Cold Weather Assessments for the BMW K75
I’ve always tried to maintain a fiscal sensibility regarding my Vespa and now the motorcycle. It’s so easy to get lost in the quicksand of add-ons and extras that promise comfort, efficiency or safety but on close examination offer more to my ego than anything else.
So I’ve approached the BMW K75 with the issues I faced with the Vespa when riding in the cold — traction, hand warmth, feet, and, well, that’s it.
Traction issues is an easy call. I won’t ride the BMW K75 if there’s snow on the road, in the forecast, or there’s a good chance I’ll find lingering ice.
That leaves the hands, my Achilles Heel of riding, and feet. For this post, I’ll focus on the hands.
Since I already have a pair of Gerbing Electric Gloves and the motorcycle has a handy outlet on the dash, I felt testing that combination was a good place to start.
Into the Mountains in Cold Weather
The definition of cold weather is different for every rider. For me, cold weather starts at about 40F and descends through several levels:
30F to 40F Cold Weather
20F to 30F. Frigid Weather
10F to 20F. Freezing Weather
-15F to 10F. Stupid Weather
On this day of testing, I was in the cold weather level at 35F. The first time I attempt to use the electric gloves brings on a bout of temporary insanity as I search for all the wires, connectors and controllers and then try and remember how everything goes together. And since this would be the first use on the BMW K75, I needed to plan and practice the process of gearing up, connecting, riding, and then disconnecting.
All this sounds as if it should be simple but the process is easy to screw up and it can be frustrating if you have to remove gear to reconfigure wires. But once I do it a couple times the how event becomes transparent.
One quirky example. Gerbing replaced my original pair of gloves when the internal wires quit heating. Pleasant experience with customer service and no questions asked.
After using the new gloves for a season I kept noticing a little mark at the bottom of my right thumb that looked like a cigarette burn. I could not imagine where it came from. Eventually, I figured out that there was a stray heating element looping through the internal glove fabric which allowed that little loop to cause the burn. Didn’t feel it while riding so it took a while to zero in on the gloves and then turn them inside out to find the heating element that was responsible.
Now a smart guy would have called Gerbing to complain. But have more resemblance to a high functioning chimp, I just put a Band-Aid on the place where I would get the burn. Problem solved.
Now, here’s where the frustration begins. When I first start using the gloves, I’m out in the driveway, engine is running, gloves are heating and I’m ready to go when I remember I forgot the damn Band-Aid.
It’s the little things that frustrate me.
The first part of the ride entailed 10 miles of freeway riding at 65mph to get a good idea of how much power was necessary at 35F to keep my hands warm. Half power was more than enough. The next test was to do a little wandering through the mountains where I would stop and take pictures. This activity often allows my hands to chill and it’s important to determine if the heated gloves can restore my hands.
The BMW K75 is a joy to ride on the backroads leading up the Allegheny Plateau. And the gloves were quickly able to reheat my hands. So far, so good.
Configuring the Power Controls
Anyone who has used the Gerbing Electric Gloves can attest to the nuisance of using the loose wires to power them. I’ve not wanted to invest in a jacket that allows a quick and easy connection and I don’t want to fiddle with installing a controller in the dash, so I jury rig some setup with the jacket.
Basically, I plug the end of the controller wire into the BMW receptacle on the dash, and the other into the gloves wires. Then I push the controller itself up through one of the Velcro straps on my First Gear Kilimanjaro jacket and turn the power knob to where I think it should be.
Then off I go.
Verdict on Hand Warmth and Riding a BMW K75 in Cold Weather
I didn’t ride far. Around 50 miles with the temperature hovering at 35F the entire time. The motorcycle was easy to operate with the heavier gloves and I was warm and toasty the entire time. I saw no need or advantage to installing heated grips, Hippo Hands or similar protection schemes.
With the Gerbing Electric Gloves, I have surmised I could ride down to 20F before the gloves could not keep my hands warm. I’ve more recently ridden at 29F and found the electric gloves more than adequate.
