[drthompson65]

I love what they say about the mighty V4 here...

Shamu 2, the revenge of the whale | Hell for Leather

"... The 1200cc V4 just isn’t very good. When we rode the VFR1200, we found it to have significant fueling problems, very little in the way of low down grunt and not much in the way of top end power. Sure, there’s some mid range, but less than you’d expect. The bike just doesn’t feel very fast, certainly not anywhere near rivals like the Hayabusa, ZX-14 and K1300S. Outright power won’t be such an issue in a tall, heavy “adventure” tourer, but that terrible fueling, if it hasn’t been fixed, will be. Can you imagine trying to negotiate an off-road obstacle at low speed on a bike that it’d cost a fortune to drop while the engine surges on constant throttle at low revs? Starting to understand why this new bike sends shivers down our spines?"

 

[Turbo329]

Epic V4 bash!

 

[3stripes]

Epic V4 bash!

You guys just hating on BLS:woot:

 

[DesperateSP2]

I know this is a Larry-oriented topic but...

Honda has had some very serious issues with the electronics on the first VFR1200F. How I know? A dear friend of mine bought one of the very first to hit our shores and the bike spent more time in the dealer's workshop than on the road. Everything that could be changed was changed but to no avail. In the end Honda did something very un-Honda-like and gave him a new bike (complete with the expensive OE luggage) which up to this day has proven to be trouble-free. The original VFR was put in a crate and shipped back to Japan for further testing.
I know very well the dealership he bought the bike at: the owner also happens to be a very skilled mechanic and if he threw the towel in it means the bike was beyond salvation.
Recently I have heard of similar cases all over Europe: they all involved very early production bikes whose electronics caused stalling and awful fueling.
I know for certain the bike was rushed on the market before it was 100% ready and this may explain both these electronics-related issues and the well-publicized engine swap.
Kinda reminds me of when Honda and Yamaha in the early '80s were locked in mortal combat and they rushed on the market a series of bikes which were far from ready: XZ550, CBX550, TR1, CX500 and of course the granddaddy of them all, the VF750F.

 

[mikstr]

So much for the inherent powerband-broadening attributes of the V4 design, lol Small wonder virutally no one is currently using it. Not only is it expensive to build and overly complex, it offers nothing in the way of advantages in return....

Poor Larry, another unwelcome dose of reality knowcking at the door, lol

 

[drthompson65]

V4 crap in, V4 crap out. What you expect?

 

[916WI]

At the very least I would have thought an engineering giant like Honda could find some way to use the antiquated cylinder layout in a touring bike........I guess that was expecting too much from the V4 as well...........

 

[fotomoto]

Poor Larry, another unwelcome dose of reality knowcking at the door, lol

In all fairness Larry has dogged the 1200 since day 1.

 

[Old Fart]

Man Thompson you're going to get the full wrath of Fester. The proverbial 100 watt bulb up the ass.

Get ready for quotes from 300 obsolete people, fuzzy graphs and crank drawings. You touched it last now suffer beyotch !!
Phukk fairness, we're talking uncle fester here.

 

[Old Baldy]

I quite like the look of the big Honda, but must admit that I too was surprised at a test comparing the 1200 V4 to the new Ducati Multistrada 1200 twin....where the MS has significantly better low-end and throttle response, resulting in the riders on the V4 struggling to keep up with the big Duc trailie on the road.

I wouldn't expect the heavy V4 pig to handle as well as the trail bike.....but I expected more from the motor. Clearly, very much a touring only type bike. Presumably still quite a bit faster than a Harley, though.

 

[HRCules]

Honda should be ashamed . Did they spend so much time developing the Dual-Clutch Tranny that they forgot about the rest of the bike ?!

 

[sqd8r]

In all fairness Larry has dogged the 1200 since day 1.

In all fairness with the amount of tripe he's printed here regarding the (omn)impotent V4 he deserves it just the same.

 

[sqd8r]

Ouch!

Shamu 2, the revenge of the whale | Hell for Leather

Nail meet head (aka BLS) - think Rc45 when you read this...

What’s our beef with the VFR1200? Well, it’s super expensive, super heavy, terrifying to ride on a race track and only mediocre at riding on the road. It’s also overhyped and fawned over by sycophants.

Mercy.

 

[Jami6989]

You guys are all blowing on your soup!

 

[aus_rc45]

At the very least I would have thought an engineering giant like Honda could find some way to use the antiquated cylinder layout in a touring bike........I guess that was expecting too much from the V4 as well...........

Why is the configuration still used in MotoGP then? maybe they need your expertise as you seem to know everything :wacky

 

[DesperateSP2]

I know I will be caught in a crossfire but Honda will unleash another V4 upon the world... they have announced a "crossover model" which will be shown at the Milan bike show in a couple of weeks. Expect something similar to the present Ducati Multistrada 1200.
No word if it will use the VFR1200 engine or a different unit.

 

[HRCules]

^ Are you referring to the more touring oriented VFR , with cases , taller screen , etc. ? Pics of it have already been released , same engine .

 

[mrgrn]

Why is the configuration still used in MotoGP then? maybe they need your expertise as you seem to know everything :wacky

aside from the yamaha the last few years how many inlines have won the Moto GP title?

 

[DesperateSP2]

^ Are you referring to the more touring oriented VFR , with cases , taller screen , etc. ? Pics of it have already been released , same engine .

Oh no, it's much, much worse than that. It uses another V4, probably 800cc displacement...

 

[sqd8r]

Oh no, it's much, much worse than that. It uses another V4, probably 800cc displacement...

Platform sharing. Makes sense imo.