BMW F800 ST

...you could easily mistake the BMW F800ST for a 'bog standard' Japanese sports tourer, but closer inspection soon revels this to be as quirky a machine as any from the BMW fleet.

One of the best (and possibly worst) things about BMW bikes are that they don't slavishly follow convention, and the F800ST follows the trend of 'tried and tested' designs with a few off the wall ideas.
The results are ultimately interesting, but whether ...
...the engine capacity - although BMW don't always stick to this convention, bizarrely their F650GS is actually an 800cc model as well!

The ST part indicates 'sports tourer' which indicates that it should be suitable for thrashing about as well as 'serious' touring, with optional hard luggage.

The bike comes with full fairing, what *looks* like the tank is actually a cover for the airbox and electrical components, the tank ... more

At first glance, you could easily mistake the BMW F800ST for a 'bog standard' Japanese sports tourer, but closer inspection soon revels this to be as quirky a machine as any from the BMW fleet.

One of the best (and possibly worst) things about BMW bikes are that they don't slavishly follow convention, and the F800ST follows the trend of 'tried and tested' designs with a few off the wall ideas.
The results are ultimately interesting, but whether they live up to the strapline of 'ultimate riding machine' is largely a matter of personal preference.

I had occasion to test ride a 2007 model F800ST when my R1200GS (reviewed previously on Ciao) was getting its' 500 mile service. I only rode around 25 miles, but this was over a range of roads, so I pretty soon got a feel for what it was about.

First things first.

The model number says a lot about the bike.

'F' indicates the F series engine - a liquid cooled laterally mounted beastie, in this case a twin cylinder model. Four valves per pot, fuel injection and a half decent gearbox in an aluminium frame.
The 800 is the engine capacity - although BMW don't always stick to this convention, bizarrely their F650GS is actually an 800cc model as well!

The ST part indicates 'sports tourer' which indicates that it should be suitable for thrashing about as well as 'serious' touring, with optional hard luggage.

The bike comes with full fairing, what *looks* like the tank is actually a cover for the airbox and electrical components, the tank itself is under the pillion seat (supposedly keeps the centre of gravity low)

Twin disks at the front, single disk at the back, Brembo callipers are fairly standard BMW fare, conventional telescopic forks ahead, and a single swingarm at the back connect the wheels to the frame.

You might expect a conventional drive chain on such a machine, but nooooo - another BMW oddball decision; instead, you have a toothed belt.

- Virtually no maintenance & you don't need to remember to oil the thing (no nasty goo being thrown about)

Clocks are conventional analogue style - although when you switch on the ignition, the onboard computer does a 'self test' by turning on all the lamps and flicking the needles to their maximum. An LCD panel shows millage and a few other things, but doesn't share the same level of sophistication of even the 'standard' R1200 GS display.

Switchgear is still gloriously unconventional in the BMW style, there's three indicator buttons, one left, the other right and a cancel function.

You'll either love or hate this.

Weight is around the 190Kg mark so it isn't especially light by modern standards, although it DOES feel slim (but then I'm used to a big fat BOXER engine)

Enough about the config, what was it like to ride?

Pressing the starter button resulted in a conventional enough sounding sports engine - the only difference being this is a twin and not a four cylinder job.

The main reason I'd picked the F800T was the saddle height, I'm only 5'7" and the low option allowed me to comfortably plant one foot, and still reach the other side with my tip-toe.

Driving away from the showroom, and getting used to having a full fairing, everything felt comfortable enough. The handle bars are conventionally mounted on top of the steering yolk, and whilst being a bit lower than I was accustomed to, weren't too much of a problem.

(if forced to use one of these on a regular basis I'd probably get bar risers)

I DID notice that as I settled into a bit of dual carriageway riding, my back did twinge a tiny bit, but that's one of the reasons why I ride a 'sit up and beg' GS.

In slow movng traffic, the bike was well mannered, except for when I hit a 'false neutral' a couple of times - you'd get used to is, the gearbox calls for 'positive' action, and whilst it needed a reasonably hard poke to get the changes through, it wasn't anywhere as brutal as 'old style' BMW boxes.

The mirrors are pretty 'low down' - and whilst stable enough, I felt they could have been a bit higher.

Nether do they lend themselves to being adjusted whilst riding, being at the very limit of my outstretched arms.

On the Edinburgh bypass, it kept up with the traffic effortlessly. Even though the screen was pretty low, it still kept the full force of the wind off me, and protected me from the worst of the 'wind rush'.

When asked to, it was responsive enough - the engine has plenty of torque, probably to do with this being a twin, rather than a four.

I did notice around 70mph the engine developed a noticeable vibration, although either side of that was stable enough.

Parking was a little frustrating - the bike I'd been given only had a sidestand. The lever which operated this was well tucked away, and wasn't especially easy to operate with my toe, or heel

- I suspect the 'correct' way to park is to stop, dismount and then drop the stand when positioned alongside the machine , just i don't feel especially comfortable doing it that way.

Build quality and looks are fine, I'm not sure I'd be that happy having to remove acres of plastic before being able to do even the most trivial of maintenance tasks, but modern bikes really don't need constant fiddling, and I suppose it keeps the crap off the engine!

I didn't take a long enough run to establish what fuel consumption was, although I understand this is a moderately frugal engine.

On the way back to the shop, I landed in some heavy stationary traffic.

Compared to conventional beemers, the bike feels positively skinny, and was well up to the task of 'close up' work between cars.

I concluded the bike would be excellent for regular commuting in towns or motorways, would equip itself well on a 'Sunday blast' and wasn't beyond the occasional long trip, although in my mind at least, it didn't encourage a 'relaxed' enough posture for serious touring.

In conclusion, an entirely capable bike, versatile, with more than a nod towards serious sports performance, HOWEVER its' idiosyncrasies will mean it's a 'marmite' bike, you'll either love it or hate it.
Cost wise, it's the fat end of six grand.

Certainly not as expensive as the traditional 'R' series, and performance is unlikely to disappoint, but it's something you'd still have to think long and hard about before making a serious commitment to.

Personally, it doesn't offer sufficient character to justify the price tag (I'd just as soon ride a midrange Japanese bike at around £1500 less) but then I don't represent the target market for this bike.
So in summary, nice enough, but I still prefer my GS (but I would say that, wouldn't I)

Nearest rivals would be a Suzuki SV, or Triumph ST 

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