Now that this simple testing and assessment are out of the way I can spend more time riding and less time trying to figure out what I need to do to stay warm on the BMW K75.
And if things get too complicated, I can always ride the Vespa as I descend into Freezing and Stupid weather.
Well, first of all, Happy New Year, Steve!
Next: Good that you sorted out cold-weathering the Beemer, given its relative lack of scooter-ish stuff like a legshield (although that windscreen looks rather effective). My own recent subfreezing misadventures (most recent being a 19°F ride that not even my Joe Rocket Windchills could properly shield me from) forced me to add to my Winterizing arsenal. Thought briefly about heated gloves (cordless-only…not interested i wiring up stuff), and heated grips (ditto), finally settling on a pair of Piaggio Universal Handcovers. The short story is that they work great, except when it comes to actuating my GTS’ turn signals, which i think partly comes down to alignment of that left muff. Otherwise, it’s keeping me warm enough for the type of riding I do at this time of the year.
Your Winter “ride/don’t-ride” mantra pretty much lines up with mine: less about temperatures and more about overall road conditions. Glad to see you’re giving the big K a nice workout!
I’m in a good and predictable place now with the K75. As you say, the ride/don’t-ride decision is pretty much a road condition decision.
Gearing up for winter riding isn’t difficult but I’m surprised by how off-putting it seems to be for most riders I talk with.
Be careful on the road. Make sensible choices!
I am looking for a warmer day to ride. Maybe it will come on Friday when it is supposed to climb to 78 here in New Bern, NC.
Geez. You’re about forty degrees ahead of us! Rain the next couple days so no riding for me.
I’ve tried heated gloves, hated the wires, almost pulled the motorcycle down on top of me when I forgot to unhook before dismounting. I’ll stick with heated grips and grip covers, they look like hell but keep the cold air off my gloves. Glad you got it sorted it on the K75. Riding is zero fun when one can’t feel one’s finger tips eh?
I hate the wires too. The only way I can cope with them is come up with a system and then practice it over and over until it is in muscle memory. I’ve accomplished that but if too much time elapses between use, I have to start all over again.
On the plus side, don’t have to worry about pulling the bike over. The plug easily pulls from the dash.
You’re right, zero fun when your hands are numb!
I had the same exposed heating wire and instead of tape on me hand, I put a piece of moleskin over the wire. It seems to stay stuck inside the glove. The heated gloves also get used inside of the Aerostitch rain gloves in colder, wet weather. I did add a dedicated outlet for the Gerbing gear so I didn’t need to use the Powerlet plug. The benefit is that it unplugs easily in case you forget to unplug from the bike.
I’ll have to try that solution. I’ve considered cutting the inside fabric, pushing the wire back inside, and then sewing or taping the cut. It amazes me how long I can put up with these minor aggravations.
I’m not worried about the Power Plug. The wire is so obvious and my dismounting procedure is so regimented that I’m not worried.
My first 2wheeled gas powered vehicle was a Vespa P200e. It was great fun to ride. Later went to Bmw motorcycles and have had a variety of them. I am your age and decided to go from an BMW 1150gs back to a Bmw K75 for weight and size control issues. I do my own maintenance and some upgrades. You are probably aware of the power plug on the left side of the engine that is mounted on a plastic cover. Bow and aerostich make a heated vest or heated jacket liner that I find keeps my core warm which helps me alot on colder days. Anyway read all your articles on going from the scooter to the k bike and the things you have to learn and very much reminessed on that transition period of mine. Enjoyed your writing. Thanks
So far I’ve not needed the added warmth of a heated vest. I tend to ride the Vespa more in the winter. Right now I only use heated gloves on the K75 and plug them into the power outlet on the dash. The outlet on the side is where I connect the Battery Tender.
I’m going back and forth between the motorcycle and scooter and it’s interesting to see how different the experiences are. Both are enjoyable and I don’t see limiting myself to one vehicle at this point. The real challenge now is to come up with more excuses to ride!