2010 VFR1200?? Yeah! Right!

2010 VFR1200 - Quite surprized

Hi folks, this is my first post here!

Apologies if it is a long one... I just tried the VFR1200F today and this is my first impression.

Well, I first though the VFR1200 was really ugly, heavy (on paper), bland (and BMesque) and that the color was not inspiring (although some of its lines somewhat reminds me of the first interceptors of the '80s). I remember trying the VFR800, a few years back and not really liking it either. Journos would say it was the ‘‘best all-around’’ bike, but it just never really did it for me (no offence to anyone). I then thought history seemed to want repeating itself.

I am an avid, rider and I always rode sports bikes. Every time I try something else (including the BMW Adventure that I so wanted to love) I come back disappointed and I want to keep my sportbike.

My mind was pretty much set on buying a new liter bike.

Unfortunately (or fortunately, rather), the dealership has no 2010 CBR1000RR demo. Darn!
But he has a VFR1200F and offered to take it for a ride for a few hours, if I fancy.

I thought, oh well! What the heck... let's see what it's got.

Off I go for what I think will be 15 minutes of reinforcement that I want a new sportbike and that I am way too young for these heavy ''sport-touring'' bikes with vague front ends, regular brakes and disappointing if not sluggish performances.

An hour later, I parked the bike, took my helmet off, stepped back, looked at the bike again and this time quite differently than I ever did before, and summarized my experience of the past hour in two words: ''HOLLY SH_T!!!''

The slightly longer summary is: I WANT ONE, FORGET ABOUT THE CBR!!
YES, IT IS THAT GOOD TO ME!!

I just can’t believe the experience I had during that hour. I never came back from a test ride wanting a motorcycle so much!

First, as soon as I sat on the bike, I immediately felt right at home. All the controls felt in the right spot and because I knew about the different placement for the turn signals, I did not activate the horn instead ; )

It felt way more natural than the Beemers' counterintuitive (to me) setup. I got used to it almost immediately.

The clutch was so easy to pull and modulate and as soon as I let the lever go away from the handlebar, I was really surprised by the immediate amount of torque available and the force with which I was rapidly pushed forward. The bike felt super powerful yet ultra-controllable.

As soon as I braked from about 100km/h to make the first corner, dove in and then accelerated out of it, everything started going downwards in spirals.... for the CBR!!

When I used the front brakes to make the tight, long, right-hand corner, they felt like they were light-years ahead of anything I rode before in terms of power, feel and control. And then, the bike just read my mind and took the corner as I wanted it to. It felt just as light as my CBR.

Then, expecting the next thing (accelerating out of the corner) to be some kind of a disappointment, I twisted the throttle to er... accelerate out of the corner. But instead of disappointment, a grin as wide as my visor got on my face as I was propelled at ridiculous speeds in no time! The cars that seemed so far ahead of me were all of a sudden right in my face.... then in my mirrors!! Wow! I could see cars in these, not just my elbows!!

I am blown away by how smooth yet powerful the V4 is!!! First thing you know, you are past the red line and you don't even feel it because it is so smooth!! And shifting has never been as smooth and easy either! No jerking no ''clunky'' feeling, just effective, seemless yet positive shifting. Better than any motorcycle I rode before, honestly! And amazing acceleration!

Wind protection? Fantastic! Nothing but clean air and no annoying noise at the helmet level.

Engine? It has to be the sweetest I have ridden too!

And what about the fit and finish? It's just plain incredible! I don’t think any pictures I have seen does justice to the VFR1200. It is a bike you need to see before your own eyes. But mostly, you need to ride it to really appreciate it.

Anyway, I am sorry for the long post, but all that to say that as like many of you, I was far from impressed or excited about the new VFR. But a test ride changed everything!! I now want to own one!

Against all odds, I am now a firm VFR believer and hopefully, a soon to be owner!

Honestly, if I want to be nit-picky, I would say that the only thing I thought could be different is the seating position, if you plan on doing very long trips. It is a little more on the sporty side of the equation. The legs position is perfect but I had to lean forward a little more than anticipated to reach the bars. Of course, it is still much comfortable than any sportbike, but maybe not as much as a pure Tourer (but oh way more fun!). Mind you, risers would solve that issue easily.

It terms of the range and the size of the bags, it will be perfect for me as I am used to sportsbikes’ standards, so...

Well, I guess it is true what they say... love always happens when you least expect it!!

I hope to buy soon and to stick around!

In the meantime, if you haven't tried the bike yet, do yourself a favor...

Cheers!

 

Nice, welcome here, good to see another satisfied rider. I too have taken the beast around only a 1/2 mile block, though all though my feelings are different coming from a vfr750. yes it has bottom end like no other, less the ZX14.and Vmax. I'm not so sold on it ,yet. I will say I need a longer outing before I will make any over harsh judgment as of yet, but for me the thing I noticed right off the bat all though it is well balanced, is the weight and feeling, it's a big bike. that said even though I don't agree with the direction Honda took, you can't say the fit and finish is lousy. in fact it's quite remarkable, just wish it came in another color, and had the full adjustable suspension.ala CBRs. I so want to like this bike, But?.. for the money..... I'll wait.