F800GS aftermarket exhaust

[Mal_B]

Originally Posted by drehwurm

Well, it can be made to!

Question is, do you really want to go through all the hassle? The BMW bashplate is more a debris-protector and any major blow will heavily deform/damage it. It is too thin, the brackets are riveted on and the welds are brittle and not very exact - it is nice looking though. The Remus headers give some extra mid to top, but don't do anything for offroad except for loosing 30mm of ground clearance.

If you still want to do it, here is what you are facing:

.) you need to space out the bashplate by 30mm in the front and 28mm in the back vertically.

.) as the big change in height also changes the position horizontally , you need to relocate the brackets to the front. Fortunately if you move the rear rivet-location in the bracket to the former front rivet location it is a perfect fit. Just drill a new hole for the front rivet in the bash plate. Enlarge the access holes for mounting.

.) space out and relocate the front mounting bracket.

.) do some bending and shortening as you like/need to.

I would recommend to use the stock rubber mounting blocks as those are a predetermined breaking point. Also I re-welded all the welds since the original ones were nice-looking but crap!!!

Mate,

Some fantastic info there - looks like you've done your homework and I'll follow your instructions and see how I go.

Originally Posted by drehwurm

Well, it can be made to!

Question is, do you really want to go through all the hassle?

Yes I do. I love the way the bike sounds and goes now and although I don't wish to reduce my ground clearance particularly this is not the sort of bike I expect to be casing out all that often. The main reason I want the bashplate back on is to protect the headers from debris and to handle the 'once in a blue moon' log crossing I'll have to make.

Thanks again mate - this info has made my life a lot easier.

Cheers,

mal

[Mal_B]

Originally Posted by Toadride

Interesting. My stock exhaust looks and sounds great. Can't see why I'd want to dick around with it.

Each to his own - if you like it, then don't change it. The only reason I posted this up was because people asked!

mal

[drehwurm]

Glad I could be of some help. You will have a tough time removing the stock rubber blocks as it is very hard to get a grip on them without twisting or destroying those. I used a long 21mm socket with a sharp edge (turn it down on a lathe) and lots of patience. Spacers for the front bracket are 13mm long on my setup.

Michael

[Desert Dave]

Originally Posted by drehwurm

Question is, do you really want to go through all the hassle? The BMW bashplate is more a debris-protector and any major blow will heavily deform/damage it. It is too thin, the brackets are riveted on and the welds are brittle and not very exact - it is nice looking though.

I think it's a bit more than a debris protector, and I can tell you that ANY major blow won't deform it. Last week I cased it going up a piece of granite slab so hard it stopped me dead in my tracks, and it just left the typical scuff marks like you see on any skid plate. I hope I don't hit it much harder than that, so I'd say it does it's job.

I do agree that the rivets are cheesy and I'll keep an eye on that, but so far it's the only skid plate I've seen that goes back as far as it does and covers the cat at least halfway, and it mates with the centerstand skid plate better than others I've seen, so for that reason I'll keep this plate over most aftermarket who don't seem to find that important. What good does it do to slide over a jagged rock only to catch on the cat/exhaust?. I'll take your word for it on the welds an may look into getting mine beefed up some.

I'm interested in the headers for all of the above reasons, and for now I'd prefer to stick with the stock can. Mainly I'd like to lose the cat just for the fire danger where I ride. I appreciate your insight into what it will take to modify the plate. I don't think I'm willing to lose 30 mm of ground clearance though, so you just saved me a bunch of time!

[drehwurm]

Originally Posted by Desert Dave

I think it's a bit more than a debris protector, and I can tell you that ANY major blow won't deform it. Last week I cased it going up a piece of granite slab so hard it stopped me dead in my tracks, and it just left the typical scuff marks like you see on any skid plate. I hope I don't hit it much harder than that, so I'd say it does it's job.

That's good news! Makes me feel more comfortable and it good to see that the work was not spent for naught.

Michael

[Fireman]

This might sound funny, but can anyone compare a F800gs aftermarket exhaust to any existing bike sounds? For instance, "the hexacone on a GS sounds like a Yamaha XS650 with dual Cobras". I've heard a LOT of bikes with a lot of pipes (rhymes), but I cannot imagine what kind of sound might come out of the GS. Can anyone help? Can anyone at least tell me it doesn't sound like a chainsaw?

[drehwurm]

Originally Posted by Fireman

This might sound funny, but can anyone compare a F800gs aftermarket exhaust to any existing bike sounds? For instance, "the hexacone on a GS sounds like a Yamaha XS650 with dual Cobras". I've heard a LOT of bikes with a lot of pipes (rhymes), but I cannot imagine what kind of sound might come out of the GS. Can anyone help? Can anyone at least tell me it doesn't sound like a chainsaw?

