Introduced to the world by BMW in South Africa, this stamp in my passport truly allows me to say I go to the ends of the earth for my job. And with this in mind, BMW thoughtfully set up a three-day tour first so we could acclimatize to riding on the left hand side of the road and get over the jet lag. This had the double benefit of not only allowing us to be fully rested, but gave me the opportunity to hop straight off BMW’s best selling motorcycle, and the bike most people would be interested to compare the new F800GS with, the R1200GS.

As the icon of adventure off road touring for over 20 years now, the big GS machines, for want of a better word, have kept getting bigger. Starting back in the early ‘80s at 800cc, they have grown to 1200cc over the years. With the Adventure version of the GS sporting a mammoth 7.82-gallon gas tank, the high-end version of the popular two-wheeled Land Rover now tips the scales at over 600 pounds. This for a lot of people is a little too intimidating, and BMW is aware of this offering the F650GS as an alternative. This is a great machine, but the relatively pedestrian single cylinder 650cc has really been positioned for the newer rider, even if its ability extends beyond this application. I rode one around the Alps last year, and while it doesn’t do anything wrong, it was the wrong choice of machine when all my fellow tour riders were on 1200cc machines. So, with nothing in the middle of the “Land Rover” and the “beginner bike,” in the GS line up, cue the trumpets, roll the drums, and raise the curtain on the new F800GS, a new adventure touring motorcycle designed to fit squarely in between these two popular models.

Looking unmistakably like a GS from a hundred yards, I asked BMW designer David Robb how important it was for BMW to keep it consistent with the existing line. He told me, “It is important that the design conveys what the product can do and what you can expect of it. There is no pre-digested GS formula, and cloning the R1200GS for other purposes doesn’t work. That said, all of our enduro bikes should be recognized as BMWs, and need to leave you saying ‘that’s definitely a BMW!’ when you look at them.” Hey there is no mistaking the new F800GS for a BMW GS, even from a distance, but the new engine was something different, and something I had no prior experience with.

To be quiet honest I wasn’t so sure about the size when I saw the first pictures of the two other models, even thinking 800cc might be a bit small for a sport-touring machine. After a day of every type of riding from water crossings to high-speed interstate blasting, my mind has been changed, as it really is one of the most fun power plants I’ve ridden in a while. And not just because it makes brute, arm wrenching power, in fact it is quite the opposite. Producing 85 horsepower at 7,500 rpm, it isn’t going to win any plastic trophies for pulling large lumps of concrete at any tractor-pulling contests. It is going to unravel your favorite piece of back road quicker than your local policeman can get out of the convenience store though.

For those of you who are familiar with the new parallel twin found in the F800S and F800ST, bare with me a minute as this is a new engine to me. Looking visually similar, the GS engine has its cylinders tilted forward only 8.3 degrees compared to 30-degree angle on the other F models. This is to allow more suspension travel for the machines dirt bias. The 798cc engine is water-cooled, features double overhead camshafts and four valves per cylinder. The compression ratio is a healthy 12.0:1 and the over square 82mm pistons run in 76.5 mm bores.

Weighed side-by-side, the new GS engine is actually over two pounds lighter than the others too, and a new die-cast aluminum lower engine housing is partially responsible for trimming this weight. A new housing was necessary, as the F800GS needs a bash plate for its off road intentions. The clutch cover has also been modified to give more room on the pegs for your feet, and there is a new dipstick and clutch release shaft. To make the power plant more compact, the water pump housing and cooling hose connectors have also been moved.

Firing the F800GS engine for the first time, the sound made while warming up is not too dissimilar to the sound of the bigger Boxer twins. This is actually a deliberate move by BMW as they blessed the beast with a 360-degree firing order. Different camshafts allow the GS to make its power earlier, and BMW’s unique engine balancing system, that doesn’t use conventional counter weight shafts, helps keep things smooth as an Alabama salesman’s pitch. Accelerating up through the gears, the power is a lot stronger than I had expected for an 800cc engine, and the delivery highly addictive. Providing a strong progressive rush from fairly low down the rpm range, it is followed by a healthy kick up top as you approach the red line at 8,500 rpm.

During my day of riding, the fueling was near perfect and the correct mixture makes its way into the cylinders via a pair of 46mm throttle bodies. The correct amount of the mixture is ensured at all times by BMW’s sophisticated BMW-K engine management system. On or off the throttle, I can’t say I had any problems. And from splashing through water crossings to pulling wheelies for the cameraman, it did its job with first class precision. I even got to give it an extra thorough test when I took a fellow scribe to the Indian Ocean to shoot some of our own pictures. Riding two up in first and second gear with my passenger shooting pictures gave no hiccups or problems. This is the best test of a bike’s fueling and the F800GS passed with flying colors. It also answered a question I had been thinking all day about how the bike would perform with a passenger. Weighing in at 180 pounds with a 20-pound camera bag on my back, the bike seemed to barely notice I was there as we made our way back to base.

