I think I really want one of these.  80HP 800 cc FI parallel twin, belt drive, hard bags, available ABS.  Supposed to be 450 lbs or so wet.



Or I could just as easily take the F800 S:  smaller fairing, no ABS, no bags, lower bars.



What happens to a belt when to take it on dirt roads? I'm still hoping the F800 GS makes an appearance soon, that would be - cue Mr. Burns - Eeeeexcellent.

Those are shaft drive, right?  I'm curious what the pros & cons are between that and chain drive...can anyone 'splain?

*edit* didn't see this:

QuoteWhat happens to a belt

I guess they're belt drive.

Shaft=super low maintenance, but more power lost to drivetrain friction.
Chain=lower frictional losses, but require more attention/adjustment.

Apparently shafts used to do weird things to the rear suspension when on/off throttle, methinks the modern ones don't have much of that if at all.

I don't know anything about belts, except they're supposed to be pretty much maintenance and adjustment free, but need increasing width to handle as much power as a chain would.  80hp isn't much, so I expect the belt is relatively narrow. If you've seen a custon chopper with a 3" wide belt, its because of the huge power pulses out of a big vtwin.

Back to my question - can a belt handle dirt roads? does the gravel eat it up?

i like the 800S.  Are BMW's reliable bikes?  If it is less than $8k I might take a closer look at a BMW, but for the most part, i think they're a little pricey for my taste.


wtf... is that the gas cap on the tail of the ST???

If it's not too expensive I'll take the orange one for my next bike.

Quote from: 97gs500ei like the 800S.  Are BMW's reliable bikes?  
__________________________________________________________
Oh Yeah! they are and funnily enough my mates 1150R was cheaper to service then the GS was (glad I do my own now that warranty has run out).
But BMW's are not cheap so expect a premium price though they are very well engineered and handle very well on the road there would be no comparison between that 800 and the GS even if there was no 300cc difference.
Still love my GS though  

Had the gas cap debate on another forum. Gas is under the seat, like it is in the current F650 and R1200GS. Something to do with the center of gravity.  From the other speculation I've heard, under that fake tank is likely the airbox, battery, fusebox, etc.

I would expect just under $10k for the ST, and hopefully closer to $8k for the S.  Who knows, really. The Euro keeps smacking the dollar around, doesn't help much.

I'm at the point where, If I can't use the GS's full capabilities on the roads I ride, why get a monster/SV/YZF600r?  Figure I may as well get something more comfortable and usable so I can spend lots of time on the road.  I still want to see what the dualsport version looks like before I get my heart set one way or the other.

My boss has one of the BMW F650 "thumpers" and he loves it. Has about 35,000 miles with a couple of tuneups, valve adjustments, tires, and about three chain and sprocket replacements. He gets about 55 mpg.I* think that new 800cc looks good, and I have always liked vertical twin engines(GS500,old Triumphs, Nortons, BSAs etc).I also like the new Kawasaki 600cc vertical twin sports bike that was designed to compete with the SZ650 Suzukis.

It's the CS's big brother, not the GS's.

http://www.gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=21370
http://www.gstwins.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=22577

Quote from: RoadstergalIt's the CS's big brother, not the GS's.

Sorry, meant the GS500, not the F650GS. And I guess its the GS500's big bavarian half-cousin or something, but you get the picture.

My apologies for not adding to the previous posts, but the 800ST is a slightly different animal than the 800S, so I figured folks that may have already seen the 800S threads would like to see it.

Regardless, thanks for moving to the appropriate category. I always thought 'general discussion' was a bit vague...

Oh, IC what you mean.  Ja, this is supposed to be the successor to the now-discontinued F650CS (belt drive).  I likey it, even better than the S.  We'll have to see how the ergos are.  That tank actually looks very Ducati-ish to me, and I don't fit on Ducatis.

Actually, we'll have to see if it even comes to the US.  

The CS was priced pretty high for the US market.  The 800S is actually supposed to be only a little more - call it $10K.  That'll probably put the ST in the $12-14K range.  Ja, they're BMWs.

http://bmwf800.org/IMG/F800ST/F800STspecs.pdf

The low height is 31".  Eeep.