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iphorde
0
- Joined
- Feb 4, 2009
- Messages
- 137
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- Location
- Frisco, TX
- First Name
- Byron
- Last Name
- Goodman
Several people have asked me to do a review of my BMW F800GS and my experience what my experience to Big Bend on it was like. So here it goes.
I currently own 4 bikes. A 2009 Kawasaki KX450F, 2009 BMW F800GS, 2008 KTM Adventure 990 and 2007 WR450F. This is the first BMW I have owned so I can't compare it too previous models.
First I would like to say, everything you read about this bike is true. This bike is flat out awesome. It is not a wheelie machine nor is it a bike your going to go race. But if you want a bike that will go anywhere and that is the most forgiving machine I have ever experienced, this is the bike for you. When I say forgiving, this bike is very forgiving. I got my self in circumstances that I would have rather not been in but the bike got me out of it almost like there was no effort.
I have one complaint about the bike. If you are ever going to do any riding on mountainous terrain take it to your BMW dealership and have them disable the frickin ABS.
ABS does not belong on a dual sport bike. ABS got me in more trouble due to the fact I kept forgetting to disable it than it has helped me on the pavement. I mean seriously, I was moving along at a good clip and there was a hairpin curve about as wide as a car with a steep grade and go to step on the rear brake to get a little control around a corner and I forgot to disable ABS. Let me tell you this was a scary experience. The brake didn't even feel like it grabbed to slow me down. This is the second bike I have with ABS but the first I have taken to ride in the mountains and if you're not used to ABS, don't get it.
With the bad out of the way, I have to say everything else about this bike was amazing. The 800cc Rotax has amazing power and the bike is geared perfectly. It didn't seem to care what gear I was in when I need to crawl over a boulder or spring through a silt bed.
The suspension is great as well. I got the bike in the air about 4 times and the landings where soft and pillowy. I hit a series of cattle guards on Pinto Road and the bike lifted very easily.
The bike eat up all of the terrain I threw at it and was very stable on all the terrain I road on. On Pinto Canyon Road I was moving in excess of 70mph and it blew up and down that road with out skipping a beat with the exception of my ABS experience. This road is a beginner road so I can't really say much other than I was moving fast. The water crossings went by like a blink of the eye.
I have the Continental Knobby tires (50/50) on the bike and I was surprised that there was no noise difference between them and the stock tires. Though I did notice with the knobby tires there was a noticeable acceleration decrease on pavement. I would say around 4-5% less. I laid the bike over once on Old Ore road screwing around and my SWMOTO crash bars did their job.
There are a few other things that took me by surprise with the bike. After riding dirtbikes and motocross bikes there were sounds that I was not used too. Rocks hitting the skid plate on the bike sound like someone is banging a metal plate and can be sometimes unnerving, especially at high speed. I head a ping noise that made me stop the bike. I thought I had broken a spoke or something. It was a sound I had not heard before on a bike.
I took my WR450F out on the last day just to scream across the desert roads. Unfortunately my ride was cut short do to an accident a fellow rider of mine had.
This bike is comfortable. I was not even saddle sore after riding the BMW all day. It has all of the creature comforts and is a joy to ride. One of the things I came to really enjoy is how quite this bike is. When I am riding my other bikes the noise starts to bother me after some time. This bike is so quite compared to anything else I have that I didn't even need ear plugs. My WR450F is dual sported and for long distances sucks (150 miles or more).
All in all though I am seriously impressed with the F800GS. So much I am telling you now, this is probably the best all purpose bike ever. Go buy one. Get over the price tag and buy it. I am honestly considering selling my KTM to buy another one.
I currently own 4 bikes. A 2009 Kawasaki KX450F, 2009 BMW F800GS, 2008 KTM Adventure 990 and 2007 WR450F. This is the first BMW I have owned so I can't compare it too previous models.
First I would like to say, everything you read about this bike is true. This bike is flat out awesome. It is not a wheelie machine nor is it a bike your going to go race. But if you want a bike that will go anywhere and that is the most forgiving machine I have ever experienced, this is the bike for you. When I say forgiving, this bike is very forgiving. I got my self in circumstances that I would have rather not been in but the bike got me out of it almost like there was no effort.
I have one complaint about the bike. If you are ever going to do any riding on mountainous terrain take it to your BMW dealership and have them disable the frickin ABS.
ABS does not belong on a dual sport bike. ABS got me in more trouble due to the fact I kept forgetting to disable it than it has helped me on the pavement. I mean seriously, I was moving along at a good clip and there was a hairpin curve about as wide as a car with a steep grade and go to step on the rear brake to get a little control around a corner and I forgot to disable ABS. Let me tell you this was a scary experience. The brake didn't even feel like it grabbed to slow me down. This is the second bike I have with ABS but the first I have taken to ride in the mountains and if you're not used to ABS, don't get it.
With the bad out of the way, I have to say everything else about this bike was amazing. The 800cc Rotax has amazing power and the bike is geared perfectly. It didn't seem to care what gear I was in when I need to crawl over a boulder or spring through a silt bed.
The suspension is great as well. I got the bike in the air about 4 times and the landings where soft and pillowy. I hit a series of cattle guards on Pinto Road and the bike lifted very easily.
The bike eat up all of the terrain I threw at it and was very stable on all the terrain I road on. On Pinto Canyon Road I was moving in excess of 70mph and it blew up and down that road with out skipping a beat with the exception of my ABS experience. This road is a beginner road so I can't really say much other than I was moving fast. The water crossings went by like a blink of the eye.
I have the Continental Knobby tires (50/50) on the bike and I was surprised that there was no noise difference between them and the stock tires. Though I did notice with the knobby tires there was a noticeable acceleration decrease on pavement. I would say around 4-5% less. I laid the bike over once on Old Ore road screwing around and my SWMOTO crash bars did their job.
There are a few other things that took me by surprise with the bike. After riding dirtbikes and motocross bikes there were sounds that I was not used too. Rocks hitting the skid plate on the bike sound like someone is banging a metal plate and can be sometimes unnerving, especially at high speed. I head a ping noise that made me stop the bike. I thought I had broken a spoke or something. It was a sound I had not heard before on a bike.
I took my WR450F out on the last day just to scream across the desert roads. Unfortunately my ride was cut short do to an accident a fellow rider of mine had.
This bike is comfortable. I was not even saddle sore after riding the BMW all day. It has all of the creature comforts and is a joy to ride. One of the things I came to really enjoy is how quite this bike is. When I am riding my other bikes the noise starts to bother me after some time. This bike is so quite compared to anything else I have that I didn't even need ear plugs. My WR450F is dual sported and for long distances sucks (150 miles or more).
All in all though I am seriously impressed with the F800GS. So much I am telling you now, this is probably the best all purpose bike ever. Go buy one. Get over the price tag and buy it. I am honestly considering selling my KTM to buy another one.
I need to hear it is a piece of junk and not worth riding 
