So have any of you F4i owners ridden an VFR 800? I love my F4i, but I'm finding more and more that I ride it more just on Sunday rides through the twisties...but when it comes to commuting I grab the keys to my truck. I know the F4i is one of the more comfortable sportbikes, but maybe I'm just a wuss. I have no problem riding it for 150 miles pretty hard, but those dayswhen I'mgoing straightdown the highway just kill me. So will I get significanty better ergos by getting an Interceprtor? And if so what am I giving up for my Sunday rides? I don't get my knee down (no leather pants yet) but I keep up pretty well with other rider's in my group who do. These guys are riding mostly 600s and afew RC50s. Will I get leftbehind with the heavier bike? I'm still a relatively new rider (one year) and plan on keeping my F4i for at least another season to increase my skills a little better, but I'm not sure what I'll do after that.

So what's everybody's opinion? Is the VFR a good choice for me? I'll probably try to find one around here that I can sit on at a dealership...but that's a far cry from actually riding one.

 

im pretty sure you can get heli bars that will help with comfort and long rides may want to try to find some of those
they change the height of the bars it may work for you...
its cheaper than buying a 800

 

if your worried so much about comfort.. why didnt you buy a honda goldwing in the first place? lol

 

I have them, they help a little bit. I have some neck problems and the inch and a half change they havemake them works fine for me. There is some weight still on your hands and wrists, but that is cut in half.

Think about a seat too. That helps alot.

I never rode the interceptor, but I sat on it, and it seems similar to my F4i except there is some more legroom.

good luck

 

I had the same idea about getting VFR as you. Wanted something a bit more comfortable for doing long rides. So I did a demo ride on one at the Honda tent this past March at Bike Week. The demo rides are pretty nice because you get to do about 10 miles including a short stint on the interstate. In the end, though, the VFR was just kind of boring.It did everything fine and it was comfortable enough but I just couldn't get excited about it. Needless to say, I'm still rididn my F4i and haven't found anything else that would make me switch.

 

Sportbikes are for the track. They make garbage streetbikes compared to bikes designed to be streetbikes. The fact is unfortunately that many people who buy bikes aren't buying a bike, but rather an image. Unfortunately a non-race replica/non harley wannabe like a VFR isn't attractive to these people.

I think as far as streetbikes are concerned the VFR800 is the best streetbike on the road. It is plenty fast enough, comfortable, and although a bigger bike quite agile. If I had the money I'd have that instead of my current streetbike ninja 250. YES MY DAILY DRIVER IS A NINJA 250!

 

All perspective my friend. I think theymake exellent street bikes. The agility of my cbr has saved my **** many a time when someone decides they need my lane more then I do. Some people think 600RWHP cars make exellent daily drivers, most don't. Just depends on what your willing to deal with.

 

Get real man, what makes you think any other bike wouldn't do the same thing. Why take yourself so seriously. When you go look at a sportbike it isn't because it would make an excellent commuter, or even a nice highway bike, and you sure aren't thinking "WOW this would sure be a safe bike on the street because of its agility!". The simple fact is you are buying the bike because of it's superfast image, even though the average street rider will never even begin to know what the bike can actually do. Take a ninja 650, VFR 800, or a V-Strom for a ride and tell me HONESTLY that your crotch rocket makes a better street bike. I assure you it does not!

I love my CBR, but I definitely have to admit that there are a host of "streetbikes" better suited for comuting and travelling (or both). My ninja 250 makes a much better daily driver, and it will out nimble a CBR anyday in those situations where drivers are out to kill me. It just doesn't get the girls, or the attention at bike night! Actually thats a lie. The last time I took it to a bike night a guy actually came over telling my wife what a nice bike she had (thinking he was hitting on her).

 

Thanks for the perspective guys. Yeah I agree that a LOT of people buy the sportbikes for the image...I gotta admit I got rid of my Ninja 500 partly because I thought it was ugly. But I'm not one of those "go fast in a straight line" guys either. After having a bike for one summer I realized how boring that was, so I found a local riding group and learned how fun the twisties are!

I'm not sure what I'll do about my bike. A week ago I was thinking about getting out of sportbikes and getting a Victory Hammer S or something similar. But I think I'd go crazy. I may look into tweaking things like the bars...or I may just try to get a second bike as a commuter. I don't really know yet.

 

I owned an 04 VFR for over a year and just bought an 06 F4i about 4 months ago. Had both bikes for about 3 months to decide which one I liked more. Honestly, I like the F4i better. Sold the VFR. F4i is smaller, lighter, quicker and more fun to ride. Ergos felt pretty much the same to me. VFR's seat was more comfortable, and the bars were a bit higher and wider, but not so much that it made a huge comfort difference.

Only thing I liked about the VFR over the F4i, other than much cheaper insurance, was the ride (weight helped that) and that sexy single sided swingarm and rear wheel. But with some tweaking to the suspension I can make the F4i feel almost the same I'm sure. And a VFR can keep up with the CBR. Just depends on the rider. But you can only go so fast on the street and 95% of the riders out there won't be able to push either of the bikes to their limits on the street (or at least they should't).

The VFR would make a better sport tourer for sure, but IMO the F4i is much more fun. I commute and do 150 mile rides on it (when I have time). Just look for a deal on a slightly used VFR and compare for a couple months. Then sell what you don't like. If you do it right, you won't lose much if any $$$$.