BMW F800 R - the Rotax Roadster Thread

Nice pics. Thanks for sharing. No worries on the oil filter taking a hit from a rock? Looks like it is very vulnerable?

Jeez i'm slow Chi - only just noticed the screen on the F'R. you trying to turn it into an RT ???

What make is it ? and do you / Nancy like it ?

Another link I can't access.....

Update!?!

Is there a source for decripting the icons on the onboard computer? I have an F800R demo my dealer gave me while my K1300S is in for injector cleaning and clutch repairs, but there was no manual under the seat.

It should be simple enough to figure out the display icons, but I had a low fuel warning pop on last night and I could not find a range to empty on the display. I also mis-read the fuel gauge and thought I still had a couple of bars until empty when I ran out of gas a block from home. What I hought were bars were just a gas pump symbol at teh bottom of the gauge (my eyes are for crap at close distances).

Mike

MCN have a story up on their website about the upcoming Husqvarna street bike based on the F800 engine.



The rumour is that it'll have a bored out engine of circa 900 cc, and a few more horses. And it looks more like a Versys than the Beemer.

It's an exciting model. One that I am very interested in. Not sure they have the scale right with that drawing and the people on it though, either a very big bike or it has been stolen by Umpa Lumpa's.

Husqvarna have been doing some really interesting concept bikes over the last couple of years, so I'm intrigued to see what they'll come out with. I suspect that the engine might make it into the F800 range, and an F900 could be fun.

I'm more interested on the magic fuel source that they have going on! They must have found some way to produce fuel on board, and the system seems to be very compact too!

Nah, they just store the fuel in the tires instead of wasting valuable space with all that air!

I am 99% convinced that my next new bike purchase should
be a BMW F800R .
The only issue holding me back from making the purchase is :
BRAKES : ABS or no ABS .

I have been riding 42 years , had a bike always in the garage the last 3o years.
Never owned a bike with ABS.
I have read many articles on this subject.
I agree it is 100% a safer system.
Yet I am uncertain about making such a large change in riding habits.

Rather than ask for opinions on ; ABS - Yes or No ?
I would like to hear about what others have experienced in the
transition from No ABS to ABS ( ??? ) AFTER buying a F800R,

My F800R is the first bike I have had with ABS, and I have had around 60 different bikes since starting riding. I have done 1,000 miles since owning the bike, some pretty fast miles as well. I have not come close to provoking the ABS and find the brakes very good for feel and modulation.

I did not set out to buy a bike with ABS, and if buying new I probably wouldn't have paid the extra for it. But, it was an ex demo bike I bought and I wanted that particular colour (orange), it was at a very good price (less than other non ABS bikes) so I bought it.

So in conclusion, so far I haven't noticed the ABS is there, wet or dry, fast or slow. In some ways I suppose it adds a little extra security in the back of your mind, but it hasn't changed how I ride or brake.

I don't own a F800R.. but the riding habits you mention.. I'm not sure what
you'd need to change, you ride the bike like you would a non-ABS bike, it's
just there when you need it and you don't have to 'adjust/adapt' to anything
new realistically.

ABS is for the most part, transparent to the rider. You do not have to "learn" how to ride a bike with ABS, just like you don't need to "learn" how to ride a bike with fuel injection.

However, it will immedaietly loose it's transparency when it saves your bacon.

Great ! Thanks !

Now my only decision left to make is ,
if I want to enter a "life" with No More "backing it in " corners ,
and other assorted hi-jinx.

Switchable ABS is the one thing that has that 5% of me ,
that keeps saying , take a look at a Tiger 800 ABS
( at least you can shut off the ABS if you wish )

Thanks Again

We didn't know the Tiger 800 was another option here:
Hands down I'd buy the Tiger before the BMW. It'll do everything the BMW will, and more.

Having never had a vehicle with ABS in my life (Bike or Car!) and after owning about 18 or 19 bikes prior to buying my 2009 F800ST, I will respectfully disagree with you here.

I've been riding for around 40 years, and have never had an accident where I crashed or hit something due to locked up front or rear brakes under any circumstances, panic/emergency or not. Locked up or close to locking up the brakes? Sure! Nearly every day! Ever crashed? No!

I didn't really want ABS on my new bike, but thought meh, what the heck, fine, I'll cave and go with the masses this time.

My braking *is* significantly different now, on my BMW. I can't use the rear brake at all going over any kind of chatter bumps, as it simply clacks away noisily and appears to totally divorce itself from slowing rear wheel revolution.

The front brake abandons ship and allows me to gracefully sail through crosswalks and into intersections if those same small bumps or irregular pavement bits are present that make the rear brake take a siesta.

That was *my* first welcome to the wonderful joys and ultimate safety of the temple of ABS. Something completely unremarkable as far as braking goes, on a perfectly dry sunny day, with no need or reason to fear what my actions on a motorcycle would produce.

Hitting a few bumps coming up to a red light, and having both the front and rear brakes remove my ability to stop using my own judgement, and causing me to overshoot my target, go through the crosswalk and partially into an intersection.

I would classify my ABS as Opaque versus transparent.

Now, I don't feel/listen for any chirping or sensations that gave me valuable clues as to what my traction is at any given moment, I am scared of bumps and braking at the same time, and find myself paranoid and mistrustful of my machine not doing WTF I want it to do.

Strange that I could do two finger flip over stoppies at will on my skinny, knobby tired, two story tall DR350, rode it in the rain year in year out winter/summer and put tens of thousands of daily commuting and touring km's on it, and gee, I never needed to fear or mistrust it, or have it try to outguess me when I didn't need/want it too. (and I dare say I did more than a few emergency stops due to idiot drivers during that time as well)

So, pencil me in for the: Hates ABS and thinks it sucks section of the survey. Maybe I'm the only person on the planet who feels this way, or somehow after all these years of riding I am "doing it wrong".

All I know, is I jump on my Honda CBR (without ABS) after riding my 800, and can happily do flip over stoppies again, and *gasp* gosh darn it, suddenly somehow I am "doing it right" again...

I think I'm right in saying that the F800R ABS system has differences to the one on the F800S / F800ST. Certainly the symptoms you have described on your bike are not there on mine, and cannot be ascribed to me treating the bike gently.

Dammit! Story of my life. Why do *I* always pick the weird models.

Meh, at least including GF's in that statement, I'm on par, anyway.

I've got no issues like these on my ER6F ABS with it's (probably) most basic
cheapo ABS system ever.

One condition though.

WHEN and IF stuff like you wrote above happens, you MUST pull in (step on)
BOTH brakes 100% and let the ABS work.

If/when I don't, the result (here, on my bike) is what you described before.