fjr 1300 /vfr comparo//

You guys might like this..well I never did find that perfect do it all bike that would be good for a long 2 up trip and still be fun.., so i kept my old vfr, and picked up a fjr13, a 06 with the heat fix's.(and it works). I tried the new connie, very nice,comes with no paint tho!! yes its the hottest to ride..very..but not after brand new anyway... st1300, and while close, its not quite the same thing as the fjr.closer to the wing than the vfr I figure...and due to the acres more plastic up front the sensation to me was of hugererer... too huge for me....., so i did the fjr, whatever..me not brand loyal to anything, so dont care to bad mouth either.


As for comparo to the vfr? very diff obviously.....

.I find the fjr a very large tanker that you sit way up on ,(just like the st13 and connie) that works fine for 2 up, but it sure lacks the finesse and the fun for me of my vfr..simple..

Power? oh yea!!. it goes, and well!, quicker than my 05 was by a bit. but its tranny is very clunky and the efi is like my 05 vfr was down low, not in love with that. Actually my buddies st1300 acts exactly the same, clunky tranny and same jerky efi..not good for the $$.

Most noticable of all, next to the weight..... the whole bike is not a smooth at anything as my 00 vfr, and its the first thing I noticed. I mean the controls, the efi(on my 00, not my 05) the feel of the clutch, certainly the tranny,even the brakes....Very nice, better than a lot of bikes I tried, but not like the vfr......Kinda suprised me.had to get used to the on/off EFI thing like my 05 vfr all over again..shouldnt have to tho..

handling definitely is a good or better tho, probably better ,But wow..thing sure is solid when it comes to blastin past a semi in the wind on a mtn curve!..very nice..better than my vfr at that at high speeds.,Got about the same mileage as my 05 vfr..mid 50's cnd with no wind at 130 kph all day...fell off nearly 10mpg tho into a good headwind and faster...
I did get unlucky enough to compare the protection of the 2 and believe it or not, for the way i ride a lot of the time... on the tank a lot the vfr has a bit more lower body..I just did a 3000 mile romp on it in crappy weather and ended up laying on the tank the whole time anyway to keep dry, just like I would on the vfr..In that way, the vfr has more lower protection,lower fairing is wider on the vfr, and the tank is higher compared to the seat and way more comfy to flop on..! go figure..

Yes a small tankbag will cure it tho and then its quite comfy....

yes sitting up the fjr obviously better.But I cant stand sitting up too high as causes arse burn..finally learned how to cure it by low bars and dont want to go back to that..

and I did do 1300 miles with it yesterday to get home, so I gave it a good tryout! hmmm..guess it did ok..so did I..still alive after a longggg day,2/3 of it on that $%&^%& boring prairie..!

I feel up high like a horse on it,its way up compared to the vfr.. the power window does its job well,neat gizmo,plus with the window down the thing had great clean air, neck high airflow, and that was a nice surprise.could ride with visor down at 70 mph in clean air like my vfr..Liked that part!..
yes the power window is nice and when its all up , decent protection,, but you end up sitting straight up and too hard on my butt for that all day, no wonder all the situp guys complain bout seats on bikes.and like I said, to lay on the tank its too far down and uncomfortable...better than straight up tho..yuk..
And of course the parking lot shuffle is a pain with all that weight..thats when its really noticeable! One needs to be very aware where to park it..once moving its same tho..

2 up, and luggage? yep the fjr wins easily.no contest here...If I have to 2 up it and still have fun, this is the best i found out there, blows the vfr away at that..., but for me, once its done its two up stint its gone...then back to the new bike hunt..


All in all, its still a awesome bike for a 2 up monster, but for me its just too big and fat , and just not my thing I guess, I give up....back to my vfr for solo .
But Dont be afraid to try one if you have a hankering tho, i think it would make most people very happy...

But if you hanker for one..try it out first..its much closer to the vfr than the st13, but still a monster in comparison..

One thing that helps is its the only one of the 3 big st's that with the bags off actually looks decent! makes me feel better riding it too!

So why all this blabbing?? my point is Just once again I find the vfr is a hard act to follow! $%&^&^*...very hard...


and yes, i gotta pitch that tarp thats on the tank....

 

I've been thinking that maybe a St or an FJR would make a new second edition to the garage when my money tree starts to grow but I think you just confirmed my fears. Oh well, back to the K1200S idea...

 

Thanks for the nice comparo. The FJR was my other choice when bike shopping, but I ended up with the VFR for 2 main reasons. My low mile VFR was a couple thousand dollars cheaper than the cheapest high mile FJR's I saw on the market. And also because most of my riding is local, with a couple of nice long tours a year, so the VFR makes more sense in my case.

If I were a more frequent long distance rider, there could have been a FJR in my garage.

 

This is a very coincidental post. I just did 800 miles in 3 days on an '06 FJR that I rented ( my buddy rented the ST1100). Just yesterday he asked me if I could compare my VFR (now that I have had it 2-3weeks) to the FJR. It was actually hard to do at first but I think nitronorth's review is spot on... I would have an FJR for a second bike (especially for two up) but I don't think I would ever replace my VFR with it. Plus the dang bike is way to tall

 

For those considering an FJR may i post a vote for hondas own VTX 1300( or pan euopean) as it is also known.

I spent a year or so tooling around on one of these and can highly recommend it as a long distance , single or 2 up touring mount.

For a big heavy bike it is surprisingly nimble once underway( alot like the blackbird) it has a stonking amount of bottom end power , a comfortable 140kmph touring speed and can wind out beyond that, altho i have to say i rarely felt the urge to do so. the bike is in its sweet spot touring around 120 - 140 KMph.
The transervse V4 engine is a gem, and the bike is very well appointed for rider comfort and touring. the later model with electric screen is the one to get, and for those from colder climates, i found that raising the screen creates a warm air bubble between the screen & rider.if you get to hot simply lower the screen & feel the aircon.

so, if you get the chance, blag a ride on one, if for no other reason to experience that phenomenal engine.

id still have one in my fleet if i could afford it.