What was also nice to learn was the passenger seat is plenty broad enough that it should work reasonably well on the long haul. The driver’s perch on the other hand wasn’t total bliss. It wasn’t bad. It just aims downward a tad and after certain periods of time, I felt like I needed to readjust. It did allow me to get both feet on the ground. But at close to six feet, I wasn’t able to flatfoot it though.

Holding the engine in place is a clean looking, tubular steel frame made of manganese-alloy. This uses a slim, gusseted steering head and offers 42 degrees of steering lock, two more than the 800 S and 800 ST Having nearly tipped the new Buell Ulysses over while trying to make a turn, a machine that doesn’t have anywhere near as much lock, the F800 GS’ abilities in this department are king. Repeatedly making turns for the photographer puts this element fully to the test, and this extra couple of degrees makes all the difference. Further back, the rear of the frame that holds the seat is made from rectangular steel pipe and this carries the fuel tank under the seat. With a capacity of 3.6 gallons, it certainly can’t hurt to keep the weight down low, and I’m sure it aids the bike’s excellent low speed maneuverability.

Attached to this revised frame up front, an inverted 45mm fork holds a 21-inch spoke rim. Giving 230mm of suspension travel, it did well over the wide variety of terrain we tested on, with the only area it came up short being in the high speed curvy sections. Here, the willingness of the engine and the overall tightness of the chassis encouraged some spirited riding, and this started overwhelming the front fork entering corners. Sprung softly enough to be compliant in the dirt, it gives too much dive when the pace gets hot. If the GS was coming home to my house and I was going to be doing a lot of asphalt back road riding, I would most certainly be talking to my BMW technician about changing fork springs, fork oil, or both. This makes a great lead in to the front brakes. Offering very progressive stopping power for 80% of our ride and the comfort of a multi adjustable lever to get your pinkies where you want them, the twin calipers also get somewhat overwhelmed at high-speed. Again, this is more a testament to the engine and chassis than a complaint about the brakes, but softer pads would be on my list of minor tweaks I would need.

In the rear the GS uses a “directly hinged central spring strut with path-dependant damping and a spring travel of 215mm” if anyone can decipher this information from the press blurb. Looks like a single shock to me, and it does a good job of keeping your buns on the seat. Soaking up bumps with aplomb, without putting the bike into any long-term oscillations as the spring and dampers fight for control, it also keeps the spoke17-inch rim from hitting the fender. For those familiar with the F series, you will notice the GS is the first to come with chain drive. Also coming with an aluminum double-strut swing arm it is considerably different from the others, but these changes certainly make the bike more practical for the rider wanting to spend a lot of time in the dirt.

As is typical for most BMW motorcycles, the F800GS is equipped with ABS. Like the rest of the GS range, it has a feature to disable this when you take to the dirt. Just simply hit the handlebar switch after you have turned the ignition on and it’ss just like a non-ABS machine. Shut the ignition off for any reason and when you switch it back on, the bike defaults back to full time ABS. This comes standard, as you might expect, and there is also a plethora of special equipment for the GS already, with heated grips, on-board computer, main stand, alarm, and more available through your dealer. There are also numerous regular accessories ready to bolt straight on, from stylish luggage, to top cases, tank bags, and anything you want for touring the globe in comfort and style.

On the subject of style, I asked David Robb what challenges if any he faced working with the new parallel twin platform. “With the F800 GS, it was a dive into cold water without the articles we’re used to taking with us in that situation. In spite of that, in the past few years we have been looking at new engineering solutions that don’t always entail experience to still come up with a package unique to BMW, in this case with a tank underneath the seat, and an off-road look clearly positioned between the R1200GS and the previous F 650GS.”

In my humble opinion, I think Mr. Robb hit this one out of the park both from a styling standpoint, and just the plain old-fashioned buzz factor riding this motorcycle is going to give the rider. Having put significant miles on both the F650 GS and the R1200GS, the F800GS takes the best elements of both machines and blends them into one near perfect package. We have heard the over used cliché of the Swiss Army knife of motorcycles used many times, but this doesn’t cut it with the new GS. Excuse the pun, but this motorcycle is just so much more than a utilitarian machine. It has character, charm and a fun factor that is going to be hard to beat.