F800st

bigrider · Dec 1, 2005

One size Fits All?

SHUNK said:
I really like the looks of th F800, and it seems like that would be enough power, my problem is the physical dimensions of the bike. At 6'2" with a 50" chest, I need a little bigger bike to "spread out" on.

I'm 6'2" also. Its not the dimensions at the chest, its the diameter a little lower above the belt that concerns me. :buds

Dave H

Colorado Springs, Co

SHUNK · Dec 2, 2005

aerodynamics

I thought it was more aerodynamic to have a "rounded" torso!

Those guys with the flat stomachs have to be creating more drag!!!!

ppaintguy · Dec 2, 2005

cjack said:
A friend of mine and his wife rode from Illinois to Oregon a few years ago, they are in their '70s and she rode an R26, he an R100RT. She said that he went too slow.

I am 6'2" with a 49" chest and I ride my wife's 650 GSA...it feels okay, I would change the seat is all if it were mine. Otherwise a great bike and pulss me around and then some.

mik4160 · Dec 21, 2005

Great Idea!!

Looks like it will nicely fill the huse gap between the 650 and everyting else! Hope its affordable though. :sick

knary · Apr 5, 2006

Ok. I want one. I want one. Did I mention that I want one?

It sounds like a delicious machine.

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/04april06_bmw_f800st.htm

tessler · Apr 5, 2006

knary said:
It sounds like a delicious machine.

Dude, how many motorcycles have you eaten before?

Boingo · Apr 5, 2006

http://www.motorcycledaily.com/04april06_bmw_f800st.htm

I can't wait to test ride this.

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

knary said:
Ok. I want one. I want one. Did I mention that I want one?

QUOTE]

Knary, wait 'till you see one in person. It's very cleverly disquised in the publicity photos, but those left and right fairing panels are not attached to the headlight piece. Can't tell it in the pics, but in person it honestly looks like someone wanted a fairing, went to a junkyard and picked up a couple of panels that looked close, and zip-tied them on. It's hard to tell even in the pic I took in Milan, but if you notice the guy on the right side of the bike (bending over with the white shirt on) that gap between headlight and panel is about an inch wide

It looks more integrated on the ST than the S, but IMHO they both miss the mark, styling wise.

kbasa · Apr 5, 2006

dlearl476 said:
knary said:

Ok. I want one. I want one. Did I mention that I want one?

QUOTE]

Knary, wait 'till you see one in person. It's very cleverly disquised in the publicity photos, but those left and right fairing panels are not attached to the headlight piece. Can't tell it in the pics, but in person it honestly looks like someone wanted a fairing, went to a junkyard and picked up a couple of panels that looked close, and zip-tied them on. It's hard to tell even in the pic I took in Milan, but if you notice the guy on the right side of the bike (bending over with the white shirt on) that gap between headlight and panel is about an inch wide

It looks more integrated on the ST than the S, but IMHO they both miss the mark, styling wise.

Click to expand...

It seems to fit with the panels on the RT that appear to float away from the main bodywork.

knary · Apr 5, 2006

tessler said:
Dude, how many motorcycles have you eaten before?

Too many.

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

KBasa said:
It seems to fit with the panels on the RT that appear to float away from the main bodywork.

True, but it's kinda like the Baldwins, the same traits that look good on Alec just make Steven look like a dunce.

kbasa · Apr 5, 2006

dlearl476 said:
True, but it's kinda like the Baldwins, the same traits that look good on Alec just make Steven look like a dunce.

I think they look kind of Frank Gehry-ish to me. They've got a sense of deconstruction that seems to lead to a feeling of speed, at least on the bikes. Maybe not so much for a house. :ha

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

KBasa said:
I think they look kind of Frank Gehry-ish to me. They've got a sense of deconstruction that seems to lead to a feeling of speed, at least on the bikes. Maybe not so much for a house.

Wait 'til you see the 800 in person (if you haven't already). You might agree that the concept isn't executed as well as it is on the bigger bikes.

I think it's also analogous to the "wedge" design that was popular on '70s cars (for about 15 minutes). Bertone's Fiat X-19? Yeah, right on. Triumph's TR-7? Uh, not so much.

knary · Apr 5, 2006

dlearl476 said:
Wait 'til you see the 800 in person (if you haven't already). You might agree that the concept isn't executed as well as it is on the bigger bikes.

