I own a 2018 BMW K1600B motorcycle. At highway speeds above approximately 65 mph, the rear of the motorcycle feels unstable and moves side to side, creating an unsafe riding condition. The motorcycle does not feel planted on the road and requires constant rider correction to maintain a straight path. I have verified tire pressures are correct and have tested different suspension settings, rider and luggage preload settings, windshield positions, and riding modes including Dynamic mode. The condition remains present regardless of these adjustments. The instability becomes more noticeable at higher highway speeds and creates a feeling that the rear of the motorcycle is moving away from the rider. This affects rider confidence and appears to be a potential safety issue because it can make the motorcycle difficult to control. I am submitting this complaint because the condition appears abnormal and may be related to known stability concerns reported by other owners of similar BMW K1600 motorcycles.
The worst 2018 BMW K1600B problems
Ranked by number of owner complaints. Mileage and cost come from what owners wrote.
Problems by type
Tap a problem to see which part fails, at what mileage and in which other years.
- Transmission20
- Steering11
- Suspension7
- Electrical4
- Engine4
- Fuel system4
- Acceleration2
- Body1
- Driver assistance1
- Wheels1
Specific symptoms reported on the 2018 BMW K1600B
Recalls 2
Power train: manual transmission: seals/gaskets
- What is wrong
- 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.
- Risk
- An overheated reverse gear control unit increases the risk of a fire.
- Remedy
- Dealers will replace the reverse gear control unit, free of charge. Owner notification letters were mailed October 30, 2026. Owners may contact BMW customer service at 1‑800‑525‑7417. Vehicle Identification Numbers (VINs) involved in this recall will be searchable on beginning May 25, 2026.
Recall number 26V214000 · Recall details
Power train: manual transmission
- What is wrong
- 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.
- Risk
- 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.
Recall number 19V692000 · Recall details
See all 2 recalls for the 2018 BMW K1600B
Defect investigations
Steering Oscillation
On October 11, 2019, the Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) opened Engineering Analysis (EA) 19003 to investigate reports of steering oscillations in model year (MY) 2018-19 BMW K1600 motorcycles. Complainants alleged steering oscillations (wobble and shake) and instability while traveling at highway speeds that were exacerbated while riding in traffic. ODI opened the EA, upgrading its PE19002 investigation, to evaluate the severity and frequency associated with the alleged defect and potential testing options. ODI sent an Information Request containing several technical questions about testing and simulation that BMW conducted during development and production of the subject vehicles. BMW provided responsive details that were reviewed and analyzed by engineers both in ODI and at the federal safety agency's Vehicle Research and Test Center (VRTC). BMW provided documentation that confirmed that during the design phase, it had conducted extensive testing and simulations to evaluate and quantify the aerodynamic (wind) loads and overall stability. BMW continues to research aerodynamic improvements that can help reduce effects from turbulent air. In the meantime, to mitigate undesirable effects from aerodynamic loads and other vehicle dynamic forces at excessively high speed, BMW limited the K1600 Grand America variant to approximately 100mph. All produced vehicles of this variant have this speed limitation.Recently, a peer motorcycle was recalled under the federal safety agency recall number 23V836 for high-speed stability concerns. Like BMW's design for the K1600 Grand America, the recall remedy involved applying a speed restriction. VRTC, in coordination with ODI, mailed out questionnaires to 98 owners of K1600 motorcycles in the State of Ohio. Questions relevant to the investigation included: time of ownership, accumulated mileage, how owners handled potential issues, service received for potential issues, and any crashes of the subject vehicles. VRTC received 44 responses to the questionnaires from owners of the subject vehicles. Of the 44 questionnaire responses, 10 owners responded that they had experienced some form of motorcycle instability, which was relevant to this EA. Of those 10 owners, all were able to safely adjust to the instability without a vehicle crash or injury. At this time, no crashes or injuries have been associated with allegations of steering oscillation or instability. This includes 24 complaints that relate to this issue in MY 2018-19 BMW K1600 motorcycles, which ODI reviewed during the federal safety agency’s PE19002 and EA19003 investigations. ODI also reviewed complaints about the subject vehicles, which BMW provided to ODI in the form of Field Reports, Consumer Complaints, and Warranty Claims. ODI reviewed a combined 41 unique complaints (removing duplicate complaints) that alleged instability, and none of the complainants indicated an associated vehicle crash or injury. The oscillation occurs during high highway speed (well beyond any US-speed limit), and the federal safety agency received reports that the operators can adjust their speed to regain full control of their motorcycles without a known crash or injury.Based on the available information, the federal safety agency is closing this investigation without further action. The closing of this investigation does not constitute a finding by the federal safety agency that a safety-related defect does not exist. The Agency reserves the right to take additional action if warranted by future circumstances. To review the ODI reports cited in the Closing Resume ODI Report Identification Number document, go to
EA19003
Technical service bulletins for the 2018 BMW K1600B 11
Bulletins tell dealers how to fix known problems. A warranty extension means the manufacturer pays for that repair for longer.
- The electrical system of BMW vehicles has been subject to an ongoing development process over the last few...
- Due to a hardware change to the angular rate sensor, certain sub functions will not be active until after...
- Due to a hardware change to the angular rate sensor, a specific function "Front Wheel Lift Detection" of...
- Coolant is leaking from under the car which is equipped with the N63 engine
- Emission Control Information.?
- When diagnosing fault codes (0x3A13D7, 0x3A13D9), technicians erroneously condemn the electronic throttle...
