BMW placed the F800R as an entry-level, sporty, naked urban machine to slot in amongst myriad of 600cc middleweight bikes e.g Yamaha FZ6, Triumph Street Triple, Honda Hornet and so on – even though its engine is 798cc! And we can cheerfully say it fits in. What the BMW conveys is the feel and ride of large capacity bike with a parallel twin engine that can be revved to give the excitement of a sports bike without intimidating anyone.
The 798cc twin lump delivers a sweet mixture of low rpm torque and accessible horsepower. The harder you work it the more the body produces adrenaline. Fuelling is perfect around town and will return a very pleasing 54mpg even when ragged on back roads. But with this excitement, from 5000rpm and on, comes niggling vibrations though the bars and pegs. You get used to this.
The feel of the BMW F800R is taut and precise. The chassis is stiff and the suspension has been developed to work in conjunction with the chassis. Under braking and through the turn the bike is settled and feels compact, solid and… great. The rear shock is a little soft for pillion use but adjustments made (spring preload, damping) actually work. Goodly amount of steering lock and low-ish seat height make the F800R a good traffic-buster.
To keep the cost down F800R is as basic as its competitors, suspension and stunning front brakes aside. But if you’ve got the money to spare there’s a ruck of optional extras and accessories available from onboard computer, tyre pressure monitor, ABS, higher/lower seat option (FOC), fly screen, belly pan, panniers etc, etc.
One of the best put together BMW bikes we’ve seen. Everything fits perfectly and the coatings, paint and parts are sweet. But there again most bikes are like this from new. We all assume BMW has a reputation for quality, but there have been a few more complaints over the past 3-4 years, which BMW said it will address. On the plus side the engine is a known quantity because it figures in four other models and is well sorted now.
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