Givi V35 PLX Side Cases for BMW K1300S & K1200S – Custom Installation by Harry Burney September 2012
Review of side luggage options for the BMW K1300S and K1200S BMW offers their Sports Pannier System (Photo 1) as an accessory for various BMW models including the K1200S and K1300S at a cost of about $1000. The capacity of each BMW sport pannier is 17 liters, but the moving-lid side opens like an accordion giving each bag a maximum volume of 25 liters. But, you don't see many BMW riders with these sport panniers in the maximum capacity mode, because it expands the width of a K1200S/K1300S from 34 inches at the panniers to nearly 43 inches, but even worse, it looks like the pannier lids have been mistakenly left open.
SW-MOTECH offers rear and side luggage metal racks (Photos 1 & 2) for the K1200S to mount Givi Monokey, TraX ALU-BOX, Kappa, Hepco & Becker, and Krauser hard luggage. But because the side racks are located at the outside edge of the muffler as shown in Photo 2, it causes the side luggage
Photo 1 K1200S with BMW sports panniers (left) & SW Motech racks & H&B cases (rt) [2004 promotional photo by BMW (left) & 2008 Twisted Throttle photo (rt) ]
to be mounted quite high and very wide on the motorcycle. I was looking for something larger than the BMW panniers, but not something so large as the Hepco and Becker side cases shown in Photo 1.
Photo 2 SW-MOTECH luggage rack system for K1200S [2006 photos for SW-MOTECH racks]
Since circa 2007 Givi has offered their V35 PLX style side luggage, which better fits the rear profile of many motorcycles including the BMW R1200R and the Yamaha FZ6 as shown in Photo 3. Each side case has a 34-35 liter capacity and will hold some smaller full face helmets. A single key is used to open and remove the luggage from the racks. The size of this luggage and the contoured fit was exactly what I was looking for. But in 2008, when I did my first V35 installation on my 2008 K1200S, neither Givi, SW-MOTECH, nor anyone else made racks to mount Givi V35 PLX luggage on a K1200S.
Photo 3 Givi V35 PLX on a BMW R1200R (left) & a Yamaha FZ6 (rt) [2008 Twisted Throttle photos]
Recently Givi has developed their Fast Off or removable tubular racks to mount various styles and sizes of Givi side luggage for many motorcycles including the K1300S and K1300R as shown in Photo 4. These removable racks do allow mounting Givi V35 PLX cases for the K1300R and the K1200R, but not the S models. With these Fast Off racks the tops of the cases extend quite high above the seat of the K1300R and do not look as aesthetically pleasing as the position of the same Givi V35 luggage on the BMW R1200R and Yamaha FZ6 or the smaller BMW panniers on K1200S as shown above.
Photo 4 Givi Fast Off racks on a K1300S (left) and K1300R (rt) [2012 Bici Motorcycle photos]
Design and custom fitting of Givi V35 PLX side luggage to the K1300S and K1200S In the Spring of 2008, the author purchased PLX687 side racks designed for the BMW F800S and Givi V35 PLX luggage from Twisted Throttle and modified them to fit his 2008 K1200S. My criteria for locating the luggage and the luggage racks were: 1. As close as possible to the motorcycle rear bodywork without damaging, cutting, or modifying said bodywork, 2. As low as possible while maintaining a ground clearance safety margin compared to the feelers on the foot-pegs, 3. Aesthetically pleasing alignment of the cases with the motorcycle, mainly with the muffler and the seat, and 4. Utilize a three point support/mounting system for each luggage rack and a cross brace while keeping the modifications as simple as possible. With the V35 cases installed and shut, the maximum width is about 40 inches. The maximum width of the K1200S at the stock mounted mirrors is about 36 inches. The clearance between the top of the muffler and the bottom of the right side case is about two inches. As shown in Photo 5, the rear turn signals are still in the stock location with the luggage racks installed
Photo 5 The author's 2008 K1200S with Givi V35 PLX cases and custom mounted racks
and the V35 cases mounted on my K1200S. Details of the design and fabrication were published in the May 2009 BMW Owners News magazine.
The author was pleased enough with his Givi V35 side luggage design and installation that he nearly always kept the luggage mounted on the motorcycle. The luggage and racks performed well with no issues while traveling more than 35k miles over three years. The author liked his Givi luggage and custom rack design enough to keep them when he sold his K1200S. The same luggage and racks now reside on his 2011 K1300S shown in Photo 6. The luggage and racks now have over 45k miles with
Photo 6 The author's 2011 K1300S with the same Givi V35 PLX cases and custom racks
no issues. If you like the way Givi's V35 PLX side cases look on the author's K1200S and K1300S, you can find more details, previously unpublished information, and photos about modifying the PLX687 side racks in a separate article on this website. [If it's not there, it soon will be]
Harry Burney is a retired chemical engineer. He worked for Dow Chemical in process research for 32 years. He is active in Lions Club and in the San Antonio BMW Riders Association. He has ridden motorcycles since 1971 and BMW's since 1999. The author can be contacted via this website for additional information on this article.