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+--- Thread: VFR 1200 (/showthread.php?tid=2582)
RE: VFR 1200 - quietguy_imp - 01-26-2016
Great video, thanks for the link, Riko.
RE: VFR 1200 - AzBob_imp - 01-26-2016
In my opinion, the VFR1200F did poorly for a few reasons: first, it's styling. It came on the heels of the DN-01 and incorporated some of that awful styling. It has a funky fairing arrangement that blends the tank and the side fairings together that looks really weird. The windscreen isn't electrically adjustable, and worst of all, it doesn't have cruise control. The tank is also small when you consider the bike only gets 35mpg. The bags are an add-on and are very expensive.
It's far faster than an FJR at 160hp compared to the FJR's 140ish hp and 50 additional pounds. People bemoaning the weight I think have never shopped this category of bike or never rode the bike. 600lbs is nothing and the bike handles like a 400lbs sport bike. At 600lbs, it's one of the lightest sport-touring bikes available. Hell, my 700lbs Trophy handles better than my CB1100 (not that the CB1100 handles poorly, just that the Trophy is engineered to handle very well, despite its weight -- in other words, weight isn't the whole story).
RE: VFR 1200 - CB1100DLX_imp - 01-26-2016
Some people love the styling and some hate it. The designer was going for a "sculpted" look like an art piece but some didn't like it. I personally think it looks beautiful. And the fairing was not designed just for aesthetics but also functionally drawing air to specific parts of the engine and the rider.
Motorcycle riders are a finicky bunch. It's also harder to categorize motorcycles nowadays. The VFR1200 is sport tourer leaning to the sport side so there is always going be some who say it's lacking in comfort and luggage. Just like someone could say that our beloved CB is lacking in power for an 1100.
All I know is that I'd love to have them both!
RE: VFR 1200 - Jim21680_imp - 01-26-2016
Wow, there really are new Interceptor 800s going for $8,000 bucks these days. That's incredible, and a shame at the same time (why aren't they selling??)
I think this warrants some additional research into insurance.
RE: VFR 1200 - LongRanger_imp - 01-26-2016
I think they're not selling because (a) 800cc bikes are considered "small" in the US and (b) the sport-touring ergo is no longer fashionable. If the bike had a beak and taller bars, it'd probably sell like hot cakes. Personally, I think it's the best sub-$10k motorcycle on the market. At $8k, it's a steal.
RE: VFR 1200 - Jim21680_imp - 01-26-2016
Beak and taller bars, you say?
http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/motorcycles/2015/2015-Honda-VFR800X-Crossrunner.htm
Sadly, Honda doesn't seem to agree with your sales predictions here in the US.
This is definitely one of those times when I wish I could own like 3 or 4 or 10 bikes.
RE: VFR 1200 - dave - 01-26-2016
I presently own a 1998 VFR800, along with my '14 CB1100 Dlx. I wanted so badly to upgrade my VFR800 to a newer, more powerful VFR because I simply love the V4 engine and nearly everything else about it. (BTY, valve adjustments on the VFR800 "pre- V-TEC engine" are way easier than most in-line 4-cylinder bikes. The gear driven cams come right out, allowing easy access to the shims.) I drooled over every press release Honda made public for months prior to the official release, and I intended to be one of the first in line to own one - I was waiting with my money in hand. I would check the internet daily for any new updates! When the first pictures were finally released I was so completely let down - I thought it was one of the ugliest motorcycles I had ever seen! But, I reasoned that if it had the performance that I expected, that if I purchased one the performance would make up for its bad looks, and just maybe the looks would grow on me - after all, you can always get an aftermarket pipe to replace that ugly monstrosity. So I held off my purchase until I could read the test results, and I purchased every single piece of literature I could get my hands on. In a nutshell, this bike was rated mediocre at best. It came in last place in a comparison test in Cycle World, and they were being nice. The European press were not as nice as the American press, and they gave it poor reviews. I know looks are a personal opinion, but I have not met one person who liked the looks of this bike. It's no wonder this bike never sold - ugly looks, below average performance and handling, over weight, over-priced (the center stand was a dealer "option"), and it had no real target audience. It was not sporty enough for the guys like me who lean more towards the sport side of sport touring, and it was not touring enough for the touring guys. It's no wonder I saw brand-new bikes that were 3 years old still on the dealer floor - good riddance!
RE: VFR 1200 - LongRanger_imp - 01-26-2016
Oops... I stand corrected. CrossRunner? I've never seen one.
RE: VFR 1200 - Hondahawkrider_imp - 01-26-2016
Lol... What happend to it was Honda waited too long to make it.. Honda used to own the sports touring market with the vfr750, so much that the Honda sports touring association or hsta formed up around it.
However, after like 15 years of owning the ST market, other manufacturers starting changing up the game. It used to be 600cc and 900/1000cc sports bikes, with the vfr in the middle and if you wanted more power there were the bigger super sports like the zx11, Thunderace, blackbird, etc. that you could slap bags on if you didn't want a couch like a st1100, concours, etc
However, this all changed in the late 90s when other manufacturers started recycling previous years 1000cc sport bikes, or by making outright sport touring, or naked, or adventure bikes in the liter category, that chewed up the market for the vfr even after it was punched out to 800ccs.
From memory, the duc 916 became the st4 when the new 996 came out, the old aprillia Mille became the Falco, the Suzuki tl1000 became the vstrom, Yamaha made the fz1 witha detuned r1, Kawasaki had the z1, trumph had the St, and so on..
While many people remained loyal to the vfr, by the mid 2000s there were tons of upright orientated bikes one could tour on, that had more power than the vfr800. Honda should have have released the vfr1200 back then..
It will probably be in the Honda lineup for years, especially since Honda is after the adv/St market with the X version with the same motor. I've ridden one. It's great, but its what I wanted years ago when I got a ktm 990 for touring...
RE: VFR 1200 - Riko_imp - 01-26-2016
It was designed by Italians...something did look special about it, in a good way, now I know.
Here is a nice sideview in good quality with the new color scheme:
https://youtu.be/BEadfGvI734
edit: small correction, it was designed in Italian and German studio's under supervision of a Spaniard named Teofilo Plaza
Source: Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Honda_VFR1200F#Design
http://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/new-bikes/2010/january/jan0610-designers-defend-the-new-honda-vfr1200/