BMW R80GS/R100GS - how fucking much!?

[mondo2000]

I have been thinking of buying one of these so I can do a bit of outback touring. Before I started looking I guessed I'd be able to pick up a tidy R100GS Paris Dakar for about $5k - remember they are all at least 20 years old now. The cheapest non-PD I have seen is $6K and the Paris Dakars are in the $8k-$10k range. This may not sound like a lot but they all have over 100k km on them and I think the odo is only 5 digit so that 125,000km could actually turn out to be 225,000km. I have done a bit of research into them and paralever driveshaft seems to be a bit weak and would require a rebuild before serious kays into the middle of nowhere. Add to that a suspension rebuild, top end rebuild, might as well do the clutch while I'm at it, and it becomes quite an expensive proposition, and thats before adding a tank (for a non-PD model) and faggoty panniers.

For that sort of money I'd probably be better off getting a <100k km R1100GS (97-99 model) or even an R1150GS. These bikes are a lot more modern, and bigger/heavier, and not really what I'm after.

I'd actually prefer an R80GS but the only ones I've seen come up recently have either been highly modified or "restored collector's examples" owned by bearded wack-jobs who are asking more than the original purchase price, adjusted for inflation.

Are these the most over-rated bikes ever? Or are they really worth it?

[uuheels]

I have a friend about to sell a R1150GS Adventure (big tank model) if you are interested. Just spent around a grand rebuilding the final drive.. Bike is in Brisbane.

[sv_i]

guy at work has a F650, uses it as his daily, swears by it. There are three more on campus too.

[mondo2000]

I have a friend about to sell a R1150GS Adventure (big tank model) if you are interested. Just spent around a grand rebuilding the final drive.. Bike is in Brisbane.

Not really interested in an 1150GS because they are far too heavy for sand work. A grand sounds expensive for a final drive unless the bearing got really flogged out and the gears got minced. BMW service manuals say the bearing and seal should be replaced every 40,000km but a lot of people are finding them stuffed well before then so it is recommended to change the bearing and seal every 20,000 km. Who'd have thunk that a shaft drive would have a shorter service life and be more expensive than a chain and sprockets??? I understand there is a class action in the USA against BMW because of all the final drive problems on the R1100/1150/1200 series bikes.

guy at work has a F650, uses it as his daily, swears by it. There are three more on campus too.

Yeah they are not bad bikes but I'm after a twin.

[Mini_Me]

F650GS would be the goods i reckon. still not cheap though

[mondo2000]

F650 "Funduro" = single cylinder bike, now called the G650 to distinguish it from the F series parallel twins. I think this is what sv_i suggested.
F650GS = 800cc parallel twin, simular to the F800GS except with cast alloy wheels, crappier forks, less power and lower seat height. More road oriented than the F800GS so not what I want.

I was considering the F800GS for a while, went for a test ride - was awesome, heaps of power, standover height no problem. Then I ran into the guy from Big Boys Toys, a bike hire/tour company that has a fleet of F800s. He explained the shitty rear shock mount design that breaks easily to me. Jumped on the interwebs and it seems to be a pretty common problem with any bikes that do a lot of km off road. Rear wheel bearing failures also seem pretty common and the rims themselves are apparently pretty soft, so some people upgrade these straight away. Also the engine has 12:1 compression and no knock sensor, so if you cop a bad tank of fuel, bye bye pistons. The price for this superb German engineering is $20k on the road new, most second hand examples are $14k-$16k. A brand new 2012 Suzuki V-Strom 650 (more road oriented again) is $11k ride away.

[Mini_Me]

sorry i meant the old F650GS dakar - single 650cc rotax engine, with beefed up suspension travel, and bigger wheels (IIRC)

[rorz]

Fuck that long way around show or whatever the fuck it's called has a lot to answer for... I can't believe how many of these 'adventure' bikes they are selling these days compared to how many people actually do ultra long range bush rides that require them. Not saying the OP falls into this category but the amount of blokes at work that have them and either only ride them on the road or do short bush rides you could easily do on a motocrosser is retarded. IMO it's better to buy a bike which is great at the kind of riding you do rather than one that can do anything but kind of sucks at everything. Hell for that kind of money, buy a road bike and a dirt bike and chop adventure bikes on trails and in the hills.

Plus they are stupidly expensive. How they justify the money they ask for these things has me fucked. For the same money as a gay parallel twin BMW 800 with ugly boxes and shit all over it you could buy a brand new superbike. Even without the R&D costs, the cost of building a new superbike + outsourced components like forks and calipers would be easily double what it costs them to slap a GS800 together.

