Hello!  I am doing new-owner major maintenance on a 88 K75S.  So far, I have new paint, upholstery, luggage, aftermarket shocks, rear-sets, and lots of new 'routine' parts as I inspect for wear/age.  I am currently buttoning up the fairing, including adding the water temp gauge (not standard of "S" models) to match the fuel gauge added by the previous owner.  Installing the wire to the water temp sensor includes removing the water pump cover.  After un-sticking the fasteners (My, what soft bolts you have there!) the covers was stuck as well. Thanks to the encouragement (https://www.k100-forum.com/t5262-help-water-pump-cover-stuck) I was not hung up by a secret fastener, I used a couple of putty knives to apply lifting force at the edges.  The cover popped off and revealed it had been stuck on with a little black silicone goop.  There was also blue sewing thread around the perimeter as a bonus seal.  Have you seen that before?

cheers, Hugh
Seattle
88 K75S

Gopher Baroque wrote: There was also blue sewing thread around the perimeter as a bonus seal.  Have you seen that before?

Non genuine, I would say..............and welcome.

To start with, you don't need to remove anything, aside from the Hall Effect sensor cover, to route the water temp sensor wire.  I just cut the connector off of the end which makes it much easier to route, then reconnect it later.

OEM seal for WP cover is non-solidifying clear sealant.

I use Permatex Form-a-Gasket #2 for WP sealant.

using a piece of old coat hanger wire  is invaluable for this

you will have to bend it to the contour of the water pump rear to pass just high of the front cover ....bend a tight hook in the probe end ...and pull the cable back down attached with a little tape to hold it together .....fold the cable back onitself through the hook  and a turn or two of tape to hold it together

inject the coat hanger wire at the sensor end of the pump through that hole

even with the cover plate off you might find this to be of some help 

good luck and welcome aboard hugh

Welcome to the forum Gopher. I do hope that the previous owner had the good taste to use BMW blue thread because the light blue doesn't work very well. 

Well, I successfully updated the waterpump with proper sender wire routing, and went on to bolt the rest of the parts on.  A little test ride showed Neutral light/gear position in-op, the fuel gauge erratic (at least by moving the sender by hand), but nothing blew up or caught on fire.  Today, I tried a commute to work (about 20 miles, mostly freeway), which went well.  This is my first real ride since I bought the bike about three years ago!  On the way home, the last bubble of air must have burped from the front brakes, as lever travel went from (1/4" from grip at full squeeze) to about half that!

welcome Hugh, what beautifully engineered bikes these are. Electrical dry joints and semicoductor type stuff plays up on and off. I'd like to de-electronic mine and fit a couple of SU carbs or something similar sometime, save weight and hassles I reckon, but when the myriad of electronic systems work the bikes are a dream, swift and safe.
Good luck and persevere. Mines running too cold at the mo need a new thermostat, yeah something that not electronic.
Rick
NewZealand
K IWI Land
PS: come out for a K tour of Bull