I do have the Hexacone with the insert and the Remus headers w/o cat. Actually the bikes sounds more quiet at idle/low RPMs than with the stock exhaust, but once you get into the mid/upper RPMs the sound really picks up. I've got some compliments already as the sound gets really "racy" up in the revs. Not like a Ducati twin or the Japanese inline 4s, but more like a race car or Ferrari My first impression would have been that it sounds a bit "raspy", but by now I can't get enough of it

Just my very subjective 2 cent ...

Michael

[Fireman]

Originally Posted by drehwurm

I do have the Hexacone with the insert and the Remus headers w/o cat. Actually the bikes sounds more quiet at idle/low RPMs than with the stock exhaust, but once you get into the mid/upper RPMs the sound really picks up. I've got some compliments already as the sound gets really "racy" up in the revs. Not like a Ducati twin or the Japanese inline 4s, but more like a race car or Ferrari My first impression would have been that it sounds a bit "raspy", but by now I can't get enough of it

Just my very subjective 2 cent ...

Michael

Thanks for the reply, Drehwurm. That's kind of what I was looking for. For the record, I don't need any more power, and I don't care whether the Exahust is any louder. The thing that annoys me about the stock exhaust is the complete lack of deep tone. By 60mph, I can barely hear those 400cc cyclinders thumping under me, and I miss it. Some people said the hexacone was a deeper tone and that madce me hopeful. I like the price, too, compared to BMW's Akra. Think the Remus headers make the tone deeper or louder or both?

[drehwurm]

Akrapovic makes great products, but IMO they have become overpriced by now. The Remus is on the same level regarding quality and attention to detail with a much better price - I was really impressed by this system! Well, if it has a "deeper tone" is hard to judge - very personal impressions. I'd say the engine has a very distinctive sound, but IMO a Ducati would have a "deep tone" to it, not the F800. It may be different with the insert removed, but I have no intention to do so. For me the open headers and Hexacone are a good compromise in every regard. Nonetheless, the stock exhaust does have a surprisingly good sound for a legal bike over here - our (European) stock exhausts may be different to yours though. The Remus Hexacone with insert is street legal here also, but the headers naturally aren't.

Michael

[cwthewhale]

I'm lovin this 800GS, had a Remus for the '03 1150GS, but I like the stock exhaust note on the 800. Very cool new ride!!! Can't wait for summer in Idaho!!!
BMW large handguards with spoiler still not enough protection in cold. Even with grip heaters on high!
Anyone know if touratech or anyone makes bigger plastic parts that will work with the BMW metal hand guards???

[Bucko]

Originally Posted by cwthewhale

I'm lovin this 800GS, had a Remus for the '03 1150GS, but I like the stock exhaust note on the 800. Very cool new ride!!! Can't wait for summer in Idaho!!!
BMW large handguards with spoiler still not enough protection in cold. Even with grip heaters on high!
Anyone know if touratech or anyone makes bigger plastic parts that will work with the BMW metal hand guards???

How about these: http://www.mooseracing.com/catalog.j..._group_id=7260 ?

[AngryRed]

Alrightie then back to exhausts.

Any more feedback on the Holeshot? I'm considering one and was looking for any comments from the owners.

[JSkinner]

The two brothers M-2 slip on exaust for the F800 is great. The P1 power tip is a must. It restores back pressure lost by having the straight through exhaust, plus it has a great note. It costs $399.00 from http://www.newenoughhp.com/exhaust_i...n_exhaust.html

[Ceri JC]

Originally Posted by drehwurm

Well, it can be made to!

If you still want to do it, here is what you are facing:

...

Thanks for that, very useful information.

Anyone come across any aftermarket headers that do away with the cat, but fit the BMW aluminium bashplate without modification?

Also, on a related note, is the official Akra exhaust all one piece or is the end can removable (and if so, is the join in the same place)?

Reason I ask is that I'm looking at the possibility of switching to a MM balanced pannier system which will involve a new end can and I thought I may as well do the headers at the same time. As the MM balanced end can has a little kinked link pipe included, any aftermarket headers that could be used with it will presumably need to terminate in the same place as the original one.

[Rick West]

For those of you who need to remove the catalytic converter from your bike, is pollution the problem of others and not you? Are you really going to go to a part of the world where you can't get unleaded fuel?

Decreasing ground clearance to fit a header isn't practical for a bike being used off road.

The very small amount of performance gain vs the cost of the these exhaust systems makes them pointless and the greatest gain is just noise.

What if you spent the same amount of money on good rider training and learn to ride faster/better?