Would You Get This if Money was no Object?

If money were no object I would have bought another bike and begged Toro to use mine as the fab bike so I could have the first one!!!!!! I've been following the Torocharger build since it was a 5th gen project and the 6th gen was merely a pipe dream. Hell, I'd buy the kit just for the noise it makes, nothing like a blower, such a sweet whistle :vtr2:

 

Thanks for the response, Toro. Obviously I havn't had an oppurtunity to ride a super-charged version, although I'ld love to, and $4000 doesn't in anyway seem exorbitant. The SC is a brilliant piece of engineering on your part and I know that the R&D couldn't have been cheap. The chassis wouldn't at all be a concern for me. However, I do have issues with the OEM braking and suspension on my 100hp 6 gen. I tend to ride hard in the corners and have found it difficult at times to hold a line under heavy acceleration, with the properly tuned OEM suspension. While I have no doubt that some changes to my riding style would allow for the SC, I wonder why I would want to change them, the point of 173hp is to speed up, not hold it back. I also know that if that amount of HP were made available to me, that I would want all of it at my disposal while in the corners. Based on the 173hp you've been able to generate, the 6gen VFR now has a new limits threshold and based on my current riding style, I don't believe that the OEM suspension is up to the task. That is to say that in the hands of a rider that knows how to ride a VFR at its limits, why wouldn't he put a better suspension on it? One that would allow a rider to fully explore that 173hp, rather than having to accelerate out of a corner at the same speed in which he's already accustomed. Where's the gain?

It's the same with the brakes. I would want to use as much of that 173hp as possible to carry me to the next corner. My bike is already slower to decelerate than I would like and I don't believe that OEM would allow me to fully experience the HP that the super-charger can make. Sure, I could change my current technique and just start the decel earlier, but that's not going to gain me any time. It would be a hell of a lot more fun/beneficial to take that 173hp right to the limit and have the Brembo's to handle it. This would allow for braking at the same point, only having achieved a much higher speed than 100hp as stock could've provided. Again, it's just about being able to use all of that HP.

Of course I realize that these things are of little consequence to most riders, and I have the utmost respect for your ingenuity, aswell as your product. But for me, the joy of having 173HP at my disposal would be greatly diminished if the suspension and brakes were to remain OEM. If I were a straight away guy, or a pure acceleration junky, it would be a totaly differant story.

Edit: I should add that I'm not saying I can take 173hp to it's full potential, but I would have a blast in learning to do so. It's just that I would want the best oppurtunity to do so. That, for me, would require Ohlins and Brembos or the like. Especially when I already know that I can ride a 100hp VFR's OEM suspension to its' limits.

 

A Bimota Tesi 3D Bimota - Tesi 3D Image Gallery for a fun bike. DB7 would make a good everyday machine

 

Net, I spent about $1500 for my RC51 front end and Ohlins rear shock. You could do the R1 front end for about the same. So the suspension upgrade can be done reasonably if you wrench on it yourself and you get the 'better' brakes.

 

If money was no object, there is no reason why I wouldn't do it.

 

If money were no object I wouldn't be riding a VFR. I would have a focused sport bike (1198) AND a dedicated tourer (BMW K1300) AND an adventure bike (GS 1200) and maybe a cruiser to boot. The VFR engine is adequate for most of the riding I do, so I won't be buying a supercharger for my VFR. But that said, I think it's really, REALLY cool that these Toro charger units exist!!!

 

Havcar, I think you might be the exception here. If you can currently ride your VFR to the limits of the suspension and brakes (especially if you mean street riding), then by all means upgrade your components. You'll benefit from more stopping power and better suspenders right now without the supercharger, so that's where I'd spend the money first. I have an RC51 front end & Elka shock on my '98, as the stock suspension did not cope well with my 210lbs and tough PA roads.

When testing the '06, I never felt uncomfortable with the handling or braking, even when riding hard (I almost think the braking system is better than my '08 GSXR1000). Also, you will never accelerate out of a corner at the same rate as before. When you first ride the bike, no matter what gear you're in, you'll swear you are a gear or two down due to the extra power available, and the key to using the ponies and not upsetting the chassis lies in the way it puts the power to the ground -- that is, there is no sudden hit or boost spike, no massive amounts of torque down low ready to spin up the rear tire, just seamless, smooth, progressive power being increasingly added throughout the powerband.

The bike does not have to be ridden on the edge to experience the benefits of this kit. 3rd-gear on this bike will put you into triple digits, and unless you encounter some special riding conditions, the vast majority of folks will not be accelerating full tilt for much longer than that (getting there, though, is where the fun is at). The bike will only go as fast as you want it to, so being mindful of the conditions and realistic with your abilities is the key to staying safe.



Let's not kid ourselves here, no one NEEDS 170+whp on a streetbike. No one really even needs 50hp. We could all be riding lightweight 50cc machines if we wanted to -- but we don't. If you are happy with the current level of performance that your VFR provides, do not even think about this kit, as it will be pure excess. However, if you want to regain that automatic grin that used to come from going through the gears, this system might, in the words of the '06 prototype bike owner, leave your "cheeks cramping from smiling so much."



One final caveat: Do not, under any circumstances, ride a boosted literbike. The experience might cause your VFR to end up feeling quite lame...

 

And what is wrong with "pure excess"? ;-)

 

Absofrackinloutley nuthin'!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! arty2:

 

Definitely a RSVR Factory. V4s all the way

 

discount, you say?........