Back on topic, any bike with 100,000kms is going to absolutely fucked in pretty much every way let alone one that's been used off road. It'd be due for a full rebuild, not just top end. Gearbox would be sloppy as an old hooker, suspension would be fucked, linkage probably siezed, cables will be fucked, will need new brake lines + caliper rebuild, new master cyl, clutch as you mentioned, likely to have electrical problems and all of that is before you start on cosmetics. $10k for a 20 year old bike with 100,000kms? Pass the crack pipe.

Do you really need this style of bike? If so, maybe look at Triumph Tigers- with the 3 cylinder engine they would fucking howl. Could you get away with a dirt bike with a big fuel tank?

If you're riding a really long distance I'd be leaning toward multi-cylinder over singles. Singles vibrate too much which would be uncomfortable over a long distance and will make you fatigue quicker. Singles sound a bit pox too.

[no1200]

I modified and restored a r80gs which had done 150k. Most parts where still servicable. Still on orig final drive and bottom end, rebuilt box and 2 top ends. Been around oz twice and everywhere in between.

They are built more like a car with 2 wheels than a bike. Unfortunatley they ride like a 2 wheeled car.

[sv_i]

sorry i meant the old F650GS dakar - single 650cc rotax engine, with beefed up suspension travel, and bigger wheels (IIRC)

yeah that's what I meant. Guy that sits opposite me loves his, but reckons they're a plodder. Good for an easy commute, but not quick. He only recently ditched the factory exhaust and got an aftermarket one (no other mods) and reckons it now has a heap more grunt. His is white/blue/red.

Do you really need this style of bike? If so, maybe look at Triumph Tigers- with the 3 cylinder engine they would fucking howl. Could you get away with a dirt bike with a big fuel tank?

No idea about new Tigers, but from memory, the germans loved the Tigers when they first came out in the 90's, maybe have a look around and see what they did.

ps. Yes the Three cylinder triumphs are cool, I love my sprint. Nothing happens below 2K rpm (I reckon it needs a decent exhaust and a tune), but it has a lot of grunt and it's really smooth.

[mondo2000]

Fuck that long way around show or whatever the fuck it's called has a lot to answer for... I can't believe how many of these 'adventure' bikes they are selling these days compared to how many people actually do ultra long range bush rides that require them. Not saying the OP falls into this category but the amount of blokes at work that have them and either only ride them on the road or do short bush rides you could easily do on a motocrosser is retarded. IMO it's better to buy a bike which is great at the kind of riding you do rather than one that can do anything but kind of sucks at everything. Hell for that kind of money, buy a road bike and a dirt bike and chop adventure bikes on trails and in the hills.

Yes I agree. I have done a fair bit of outback touring in my 4wd (Great Central Road, Gunbarrel Highway, Sandy Blight Junction, Anne Beadell Highway, Bore Track, Old Andado Track etc.) To be honest I find it boring and too easy in a 4wd, so I want to do some similar stuff on a bike (except AB Highway, that is too hard core and dangerous on bikes without support vehicles).

I think the best bike for the type of riding I want to do has:

• a 21 inch front wheel

• reasonable suspension travel, but less than a full enduro bike

• reasonable ground clearance, but less than a full enduro bike

• twin cylinder engine, reasonably smooth that will purr away all day, day after day

• not so heavy it instantly bogs in soft sand

• reasonable fuel economy so it doesn't need a massive tank to get good range

I have found 2 bikes that meet these criteria: BMW R80GS and BMW F800GS (with aftermarket second tank).

V-Strom 650 has 19 inch front wheel and not enough suspension travel/clearance.
R1100/R1150/R1200 have 19 inch front wheel and are too heavy and have other problems.
KTM 950/990 adventure are uncomfortably tall for me, heavyish, thirsty and fucking expensive.
Yamaha Super Tenere 1200 is too heavy and road oriented.
Yamaha XTZ 750 Super Tenere (early 90s, basically a dirt bike with a TRX850 engine) impossible to find, and fuel economy sucks because of the 5 valve head.
Kawasaki Versys is gay (and has a 17 inch front wheel).

So an R80GS seems to be the best bike for me, even though it is 20 to 30 years old. I had a ride of one years ago, it felt a bit weird at the time (probably because I was used to riding sports bikes at the time) but the engine was smoother than I expected and seemed to have a nice character to it.

Plus they are stupidly expensive. How they justify the money they ask for these things has me fucked. For the same money as a gay parallel twin BMW 800 with ugly boxes and shit all over it you could buy a brand new superbike. Even without the R&D costs, the cost of building a new superbike + outsourced components like forks and calipers would be easily double what it costs them to slap a GS800 together.

Back on topic, any bike with 100,000kms is going to absolutely fucked in pretty much every way let alone one that's been used off road. It'd be due for a full rebuild, not just top end. Gearbox would be sloppy as an old hooker, suspension would be fucked, linkage probably siezed, cables will be fucked, will need new brake lines + caliper rebuild, new master cyl, clutch as you mentioned, likely to have electrical problems and all of that is before you start on cosmetics. $10k for a 20 year old bike with 100,000kms? Pass the crack pipe.

