Honda vfr1200f

knapdog · Apr 7, 2017

Lovely day so, on the spur of the moment, I arranged a test ride on a vfr1200.
It felt small.
Engine was superb, smooth and like lightning when you opened the throttle.
Gearbox very slick but much harder pull on the clutch lever.
Very little wind protection.
Not noticeably heavy but felt heavier than the rt.
Don't know whether it has a longer wheelbase but nowhere near as agile as the rt. First bend I came to it wanted to go straight on. A lot of counter steering needed.
Forward lean meant my wrists and shoulders were hurting after about half an hour.
Apparently it also has a low range tank of about 140 miles.
Verdict:
It's not for me, with the RT in a different class. There, maybe, would be an improvement with bar risers and also trying the DCT would be interesting. I'm glad I gave it a test ride as I was considering one at the time the RT came along but it's a firm NO.
The RT was a joy to ride back home.

oddshapedballs · Apr 7, 2017

You'll be lucky to get 140 out of a tank unless you're driving miss daisy, mate of mine has one and he's shitting himself once 120 miles comes up and he doesn't know where the nearest petrol station is.

theop · Apr 11, 2017

knapdog said:
Lovely day so, on the spur of the moment, I arranged a test ride on a vfr1200.
It felt small.
Engine was superb, smooth and like lightning when you opened the throttle.
Gearbox very slick but much harder pull on the clutch lever.
Very little wind protection.
Not noticeably heavy but felt heavier than the rt.
Don't know whether it has a longer wheelbase but nowhere near as agile as the rt. First bend I came to it wanted to go straight on. A lot of counter steering needed.
Forward lean meant my wrists and shoulders were hurting after about half an hour.
Apparently it also has a low range tank of about 140 miles.
Verdict:
It's not for me, with the RT in a different class. There, maybe, would be an improvement with bar risers and also trying the DCT would be interesting. I'm glad I gave it a test ride as I was considering one at the time the RT came along but it's a firm NO.
The RT was a joy to ride back home.

Had one for 2 years. Agreed with all you ve said. High point was the engine, which is unique esp in the top half. I remember it fondly. It was also a high quality componentry and assembly. Everything else was a compromise.

Wreford Miles · Apr 12, 2017

I use to come across a guy on a DCT on a London commute - Very quick away from the lights

Vitalmark · Apr 12, 2017

Had a brief affair with one. The test ride sold it to me. However found it very uncomfortable after only fifty miles all of a sudden. Depreciates like a stone. I quickly went back to BMW I can ride 450 miles in a day no problem at all. The build quality on the Honda I have to agree is great, maybe better than my RT LC.

StephenS · Apr 12, 2017

Pretty much concur with other comments.

What I need is the RT body, suspension, etc, and the VFR engine. I'd buy that in a heartbeat.

Dennis the Menace · Apr 12, 2017

knapdog said:
but much harder pull on the clutch lever.
.

I think modern BM have one of the lightest clutch pulls on the market :thumb2

Rushy · Apr 12, 2017

You should've test ridden the VFR1200X with the DCT box. Fab riding position , all day comfy and the same creamy Vee Four albeit down on power

knapdog · Apr 12, 2017

Met a guy the other day who had test ridden the DCT and he hadn't liked it. For the sake of economy it kept changing up to 6th whenever it could and he kept needing to change manually. Again when approaching a bend it wasn't very good at changing down.

Arsey · Apr 12, 2017

knapdog said:
Met a guy the other day who had test ridden the DCT and he hadn't liked it. For the sake of economy it kept changing up to 6th whenever it could and he kept needing to change manually. Again when approaching a bend it wasn't very good at changing down.

Perhaps he should have read the manual then.Just take it out of D mode and stick it in S !!

Rushy · Apr 12, 2017

knapdog said:
Met a guy the other day who had test ridden the DCT and he hadn't liked it. For the sake of economy it kept changing up to 6th whenever it could and he kept needing to change manually. Again when approaching a bend it wasn't very good at changing down.

It takes a good day to get used it , in Sport mode it's very intuitive and changes down nicely as you slow for a corner and holds into gears for much longer . But for spirited riding on a fast road Manual is best as you can just stick it in say fifth and use the torque and power for most corners .

As Arsey said he should have tried S instead of just D as that will, as your mate found out, on a gentle throttle get you in 6th from as low as 35-36 mph.

It's quite surprising how tractable the engine is for a multi . On a recent trip the bike was lugging up a very steep hill in fourth gear in D at under 30mph and my mate behind me felt he had to drop to 2nd on his GSA.

Honda vfr1200f

knapdog

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oddshapedballs

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theop

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Wreford Miles

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Vitalmark

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StephenS

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Dennis the Menace

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Rushy

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knapdog

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Arsey

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Rushy

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