What category does it fit in? I've read this complaint on some forums: It's too big and heavy to cut it as a sportbike, but it's range is too limited (and it doesn't have enough gadgets included) to be a touring bike.
Sport-touring bikes split the difference between full-on sport bikes (CBR, GSXR, etc) and full-on touring bikes. (Goldwing, Victory Vision, Harley geezer glide, etc) There are some machines that are barely sportier than the full touring bikes: ST1300, FJR1300, K1300GT. And there are machines that are barely "tourier" than pure sport bikes: Triumph Sprint ST, VFR800, etc. Then there is a huge middle ground where everything else seems to fall. Motorcycles that are fast and handle well but are capable of long rides.
Enthusiasts anticipating the VFR1200F have had trouble categorizing it. An easier way to look at it is to use a car analogy. The VFR1200F is a Grand Touring motorcycle. A comfortable sportbike tipping the see-saw just a bit more towards sport.
The VFR1200F is the Porsche Carrera 4S of motorcycles. Like the Porsche it is fast, high-tech, luxurious and relatively comfortable. If the Ferrari F430 Scuderia is a CBR1000RR, the Nissan GTR is a Hayabusa, the FJR1300 is a BMW 650 and the Goldwing is a Bentley, then the new VFR is a Porsche Carrera 4s.
I reserve the right to change this opinion without notice.
Goldwing = Bentley ... Hardly!
ReplyDeleteIs that comparison unfair to the Bentley or the Goldwing?
ReplyDelete