The Used Car Index

2018 BMW K 1600 GT problems

NHTSA lists 5 complaints for the 2018 BMW K 1600 GT, 0 of them mention a crash and 0 mention a fire. 1 complaints mention an injury, with 2 injuries and 0 deaths reported.

Data build 2026-10-09.

NHTSA lists this vehicle as BMW K 1600 GT.

At a glance

Complaints
5
With crash
0
With fire
0
With injury (complaints)
1
Injuries
2
Deaths
0
Recalls
2
Do not drive recalls
0
Park outside recalls
0
Recall potential units (maximum)
9,160
Investigations
1
Open investigations
0
Manufacturer communications
18

Complaints per 100k sold unavailable. No sales source is available for this record.

Where the complaints are

Top systems
SystemComplaintsShare of this vehicle's complaints
POWER TRAIN360.0%
UNKNOWN OR OTHER240.0%
STEERING120.0%
Top subsystems
SystemSubsystemComplaints

One complaint can name several systems, so shares can add to more than 100 percent.

Model-generated complaint tags

These labels are model-generated, not NHTSA data.

Failure modes
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
loss of control240.0%0.88
unclear240.0%0.97
mechanical failure120.0%0.73
Severities
LabelCountShare of taggedMean confidence
low360.0%0.71
moderate240.0%0.80

Model: typesafe/jev-1.13-20260917; schema version: tag-v1. 5 tagged complaints of 5 complaints (100.0%).

Confidence is the model's own probability for the label it chose (0 to 1), not accuracy.

Model-generated labels on tagged complaints only. Model years 2013 and newer are tagged in full; 2012 in part (see tagged_share); earlier model years have no tags. NHTSA's own flags remain separate in the complaints block.

Recalls

See new recalls and investigations this week.

2 recalls.

26V214000

Date: 2026-04-02. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

Defect: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2017-2025 K 1600 GT, GTL, B and 2018-2025 Grand America vehicles. The seal for the reverse gear control unit may deteriorate and allow moisture inside the control unit, which can result in the unit overheating.

Consequence: An overheated reverse gear control unit increases the risk of a fire.

Remedy: Dealers will replace the reverse gear control unit, free of charge. Letters informing owners of the safety risk were mailed May 28, 2026. A second letter will be mailed once the remedy is available. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on NHTSA.gov beginning May 25, 2026.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

19V692000

Date: 2019-10-01. Systems: POWER TRAIN.

Defect: BMW of North America, LLC (BMW) is recalling certain 2017-2020 K 1600 GT and 2018-2020 K 1600 GTL and K 1600 B motorcycles. Certain transmission parts may not have been produced to the appropriate hardness level. This could affect the function of the transmission, possibly causing double engagement of two gears and/or the damage of transmission parts.

Consequence: Double gear engagement or transmission damage can cause the rear wheel to lock up, affecting the vehicle stability and increasing the risk of a crash.

Remedy: BMW will notify owners, and dealers will replace the shift forks, the selector sleeve of 5th/6th gear and the gear wheel of 6th gear, free of charge. Interim letters notifying owners of the safety risk was mailed November 1, 2019. A second letter will be sent once the remedy is available. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1-800-525-7417.

Do not drive: No. Park outside: No.

Investigations

1 investigations; 0 open.

PE19002

Opened: 2019-03-25. Closed: 2019-10-16.

Steering Oscillation

The Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened investigation PE19-002 on March 25, 2019. This investigation was opened based on six consumer complaints alleging 2018 and 2019 BMW K-1600 motorcycles were unstable at highway speeds and that the instability was exacerbated while in traffic.ODI opened the PE to determine the severity and frequency associated with the alleged defect.In response to an

Systems: STEERING, SUSPENSION.

Linked campaign numbers: None listed.

Manufacturer communications

18 manufacturer communications.

Communications by system
SystemCount
ELECTRICAL SYSTEM9
EQUIPMENT4
ENGINE3
ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING3
POWER TRAIN1
WHEELS1

10249027

Date: 2024-01-11. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few years. This has led to increased demands being placed on the battery. This document covers important information for the dealer on how to handle A A?A A A A discharged batteryA A?A A A A compl

10230742

Date: 2022-12-08. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: WHEELS.

Due to a hardware change to the angular rate sensor, certain sub functions will not be active until after a software update.

10218352

Date: 2022-07-26. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

Due to a hardware change to the angular rate sensor, a specific function "Front Wheel Lift Detection" of the Pro Driving Modes is not activated.

10218366

Date: 2022-06-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.

Coolant is leaking from under the car which is equipped with the N63 engine. A low coolant warning might also be displayed (CC Message ID166).

10214996

Date: 2022-05-06. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

General Electric Systems.

10212064

Date: 2022-04-26. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.

Emission Control Information.?

10201170

Date: 2021-07-13. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

When diagnosing fault codes (0x3A13D7, 0x3A13D9), technicians erroneously condemn the electronic throttle grip, which analyses show is rarely the culprit.

10200269

Date: 2021-06-17. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ELECTRICAL SYSTEM.

The bike does not shut down with a short press of the keyless ride button. The keyless Ride button must be pressed for several seconds to shut the bike down

10200500

Date: 2021-05-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: ENGINE AND ENGINE COOLING.

The hill start control operation may be sporadic.

10149274

Date: 2017-05-01. Type: Service Bulletin/Repair Instructions. Systems: EQUIPMENT, POWER TRAIN.

Customer complains about an operating failure on the left or right multifunction switch.

Notes on this record

  • Complaints from the API and bulk file are merged and deduplicated by ODI number; the API alone misses records.
  • System and subsystem counts are numbers of distinct complaints, recalls or communications that name them. One record can name several systems, so shares across systems can add to more than 100 percent; a single share never exceeds 100 percent.
  • Recalls are counted once per campaign, investigations once per action and manufacturer communications once per NHTSA id, even when NHTSA lists several model names for the same record.
  • A sales denominator is a calendar-year proxy, not the population of vehicles still in use. Rates are copied from verified pipeline output.

Other names NHTSA uses

None listed.

Matched NHTSA models

Matched labels and complaints
NHTSA model labelComplaints
K 1600 GT5

Same model, other years

All model years | All BMW models

Other BMW models, 2018

Sources

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