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BMW's 2022 F 900 XR and F 850 GS aren't very different motorcycles from the ones we've ridden in the past, but new prices change the dynamic vis-a-vis the competition. Dipayan Dutta takes them for a ride to re-evaluate how they stack up

- Dipayan Dutta

Set in God’s own country, two 2022 BMW Motorrad bikes, and a day spent between them. Each of them is on exactly the terrain they were made for. These are ideal testing conditions by a long shot, and now with the new pricing/ features on both the F 850 GS and the F 900 XR, it was time to re-evaluate just how competitive these two motorcycles are and what they offer in comparison to the competition.

Before we jump into this ride feature, it’s worth talking about how BMW Motorrad has changed the context of these two motorcycles without really changing much. What it has done instead is calibrate the pricing and added more features as standard. To put that in perspective the 2022 F 850 GS and the range-topping F 850 GS Adventure are both almost Rs 3 lakh more accessible than they were in 2019. Suddenly without making any changes, BMW has become the value offering of the segment making the competition seem unjustifiably more expensive.

While aggressive undercuts are not a standard part of the BMW pricing playbook, this new pricing is now possible since these bikes are now being manufactured in BMW’s Thai plant meaning the company makes massive savings on import duties that it can now via the SAARC route and then pass them down to their customers.