BMW F 900 GS: Making a worthwhile candidate for a one-bike garage

(This piece also appeared on BMWBLOG on May 9th, 2024. You can check it out here.)

Ask most enthusiasts to name a BMW motorcycle and the answer you’ll likely receive is, “The GS.”  And by GS, they’ll likely mean the big-bruiser, dual-sport, world-conquering Boxer-twin (the latest example of which tips the engine scales with 1300-cc displacement), which can cross continents and ford streams and sand dunes with the same formidable ease with which it navigates urban jungles and highways.  But in the BMW Motorrad line-up, the GS F-models offer a less bulky, more nimble option as well.

BMW has taken the wraps off their latest updated middleweights, the F 800 GS, F 900 GS, and F 900 GS Adventure, which replace the F 750 GS, F 850 GS, and F 850 GS Adventure respectively.  Each bike benefits from a revised and updated engine, significant weight savings, new suspension, and a fully upgraded electronic suite.

Testing The F 900 GS Off-Road

Recently, BMW Motorrad invited BMWBLOG and other media members to Las Vegas, Nevada, to test out the new smaller GS (specifically, the F 900 GS), as well as spend a day of urban play with the new CE 02.  (Talk about a study in contrasts!)  While the new GS bikes are certainly smaller and more to tossable than their big brother, they are far from diminutive.   BMW refers to the trio as fitting into the “upper midsized segment,” and this seems correct for such capable, substantial machines.

“Stick out your candy on the outside of the turn and rock your weight down on the outside peg. Easy as that.”  Ride leader Gina, an instructor at the RawHyde Adventures riding academy in California, gave out this basic advice like she was talking to an MSF Basic RiderCourse student, but I latched onto her words and repeated them like a mantra.  (And for the record, when Gina said “candy,” she was referring to a certain body part that rhymes with “mutt.”)

As a relatively novice off-road rider surrounded by seasoned gravel pros, this simple but specific advice from an experienced instructor was a welcome lifeline. “Stick out your candy” I repeated silently to myself with every sharp turn and rutted washout. My focus was entirely on avoiding “doll’s heads” (slang for child-head sized loose rocks scattered across the trail) and tire-destroying rock shards; as one fellow rider dryly offered, “when you see the pointy rocks sticking up, try not to hit them.” Great advice, though pointy rocks and doll’s heads seemed to make up thirty percent of the trail.

Fortunately, the newly svelte and capable F 900 GS had my back.

2-Cylinder Engine, Up to 105 HP

The mid-sized Adventure segment is perhaps the most exciting and innovative in the motorcycle industry, where all the cool kids want to be, with KTM being the 800-pound gorilla with their capable and appealing 890 Adventure R.  Triumph slots into the #2 position in terms of market share (with the Tiger 900 being the stand-out), with BMW Motorrad trailing close behind.  The new trio of F-bikes aims to close that gap considerably, with the KTM the clear benchmark (though I think it likely we’ll be seeing more head-to-head with the new Ducati DesertX as well).

To power the new bikes, the Motorrad started with the 2-cylinder in-line engine already used in the BMW F 900 R and F 900 XR, tossed it in the engineering shaker, and poured out two subtly different variations on the theme.  Somewhat confusingly, each new variation displaces 895-cc capacity (the engines in both the 800 and 900 have the same part number), so the difference is largely down to tune. The 900-series bikes generate 105 hp at 8,500 rpm (up from the previous 95 hp) and have a maximum torque of 68.6 lb-ft at 6,750 rpm (up from the previously 67.8 lb-ft), while the 800-series model has an output of 87 hp available at 6,750 rpm (up from the previous 77 hp), as well as 67 lb-ft of torque at 6,750 rpm (up from the previous 61 lb-ft).  With four valves per cylinder and twin overhead cams, the liquid-cooled engines have two counterrotating balance shafts to moderate undue vibrations. With a 90-degree offset crankshaft with 270/450-degree firing order, the engine sounds nothing so much like a V-Twin, throaty, raspy, and deep.  A light clutch pull and up-and-down quick-shifter are standard.

