5th Gen VFR800 to 7th Gen VFR1200 shift?

[raoufhakam]

anyone here moved from a 5th -or 6th- Gen VFR800 to their 7th Gen VFR1200?

 

i've owned my 00' VFR800 for over 6 years and i love it and thinks its a keeper and i'd be more than happy to keep it for years to come. but i've always had a crush -sort of- on the VFR 1200 which i think would still fit my riding as the 800 does. i mostly ride backroads on weekends, occasionally ride to work on a nice day, longer weekend rides here and there, and maybe one or two multiple day trips a year. i've done 4,000-5,000km trips on my 800 and it handle them perfectly and i like its ergos. i rarely take a passenger on my bike, maybe a handful of times a year with the gf for short rides

 

have anybody owned/tried both? how do they compare? what did you like/dislike on the 1200 vs the 800? how does the riding position and ergos compare?

 

any input is appreciated

 

cheers,

[RC1237V]

The 1200 is an awesome bike! It does have some things that miss the mark, which is why it did not sell very well. Good thing is you can get one will low mileage for $6-8K

 

The bike is ~600lbs, but once you're rolling it doesn't feel like it.

 

The ergos are different for everyone, and I found the bars would be better if they were lower or higher and being a bit on in years, I went for higher and got the LSL supermoto bars, and wow what a difference! Comfort and control.

 

The power limitations in the first two gears is very annoying if you like to tear it up. Bazzaz or Don Guhl flash will take care of that.

 

Modifying the forks and shock transform the bike, but can get expensive. For me it was a must...

 

If you're buying used, look for one with the factory luggage as they are really expensive on their own.

 

The 12's and 13's have traction control which is rudimentary compared to newer bikes, but gets the job done. Saved my bacon a few times, especially in the wet.

 

If you ride it like you stole it you can burn a tank in 100 miles, but spirited riding you can plan on getting 150-170 per tank as long as you're not spirited the whole time.

 

Now for the good part...POWER everywhere! Mine has the Guhl flash, rev limiter raised, fan temp lowered, cat delete, and slip-on pipe. I just did an 1,100 mile ride, and for the combination of comfort, handling, speed and reliability, nothing can come close to it for the price.

[RC1237V]

Also forgot to mention, when you go back to your 5th gen, you will think something is wrong with it when you twist the throttle. The 1200 will re-calibrate what you think the correct amount of forward thrust is....😆

[St. Stephen]

RC1237V's comments are spot on.

 

I've owned both, a 2002 6th and a 2010 7th, both purchased new. Loved them both, but they are different. Eight years on the 6th (~40K miles) and seven years on the 7th (almost 50K miles). Mine were mostly stock, with Helibars and OEM luggage. Two quite different bikes, but with an incredible V4 motor in common. 

 

I rode both mostly sport touring. The 7th is heavier, but also has ~40% more power, and no VTEC burst (although that did not bother me too much, very turbo-like). The 7th eats up 500 miles more easily--more power, more comfortable, better luggage--but is heavier, although the 6th can't really be called light. And the 7th was my first shaft-drive bike--don't underestimate the benefits of no chain maintenance! (but make sure the shaft recall was done) No R/R/stator issues! Here on VFRD the VF1200F is almost an afterthought, the 5th being kind of a sweet spot, but I think that is just because it's really different than most VFR's, and it didn't sell well.

 

On the down side, removing (and putting it back on!!) the plastic may make you regret your purchase. And the main reason I replaced it with a Multistrada was modern electronics. Ride modes, cornering ABS, adaptive suspension, all have proved their worth to me. But damn, wish I could have afforded to keep that 1200.

 

Anyway, it's powerful, reliable, and rare (if someone recognizes you on it at a gas station odds are they are on VFRD!)

 

 

 

[Oregonian]

The 1200 is a monster.  Over the top power and excitement.  I pick the 800 when I want to go for a ride am not in the frame of mind to deal with the rocket-like power.  

 

The 1200 plastics are awful until you get the hang of them.  Then they're kind of fun to mess with and quick to remove and install. 

[Skids]

I moved from an 08 VFR800 to a 14 VFR1200F back in 15, and still own an18-plate VFR800X.

 

For me, it's still a VFR, just a bigger, faster (much) and composed big brother.

 

Downsides to the 1200 compared to the 800 are it's much heavier against an already heavy 800, but that does tend to disappear once moving, especially if you get the suspension upgraded when it becomes an inter-continental missile. Build quality is excellent but of course the much smaller (18.5 litres) fuel tank can severely limit the range from low 100's miles (UK gallons) to over 200 if you try. The riding position forces weight onto your wrists, difficult especially for those older ones amongst us and this is causing me my difficulties right now as I'd like higher bars, especially as I have a VFR800X Crossrunner as a commuter and the riding position on that is fantastic.

 

The best things: the noise.....OMG a little bit of wee comes out every time you use the throttle like it was meant to, and the un-ending torque/power......it doesn't stop ripping yr arms out of yr sockets until severely into 3 figures (private road, natch 😜).

 

Just do it! 

[eastbowl2]

I had my '02 for 7 years (bought new in '03) and put 130,000km on it, all backroads/trips (no commuting or city riding to speak of).  I loved that bike and had no intention of getting rid of it except that it failed me 3 times in one summer and so 7 days after the last failure I bought the 7th gen.

 

I've put 123,000km on the 1200 and it was love at first ride.  It is, for me, very similar to the 6th gen but better in every way that matters.   It is an absolute gem and I will likely never get rid of it. 

 

Like others have said the 1st/2nd gear fix is mandatory (frankly, if it couldn't have been fixed I would have gotten rid of it) and the suspension is definitely worth upgrading.  But for the price you can get it for these days.... it is unbeatable value I think. 

 

Happy trails.