Took an F800S for a ride today..

[cruise_carter]

Stopped in to the local dealer today to get a part and wandered over to the MC side. I have been curious about the F800 since they came out.

Currently riding a 1987 K100RS and last beemer was a 2000 R1100R.

Manager had an F800S for a demo and I took it for a 20 minute ride.

My views:
Good-
Great brakes, really hauls it down (bearing in mind that I go 260lbs)
Very agile steering
A suprising amount of torque, gets up and moves
Very light and quick shifting

Not so good-
Minimal vibration for a twin but more at highway speed than my K100RS
Riding position is harder on my hands and wrists at slow speeds (got caught in some construction on the 401 Hwy for a short time) than my bike
More turbulent air coming over front of bike than K

I didn't get a chance to try an ST but the bars feel better postioned while sitting on new bike in dealer.
While there, a couple came in to trade an F800ST ('07 with low mileage) and the dealer is going to hold it for me and we might work out a deal....

we shall see,
Dale

BTW, for those who have been riding the ST for any length of time, how is the stock seat?
Every Beemer I have had, I had to change the seat to stop the pain....

[sapphire]

Stopped in to the local dealer today to get a part and wandered over to the MC side. I have been curious about the F800 since they came out.

Currently riding a 1987 K100RS and last beemer was a 2000 R1100R.

Manager had an F800S for a demo and I took it for a 20 minute ride.

My views:
Good-
Great brakes, really hauls it down (bearing in mind that I go 260lbs)
Very agile steering
A suprising amount of torque, gets up and moves
Very light and quick shifting

Not so good-
Minimal vibration for a twin but more at highway speed than my K100RS
Riding position is harder on my hands and wrists at slow speeds (got caught in some construction on the 401 Hwy for a short time) than my bike
More turbulent air coming over front of bike than K

I didn't get a chance to try an ST but the bars feel better postioned while sitting on new bike in dealer.
While there, a couple came in to trade an F800ST ('07 with low mileage) and the dealer is going to hold it for me and we might work out a deal....

we shall see,
Dale

BTW, for those who have been riding the ST for any length of time, how is the stock seat?
Every Beemer I have had, I had to change the seat to stop the pain....

I haven't had a chance to put a lot of miles on mine yet, but so far it is better than the honda 599 I had. I rode for over 2 hours and didn't know my butt hurt until I got off the bike, then it just felt like I had been sitting too long. Got back on after 10 min or so and butt felt fine until I got off the bike again.

I suppose if you have had to replace the seats on other bmw's you may have to on this one. I know Corbin offers a seat, but I am pretty darn happy with mine so far. I suppose when I finally find the time (and dry weather) I will get to find out!!

Also, I added bar risers to my bike and the hand position is much better on the ST. I am more upright. Nice bike and don't worry....she steps out when asked nicely!

[MCMXCIVRS]

I've just done about 400 Kms on my wifes ST (its booked for its first service and she's laid up with injuries and can't ride, so I had to run up the miles on it). I found it to be a very decent bike. Considering my two bikes are an R1100RS and an F650GS, I found the vibrations to be virtually non-existant. The engine is very smooth through its full range of power and it shifts effortlessly. We have a set of bar risers coming in for it as she finds the reach a bit too far for her. I was ok with that aspect, but the extra low seat made it a real knee and hip cruncher for me. I imagine in standard trim it would be a better fit, and I wouldn't need the low suspension either. I found the air flow to be quite smooth as well, but I don't expect a lot of protection up top preferring the wind to cut across at around shoulder height without any turbulence which is what I found with the ST. That might change with different seating position though. The lower fairing does a good job of deflecting the wind and rain, I rode through a short cloudburst and had little water hitting my legs. The bike handles very well also, it falls into corners easily and hold a line without additional steering effort. The suspension is pretty good too, there is a bit of dive on the front end, but not excessive. I never really tested the brakes, but they seem firm and powerful, just a little sqeaky at low speeds.

All in all, I'm pretty impressed with this bike, and would certainly entertain the idea of getting one for myself should I find the need to replace my RS.

[cruise_carter]

Got an email quote from the manager about the bike that came in..

