Article: VFRWorld's Reg71 takes the VFR1200F and 1200F DCT for a spin

Reg,

It was nice meeting you and your wife this weekend. Very good write up and I will add that I agree with your observations. The one thing I will throw in is that I felt the cockpit was very calm for me anyway at 5'10". I didn't have any wind buffeting. I would also add that I thought the Honda Reps were very receptive to at least listening to our thoughts and concerns and seemed very genuine. Whether that gets taken into consideration for future iterations of this bike I guess time will tell.

BTW........Reg has the best looking 98 VFR out there.....:tongue:

Take Care Bud........

 

reg: nice review. not very conclusive, but that is probably due to the subject. congrats on being important!

Randy. I have a BMW K1200rs. I think of it as my VFR's big brother. Power to weight ratio is close - BMW is a little stronger w/ 130 RWHP, but more weight. the extra weight makes it a "highway bike" - less notice of minor bumps on the road. You notice the weight in the twisties, tho.

 

Thanks Reg. I too thought that the bike was ugly in pictures till I saw it up close. Then it was only slightly ugly. I saw it at a dealership and didnt have the $16,000 "test rideing" deposit like the dealer wanted. You, sir, are a lucky bastage for that kinda opportunity. As stated before too bad you couldn't ring her out during your spin but a good/honest reveiw none the less.

 

Nice writeup, I wonder if there's gonna be an aftermarket gas tank? That 175 mile range doesn't sound great at all.

 

Thank you for the writeup.

I had an impression before I read this that it was targeted to a particulare demographic - Europe & 40 year olds. As I fall in the latter of the two this is something that makes sense. The line about stop and go traffic really hit home as I just started my normal commute this morning and with an accident at the 270 spur followed by maintenance on the Clara Barton Pkwy I can totally see how the DCT would come in handy.

Thanks!

 

Damn............................:reg:

 

Thanks, Reg. That was very cool of them to invite you to try it out. I guess some one WAS (at least)listening to us at some point. Thanks for your comments and pictures. It gives me more perspective seeing someone I actually know on the bike and see what you had to say.
Very nice write up, as always.

 

Reg,

It was a pleasure to meet you and Terri. Excellent write up. I just got home last night around 10 PM (with my luggage this time) and may add to your post if anything relevant hits me after I catch up at work a bit.

I will definately try to work out a west coast trip during the next year. Wish I had a pic of you riding pillion on the baby buffalo. :wink:

All the best,

Keith

 

This sounds like a conspiracy for me to acquire one of these machines before SLO 2011 so that someone can test ride it without restrictions. Well I can see through your devious plans. Did you tell them that someone let you put their bike through its paces recently?

 

Nice write up. I really wasn't considering the 1200 as a next bike but your line about 40-somethings with a V4 fondness who want to do longer mileage may have me reconsidering, I seem to fit the target market. lol

 

Reg,

Nice writeup and pictures. It was great to meet you and your wife. The rest of us in attendance have decided that we can never let you and Keith be in a closed environment together, or all of us will die from laughing to hard!

I have come to the conclusion that I am going to pass on the VFR1200F DCT and wait for the "VFR1200T DCT" (Touring or ST replacement) to be unveiled this fall according to Visordown. Being the "senior member",(63), attending this demo ride, I have become use to a situp-and-beg riding position for long hauls. And I could get very excited about a bike with the VFR engine, DCT, shaft drive and upright riding position.

I was very impressed with the VFR1200 and even liked the way it looks. I think Honda has created a "premium" positioned bike that will appeal to that mid-forty, multiple bike owner with previous premium brand bike ownership experience demographic. I would love to own the VFR1200 for day trips to carve the twisties, but I can't justify paying near $20,000.00, once it is outfitted, for what for me would be a single purpose bike.

The VFR1200 is an amazing bike and will make the right rider very happy for a long time!

I will try to touch base with you on my ride from Indy to San Diego late this month.

All the best,

John

 

thats BS. That shoulda been me:crazy:

 

Thanx for the write up Reg. It's good to hear an opinion from someone I know and respect.

 

LOL!! No spies but Crusty is my eyes and ears in SB. When Honda Inc. first put a facility in SoCal, they were about three blocks from the house I grew up in. Again no spies, but I do have some ties with Honda and know some folks who work for Honda. Good writeup. Fair and balanced. Sort of indicates even though for probably safety and insurance reasons you were not able to wick it up more. Better that than the now cliched input from those whose "reviews" were constructed from only two of the many sensory inputs we are blessed with. The eyes of course play an important role when looking at pictures of a bike but I still remain skeptical about the input from what might be construed as gleaned from the nether parts.

 

Whoa now just a minute BB. You beat up on 02 Rider and Reg gets a pass just because he got to do a parade lap and putt around like Gold Wingers? I call foul. Too many similarities: press event, open bar, etc. And they were both invited because they talk so much shit on this forum and lived close to the event Hmmmmm

If I remember correctly, and no I'm not going to go look, 02 Rider's comments were similar, a lukewarm review but ultimately ending in a grudging respect for the bike.

Bwahhahaaahaaahaa. Gotcha.

 

Thanks for the write up. I have been riding a lot of 2 up lately on the 98 and I can see where more power, integrated bag, etc. would be helpful.

I have been really interested in the VFR 1200 since I heard it was coming out. Too pricey for me at the moment but it looks like a pretty sweet ride.

 

I'll agree to certain similarities others I will have to challenge. First off, any yankee boy is fair game round these parts.

Reg, also if you notice, had the company of that chica who by rights should be in the "hotties" thread. Don't you agree? Not his wife BTW, the other one with the straps giving the bike the beady..

That 1200 in New Yawk may have been a mockup. There were several posts during the run of the CW show that stated the 1200 was on a dias or some other form of raised platform. Some of that reasoning may have to do with problems in the past. The CW show in NYC is well known by Advanstar as a high theft show.

Hopefully, if there was an open bar, they were serving several of those excellent California wines. The wines in New Yawk run to the non- vitis vinefera and among those are wonderments like MD2020 which BTW, is used as fuel in some Harleys. Since Honda is known for it's spreads, crying fowl would result in something much better than Chicken McNuggets or just eating crow.

Forgive the minor departure from the main theme here, but did the WingDingers go apeshit when Honda went from flat fours to flat sixes?

I don't know either Reg or the other dude, but if allowed to make a small assumptions, I would assume that Reg was not as impressed with being selected as a test rider than 02 dude was with a freebies in the NoTell Motel and that he is not blessed with ESP via hemorrhoid and, the weather was a lot better. Santa Barbara for just being on any bike beats the shit out of riding anywhere in the City of NY any old time. Eventually Reg will get some more seat time on one of these new scoots and will get the chance to wick one up. Mine goes like stink.

One that we can really call BS on it the comparo with Honda's " other" V4's of any displacement especially when it comes to gross weight. What a crock that one is. Did I trade out my 91 or sell it? Hell no. I figure that bike good for another 100,000 miles.

Yep, the stock can is a little too much. I am not a bag person, especially top cases and auto trannys on bikes are something for other folks than me. Oh well, the shaft thing didn't come up. I wonder if that has become a non item from the efficiency or perhaps from a fear of the combination of shafts and the aforementioned rectal sensors..

I gotta get me one of those pithy tags to post up..I had one by Irish Poet Brendan Behan but saying "All young girls should be fucked and then shot", might be misunderstood.