VFR or ZX 14 or CBR1000RR

Recently went away on a bi annual 3 day ride with a few Sportbike friends, ( have done it with them the last 3 years ) one of them an old regular who had a '96 CBR600F since new just traded it for an CBR1000RR, he used to be stirred for being continually few a smokes worth behind the others immediatly without changing riding style is now right with them...Now they stir him for being on a " monkey " bike, ie even a trained monkey could ride a CBR1000RR fast.....:biggrin:

 

Hey this may be an old thread but it should have stayed where it was in my opinion - The VFR is a Sports Tourer - why compare the VFR to a pure sports or track bikes - means nothing to me - they are all nice bikes but I am here as a sports tourer so I can admire and enjoy seeing the sports bikes wherever I seem them, but I am a VFR rider and a sport touring bike enthusist. Why let anyone start getting angry about something that really does not matter. There are CBR and ZX forums to debate about pure sports or track bikes. What about comparisons between the VFR and FJ, ST, Pacific Coast and what about the exciting news about the upcoming new Concurs. Anyway no insult to anyone, but my comments are directed to the sport touring riders and the track guys can do whatever makes their boat float and enjoy.

 

None of these bikes have clip-ons, and they are all much heavier. I think the VFR is very unique and doesnt really fit in with the pure sport bikes or these handle-bar'd heavy-ass sport tourers but is somewhere in between. With my genmar risers the riding position actually feels more like a naked like the FZ1 I rode than a pure sportbike or any of the big sport-tourers.

 

Isn't the ZX-14, even though it is a larger displacement machine, also in the sport touring catagory? I saw one Sunday, it was blue. It looked pretty good. Would I buy one, most likely not. It looks a little on the big side and for me, the VFR is just about right, though, I would prbably feel right at home on an a 1000RR with Heli-bars or some similar clip-on.

Yes, there are other forums for the pure sports and pure touring. The VFR fills a hole in the S-T gap as it does both the sport and the touring job with ease. Haven't seen anything on the new Concourse, but I believe it is along the same line as the larger displacement bikes. But all are worth comparing, I suppose. I also suppose that the others do both jobs as well, but probably not as well as the VFR. In an article I recently read, I'll post the link if I can find it, stated that the VFR was really the flagship, along with the Goldwing (does that make it a co-flagship?) for Honda. It has really beenthe leader in the ST market since it's debut in the VF form (when it was really a sport bike). I will see if I can find the article and post the link for all to read.

Rambling off....

Edit:

Found the links I was looking for and they were posted in another thread:

Part 1: http://www.motorcycledaily.com/13dec...erceptor1.html

Part 2: http://www.motorcycledaily.com/10jan...2vfr800fi.html

 

Oddly enough if I were to trade my Gen 5 in on something nice new shiny a VTec, Superblackbird, ZX-14, CBR1000RR would be top of my list of bikes to test ride before buying.

The VFR is different things to different people from buying my previous VFR and current Gen 5 have never thought it comparable to an FJR or ST, they are both Tourers with a sporting edge where as the VFR in my mind is more of a real world Sport's bike that can do iffy roads without fuss and tour nicely as an added bonus. :smile:

 

I agree - I think the VFR is more of an underpowered Busa, Blackbird and ZX-14 than an FJR style bike. I think if you crossed an SV650 (non S) with a Blackbird you'd come up with something very similar to a VFR.

 

Errrr, both models are generally listed as Sport-tourers by motorcycle publications.The 6th Gen weighs 212kg dry a 5th 210kg, the weight difference is easily reversed by exchanging the 6th Gens Cast Iron like exhaust cannons with much lighter aftermarket end cans....

The 6th Gen with its better front forks ( wish I had them on my Gen 5 ) and slightly stiffer frame also handles a little better than the 5th Gen.

 

Got to weigh in on this one. Having riden the ST, FJR and owning the VFR 6th Gen. I believe the ST is heavily touring oriented with some sports capability, the FJR is a bit more sports than the ST but still primarily touring oriented. Both would be great for two up riding. The VFR is even more sports than the FJR but still with a substantial bias toward touring. I find both the FJR and ST a bit too much for general riding but I would like the bottom end grunt they provide. I went for the VFR for its all around capabilities and substantially lower cost but I have to say if I had had the money I probably would have gone with the ST. Having said that I am not at all sorry that I bought a VFR, it does everything I want or need. The more I ride it the more I like it. It has that intangible Character that so few modern vehicles have.