You would be surprised at how similar the F4i is to an 600RR. Especially on the street there is very little difference. Does the RR have more power? Yeah a little. Does it make a difference on the street? Well I don't think so. Is the 600RR a "beast"? Chuckle, chuckle, har, har. Come on! A 1000RR is a beast. A 600RR is just another nice 600 class sportbike albeit probably the best one, again just my opinion. Is the 600RR riding position cramped? Not at all. It is a little tighter than the F4i but again, very close.

And as far as the heat from an RR under seat exhaust is concerned I disagree strongly. It is not noticeable at all.

 

I did hear that there was a dry weight and hp difference, besides the change from carburetor to EFI. I also thought the change to all aluminum frames to lower the dry weight.

 

I think you are muddying the water with your confusion.

This was a thread about the differences, other than the seat set up, of the various F4i years, 2001-2006. They are all aluminum framed, they are all very close to the same weight depending upon which seat type.
F4i have always been fuel injected that is what the "i" in "F4i" stands for.

A change to aluminum frames? The last time a Honda 600 sport bike had a steel frame was pre-F4 (1998?). F4 had an aluminum frame and carbs, F4i is an evolution of the F4 with FI instead of carbs.

HP diff: I've never seen definitive evidence that there were any HP differences between the various years F4i's.

I think we all agree for the most part the bikes are identical. I did answer a question or a statement made with respect to th 600RR.

(600RR has always been aluminum framed.)


Were you talking about F4i vs. 600RR weight and hp diff? Yes the 600RR is lighter and has more horsepower. But it just doesn't make a difference for 95% of the riders out there.

 

Another one of those eh? I willing to bet I know quite a few 600 riders that will pack your lunch for you n send you home to momma begging her to pay for a few superbike courses for you.

Yes of course the 1kRR is a beast, but the 600RR is no lil toy by no means.

Theres a daylight n dark difference between the RR and the F4/i. The F4/i was built for the street, intended for the street n its characteristics show it. Yet it was n still can be a beast on the track too. The RR was built for the track, intended for the track and its characteristics show it. Swap out the plastics for a set of race skins n safety wire it n you have a full on track bike.

Just a few of the differences on a RR an avg-joe rider (this is 00% of us) would notice. Clipons lower, making the rider lean forward n down on the tank. Rearsets higher n further back, again, making the rider lean forward n down on the tank more.

Its obvious who rides bikes and who poses on bike at bike night...

 

PlayfulGod: You missed the point as far as my comparing the 600RR to a "beast" was concerned. In no way did I imply that I am some kind of a wonderful 600 class rider who isn't challenged by a 600RR. Far from it. How you ever read that into my statement is beyond me.

And as far as is concerned:

That comment is really uncalled for. Come on now! Your posts seem to make a lot of references to people who are "bike night" posers and those who "really ride." Those references are made with nothing more than a couple paragraphs knowledge of who that person really is. Talk about jumping to conclusions.

I have both bikes: a 2003 F4i that doubles as a track bike. A 2008 600RR that is just for fun on weekends. I've put thousands of miles (over 15,000 miles) on the two.
Are there differences? Sure there are. And I'm sure they are significant to some people. Evidently you. But you are making it sound like there is a night and day difference and that is not true at all.
Come over to my garage and sit on each of my bikes and I'll get out a tape measure and you'll be surprised how close they are. If I'm in a good mood I might even let you take a short ride on each back to back.

 

Dondi, i think he was pointing out the fact that you let some squidli-ness come out of your fingers and into that keyboard.. he highlighted it with bold. you led him to believe that you're one of the d-bags that can drive REALLY fast from stop light to stop light. the post above me that you wrote should have been the first one you made. that was a better argument, and you didn't sound like a tool =) he's not being mean. just setting the record straight ahaha.

and just as far as my input goes, i do agree with Playful. I'm not sure about you, but I'm 6'2, and the f4i is one of the most comfortable bikes i've ever sat on. the 600rr is quite cramped up for us big guys, so if you're built smaller, you might not notice any difference at all. but the difference is quite large in comparison of ride, position, power delivery, etc.

 

Junior2552: Thanks for the reasoned response. Apparently I, myself, jumped to some conclusions.
I hate it when that happens. Adding insult to injury I generalized my experience at 5'10.5" as what everybody would experience. At 6'2" I can see how what appears subtle to me may be very significant to you.

PlayfulGod: I have nothing but respect for 600s and the trouble that they can very, very, quickly get you into.
And you can still stop by and ride them both back to back if it ever stops raining around here.