I'm in the market for a K bike and this looked like a good place to start to get my bearings on how I should proceed/ Looking at a 89 K100RS SE right now. The draw back is it has been off the road for 10 years or at least little ridden///

Joe Wilkerson
Menifee, Ca

Welcome.

With one off the road that long I hope you are above average mechanically, electrically and monetarily.

I would caution you to get one that sees regular use unless you LIKE spending a lot of time and/or money on an old bike that hasn't been ridden.

The more you have to depend on a mechanic the more money and less time you will spend on it.

I actually like both working on bikes and riding them.

YMMV

welcome Joe,

Even if you have been off the road for a long time, riding a bike is like riding a bicycle. You never forgot.
After 15 years off the road, when I picked up my first K75, I rode it home for 1,300Kms in a stormy day (high wind and rain). I was extra cautious but I didn't have any problems. The same with the sidecar..  I didn't ride any for 30 years and when I went ot pick up mine in the USA, I was very apprehensive. After 5 minutes retraining in the parking lot of the motel, I was feeling comfortable to ride it home to Canada.
About the K100/K75, they are very reliable and easy to work on. If you sift through the forum, you will find a lot of people not being mechanically inclined. With our help, they never visit a mechanic and do their own maintenance. Brad-man is right about buying a bike which has been off road for many years. They can have problem, but this is the same for any vehicle. The rubber/seals will dry and they will have to be replaced.
I was just looking at what is available in Canada: Kijiji Canada (the equivalent of the Craig list in the USA)
This gives you an idea of the asking price. (Don't forget, the prices are in CAD $ and the US $ is something like 25% higher).
Before you buy a bike from anywhere, get the maximum of information, take a lot of pictures and speak with us. We will wisely advise you. BTW, most of the times it is better to pay an extra $1K for a bike in excellent shape than having to put this money later to keep it on the road.
Good luck with your future purchase.

CF

hello from Arizona , Bmw is the only way to go i just picked up a 85 that came home in 9 box's and a frame , i had it running in 2 week ends so its really up to you but if you put the love into it a k-bike will respond and you will have a living breathing K-100 , you wont be disapointed

i forgot to say i have a total of 7 bikes all running and 6 ready to ride but my go to bikes are a K-100 and a R1200C , best damn bikes ever made

Hi Joe, 

Welkome to the forum.

Glad to see that you have not strayed too far from the herd after you parted with your R65. 

Cheers, Dave.

Welcome Joe.  Good to have you here among the world's great K-bike resources!

WelKome.

Don't know if you know this already but be careful buying a bike in CA.  If the prior owner hasn't kept the bike registered or filed the proper "I'm not using this vehicle" form then CA will make you pay for all of the years it wasn't registered in order for you to transfer title and get a current registration..

duck wrote:WelKome.

 CA will make you pay for all of the years it wasn't registered in order for you to transfer title and get a current registration..

Yes I have been in Ca a long time and am aware of their propensity for eating their young.

I always go to the Cal DMV site and punch in the vin and plate # and it will tell you how much it will cost to make the bike current.  The initial 1989 K100RS SE  I found was attractive at $2600. It only had 15K miles on it and had been off the road ( garaged belonged to his father) for 12+ years. The CADMV had about $800 dollars against it to get it in my name and registered.

I found that bike before I had economically recouped and was worried more about eating than riding at the time. Probably just as well after 12 years on blocks every seal on the bike would have been brittle and things would have cropped up for a year after i got it on the road.

I am partial to the looks of the 89 K100RS SE and found another for sale. As an Airhead guy, to me this bike seemed to be a high miler at 88K miles. But as it set it needed nothing and was 8 out of 10 cosmetically. I pulled the trigger on the bike and have it in my storage until such a time when it would be a good idea to mention it to the wife..... they're funny like that sometimes LOL
The vid is what the seller had on line coupled to his ad.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cxhaFOXqACo&t=1s