Should I buy a 2013 f800GS??

Hi this is my first post so hello and here goes! I am looking at buying a new bike. I let my klr 650 go a little bit ago manly because i want something that can do two up highway riding easy and also have fun off road. I was looking forward to test riding one of these bikes this week but after reading the "Has BMW worked the bugs out of the 800 by now?" thread i am thinking these things might not be worth the money. I feel that for what this bike cost you should be able to get a bike the is pretty darn reliable and is mostly sorted out. I am open to any advice about the bike and any other options.

you still can buy an older model that has been farkled up or that has done the recalls.

That bike is amazing and people just post to say what happend to them. It's easier to blame than to congratulate. I have mine for 4 month now, did put 13000kms on it in 3 month and would buy one again in a heart beat. It's amazing to see what you can do with this bike.

If you buy the bike new you'll have the 3 year warrenty, and believe me it's more than enough and BMW don't hesitate to replace stuff that must been replaced under warrenty.

If you're starting to overthink the whole process than it's over mate.if you like a bike (not only a f800gs), test ride it, buy it and never look back.

We are here to share our experience, post solutions to problems and so on but at the end why would you let the decision of buying a bike to a a bunch of people that you don't know, won't see and for most of them are spending more time on this forum than out there riding.

Before Internet and all this stuff you didn't look days and weeks one the aptitudes and problems of a bike, you went to your dealer, rode it and bought it.

just my 0.02cts mate but this decision is yours, listn' to your rider heart and don't look back.

if you have complains just open a thread and join the others, if you don't have them, than go out there, ride and come back with nice pics and a ride report.

Cheers,

Tom - Loutre

I have 37k miles on my 2010. It'a been to South America and back and done a lot more. Great bike for traveling. Nothing has ever broken - nothing. However I did upgrade the wheel rims. I replace tires and chain as called for in the manual. Frankly there is one thing I don't trust about the 2013. They switched tuning to premium gas and got an extra 4 horsepower. But even in the US it's hard to get 100% premium due to our pumps having only one hose. I would look for a good used bike if I were you. (or remap to regular). Dave

I bought mine, and then discovered this forum. I started reading about all the problems and thought, "Oh shit, I just got ripped off and bought the worst bike in history!" But four years later, my F8 has been flawless except for a few recalls BMW took care of in the first year or so.

Now I realize that every bike model has problems. I also have realized that everyone is out riding and having a blast--except for the ones with broken bikes. They are the ones that are typing horror stories on the internet! This gives a skewed internet view of any bike, I think.
Pete

that is only for the 700GS not the 800 he wants

I've had my 09 F800GS for 3 years now, bought it new in Aug 2009. Total miles 35,500 and its been a very reliable bike. The only thing that I had had go bad is the left headed hand grip and the rear shock started leaking on my way back from Alaska this past summer. Both where fixed under warranty. All bikes have flaws and it seems the internet seems to publicize them.

No, is the simple answer to your question.

Thanks for the advice! I realize that ever bike will have problems but for the cost of one of this things they should be miner unless you are thrashing the bike. Would a used 1200 GS adventure or a KTM 990 be a more solid chose. that might be a can of worms i am opening but i want the most bike for my money. I am sick and tired of paying for junk there are very few people that take pride in what they build any more. If you now of any dealers that are good to work with in or around Kentucky let me know.

Yes, that would be a can of worms!

I've ridden the F800GS on and off road and it was on my shortlist for a replacement adventure bike. I then looked at the qualities I wanted which includes top notch fully adjustable suspension all round. Ignoring the reliability issues completely, I figured it would cost a small fortune to bring the F800GS up to the same level as the 990 Adventure that I ended up with.

Most F800GS riders are perfectly happy with their bikes but I knew what I would be missing. As it happens, there are other reasons for going Orange too but it depends what you really want. Certainly, I have no complaints about the build quality on the KTM.

Jon

Post the same question in the boxer section and they'll tell you to go with a 1200GS(A).
Ask the orange crush and you'll end up with the 990...

You see where I'm going mate, right?

I have a 2013 - I've ridden lost of bikes and for me, the 800 hits my sweet spot. Enough power to have fun on the backroads and dodge cars on the highway. Light(ish) so off-roading can be fun. Great gas mileage (lame, but these days every penny counts). And I think it looks great! Best best is to ride one and see if it works for you.

Happy riding,

Wes

I tried to answer the problems enumerated in that thread, apparently I raised more in your mind.