'07 ST with 7,000 km on it, balance of warranty
includes following options:
ABS brakes
tire pressure control
on board computer
white turn signals
anti-theft system
centre stand
luggage brackets
factory side cases
factory tank bag

handlebar risers and aftermarket Hagon shock added by owner (original shock comes with bike)

My price before taxes....10,200 CDN

I gather I should pull the trigger on this? Going to see him tomorrow)

Opinions??

BTW, it's that really nice blue colour..

Dale

[MCMXCIVRS]

Got an email quote from the manager about the bike that came in..

'07 ST with 7,000 km on it, balance of warranty
includes following options:
ABS brakes
tire pressure control
on board computer
white turn signals
anti-theft system
centre stand
luggage brackets
factory side cases
factory tank bag

handlebar risers and aftermarket Hagon shock added by owner (original shock comes with bike)

My price before taxes....10,200 CDN

I gather I should pull the trigger on this? Going to see him tomorrow)

Opinions??

BTW, it's that really nice blue colour..

Dale

That seems like a pretty fair price.

My wife opted to go with the Givi V35 bags after ordering the factory bag mounts on the bike. The BMW cases are fairly small and have an odd fabric expansion system, but the final factor was that she just didn't care for the look of them. The Givi's are much better sized and fit the bike very nicely too. Even so, If you decided to swap them they were only about $750 including the mounts. They have a painted panel on the lid that I may see about getting colour matched to the bike.

She chose the blue too, it is a very nice shade.

[Floppp]

Agree, seems to be a fair price.

The ST will be easier on the wrists but it is still Euro sport touring seating, i.e. lean forward. It depends on the bulk of the riding. At highway speeds the forward lean becomes moot because the air off the shield will support the upper body.

As for the vibration - well it is a twin. Not really fair to compare it to a K bike. But for a twin it is remarkably smooth.

I still have the stock seat but I put a Air Rider seat pad on because the bike came with the low seat and it is just too low for me. Corbin and others have seats out but everybody's butt is different and so what is great for some is not for others. Try it and see. I do get pain on the upper inner thighs and that is from the forward lean, the weight is moved off the glutes onto the legs. I will be trying various suggested solutions this year (Gold Bond, cycling shorts, Air Hawks, beads) to see if I can find something to ease up on the burn. The first tank of the day is fine but then I find I am needing a 10 minute walk around every 90 minutes after that and by the time 1000kms have past I am ready to call it a day. This is definitely not an Iron Butt seating position - unless one of the solutions I mentioned work.

I am 6'1" and put 25,000 kms on my ST last year. Around the city, yeah you do lean on your arms but keep the elbows bent and flexed and you should get no pain in the wrists. The shield does direct the air to the shoulders and up into the helmet on me, causing noise and buffeting. I bought an MRA Vario shield. with the deflector in the low position it is the height of an S shield and gives body support. With the deflector at max I still get enough air on the chest for support but the neck/head air is sent further up the helmet for a smoother airflow and less buffeting at highways speeds.

Check out F800riders.org, the definitive F800 site for all the plusses and minuses. As with any dedicated site you will hear about individual problems with certain bikes but when it comes down to it by far the majority are extremely happy with their choice.

Many of the problems that are mentioned are on earlier models - the Euro 06 and very early Canadian 07s. By the time the bike really started hitting the States, and anything built after March or April anywhere, most of the beta testing (i.e. 06 models) was completed and the rough spots ironed out. The .org site will tell you all about the various bulletins that have been issued over the last year. Any dealer worth their salt will have ensured that all warranty work has been done before sending the bike out the door.

Gas economy of 4.5 to 5L per 100 kms at 120kph is great these days. It is basically just a real fun bike to ride - steady as a rock on the highway, enough but not insane power, and when the roads start to twist and turn you will find the R and bigger K touring bikes fading fast in the mirrors without even trying.

400lbs dry weight make city riding a breeze. Very nimble.

Yeah, I like the bike very much. My SO does not like the riding position of the pillion, so it is a solo tourer/sport bike to me.

It sips gas, mine has never used a drop of oil, and in 28,000 kms has never needed a dollar spent over and above tires and toys and labour for scheduled maintenance. Well, except for the repair cost to the fibreglass and front forks that was my fault, not the bike's.