I think it's also analogous to the "wedge" design that was popular on '70s cars (for about 15 minutes). Bertone's Fiat X-19? Yeah, right on. Triumph's TR-7? Uh, not so much.

I haven't seen it in the flesh. I hope I like it. I've seen enough spy shots to think we're talking more about personal taste. In the photos, I like how the panels are so simple and direct in their execution. I like how they seem to float. I like their angularity against the rugged functionality of the rest of the machine.

Considering how divided people are on, for example, the RT, I expect a similar division on these bikes.

p.s. to my eyes, the X-19 and the TR-7 are both fugly. Comparing them is like comparing two kinds of poop.

knary · Apr 5, 2006

KBasa said:
It seems to fit with the panels on the RT that appear to float away from the main bodywork.

How do clean that RT with all those nooks and crannies?

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

knary said:
How do clean that RT with all those nooks and crannies?

I don't know for sure, but I think you'll need a torx driver. :cry

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

knary said:
Comparing them is like comparing two kinds of poop.

Exactly why it's germain to the discussion of modern BMW "styling", IMHO.
BMW's used to exude the same kind of "classic" styling as a 3 button cashmere blazer or a waxed cotton Barbour overcoat. Equally stylish in 1935 as 2006. Nowadays, they've gone all polyester leisure suit and Neru jacket.

knary · Apr 5, 2006

dlearl476 said:
Exactly why it's germain to the discussion of modern BMW "styling", IMHO.
BMW's used to exude the same kind of "classic" styling as a 3 button cashmere blazer or a waxed cotton Barbour overcoat. Equally stylish in 1935 as 2006. Nowadays, they've gone all polyester leisure suit and Neru jacket.

When? 1967?! :ear

Since the days of the early K-bikes, the styling has evolved - sometimes successfully, sometimes not. Outside of perhaps HD and some other specific bikes by a few brands (e.g. Triumph Bonneville), no major brand has pursued some model of "classic" styling. The closest BMW came to this rule is by being slow to update their styles - though it should be noted that when they have, the new designs were rarely "classic". Consider the early reviews of everything from the K75S to the R1100RS to the K1200R.

It's a tough line to walk for the maker of any styled product. If they push too hard, some of the designs will provoke the wrong reaction in some of their customers. But if they don't push it enough, the product might provoke no reaction or worse tell the customers that the product is behind the times. The hope, of course, is that the design will provoke more positive than negative, telling the public that you're an innovator and getting them to hand over their money. Very few designs age well enough to defy placing the product at a certain time. The apparent exceptions are those designs based on nostalgia but even then, the design can't help but date itself.

This bike, IMO, looks like it will be a winner for BMW (remembering that we are not their primary market).

dlearl476 · Apr 5, 2006

knary said:
Very few designs age well enough to defy placing the product at a certain time. .

Classic design vs. Fad The best instance I can think of is 911 vs Z car. Look at one of each from, say, '75-'80. Funny you should mention the K bike. People are often surprised that my RT is a '94. Even more so when I tell them they came out in '86 (IIRC, or '88)
Another prime example is late model Chryslers. Sure that Charger RT looks nice, but look at the cars from the advent of the "cab forward" design era, which looked GREAT when they came out, compared to a similar year BMW. One looks like an old american car, the other could be this years model. And IMHO, it's much more than simply longer product cycles.

This bike, IMO, looks like it will be a winner for BMW (remembering that we are not their primary market)

I totally agree. But sadly, IMHO, it's gonna be in spite of it's design rather than partially due to it. And ten years from now, I predict it will look horribly dated.

MCMXCIVRS · Apr 5, 2006

I'm trying to convince my wife that the F800ST is the sportier bike shes been looking for to be a stable mate for her Bonneville. She's agreeing with me (rare event). All I can say is that if BMW had taken this styling stance with the R1200ST, I'd have been riding one now for sure. This is a way better looking machine. I like the longer fairing of the F800ST, and the fairing mounted mirrors. And the headlight looks normal.

Heck, maybe we can get a deal on two of them.

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