Shall i? shant i?

[Gruffalo]

hello chaps, looking to chop my 1200gs in for an 800gs and wanted to know if anyone has done the same and what their thoughts where?

ive had my 1200 for 18 months and had pretty much nothing but trouble with it. 6 months ago the cam chain snapped on the r/h pot and dropped the whole valve into the cyclinder itself and luched it. Vines guildford fixed it and bmw payed for it under good will. roll on 3 weeks and an oil seal on the left hand side of the engine went pissing oil all over the bike. again fixed by vines under good will
roll on 5 weeks and the throttle sensor on the left pot went. again vines did all the work foc and bmw foot the bill
roll on another 5 months and the alternator packs up, again top marks to vines and bmw as i only have to pay the labour and they will pay for parts,

so,

whats it like owning a gs800 after a 1200?
use the bike for everything, commute, tour, scratch, and the weekly shop

and whats the reliability like? cant be any worse than the 1200!

cheers in advance chaps,

jon

 

[Deleted Member I]

Trade the 1200 in for a 1200GSA!

I know a few have done the same on here.

 

[Micky]

Just check out the 800 scene

Had a 1200 many moons ago...

But the F800GS has better reliability, consumption, handling, finish, usability than ever the 1200's will have

36,500 miles on mine now in two years and would not go back

But the 1200 owners will stick with their bikes like Davy Crocket at the Alamo

 

[Greggers]

You know what you want to do
You know what you need to do
You know what you've got to do

Just do it .....

 

[Gruffalo]

Trade the 1200 in for a 1200GSA!

I know a few have done the same on here.

I did consider a 1200adv but ive had enough of the boxer engine, but love the shaft drive,

if the 800 had a shaft......

picking the 1200 up tomorrow so ill speak to the chaps at vines and see what deals can be done........

its either the 800 or a vtstrom 650 ........

 

[mechcanico lee]

I did consider a 1200adv but ive had enough of the boxer engine, but love the shaft drive,

if the 800 had a shaft......

picking the 1200 up tomorrow so ill speak to the chaps at vines and see what deals can be done........

its either the 800 or a vtstrom 650 ........

The 800s are really competent bike it does everything pretty well, the vstrom is a good bike also i have had a 650 and for the money there a hard bike to beat but the beemer 800 i think outclasses it .

Try to get a ride on a 800 , the proof is in the ride.

 

[everywherevirtually]

the 800 all the way. 32,000 miles and no trouble at all. If your shaft drive goes or snaps your fecked. Snap your chain and you can be up and running after replacing a chain link. Personally I think the shaft drive is overrated.

after 17000 miles I got a DID chain. Life is good on the 800

 

[Gruffalo]

Try to get a ride on a 800 , the proof is in the ride.[/QUOTE]

ive ridden the 800 a couple of times as a loan bike while the 1200 has been fixed
and i was very very impressed each time i rode it, plenty of power, nice and light and suprisingly nimble
havnt yet had a chance to ride a strom yet but thatll change over the weekend.

my only gripe with the gs is the lack of wind protection, but that can be fixed with a decent screen i suppose?
does this get annoying on long trips?

should get about £5500- £5800 for p/x with bumw so guess well see what happens

jon

 

[Martin]

Just gone back to a 1200 after a year with an 800. I had forgotten how much grunt the 1200 has got. Effortless acceleration, much more room for the other half on the back, feels more substantial. The 800 felt flimsy in comparison.

I've no regrets having traded up

 

[GunZenBomZ]

Got no experience of the 1200 bikes. However I know a few (meet 30+ 1200 lads over the past year) some of them would like a F800GS as its just as good if not more maneuverable. Lighter & you only need to do the reverse lifting technic to plonk the F800 back upright. The 1200 bikes I hear need 2 people if you go off-roading..

Fuel is brilliant unless you cane the throttle all the time. The handling I feel is more 'alive' & the personality of the engine is like a purring cat/tiger

Totally biased view of course.

Paddy

ps: 18k on my clock (15k is mine). Got my heavy duty DiD chain & sprocket set from motorworks today..hopefully fitted for London Ace-cafe meetup this sunday.