I have owned mine for 4 years now. Lots of quality issues the first year but fixed under warranty and have not come back. NO problems in 3+ years.

As an aside, we preorders got our bikes 5 mos before the general public. No bikes to ride, the mags said they were great. We started the ADV complaint list. If I read all the posts, I probably would not have bought it.

I added mods, just like you probably did on your KLR. I am happy with it.

The 2013 has 43mm WP forks instead of the 45mm zokes. It has a vented flywheel which may stop potential stator issues. Too soon to tell if either is better. I don't know if they have changed the rear shock mount, but the old one worked out to one bent bolt to 10 pages of complaints. Don't ride the bumpy stuff 2 up on the stock spring. If you do, buy a brace. If you go aftermarket, to ride the rough stuff, buy a brace.

No Triumph to buy when I got the BMW. If my riding was more road with dirt roads thrown in, I would probably pick that. A smooth engine. A triple's engine characteristics won't be a factor unless your ride is loose stuff or mud. I have ridden some shop rides and the riders do fine with them. My bike does have a little more travel, higher ground clearance and in the next week or two I can conduct my own comparison test.

I looked at the KTM. What kept me from buying was the weight and height of it. I found it and the HP intimindating. Not a factor for a skilled rider. Better suspension out of the box, more hp for the road and better components all around. But you pay for that.
They are thirsty bikes.

Go ride one and then decide.

Got mine July '09, and it survived that season just fine. Then I road it in the rain the next spring. It spent more time in the shop then on the road the next month as it simply wouldn't start when it was wet. So that was the carbon can issue that only showed up in the US and I'm sure these forums are familiar with the problem and solution. Anyway between that and some other recalls I got new spark plugs, injectors, chain, sprockets, and a new heated grip that failed. Not only that but BMW hooked me up with a few hundred $ in dealer cash after so many tows and downtime (and most embarrassingly the Harley neighbors asking me if my bike was just broken all the time or if that was the Repoman). Got me that center stand I couldn't decide on up front for free!

That was all cleared up 3 years ago now with tons of hard riding since and now and I can say without hesitation; This bike is awesome! 42,000 miles of 90mph highway, two up around 3 great lakes, cross country to Bike Week, and trails, mud, rocks, sand and several falls without a problem

(oh ok I almost forgot that my rear bearings did go this summer way too early, but that was an easy fix and they say they are improved... oh and my clutch plates went too early too but that was my fault for not leaving some play in the cable)

Join the club, I'm sure you will love it. And if you are ever in MN come join us for a ride, we have an F800GS only group that needs more members! LOL

Got the Indy mount, should have it installed this week...

Good chocie buying that and NOT the brace.

the 800gs is a great middleweight street bike that can handle moderate off-road terrain and excels at gravel and dirt roads. anything too technical off-road is challenging due to the high center of gravity and somewhat lacking stock suspension. the main drawback on the street is the 21 inch front wheel and lack of wind protection.

if you want to tour, get the 1200gs. if you want to do trail riding get the 990 adv or 690 enduro.

Well I went to Grass roots BMW yesterday and test road the f 800 an almost fell in love until I got on the1200 GSA lol.

The grassroots people were great by the way!

I've owned a Yamaha R6 for 5 years so I had a clue of how the build quality should look like when I started to think about a second (do it all) bike.Was deciding between The F8GS and 990 ADV.Decided to go the BMW route only because of the £3000 difference.I can't say that an F800 was a bad bike.I quite liked it and it was fine after I spent a fair amount of money on it but still not what I really wanted.Decided to sell the GS and was considering between Yamaha ST 1200 and 990 ADV. I've had two good test rides on both bikes. The difference between them? ST1200 is without any doubts a fantastic great built trouble free bike and I enjoyed riding it but compared to the KTM it left me somehow cold and without emotions.Guess which way I went.Would I buy another BMW? NO! Not because they are not perfect (every bike has got its flaws) but because of whole BMW attitude: designing the product with the knowledge of fitting substandard parts,save a cent/penny everywhere they can and charging a horrific amount of money for parts.Not mentioning the price for aftermarket parts.Foooking hell.....why everything that you buy for a BMW has to cost twice as much as for any other bike?

I thought about the Yamaha which i would love because i have a dealer about 20 min from me. BMW 2-4 hour drive, KTM 1-2 hour drive, triumph 2 hours away. I am not in the best place to be looking for an adventure bike