I did not found any good place for this topic, so I decided to put it in here.

I have a plan B again for this season. I have that modified K100 as my only bike at the moment, but I would like to have a bike better suitable for longer trips too. Last season I owned a Honda 650cc Africa Twin for a few months, but I really dont like lubing and checking on chains so this time it is a vehicle with a shaft drive.

I have been thinking of a another brick - K100RS I think because my legs wont fit in RT (have not tested the LT though). But those Kawasaki GTR1000 models from round 1990 are in same price in here (about 2-3000e) than K100. 

So this might not be the right place to ask... But why should I prefer K100? Or should I?

I cant speak for the kawasaki, but at 6' Ifit the K1100LT rather nicely.  And it feels and sounds pretty much like a K100.

I have done long trips on both RT and LT. I think it would be hard to find anything better than the K100. The RT and LT have the same fairing and yet I find the RT much more nimble and more lively. I am 5' 8". The K1100LT has the fairing moved forward and seems better suited to a taller rider. No problem doing 4-500 miles in a day on one.......

The K1100LT does have the fairing moved forward a couple of inches. I'm 6-2 and (with highway pegs) have done a 1,200 mile day with ease. (Except for nasty rain for the last few hundred miles.)

I've also done a 1,200+ mile day on a K75RT but that was a rather nasty ride with lots of rain and snow.  Not a ride I'd want to do again.

My best on the K75RT was 2,461 miles (3,961 km) in a little over 36 hours.

The GTR1000 has a lovely engine but the rest of the bike's quality is poor. Wave a damp rag at it and it'll rust before your eyes.

The fact that the K was available in many different forms, over such a long time, means that it is going to be easier to source used parts.  There is good interchangeability with BMW Ks, and specialist companies compete for our business when it comes to buying spares.  There is even BMW themselves offering spares for thirty year old bikes.  That is not going to be the same with Kawasaki GTR 1000s.

the GTRs a heavy old beasts the engines a cracker there a bit prone to hydro locking theres no over flows on the carbs so thay tend to fill the cylinders with petrol doesn't do the con rods much good . also check for rust around the swinging arm / shocker region

Thanks for the answers. I'm 184cm which is I guess a little taller than 6" Had a testdrive with RT and with my long legs I had trouble with knees hitting the fairing. So it would really have to be RS model if K100.

K1100LT:s are a bit more expensive here (Ranging 3-4000e) and not so common as K100. I have been in that belief that parts for GTR are relatively easy to get, but maybe I was wrong.

The GTR is interesting mainly because I have been reading so much positive comments of its fairings. They seem to be very protective.

Well I keep on thinking. It snowed this morning so there is no rush to get a second bike..

Your climate is like ours and I think you will find the LT fairing much better, it will extend your season a few weeks at either end.

Corkboy swapped his K110RS for a K1100LT and would fill you in on that.

Tenox wrote:Thanks for the answers. I'm 184cm which is I guess a little taller than 6" Had a testdrive with RT and with my long legs I had trouble with knees hitting the fairing. So it would really have to be RS model if K100.

Hey Tenox,

I am only about 5'9 5/16' and my knees were touching the fairing on my RT.
Swapped seats.
I got a comfort"? low seat and it pushes me back so I now have plenty of room.
I also have a comfort seat from a K1200 and it makes my knees hit the fairing.
Pretty sure the comfort seats have the same base? You need to replace the FI tray?

Maybe get one recovered to move you back a bit. Cheaper alternative if the bikes themselves are cheaper.

rossko

Seat on my LT is a Comfort seat, best one I ever had. A cheap fix too...I never thought of it being a different seating position but now that you mention it you are correct because my knees are closer to the fairing on the RT.

The fairing on the K1100 is enough further forward to be a big improvement and worth while having but you can with some small amount of work move the fairing on a K100 LT forward and have a seat customized to move you back a bit and maybe move the bars back.
Nowadays there is not a comparison between the GTR1000 and a K100. The factory will not be making parts for them unless it is also a part for a newer model and as mike said they do have a rust problem.
The GTR is a good bike and every bit as able to do the distance as a K, I know some guys who have them but as soon as the switch blocks fail they are left trying to adapt something else to do the job.
The GTR engine has been around longer than the brick and is a good engine and drive train.
Before I bought my first brick I considered a GTR and that was over ten years ago and even then the parts stock for the GTR was starting to run low.
They are very comparable bikes but the K wins out for me because of the parts availability.

I'm 6-2 with a 34" in seam and the K1100LT was cramped for me if wearing winter gear and/or knee armor. I solved that by having my Russell Day Long seat built with the rider position roughly 1.75" inches back from where a stock seat would have me seated.

That thing about spareparts is important. I must check how it is here in Finland on GTR. I know that K100 parts are easy enough to get. Only part that I have not been able to get so far is the bolt that attaches the rear shock to the drivetrain.

Thanks again.

MCN's Kwak GTR1000 review
Looks kinda middling...

Biased? Of course. But find a rider who used to own a GTR1000 who rues the day they parted with it.
Do the same with an ex-K bike owner.

The regretful ex-K bike owner will be easier to find, I'll wager.

Hi Tenox,

I own a 1991 K100LT and a 1992 K1100LT.  I am 183cm tall, so fairly close to your height, and I must say that the 1100 has much better kneeroom than the 100.  I have done 400 mile days on the 100 with no bother, but I would now choose the other bike for longer journeys just because of the extra space for my knees.

Parts: http://www.cmsnl.com/kawasaki-1986-a1-zg1000_model12620/partslist/

Looked quickly and it does not seem so bad.  

The GTR1000 did have a very long production run, probably about 20 years and a lot of the parts were and are still available but as I found with my Z1300 Kawasaki will cease to make parts that are specific to them after they are 2 models old and that can be as short a time as 2 years. The parts availability for 30 year old models is what I like so much about the BMWs.
As far as the Japanese manufacturers are concerned be it car or bike they want you to buy a new model every 3-5 years.

I had the first model GTR1000 number plate GTR100 in South Oz and it was an excellent tourer until you hit 200KMH and it becomes airborne ...very comfy lots of good luggage with a detuned across 4 ...a little buzzy but like the K100 ate the kilometres very easy.

Testdrive done with GTR. If K100 is a brick what would we call GTR? My K100 felt like a RR bike after that war elefant.   

Engine was otherwise nice, but I did not like carburettors (may have been little off) and the engine sound was loud (pipes were not stock). Much more room than on stock K100RT and nice driving ergonomics other than the noise around the helmet. Which means that the windshield was not in good position for me.

I think I would rather have another K.. 290km driven today in +3 to +7 celcius. Nice!

Who is that bloke with all that hair? I think your missus must have been playing around back then.