F800 BMW -The layman’s review

This past weekend at the NewUlm Rally (report on that coming) I arrived up a bit later than usual. So Saturday when I arrived most everyone was there and had set up camp.
Pulling up, one of the new BMW F800's caught my eye over at the British-USA booth. After putting up the tent and before getting settled I strolled over to take a look.

Realizing it didn't belong to anyone and was a showroom/demo I found B-USA's owner who I know well. I asked him how the F800 engine was, "It ROCKS" he says. Now like I said, I know this guy, so after rolling my eyes I ask him, "No, really, how is the bike...tell me about it". "Here, take it for a ride", he says. Jeez, I really wasn't thinking about a test ride, but hey, I'll make up my own mind about the bike. ....and it didn't hurt that there are some great roads in the area.

So, down to it....Now if you want specs and figures, head to the BMW site. This is just a "seat of the pants" opinion on the new F800 bike.
This model happened to be the "ST" model, with the full fairing vs. the half-fairing "S" model.

Heading out, I instantly noticed how smooth the engine was.
While maneuvering through the neighborhoods I grabbed a handful of front brake to test it out...just to get a feel. WHOA! These stoppers were definitely not messing around, one finger would be gently used for the rest of the ride.

Out on the real roads, I quickly went for the throttle....that's what I was really curious about, right?...Whaaaaaa! It pulled quickly up to triple digits easily, even with my big butt on the seat (220lbs). After going through that cycle a few more times, I realized that my assumptions of a weaker engine were proven wrong. I would be able to ride anywhere and keep up with any speed comfortably on this bike.

In the twisties, the bike felt nimble and really liked to be ridden at the top of the rev range.
Also, about the gears...Towards the end of my 30min ride, I decided to see how it felt in the higher gears. Goodness!, it had 6 speeds and I never felt necessary to use 5 or 6! A bit Odd?
Either way, the gearbox was smoooth.

I haven't ridden many belt-drive bikes, but this one was un-noticeable. I didn't even think about the fact it had a rubber-band as a drive.

This ST model has bars on it, the S model has clip-ons. Even though I prefer the looks of the half-fairing S, I would want to somehow swap triples to get those bars on it...I'm "pro-bar" these days.

"ST" model, as ridden

"S" model, with clip-on type bars

The exhaust had a wonderful deep tone to it, later I found that it had BMW's Akropovic accessory pipe on it ($$$).

The instrument cluster was pure BMW. Analog tach, analog speedo, LCD computer readout with loads of figures/options.
It confused me on several occasions as I looked to the large LCD screen looking for MPH only to see what gear I was in. It irritated me a bit, but I'm sure it would be fine with familiarization.


So, to summarize my convoluted sentences above:
Engine- Suprisingly strong. Rotax doubters be gone!
Brakes- very good. Non-linked, ABS is available.
Suspension- Normal forks, seemed fine to me. No issues.
Belt-Drive- What belt-drive?
Comfort- Great, roomy for a sport-tourer...although, I was on the model without clip-ons.

Overall, I was really impressed with this bike. I'm glad they're going after the void between 600cc and liter bikes.
Even though I like these bikes, I really don't see them doing great here in the US. Just a hunch.....But if anyone is even thinking about one of these I say go for it. Go test one, go buy one. You won't be disappointed.

Oh, when I got back the B-USA owner asked what I thought, I said "It ROCKS".