Significant Weight Savings

An emphasis with the new bikes is weight savings, and BMW has pared down the F 900 GS by ~30-lbs alone.  Most of that savings comes from a new fuel tank design; the new plastic tank shaves nearly 10-lbs off the outgoing bike’s steel tank, with further weight reduction from the redesigned tail section and new standard Akropovic exhaust (which also accentuates the in-line twin’s native burble).

At the launch, my bike for the day was a F 900 GS with the Off-Road Package, a group of options designed to make the bike significantly more biased towards off-pavement performance.  The package comes with additional shift and ride modes, a more compliant suspension (with gorgeous gold Showa forks in front and a ZF Sachs rear shock, adjustable for preload, compression, and rebound), handlebar risers, better engine protection and enduro hand protectors, and more aggressive off-road tires.  This package targets the KTM 890 Adventure R specifically, and while the specs of the two machines don’t line up perfectly, the differences are really in the margins and will come down to personal preference.  The GS Trophy paint scheme on the new model is especially fetching and I imagine will have a high take-rate, though the Sao Paulo Yellow is also striking.

Designed For The Off-Road

Ergonomics have also been redesigned to accentuate the off-road bias of the new bikes.  The handlebar is 15mm higher than before, with 24mm more extension available on bikes equipped with the Enduro Pro package.  Foot pegs are 20mm lower than before, and have a new more rounded, self-cleaning design.  I’m 5’11” tall, with a normal inseam and arm length, and I found the geometry of the new smaller GS to be squarely in the Goldilocks zone, especially when riding off-road.  All hand and foot controls are easy and natural to use on the fly, and the design of the new foot pegs and slimness of the new tank design made transferring weight and gripping the sides of the bike with my knees natural and comfortable, especially when riding while standing.

A 6.5-inch TFT display is standard, which is bright and legible and controlled by BMW’s ubiquitous multi-controller on the left handlebar.  If you’ve ridden any BMW motorcycle in the past few years, you’ll quickly master how to navigate the menus and sub-menus, which flex depending on which options are configured on a given bike.  And the BMW Motorrad Connected app is fully integrated, as you’d imagine.

My particular GS had four available ride modes available: Road, Dynamic, Enduro, and Enduro Pro (which disables ABS at the rear and retards traction control even further than in Enduro).   (The Rain mode was disabled for some reason, though not of concern around bone-dry Las Vegas).  After playing with each setting, I settled on Dynamic and Enduro as the go-to modes for the day’s ride, with Dynamic mode adjusting everything from throttle response to suspension compliance on the fly, and Enduro mode slowing everything down to a manageable level, while allowing the bike to be significantly more tail (trail?) happy in the dirt and rock.

A High Level Of Customizations

As expected from a member of the GS family, BMW Motorrad came out of the gate with a bevy of available accessories. From a full line-up of aluminum side cases and canvas top bags to various Enduro enhancements and engine protection bars, to different seats to accommodate riders of all sizes, customization is almost expected with the GS.  And the after-market will inevitably add to the possibilities significantly.  An F 900 GS Adventure outfitted with a full complement of bags really does look like a full-sized GS washed in hot water (sans the bulbous cylinder heads, of course).

Carving Up The Canyons

On the road, the F 900 GS is a nimble, playful barnstormer, somewhat surprising for a bike with such an off-road bias.  With the understandable limitation of the off-road tires notwithstanding (a sticker on the dash admonishes to keep it below 100-mph vMax), the bike handles neutrally and predicably.  On the sublime and twisty roads through the Spring Mountains to the northwest of Las Vegas, up to and down from Mt. Charleston, then twisting around Red Rock Canyon, the GS leapt from corner to corner with eagerness, and responded quickly and predictably to quick mid-corner steering adjustments to avoid the ubiquitous mid-apex rock falls.

I expected the front end to wash out more readily than it did, particularly with the compromised tires, and was initially tentative with my lines and velocity, but as confidence grew with the grip and general suspension compliance, speeds picked up accordingly.  The bikes in our group equipped with more road-biased rubber had a distinct advantage, but I think most of that just came down to psychology; the GS I was on handled everything asked of it on the mountain road switchbacks with barely a squeal, and both throttle response and traction control were predictable and largely unobtrusive.

