Tank Slap - Motorcycle Forum

I kinda like it and might give one a test in the next couple of months.

It sounds like SatNavSteve wants a full on BMW tourer from honda

Anyway, looks small, still got the crappy V tec engine. No centre stand? Make it 1000cc, dump the VTec and make it a little less sporty, maybe even shaft drive and then you would have a winner IMO!

I think he's missing the point of the VFR

It looks like a year 2000 Triumph Sprint to me.

Looks very slim

duke63 wrote:It looks like a year 2000 Triumph Sprint to me.

Squint a bit and it looks like a 'Panigale wanna be' ... the front does anyway

Aren't Honda doing a lot of the same lately. Keeping the internals as before and just changing the look. This should surely keep the price on a hard to compete basis

It looks good IMO .

But what do I know ???????

I like it. It's a VFR. It's a sporty tourer. It's an all rounder for British roads and short over seas trips. It's not a full on tourer, Honda all do a few of those.

Looks wise it's ok. Nothing astounding but it's not competeing with the sportsbikes market.

If I wanted an everyday bike I would certainly give one a test.

Spudda wrote:
Squint a bit and it looks like a 'Panigale wanna be' ... the front does anyway

Thats what my first thought was.

I've seen one of these in the flesh today ... pearlescent white with an Akrapovic ... looked and sounded quite nice

If I wanted a Sports Tourer it might have been on my shopping list if it didn't weigh 239kg Really don't understand why it has to be such a heavy old lump, I don't think the old VFR800 was as heavy.

Not hte heaviest of bikes and the reports all suggest it handles very well due to the placement of the weight.

The weight might hide itself when riding at road speeds but when slow speed manoeuvring it will highlight the weight and this is without a pillion and luggage which will make it even worse and its designed for those as well.

If they can make a Blade 199kg kerb weight without exotic materials why can't they get a VFR800 closer to 210 kg I really can't see why it weighs 40 kg more than a Blade. its not just the handling which suffers due to the high weight its the reduced performance and braking capability plus increased fuel consumption which are all very important factors in a Sports Tourer.

Most tourers and sports tourers are a lot heavier than sportsbikes, for a number of factors. The bikers who ride them seem happy with them, they sell better than the supersports we ride. They're built to be more robust and generally they have much higher milage than sportsbikes. When they design and build them they're not looking to make weight savings. Tourer riders aren't that fussed about having an 180kg bike.

You''re comparing a race horse to a field hunter.

I've seen exactly this problem in my line of work, people buy a light, mobile piece of equipment rather than a heavyweight static item because it's easy to resell, it can be moved around and can do a variety of jobs. The problem is they are designed with a life of X amount of cycles after which they will break, the heavy piece of kit has many more cycles left in it. Tourers are the same, built heavier to take more load, more of a bashing and usually less frequent servicing. As "Roy" was told, "the light that burns twice as bright burns for half the time" and modern Sportsbikes can burn so very, very brightly indeed.

I do understand what your saying lads but in all fairness 40kg of beefing up I don't believe it.

10 or 20 kg would more than cover up over engineering of high wear rate items.

The VFR1200 is even worse. Kerb weight of over 260kg.

Is a V4 inherently heavier?

Then i guess Aprilia don't think it is.

I imagine that the engine block for the VFRs is different material to the Fireblade or Prila. The VFR has ABS as standard which adds a few pounds. Without looking I suspect that the subframe is much heavier for taking pillions and luggage. The suspension won't be using the lightweight materials the sportsbikes will, which is probably true about the engine internals as well.

The wheels will be heavier, the fueltank is larger, by about 3 or 4 litres, so the tank and the fuel will add a decent difference between the two.

It's got more electrics on it than the fireblade. I wouldn't be surprised if the paint is heavier.

I understand the point you're making but the Fireblade is a full on sportsbike that's being raced around the world. If Honda though that weight was an issue we know they would change it.

duke63 wrote:The VFR1200 is even worse. Kerb weight of over 260kg.

Is a V4 inherently heavier?

Then i guess Aprilia don't think it is.

Yes a V4 is a heavier engine than an IL4. In very simple terms you have 2 banks of cylinders so more material required in the engine cases, 2 cylinder heads, 4 camshafts, 2 cam chain tensioners, 2 timing chains etc. Yes things like the camshafts are smaller but there not half the weight of an IL4 camshaft.

The heavier engine would account for maybe 5 kg of the extra 40kg, rememeber its a smaller capacity engine than a 1000cc unit..

V-twin engines are heavier than an IL4 also. From memory an SP2 engine weighs 69kg and a Blade engine 60 kg.

These are the kerb weights for the Kwaks:-

ZX10r - 198kg
Z1000sx - 230 kg
ZZR1400 - 268 kg

I guess the Japs like a big girl from time to time.