It arrived last Friday . First thoughts...

[Careca]

Back in January, when it dawned on me there would be no more VFR's made , I bought one . A good deal was done and I did go for many accessories.

I always wanted a red one, so Victory red it was. I went for the Akrapovic exhaust, hugger, quick shifter , panniers and a Powerbronze double bubble screen. 

Having covered 165 miles so far since last Friday. Its still between 3-6C here  and it feels it . 

Having 2 5 th Gen VFR's , its all fairly familiar. Everything fell to hand and the seating position is a little bit sportier. Other than the horn and the indicators being swapped round everything else is exactly where you would find it. 

It rides very nicely but the suspension is hard. I have softened it down a notch at the back , seems to have helped and I will do the rebound later on as its still too hard and I am no lightweight at around 105 kg. 

There are 2 things which I havent quite got to grips with yet. The back brake is one. It feels very ineffective atm and the pedal feels long. Maybe the rear brake needs a little running in or perhaps It needs bleeding . I will get it  seen to  at the first service at 600 miles.  The other thing that does bother me is the quick shifter. I'm kind of thinking its a bit pointless. Certainly the standard gear change and clutch are buttery smooth in operation  and the gear change is very different with the quick shifter. Whilst I have got used to its size  I still say to myself I will take that off when I get home after every ride .  The quick shifter pedal is most definitely shorter than the standard shifter, not in length but width , as in the part that goes over  your foot when you change up. I don't have big clumpy boots but still find myself pushing my foot to the right to make sure I hook up with the lever. I fail to see why they made it shorter. 

Otherwise the VFR is exactly as expected. The quality is great, the ride and handling are good and I look forward to getting the V-TEC singing at indecent revs once its run in.

You all know what a VFR looks like, but just in case you have forgotten.

 

 

 

 

[TriumphTraitor]

Beautiful Bike! And, I'm quite envious that you get to store that beauty inside your home!

[VifferJ]

Congrats and enjoy, she's beautiful! I agree, we might have seen the last gen of the Viffer, better stock up before they're all gone, as low $ as the gen8's are being sold for in the US it won't take much for them to actually have a chance at increasing in value over the next decades as a collector! 

 

[Skids]

Run in? What is this?

 

Rev it's nuts off from the getgo! Just don't strain it (high gear/lows revs).

 

I don't have the same issue with a QS as you....perhaps alter the height of it??? I love it, especially combined with a fruity end can.

 

Beautiful bike! 

[Magneto]

Congrats🙂

Take closer look at rear brake, make sure disc is clean and degreased and not messed up during pre delivery service. I would also wait with suspension eval until ambient temperature is closer to what you consider normal.

[Careca]

I had a look at the rear brake. I think its a case of needing more bedding in and perhaps another bleed. I will bed them in the old fashioned way when it stops raining. 

Today I fitted helicopter tape to the tank and a tank protector over the top of that. 

I think I will remove the quick shifter. I haven't really got on with it and I am a little concerned about the long term effect it might have on the gearbox. 

 

[Presson]

I'm with Careca on the suspension observations for UK roads. I collected my 8thGen in red last year and rode the 250 miles home on a mixture or motorway and twisty A roads. I had hoped the bike would be just like my old VF500F2 for handling but I was surprised to get home with a case or sore botty from the hard ride. Having got used to the full adjustability of a Suzuki GSXR but wanting to return to a more age- appropriate riding position and wonderful linear torque of the V4, it was a bit disappointing. Some months later I think I've got the suspension sorted for my style of riding; pretty hard, hanging off and lots of trail braking.  Accepting that it's a very personal thing, I offer these settings. I'm 85kg unkitted and around 110 kg fully geared for riding. I ride solo without luggage generally. Preload set for standardish static sag measurements. Front rebound, 2 turns out from fully hard. Rear rebound 2.25 turns out from fully hard. I tried coming 'down' from the Honda recommend settings in 1/8 increments but didn't see much improvement quickly enough so took a leap of faith, backed all the rebound off and instead slowly stiffened the response to where it's now. Personally finding this much better for our often awful road surfaces. On the rear brake I had similar thoughts so stripped down the calliper slider and regressed;  it's much improved but still nothing like the power I'm used too. I wonder if Honda weighted the rear brake action to prevent hamfooted skidding and balance the front action? Overall, I'm delighted and really happy back on a VFR. 