[Herleman]

I'm about 6 foot with a 32 inch inseam. I'm fat -- 210 lbs, and old -- 61.

Having said all that, I find the F800 ST to be precisely what I wanted. It simply does everything I ask it to do (I've not asked it to win MotoGP yet).

Its comfortable, reliable (some would say boring), and economical (64mpg steady running at 65 to 70).

I find the stock seat to be the best so far ( the Corbin was way hard for my tailfeathers, YMMV).

I find the only real improvement that I needed to make was to add better lights for the road and for fog.

I added V35 GIVIs and an E46 top box, also from GIVI. I changed the F800ST rear rack for F800S grab handles to allow me to add the GIVI topbox mount.

I added some LEDs to the rear to improve my chances of being seen, a StreetPilot 2730 to keep me from getting lost, and a CB radio system connected to my helmet with a Starcom Advance (mostly because it was neat, not because I really needed 2-way communication).

The windscreen is a vStream 19 inch variety with a laminar lip to help direct wind over my head.

Simply put, the bike is a dream.

It will be my last bike (remember the "old" part from above) and I expect to see it turn 100K miles. I just hope my tailfeathers will hold out that long.

Good luck with yours. I hope we meet on the road sometime. Look for the old guy with a smile on his face, especially if you get around Daytona Beach.

Ride safe -- ATTGATT and all that stuff.

[papasong]

Hi all,

I'm new to this list, and I'm fairly new to the F800ST, but so far I like the stock seat.
I'm 5'8", 160 lbs.

[AZ-J]

5'11, 170 lbs, 32" pants inseam, and 33" shirt sleeve. I fit perfectly on an S with no wrist pressure; I was gawky on the ST, so I own an S, and well over 6K miles later, on my 2nd set of tires (Michelin PR2's). I plan to keep this bike a long time. It has been great so far on the AZ twisties, and in and out of NM. :brad

In July, I will be flying to Gillette (too busy @ work to take a week off for a trip then, so I volunteered for the Photo Team - look for me with a name tag with avatar and username included). But in October, in a trail of at least a dozen BMW bikes and many others joining us, we are heading way south to the BMW Motorrad Mexico Rally, riding to Guadalajara for two days (and the Tequila train) and then its 200 miles North to Puerto Vallarta for the beach parties. That should be a trip to remember, but Gillette should be great fun, too.

S or ST whatever fits, I think this bike may be the most fun one. I also say as your sole bike, or as a second one, you can't do wrong with this bike if this bike fits you and you fit it. That said, neither can fit everyone. But no other bike can, either.

[arsprod]

I test rode an ST yesterday. It had the lower seat and suspension. The bike was nice, not $12K nice though. It was a reasonably warm day (mid 80's) and there was a lot of heat coming out of the left side. Thinking it would improve I spent some time on the interstate - it was worse. I'm guessing it's the bodywork on the ST. Anyone with an S have the same problem?

[AZ-J]

Well I wouldn't know from engine heat now, as the hot sun-baked desert roads seems to give back more heat this time of year - we'll be a near record 111 today.

Yet, in the 16 months I have the F800S, I have never felt engine heat on the S except for when I purposefully directed a knee or a hand down there to find it on one our few cold days. We do have a few days like that in late December/early January and I actually use my heated grips daytime then, night times and mountain road riding late October to April.

I actually thought I'd never use them when the bike came with them, and I never had heated grips on another bike. My prior bike, a Bandit 1200S ABS model, it was an oil-cooled beast (with a bore-stroked detuned GSXR 100 engine, and it gave off engine heat all year 'round).

[knary]

Hi all,

I'm new to this list, and I'm fairly new to the F800ST, but so far I like the stock seat.
I'm 5'8", 160 lbs.

:wave

Welcome to the club.

[cruise_carter]

After thinking it over for a long time, I have passed for the present on the F800ST. Everytime I have been out on my K100RS, I really enjoy myself and remind myself what a fine piece of machinery it is. Not the newest or the fastest but I really enjoy it.

Keeping it and perhaps down the road I will add to it.

Thanks to everyone for your thoughts,
Dale