Comfort on longer, flatter runs of pavement was also a surprising strong suit.  A small irritation was the non-adjustable windscreen, which generally directed wind squarely at the middle of my head.  A taller “Dakar”-style windscreen is available as an accessory and is one for which I’d likely opt if I was going to ride the bike mainly on the road.  (The larger windscreen also looks cool.)   But overall, that’s a small nit, and our ~220-mile ride (with 70% on various paved roads) was comfortable and relatively relaxing.  While the new smaller GS is no mileage-eater quite like its big brother bike, it’s also not purely an off-road plaything.  Versatility was clearly high on the design and engineering brief.

Feels Lighter Than It Is

When the pavement runs out, the new F 900 GS really shines.  The new ergonomics, coupled with the weight savings and playful suspension, combine for an amazing level of confidence when trail conditions get messy.  The bike responds immediately to even the slightest weight transfer (“stick out your candy, stick out your candy!”), and the upgraded suspension soaks up shocks that frankly seem like they should bring the machine to its knees (or the dirt, as the case may be).  The bike’s overall diet pays added dividends with agility offroad, and the sophistication of the overall tune makes the bike feel even lighter than it is.  It’s quite a magic trick.

I mentioned I’m not an experienced off-road rider by any stretch, as the bulk of my riding years have been on roads or tracks.  But the F 900 GS was a worthy and patient tutor, smoothing over my initially ham-fisted inputs and tendency to ride more slowly than advised.  As my confidence level grew and my speeds increased, the bike lightened up and responded even more intuitively to throttle inputs and weight transfer, and I found myself riding harder and faster over what the more experienced riders described as “intermediate to advanced-intermediate” terrain.  The GS was unflappable, with Enduro mode allowing just enough playful room to explore my own limits without fear of disaster.  When pavement finally showed back up, my only thought was, hey, can we turn back around and do that again?

Candidate For One-Bike Garage?

My experience demonstrates the beauty of bikes in this category and Adventure bikes in general: That of flexibility.  As an all-rounder, the F 900 GS is playful in the twisties, comfortable on the open road (especially in GS Adventure guise), and confidently planted and nimble in the dirt and rock.  It’s a bike with immense personality, significantly more so than its immediate predecessor.  With the versatility to explore multiple limits, the F 900 GS makes a worthwhile candidate for a one-bike garage.  The “baby” GS has certainly grown up.

Unleash Your Inner Child: Riding the BMW CE 02

(This piece also appeared on BMWBLOG on May 6th, 2024. You can check it out here.)

“Hey, man, is that electric? That thing is awesome!”

At the recent BMW Media Launch for both the all-new F 900 GS and CE 02 in Las Vegas, I had the opportunity to put the CE 02, BMW Motorrad’s latest electric scooter, through its paces for a day of grooving and shimmying around various landmarks, avoiding unceasing roadwork and traffic jams and mobile ads for zombie burlesque shows (don’t ask), all while exploring the limits of BMW’s latest 2-wheeled runabout.  I wouldn’t be needing my customary ear plugs for this test.

Testing BMW’s Latest Electric Marvel in Las Vegas

I live in the dense urban core of a large Midwestern city, and of late, my most common street sighting has been that of traffic cones and construction equipment.  Thus, for those of us with, you know, cars, access has been pinched and restricted and limited (the “road diet” of which urban planners are so fond), even making quick errands require advanced planning and blood pressure medicine.  What’s a driver (or motorcyclist) to do?

Enter BMW’s solution to this increasingly common urban challenge, both in the US and abroad:  The CE 02.

The Rise of the CE 02

BMW describes the CE 02 as an “eParkourer” Urban Mobility Vehicle, and while I’m perhaps not hip enough to fully grasp that concept, what I can say is, the CE 02 is a veritable grin factory.  As an alternative to a Vespa Elettrica or Honda Grom, the CE 02 is an adorable and lively little jackrabbit.  BMW’s market brief positions the CE 02 as a competitor to all manner of smaller scooters and bikes, both conventional and electric, and even smaller-displacement motorcycles like the KTM Duke 125.  But its real achievement is just banishing urban commuting malaise.

