2013 bmw f800gt

[JNRobert]

I'm in the market for a daily commuter workhorse and this bike is pushing a lot of buttons. Low maintenance belt drive, decent weather protection, heated grips, great economy and light enough to make the constant lane splitting tolerable.

I owned an F800S for a while and all the things I wanted (higher bars, better fairing) have been fixed with the GT. yeah, I'm disappointed with the cheap forks but if the price is a few thousand less than the 1200R, I can see myself owning a GT.

p.s. I also think it looks good in white

[John Bentall]

Originally Posted by Jim K.

and even higher price tag.

When comparing the price of the F800ST and GT, please do not forget that the GT comes with ABS as standard.

Hope this helps...

[JNRobert]

[sfrider300]

Originally Posted by JNRobert

My ST was pretty boring. That ad makes me think they've upped the boring factor by about 15%.

But hey, it will get you from here to there very nicely.

[Roadscum]

Originally Posted by John Bentall

When comparing the price of the F800ST and GT, please do not forget that the GT comes with ABS as standard.

Hope this helps...

... and the price of the GT is?

Regards, Paul

[JNRobert]

Originally Posted by sfrider300

My ST was pretty boring. That ad makes me think they've upped the boring factor by about 15%.

But hey, it will get you from here to there very nicely.

Yep, my S wasn't too exciting either but, I'm really looking for a commute appliance that's not quite as soporific as one of the mega scooters like a Bergman or GT650 (and saves me wearing out my Multistrada).

TBH, I'm expecting the 800GT to be at a price that's just not going to make it worthwhile. I'm hoping 12K for a base model - no bags or anything fancy - but, expect it will be closer to 16K given it's a BMW

[DFH]

Originally Posted by sfrider300

My ST was pretty boring. That ad makes me think they've upped the boring factor by about 15%.

But hey, it will get you from here to there very nicely.

So boring they have replaced the wet-fart exhaust note with elevator piano tinkling.

If you want a bit more excitement with your white-painted/abs-braked /pannier&centrestand-equipped/plush-seat/upright-barred 800cc eurobike this video may help....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0otWAuzi1LY

Not only is the video more entertaining but the bike has forks from this century, 20 odd more horses & double the service intervals....

[DFH]

Originally Posted by cug

I think you got a little bit overwhelmed when you were there as it seems. I am German, though I'm living in the US right now but I'm in Germany a few weeks a year and I lived there most of my life.

Me? Dutch/UK parents. Dual citizen Aus & Eu. Lived in UK Mainland Europe, Japan & Scandinavia as well as Oz.

Originally Posted by cug

There are aren't that many people in Germany that ride motorcycles. You see more because it is so much more densely populated (70% of the size of California, nearly three times the population). Same is true for other European countries. People ride two wheeled vehicles, bicycles, scooters, motorcycles much more as transportation than in the US. Sure, there is a lot of recreational aspect, but the percentage is much lower than in the US. Don't know about Australia, though.

I suspect the US & Oz are similar & much like the British. That is much more of a "Lifestyle-toy" aspect. Compared to their neighbours across the channel the Poms hardly use any scooters & buy many more sportbikes & cruisers. With similar population densities in Germany Italy France & the UK you see much less two wheeled activity (commuter or recreational) in the UK than its neighbours too. As the market in Europe is less "lifestyle" than what we see in English speaking countries boundaries get blurred. On the way to the 90th Guzzi rally I met a bunch riding from Milan. One was on a Guzzi Convert (a rare beast these days) & his mates were on a T-Max & an Aprilia Mana. 3 middle aged men out riding automatic 2 wheelers. Over here middle aged men are so insecure in their manhood they only consider Hardly Driveables & pirate costumes or 1200GS's with Charly & Ewan suits. Sad isnt it.

Originally Posted by cug

The F series is very popular in Europe, especially the F800R. World market looks much different, but for BMW the primary design target is Europe, and then the rest of the world that wants European bikes. And those sportier bikes are plain a no-go in Europe. Touring - check, trailies - check, nakeds - check, sport bikes - sure, but after the others; dirt bikes - what for?

Therefore I think it was clear for BMW to move the kind of bastard bike the F800ST was (somewhere between touring and sport bike) more into the category where it has a chance of selling instead of the area where it has absolutely no chance of selling. Because who wants sport bike ergonomics with trailie type performance? Pretty much nobody ...

Agreed, though I suspect the F800 is more popular in Germany & its northern european neighbours than it is around the Med. The Sporty mid size naked like the Street Triple/Hornet/F800r seem to be the new sport bike. Our French friends with a 100ps limit & a taste for old style rally road racing & motards points to the future coming for all of us.

