Which one? BMW F800ST/F800R or Triumph Street Triple R

I think I'm saying bye bye to my Wee. I want a mid sized light, good mpg, road only commuter, sporty funner bike good for daily chores and occasional multi day trips. I am 5'6" and do not want a tall adventure bike. The Wee is a good bike but I do not need a 19" front wheel. I look forward to not having to upgrade the suspension and brakes.
The BMW on paper looks good. Do I need or want belt drive wrapped in plastic or naked with a chain. The one thing I worry about with the Rotax twin is I keep reading about the inherent undampenable vibration. I have briefly ridden the ST and felt the vibration but it was a short ride and living with something day to day can make a small problem big and a big problem unsurmountable. Nothings perfect I understand.
The ST3 seems to get good reviews and has some great features. Good brakes, suspension and an engine I'm told simply makes a rider smile. I think it is more on the sport side with the short wheelbase but I believe side bags can be fitted and maybe a top box?
Anyway. Which one would you pick? Reliability, ease of maintenance, cost of parts, and economy are important. Mostly in town riding from 20 to 50 miles a day. Short days on the backroads when time permits. I live in the desert and ride at night, too.

Hands down the triple. The F800R motor just didn't do anything for me - plenty of torque but slow to rev and just wasn't a willing partner. Disclamer: my daily ride is an FZ6, so I'm used to very revvy motors. Seems the STripleR strikes a great balance, it is on my list.

LOL The grass really is greener on the other side!

As a maker of $$$ payments custodian until 2015 of a 2009 F800ST, and desperately wishing he'd bought a 650 Strom instead, all I can say is you're a loon for wanting to switch the other way.

I do love my ST, but it's one of those things where you know you've made the biggest mistake of your life with a new girlfriend kinda deals.

...after she tells you she's pregnant.

If you want Sporty and Fun, it's the Triumph hands down.

Economy is about the only factor you listed where I would give the nod to the BMW's, they do get great mileage. That said, when I'm riding it isn't about the mileage, if it was I'd get a scooter

You are making payments? You knocked up your girlfriend? Hard lessons.

I think the ST3 would be significantly different from the Strom. All street, no pretensions to adventure with power, brakes, and suspension that make the Strom seem outclassed. That's my impression. Different characters but both capable of doing what I want. Does the ST3 have more panache worth the price? I'm leaning toward answering my own question.

I can't do much of a comparison to the other bikes you mention, but I've been very happy with my ST. I like the belt drive -- it's clean and needs no maintenance. I haven't been bothered by the vibration -- my ST is smoother than my '04 GS. The bike is light enough to be convenient in the city, and I'm happy to ride it all day. The fork springs are useless if you're going to be carrying any weight on the bike, but that's a $100 fix.

Normally I would have saqid the Triumph is for you. But I see you are 5'6". One thing to remember, about virtually ALL Hinckley Triumph triples, they are top heavy, and tall. The BMW ST is incredibly light, all weight is down low, fuel tank below the seat, it gets what I think is fairly incredible fuel economy, belt drive, ABS, heated grips. It really is a decent bike.
The triples have very cool engines, but for you the little Beemer is the one.

Steve

I went and sat on a Street Triple about a year ago and it was OK but felt really small. I didnt get to ride it but it looked like a lot of fun.

I bought a F800R a couple weeks ago and so far have been really happy with it, I have since done a few things to make it my own and its plenty comfortable for me. The mileage is awesome and while its not the fastest bike on the road she pulls plenty good.

A couple advantages the BMW has that have been already been mentioned I think are the heated grips, ABS, and a better warranty. Its a little buzzy but nothing to stand up and scream about, switching out the bar ends seem to be the answer.

The Street is pretty compact so I dont think being top heavy would be an issue and the seat height is the same as the F800R. I had a Tiger 1050 and that triple is one bad ass engine for sure.

The only way to know for certain is a road test.