[Presson]

I should have added that reducing rebound seems to have softened compression response as well.

[BlackheathMatt]

Lovely - and you're just down the road from me - will keep a look out for you.

 

Enjoying my 6th Gen enormously - but at some point soonish I'll change it for a clean low mileage 8th Gen and keep it until we're all forced to ride electric bikes. Seems the perfect motorcycle for my wants and needs.

 

What difference does the Akrapovic exhaust make apart from looking good ? Would it upset my neighbours ?

 

 

[HareBrain]

1 hour ago, BlackheathMatt said:

What difference does the Akrapovic exhaust make apart from looking good ? Would it upset my neighbours ?

 

With the baffle in, it's not much louder, but sounds much nicer (with it out, it was too loud for my taste).

 

As well as sounding/looking good and giving a bit more power, it improves fuel economy (by about 2-3mpg), lowers running temperature slightly and smoothes power take up from a closed throttle. It seems prices for used 8th Gen with Akro aren't much different from without, so it's a no-brainer IMO.

[Careca]

2 hours ago, BlackheathMatt said:

Lovely - and you're just down the road from me - will keep a look out for you.

 

Enjoying my 6th Gen enormously - but at some point soonish I'll change it for a clean low mileage 8th Gen and keep it until we're all forced to ride electric bikes. Seems the perfect motorcycle for my wants and needs.

 

What difference does the Akrapovic exhaust make apart from looking good ? Would it upset my neighbours ?

 

 

No its not loud at all and being an official Honda part you can't remove the baffle. You won't upset anyone with it. Allegedly it gives you a few more bhp but the main gain is weight. It is much lighter. It will also still let the panniers fit if you have them .

There are some good deals around as well . Original list price was £895 for the Akrapivic alone  if I remember correctly. I got an Akrapovic , rear hugger & a quick shifter for £600 + postage . 

My friend just bought a new Crossrunner and they offered him the same kit for £700 fitted . I think dealers are clearing stock of parts they have . Have a look on ebay, thats where I got mine.

[BlackheathMatt]

Do you get a different ECU map with the Akropovik OEM exhaust ? Aware that Triumph does this with their Arrow OEM exhaust option.

[Cogswell]

If you have a Rapid Bike, no need to worry about changing maps - after making mods it will adjust to the proper AFR while you ride.  It's very slick. 

[Careca]

I believe the ECU is able to adjust in this case. 

 

Once run in and with a few miles under its belt I will dyno it and see what its doing / making and if there are any gains to be had. 

[flya750]

On 3/10/2021 at 2:43 PM, Presson said:

I should have added that reducing rebound seems to have softened compression response as well.

In the operators manual... it basically says stock settings are set closer to hard....

[VifferCrab]

Would you like to sell the quick shifter? If so, PM me

[SchlepRock]

So, my QS works much better at higher rpm. I use it when "getting the gunk out", but I use the clutch below 5000 rpm.

[SpookyDriver]

My primary issue with the QS is remembering I have it.  After 40+ years of riding without one, the muscle memory is strong and I grab the lever without thinking about it.  Occasionally, I'll remember it's down there and I have no complaints with the operation or size of the pedal (size 15 boots may help there.)  Even at low revs shifting up from 1st to 2nd, it's smooth with very positive engagement.  At high revs, the feel of the upshift reminds me of using the paddles for the PDK in my car...which is a good thing, IMO.  But 99% of the time, my brain is hardwired to reach for the clutch lever when I shift and it's a tough habit to break, especially since none of my other bikes have a quick-shifter and I ride them all pretty frequently.

 

Something about old dogs and new tricks...

[ShipFixer]

On 3/10/2021 at 11:43 AM, Presson said:

I should have added that reducing rebound seems to have softened compression response as well.

The stock valving is pretty awful mostly-orifice damping.  High speed compression damping is really stiff.  Get a revalve done and you'll never look back!

[HareBrain]

11 hours ago, SpookyDriver said:

But 99% of the time, my brain is hardwired to reach for the clutch lever when I shift

 

I only use the clutch lever when upshifting from 1st to 2nd and sometimes 2nd to 3rd, when clutchless shifts can feel a bit clunky. Otherwise they're butter-smooth.