[cug]

Originally Posted by DFH

Over here middle aged men are so insecure in their manhood they only consider Hardly Driveables & pirate costumes or 1200GS's with Charly & Ewan suits. Sad isnt it.

Yeah, here in the US they generally ride R1200GS Adventure with extra low seats so that they can get their 29" inseam to the ground in front of the Starbucks ...

And Harleys! It seems like if middle aged men here have a certain belly size, they are forced to buy HD, while under that same size, they either get a GS.

The other side of course is any kind of ultra racing replica for the younger crowd.

I think the F800GT will be a great bike. I really like it, will be interesting what the pricing here will look like. Though I'm very unlikely to buy one as there are other bikes I still find more interesting (like the R1200R).

[cls]

I think the GT will be a very interesting bike and I suspect the price will be around $12K for the base model in the U.S. There, now you know...This bike along w/the new Hypermotard 820 SP from Ducati would be a very nice balance of bikes for public roads IF the Duc gets decent gas mileage during commuting duties. Even though it'd be the sport/performance/hooligan bike of the two, I still expect good mileage when riding easy.

To each his/her own. That's why they make different bikes. I'll be looking at the GT closely. It'll have to hit the right price point and have a reasonable maintenance schedule. Those are always (potential) issues w/Beemers. And why I haven't owned one, as of yet, in the many bikes that have come through the garage. We shall see. I'm hoping for the best but I shan't hold my breath.

[Anteraan]

Originally Posted by DFH

So boring they have replaced the wet-fart exhaust note with elevator piano tinkling.

If you want a bit more excitement with your white-painted/abs-braked /pannier&centrestand-equipped/plush-seat/upright-barred 800cc eurobike this video may help....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0otWAuzi1LY

Not only is the video more entertaining but the bike has forks from this century, 20 odd more horses & double the service intervals....

I see pros and cons of both. You've listed the Hyper's pros. Here are the cons as I see it.
The Hyper is ugly as all get-out (especially the front end - HIDEOUS!), looks to provide significantly less wind protection (except for the hand guards), and has smaller capacity saddlebags (although they may be better shaped - we'll see if they can hold helmets). Does it have the mpg of the BMW? I don't know. If it does, great - but I doubt it. I can live without the extra 20 ponies and the multiple power maps, etc. if I get more mpg and range in return.

I'm fortunate to have both dealers in my area, and both are good dealerships, so it's not a factor for me, but it may be for others,

[hankgs]

[QUOTE=cug;20073867]Yeah, here in the US they generally ride R1200GS Adventure with extra low seats so that they can get their 29" inseam to the ground in front of the Starbucks ...

And Harleys! It seems like if middle aged men here have a certain belly size, they are forced to buy HD, while under that same size, they either get a GS.

QUOTE]
\
Lemme know if you want to go riding with your 800 sometime; I will be ahead of you in the twisties with my GSA and matchy-match 'round the world outfit... !

[Lujo]

Originally Posted by sfrider300

I forgot to mention the buzziness, which was definitely an issue on my ST. Three flaws as a tourer:

-- too much kneebend

-- buzzy bars (though some people say there are solutions)

-- prone to getting blown around, as you'd expect from a 480 lbs fully faired.

Despite that, ST was very functional and efficient and I found it fine as a one-up tourer, especially if mpg matters to you.

My $.02 on those points goes in the other direction, though my point of reference may be different. I'm 6'2" and with lowered pegs find the ST slightly more comfortable on my knees than the R1150GS with fastways pegs. Bars are approximately as buzzy as those on my R1150GS -- I didn't actually notice any bar buzziness on the ST until I took off the bar end weights to put on hand guard, and even after that it's not something that bothers me. I didn't find any problems getting blown around... I find the bike more stable on the highway than the big GS, and, I traveled around the US on the ST and never felt the motor or Hyperpro suspension wasn't up to the task. I wouldn't mind a higher-output alternator, though.

[cug]

Originally Posted by hankgs

Lemme know if you want to go riding with your 800 sometime; I will be ahead of you in the twisties with my GSA and matchy-match 'round the world outfit... !

Sure, your dick is longer. You certainly paid more for it ...

[hankgs]

Originally Posted by cug

Sure, your dick is longer. You certainly paid more for it ...

Well, as for the first part, I'll leave that to the jomamma blog, I bought the 07 GSA used and paid less than your new 800 english copy of the German version... But the riding offer holds