It can never be easy

The new gel battery for Maria’s K75S arrived about 5:30 p.m. yesterday and I went to work to install it.

But I quickly learned this is way more complicated than it would appear. For openers, you can’t just lift out the accessory/tool tray, undo the battery retainer and cables and lift the old battery out. Oh, no. That would be far too easy.

I called BMW friend Charlie Parsons for guidance, since he has experience with BMW K75 bikes. The accessory tray is locked in place with a retaining pin on the starboard side which also anchors the silver colored Motronic computer box which slips into a slot on the underside of the tray, coming in from the port side. Kinda like a Chinese puzzle. I managed to get all of this stuff out of the way with some struggling and swearing and was finally able to get at the old battery.

Then I noticed that the old lead/acid battery is roughly twice as thick as the new gel battery. Another call to Charlie left me reassured that the new battery will be just fine in the cavernous space. No need for a shim, just secure it tightly with the battery retainer.

Wrestling the old battery out of the bike was very tricky because it just barely fit up through the frame. Even so, I had to remove the circlip holding the lower part of the mechanism that supports the raised seat in order to lift the seat even higher so the battery could clear it.

I put the new battery in and connected the ground terminal. Connecting the positive terminal, I was startled by sparks, followed by the sound of the starter cranking the engine. I checked the ignition switch and confirmed that it was off. WTF?

Another call to Charlie helped me remember something I’d known years ago: When you try to start a BMW K-bike with a nearly dead battery, there is a high probability that you will cause the starter relay points to weld themselves into an open position. That appears to be what happened the last time I tried to start the bike before ordering a new battery. Charlie seemed to think it’s possible to open up the starter relay and fix the problem. The bad news, is that it’s buried deep and can only be accessed by removing the gas tank.

So the bike is back in the garage awaiting a weekend when Charlie can help me finish the job.

In the meantime, I got my stringer check and ordered a pair of Michelin Pilot Power CT tires for my K1200GT from the Motorcycle Superstore. The cost was $221.92 with free shipping. According to their calculations, I saved $127.92 over the list price of the tires. They’re dual compound, with hard rubber in the center for Interstate riding and softer rubber on the sides for traction in curves. And they should be here Thursday. Which will create an opportunity for yet another mechanical misadventure.