Street Triple 675R is considerably lighter than the BMW f800ST or f800R. Remember the 675 is a supersport chassis with comfortable bars fitted. Its the Triumph 1050 triples that can feel top heavy. FWIW the vibration on the f800 is much coarser than your weestrom. The 675 street triple is smooth & a sweetie, but a much more involving ride than either a f800 or Weestrom

Not true at all. I'm not sure how Steve G got the impression that the Street Triple is top heavy. I'm 5'4" and the Street Triple is a great fit for me. Very light and nimble. I had the opportunity to ride the BMW F800S, BMW F800ST, Ducati Monster 696, Buell XB12SCG Lightning and the Street Triple back to back at Femmoto a few years ago. I really wanted to like the F800ST, it is a good bike. There's just something about the Street Triple that made my choice easy. There's such an amazing feel to the ride
I've done every kind of riding on mine: 115 round-trip commuting, multi-state/week touring, track day, local canyons, etc. Just go test ride one and see.

With pretty much any aftermarket can (or set of cans) the Street R is a little under 400lbs curb weight. likewise it has a lower seat than the Daytona which helps, I think its something like 29", its lower.

They are fun little bikes, if I didn't already have a Speed Triple I would have looked (or be looking) for one now.

What exactly do you mean "involving"?



Test ride on a 2012 ST3r Wednesday at local Triumph dealer.

Thanks everyone for sharing your advice and your experience.

That was my feeling, as well. The F800R fit me a lot better, so I went with it. (I usually use the GS on weekends and wanted a commuter.)

I agree. Many people rave about how fun the Street Triple is to ride. Either way, both bikes are better than the strom for commuting and fun. The strom is a great bike for reliability and mine gets me down the highway just fine, but it's unglamorous in the turns and I'd sell it in a heartbeat if I needed to ride it as a commuter. But if you can ride the ST3 and F800R, that would be the way to tell.

OK, i stand corrected. i deidn't realize we were talking about the 675. Yes, I've ridden that one as well, super lite and flickable. The engine is slightly de-tuned from the Daytona, which had a reputation for expiring prematurely. I still will not ignore the F800ST, for it's ABS, heated grips, astounding fuel economy, and belt drive.

Steve

All the points you mentioned (heated grips, abs, mileage, belt drive) I really enjoyed about 800ST. I rode it from Denver to Columbus, OH (taking a southern route through OK) after riding for a couple days in the Rockies. Found it to be a great back road bike and very comfortable for hours-long slab duty. I generally prefer naked bikes, but if you don't mind the aesthetics of a faired bike, it's hard to beat for solo riding. Looks good with hard bags, too.

Too bad the F800r didn't come with a belt. I don't necessarily need or want a lower fairing ala the f800ST.

BMW made the f800s alongside the f800st. Bikini fairing, lower bars, belt drive..... nobody bought it either in europe or worldwide so it was dropped & replaced with the f800r

I've been paying attention to this thread as I've been looking at midweight sport tourers. The F800 was one of the bikes I was considering and hadn't even thought about the street triple. It doesn't seem like there are any readily available options for hard cases for the ST3, however. That's kind of a deal killer for me.

My lady friend was seriously looking at the 675 Triumph. Lack of ABS and no option for hard luggage killed the deal. Ultimately she found a 600 mile 2 1/2 yr 'still existing warranty' 2010 800ST, full load including factory lowered suspension kit. . While the optional luggage on the F series of twins leaves alot to be desired, it does work, is available, and the factory top box is very good kit. I know for a fact that the ABS has saved her at least once from a panic stop lowside.
Hey, they are both great bikes. The sound and feel of the triple is music to the ears compared to the parallel twin BMW engine. If Triumph does what I think they are, and put ABS on all their bikes, they will have a serious contender as an all rounder instead of a scaled down mini hooligan bike.
Just a side note on "quality" of build and quality of components. Last year I happened to stop by the local BMW/Aprilia/Moto Guzzi/Yamaha/Husqvarna shop. They were having new tile floors installed, and,,,well,,,the company screwed up on the concrete flooring cleaner/prep solution, causing a toxic volatile airborne agent to drift throughout the dealership. When I arrived around 9:45 am, they were in emergency mode, pushing all the bikes out of the shop, getting all product out. It was frigging alarming!!!! to see how the components and metalurgy delt with what turned out to be hyroclouric acid gas. The BMWs showed no effects to the paint, chrome, nothing at all. The same could not be said for the Triumphs, and the Piaggio products were totally buggered. The Stainless exhaust and brake discs, and the chrome were eaten alive on the Triumphs and the Moto Guzzis. Nothing at all on the Beemers.

Steve
Steve