- The bike does not shut down with a short press of the keyless ride button
- BMW Motorrad quality analysis has established that on K 1600 B (K61) models with central locking system...
- Engine is placed into emergency operation mode and max rpm is reduced due to a deviation in throttle signals
- The packaging crates for all K1600B are not stabel enough to be stacked
What 2018 BMW K1600B owners say
Most recent owner complaints, unedited.
he contact owns a 2018 BMW K 1600 B. The contact stated while having his vehicle running on the driveway, he noticed a pool of gas accumulating. The contact turned the vehicle off had the vehicle towed to a local dealer where a fuel leakage from the fuel pump. The vehicle was repaired. The manufacturer was notified of the failure. The failure mileage was 16,000.
The contact owns a 2018 BMW K-1600 B Motorcycle. The contact stated that the fuel pump was leaking. The motorcycle was taken to an independent mechanic who determined that the failure was related to the fuel pump. The contact associated the failure with the federal safety agency Campaign Number: 21V060000 (Fuel System, Gasoline). The local dealer was contacted, who confirmed there was no open recall associated with the VIN. The motorcycle was not diagnosed or repaired. The manufacturer was contacted and referred the contact to the federal safety agency Hotline for assistance. The approximate failure mileage was 8,600.
2018 BMW K1600** To whom it may concern My name is [XXX] and I am filing a safety complaint regarding my 2018 BMW K1600 motorcycle VIN [XXX] . My motorcycle has a serious and dangerous stability problem that happens at normal highway speeds. While riding at about sixty miles per hour and higher the motorcycle begins to wobble and feel unstable. The front end becomes light and the handlebars feel like they want to move on their own. The back of the motorcycle moves from side to side as if the rear is shifting under me. At times it feels like the bike is sliding or going out from underneath me even though the road is straight and smooth. This is a very unsafe feeling and it can happen at any time on the highway. This instability becomes worse when passing large trucks or riding in crosswind. The movement is not caused by rider input. The bike has correct tire pressure and has no suspension or frame modifications. This issue appears linked to the design or mechanical components of the motorcycle. The wobble is strong enough that it feels like a loss of control could happen without warning. This puts the rider at risk of a serious accident or injury. I am aware that similar complaints have been reported by many other BMW K1600 owners in these model years and that the federal safety agency has previously reviewed this issue. I respectfully request that the federal safety agency reopen and fully investigate this wobble and stability problem for the 2018 BMW K1600 motorcycle line and determine whether a recall or corrective action is needed to ensure rider safety. Thank you for your attention to this serious matter. Respectfully submitted [XXX] Orlando Florida VIN [XXX] INFORMATION REDACTED PURSUANT TO THE FREEDOM OF INFORMATION ACT (FOIA), 5 U.S.C. 552(B)(6)
When I drive my motorcycle on the highway with 70 mph +/- 5 miles, the bike is unstable, the steering bar is shaking, and it is hard to keep the bike in the lane. I complained to the dealer, they balanced the wheel, tested the bike, but the problem has not been solved.
The motorcycle (BMW K1600 Grand America) goes into "Limp Mode" with the engine warning light where the motorcycle has no power until stopped, shutdown, and restarted. This happened to my motorcycle 4 times. Each time the BMW service cannot find any indication stored in the onboard computer. Also, there have been many reported issues of this in the BMW motorcycle forums. This issue is extremely dangerous because the last time this issue occurred, I was on a highway traveling at 70MPH in the left lane and suddenly lost power. Another time this occurred was during rush hour traffic. Both occurrences are very troubling.
The motorcycle will randomly go into what bmw calls "limp mode" and the operator will lose all throttle control. Potentially fatal if it happens in certain circumstances like heavy traffic on an interstate, at night with nowhere to pull over like it did with me. This ha happened twice so far with no fix in sight
The bike has been at the dealer now more times than I can count, the speedo is still off to this day by 4 miles an hour, the bike a pull to the left that has never been fixed yet. On occasion the bike will get a check engine light and just loose all power and throttle response. Why in traffic. And now ever since the power train recall and replacement, the bike has an unrepairable oil leak. It has been at the dealer now for over 3 months almost 4 months, august 6th till present.
The federal safety agency recall number 19v692 has been open since 10/1/19. Manufacturer has failed to remedy the issue.
Tl* the contact owns a 2018 bmw k 1600b. The contact stated while driving 60 MPH, the motorcycle became unstable while driving behind a semi truck or when wind turbulence was present. The motorcycle operated as intended after the speed was reduced. The contact stated no warning light was illuminated. The contact stated that the failure recurred on multiple occasions. The contact stated that a local dealer was contacted however, no assistance was provided. The motorcycle was not diagnosed nor repaired. The manufacturer was not informed of failure. The failure mileage was approximately 7,500. *bf
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Questions about the 2018 BMW K1600B
Is the 2018 BMW K1600B reliable?
Owners have filed 44 complaints about the 2018 BMW K1600B, 14.7 times a typical K1600B model year.
What is the most common problem with the 2018 BMW K1600B?
Transmission and drivetrain, with 20 complaints, typically around 4,990 miles. Next is steering (11).
How many recalls does the 2018 BMW K1600B have?
2 recalls, covering power train.
Was there a recall on the 2018 BMW K1600B transmission?
Yes, 2 recalls: 26V214000, 19V692000. Check your VIN to see if your car still needs the free repair.
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