Hence the thread title.

Do you really need this style of bike? If so, maybe look at Triumph Tigers- with the 3 cylinder engine they would fucking howl. Could you get away with a dirt bike with a big fuel tank?

If you're riding a really long distance I'd be leaning toward multi-cylinder over singles. Singles vibrate too much which would be uncomfortable over a long distance and will make you fatigue quicker. Singles sound a bit pox too.

I haven't considered any Triumphs, I think they are too big and heavy. I used to have a WR450 for trail riding. Occaisionally I did 10km bitumen tranport sections on it, and that kind of mentally scarred me re proper dirt bikes being used for long distance touring. I definitely want a twin.

[mondo2000]

Here's the latest example of BMW anorak retardedness:

Currently on bikesales there's a 1987 R80GS, asking price $14,800. http://www.bikesales.com.au/private/...3%204294966438

Very sought after 800GSParalever . Owned by fastidious German Engineer and BMW collector. Never been offroad or seen rain.One previous owner in Germany. This motorcyle is as near new. You will be very hard pressed to find a better unmolested example globally. Has original seat plus single saddle with Heavy Duty lugguage rack and Large Aluminium Darr Box Panniers from Munchen. Ready for any Trans Continent tour or add it to your collection. Original Tool Kit and Owners Manual. Tyres are brand new German Original Metzlers. Rims are Aluminium Akron. Please no tyre kickers are chancers. This is a rare and original motorycle. Very reluctant sale.

He says it's very original but faggotty aluminium panniers weren't common until the Ewen and Charlie movie. It looks like he keeps it inside his house with BMW hero photos on the wall but "never been offroad or seen rain".


Ok maybe he's a collector, but 41,000 km isn't exactly museum mileage, it has non original parts fitted and it's not a rare model (they made a shitload of them). As for "ready for any Trans Continent tour", because it's original it will need a shitload of work done (suspension rework, paralever mods, subframe bracing, bigger tank, bash plate...)

[Asteroid]

I've wanted an old BMW R series for years.

[sv_i]

I've wanted an old BMW R series for years.

Nothing wrong with that!

[gat5rodeo]

If you're actually using it for trips, just buy a DR650 and be done with it.

They're reliable as fuck, have about 450 million accessories available, and you can fix them with a roll of duct tape and 2 zip ties.

You'll get over the fact it isn't a twin when you can buy a brand new one less than the cost of a busted arse old BMW

[da9jeff]

klr650 if you dont mind plebbing it.

Ive wanted a beemer since i first got interested in riding, i like the adv bikes not because i do massive trips all the time but that they can go anywhere if needed, carry your shit to work, are usually under stressed and go forever, use fuck all fuel and in the case of my dommie, are actually fun to ride. Ps Not everyone likes to ride around on a sportsbike hunched over like Stoner btw

On the F800gs, they can be optioned with a 91ron tune if you're taking it out bush alot.

[sv_i]

Ps Not everyone likes to ride around on a sportsbike hunched over like Stoner btw

On the occasion where I've ridden a K100, I have either felt like I was riding some primary school girls bike and needed a basket with flowers on the front, or a huge penny farthing with a dildo up my arse. Couldn't see what all the fuss over BMW road bikes was after that.

Wouldn't mind seeing if the f650gs dakar/BMW offroad bikes are a lot better to ride.

[psssi98]

I learned to ride on a G650 (the older single F model) and fuck me they are easy to ride, can pootle along no throttle and still smooth as plus they even chuck a reasonable wheelie and was super comfy. You'd be surprised how well you can hustle one along through a few corners as well...sure they are soft on the brakes but they turn well and soak up the bumps etc without ever getting really unsettled. I reckon they'd be a great bet for an adventure bike, sure they're not as beefy and tough looking as the 11/1200's but would be a shit load easier to live with for anything less than full on extreme touring.

[Mini_Me]

sure they're not as beefy and tough looking as the 11/1200's but would be a shit load easier to live with for anything less than full on extreme touring.

maybe not as good on the road, but i'd much rather be on a 650 for off road stuff. Bugger trying to man-handle 250kgs

[itsnotagsr]

I've wanted an old BMW R series for years.

My Dad restores them.

[millsi]

why not get something japanese?

[Gammaboy]

Cos he likes picking up university professors?

[psssi98]

maybe not as good on the road, but i'd much rather be on a 650 for off road stuff. Bugger trying to man-handle 250kgs

Eggs zachary. The 650's are easy as to handle for just about anyone (hence you see ladies use them as road bikes....well I see a couple of the way to work)