The Design Language of the CE 02

Design wise, the CE 02 is cute as a box of kittens.  You know those impossible Hot Wheels concepts first-year design students dream up every year at the ArtCenter College of Design?  The CE 02 is like that, only doodled on an iPad by a bored high-school kid serving detention.  The look is accentuated by single-sided swingarm and 14” wheels, which lend decidedly playful elements.

Prior to the CE 02, BMW previously released the CE 04, an altogether more sober and sophisticated electric machine.  More substantial in every dimension, the CE 04 can hit 75-mph and carries 509-lbs of bulk, more closely resembling the hypergliding scooter Jeff Bridges sluiced around in “Tron” than a simple runabout.  Its design is altogether more geometric and imperious.  To mix fantasy movie metaphors, think of the CE 04 as the bike ridden by Storm Troopers chasing those pesky rebels on their CE 02 bikes.

Power and Performance: The Heart of the CE 02

The CE 02’s 48-volt electric motor, with output comparable to a 200-cc dino juice burner, is borrowed from BMW’s automobile side of the house, a nifty bit of repurposing.  It’s more than up to the task.  As Oleg Satanovsky, with BMW’s Motorcycle & Motorsport Communications Group, remarked, “If that motor is strong enough to move a 5000-pound SUV off the line, it’s certainly up to the task of powering a 291-pound bike around.”  And how.

Peak motor output is 11kW/15 hp with an optimal battery range of ~55-miles.  Top speed is 59mph, and I can validate that figure.  The motor delivers 15-hp at 5000-rpm and, significantly, 40.5-lb-ft of torque from 0-1000-rpm.  It’s connected to the rear wheel via a double belt drive with a 1:7.8 fixed ratio.
Charging is designed for standard household outlets, though the lack of support for Type 1 or 2 charging stations, and thus access to the growing urban charging infrastructure, might prove to be a limiting choice for some.  The CE 02 has 2 air-cooled batteries for drive, as well as another 12-volt battery used by the bike’s electrical system, and an LED on the traction batteries themselves always shows the charge level. An external 900-watt charger is standard, with a 1200-watt charger optional.

Technology and Simplicity: User-Friendly Features of the CE 02

The CE 02 has three drives modes: Flow, Surf, and Flash.  Flow and Flash both enable regenerative charging, with the friction resistance in Flash being significantly greater in addition to enhanced throttle response.  Think of Surf as “coast” mode.  As with most EVs, regeneration also occurs under braking, and the modes and activity of the battery and motor are displayed in the bike’s micro-TFT display.  For most of my ride, I left the bike in Flow mode to conserve energy, and while I didn’t find the snappier throttle response in Flash to be as pronounced as I’d hoped, the increased regeneration lets you essentially ride with just the throttle; it was my favorite mode of the three.

As is typical of electric vehicles, the CE 02 moves off the line with torquey verve.  0-30mph arrives in 3 seconds, which for an urban machine is more than quick enough to hit holes in traffic or even settle juvenile scores.  On our way to the National Atomic Testing Museum, a local on a Suzuki GSX-R pulled up to admire our little herd.  “Is that thing fast?” he shouted over the din at a traffic light.  When the light turned, we pinned our throttles and left him in the dust.  Yes sir, that will do. (He passed again soon after, howling with laughter, which was a relief since he was brandishing a visible handgun on his hip.  Ah, Vegas.)

The technology in the CE 02 is purposely opaque (“discreet” in BMW parlance), and the simple controls invite riders to try out the bike immediately.  At the media launch, this point was punctuated by presenting the assembled journalists with a line of shiny new scooters and the instruction of, “There they are folks, and the proximity keys are on the seats.  Have at ‘em.”  The controls are simple in the extreme, and we all figured them out within a few moments. The little bike also has the smartphone connectivity expected in a consumer product like this and works with BMW Motorrad’s Connected app to display info such as charge level, charging duration, and last trip info.

