BMW Faqs

BMW’s new 800cc middleweight sports tourer has arrived in South African showrooms in two versions, the F800 S selling for R81 850 and the F800 ST for R87 050. The two bikes are identical except that the naked S version is slightly more sport-orientated and has lower handlebars and a smaller windscreen. The more touring-based ST has a larger fairing.

The bike might be expensive for an under-performing 800, any sports 600cc will show it a clean pair of tail pipes, but, as shown by the the Bavarian marque’s strong sales, buyers are willing to pay a premium for a machine wearing that blue-and-white badge. The F800 is a middleweight sports tourer and doesn’t pretend to be anything that will light up a racetrack. It’s basically a commuter-cum-tourer for those who find the F650 GS a bit under-powered but who can’t afford one of BMW’s larger offerings.

The single-cylinder F650 will see 160km/h on a good day but the twin-cylinder F800 is good for more than 200km/h. More importantly, it also has a great deal more overtaking punch. The 798cc engine is a brand-new parallel-twin with four valves per cylinder and fuel injection developed jointly by BMW Motorrad and Austria’s Bombardier-Rotax, the company that makes the F650’s engine.

The 800 has a flat torque curve rather than hang-on-for-dear-life pace. Its 62.5kW at 8000rpm (it redlines at eight-five) falls far short of the 85kW-plus made by sports 600cc bikes but its healthy peak torque of 86Nm at 5800rpm is about 20Nm higher. So, while it’s not something that will shunt your eyeballs deeper into their sockets, the Beemer will accelerate with satisfactory pace and deliver a very linear powerband that makes frequent downchanges unnecessary. Its engine is notably smooth and vibration-free engine but the standard exhaust has little aural charisma.

The six-speed transmission is linked to the rear wheel by a quiet, long-life toothed belt that needs no lubricant and replacing only every 40 000km. The 16-litre fuel tank should be good for more than 300km, if ridden conservatively; BMW claims of 4.4 litres/100km at a steady 120km/h. The front wheel hangs on a standard telescopic fork whle the rear spring has a handwheel within easy reach to adjust pre-tensioning. There’s a single (and very neatly styled) swingarm and the rear brake disc, interestingly, is mounted inside the wheel rim.

Though it will not be the first choice for the knee-scraping brigade I can vouch that the F800 is a ball of fun around a racetrack. It displayed a lot of agility for a 182kg sports tourer (add five kg for the ST) around Pretoria’s tight Zwartkop circuit and both versions felt very predictable and manageable when thrashed. The bike has an easy-turning nature, strong disc brakes and the fuel tank is under the seat to lower the centre of gravity.

What surprised me was that the more touring-orientated ST felt no less agile around the track than the lighter S with its lower bars. Other riders echoed this somewhat heretical observation; some even said they preferred the ST which, they felt, inspired more confidence around the track. The track session was followed by a trip on public roads where, because of being a mostly superbike rider, I found the S had the more comfortable (lower) riding position. Other riders, more accustomed to perching on touring bikes, felt the ST was comfier. Horses for courses.

Wind protection in each case is adequate and the bikes slip through the air without your head being buffetted like a ping-pong ball on a straw. There were no pillion riders on the launch but the shape of the seat and location of the rear footpegs (identical on both versions) suggested an F800 would make a fine tandem machine.

The trip data computer, standard on each bike, is comprehensive and fiddling with it should help to break the monotony of long stretches in the saddle. You can scroll through average speed, fuel consumption, range, and air temperature on the easy-to-read digital display that also, usefully, shows the current gear selection.