 miles on it. She has been around/across the country 4 times in that period, from +20* to +110*. My dealer (I have a good one) installs tires for me (I buy them from him and he matches prices to SWMOTO,COM) and does the occasional valve check for me. Other than that, I change my own oil and filter (Rotella T and Pure One) What else is there to maintain?
Adding electrical stuff is easy - attach it, wire it, fuse it and forget about it. It works. No hassles.
No question that the 1200/1300 series does LOOK nice and I'm sure it a fine ride, but I'm looking for something that's gonna get me back home - reliably.
[Rant off]