All electric vehicles of any sort carry a weight penalty due to the bulk and density of their batteries, and the CE 02 is no exception.  Tipping the scales at 291-pounds, the CE 02 outweighs a fully fueled Honda Grom by 68-pounds, but in practice, that added weight is a nonissue.  Between the CE 02’s low center of gravity and cartoonish tires, you never feel like the weight is doing anything but keeping you planted to the road.  BMW includes a handy Reverse function to mitigate any concerns about pushing the little bike around, but the added weight actually gives the little scooter vastly more substance and presence.

A Day on the CE 02

The CE 02 has a nominal range of ~55 miles, and our day’s route should have gobbled up all that juice.  But after eight hours of hooning around the urban jungle, I returned my bike with 30% of the charge remaining, all down to the magical properties of regenerative charging. (Lesson: I should have used Flash mode more liberally.) So, your mileage may vary, literally.  My takeaway with pretty much all quoted EV ranges isn’t much different from ICE vehicles.

Range is almost entirely dependent on how you use the thing, and thus I tend to intuitively know after a short time how many miles I can go without refueling in a given situation (driving around town in an SUV nets way fewer miles than driving the same vehicle on a long highway journey; duh).  The CE 02 and its ilk are no different.  In practice, that ~55 miles of range is likely more than ample for the intended usage of the little thing; no one is doing highway commuting on a CE 02 or Vespa (and if you are, thank you, hero).

Unlike it’s big brother CE 04, the 02 has zero storage space or cubbies (though an optional phone mount is included with the “Highline” trim).  There are several voids that seemingly could have been morphed into some useful storage spots, but that would have inevitably compromised the minimalist design, so it was clearly an intentional omission.  BMW Motorrad offers a bevy of fun accessories for the CE 02, including a top case, rear case, and several side case options, so anyone wanting to add a tad more utility can do so.  But out of the box, the CE 02 is very much a “toss on a backpack or messenger bag and scoot” sort of proposition.

Customization and Accessories: Personalizing the CE 02

The machine is primed for individualization.  Our test bikes came in “Cosmic Black 2” finish  and included the “Highline Package” that brings various fun and helpful goodies (including enabling the Flash drive mode), so the bikes were far from strippers. The “Price as Tested” was $9,069 when all the various packages were added up.

Our test bikes had both front and rear foot pegs, the rear ostensibly for passengers, but our group generally favored those rear foot pegs for a “Speed Racer” mode of riding, legs bent backwards with weight over the handlebars.  The negative about this position was that the seat edge tended to cut into your inner thighs a bit, so I hope some enterprising after-market firm will create a “Speed Seat” for the CE 02 that resolves this.  (The positive about this position was that it was flippin’ fun.) In fact, the entire bike seems primed for an R nineT motorcycle type of after-market accessory ecosystem, and I wouldn’t be surprised to see such a seat and many other items appearing soon.

Market Positioning and Potential: Is the CE 02 a Lifestyle Revolution?

This points to a real marketing question for the CE 02: Is BMW prepared to segment the machine into the “lifestyle brand” space, as Ducati did with their Scrambler line?  This little bike cries out for just that sort of special treatment and would help it to avoid the rather “meh” response received by the CE 04 in the US.  (On a recent visit to Paris, I saw more CE 04s in one day that I have in the entirety of the States since their launch.)

The folks who seek out a BMW Motorrad shop for a stately K 1600 GTL or uber-serious GS or go-fast S100RR are not the folks who will accessorize a CE 02 with their latest sneaks.  The CE 02 needs to be seen and played with to be really appreciated, and I hope BMW’s marketing and branding folks are busy exploring various tie-ins with non-traditional outlets.  If Yeti can make ice coolers into an upscale hipster totem, BMW certainly has the making for such a branding hit with the CE 02.

Designed in Germany, built in India, with a motor from France, not to mention a design that looks like the lovechild of a Brooklyn coffee shop and the Venice Beach boardwalk, the CE 02 has genuine global bona fides.  That in itself is cool and plays into the “Global Citizen” vibe of the hipster set.

Is BMW up to the task of positioning this unique machine?  And maybe more importantly, is the US urban market ready to adopt such a premium electric scooter?  Time will tell, but for all fans of pure joy, I sure hope so.  How much did I like the new BMW CE 02?  I haven’t had that much fun since I stopped putting playing cards in my bicycle spokes.