The best ever 4-stroke vertical twin?
in [Motorcycles]
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From: don (Calgary) on 23 Jul 2010 18:06 On Fri, 23 Jul 2010 09:39:36 -0400, "Vito" <vito(a)cfl.rr.com> wrote: >don (Calgary) wrote: >>> On Wed, 21 Jul 2010 20:38:55 -0700 (PDT), BryanUT >>> <nestle12(a)comcast.net> wrote: >>> >>>> >>>> As a long time, almost exclusive Honda owner I can say that I really >>>> don't like the current crop of Hondas, but the fact is, the 305, the >>>> 350, 450 and 750, followed by the Goldwing are all landmark >>>> motorcycles. It is a crime that Honda is unable to set the bar >>>> recently. >>> >>> They dropped the ball in my mind when they discontinued the >>> Nighthawk, the Magna and the Valk all within a couple of years. >>> Since then their line up has been bland at best. > >IMHO it has to do with company "culture". Soichiro was an innovator and >bred innovative managers. Now they are retiring, being replaced by >"corporate" culture. We'll see no more oval piston GP bikes ....... > At the time Honda discontinued those bikes I didn't see anything in their cruiser line up that came close to replacing them. Will making V-twins with bigger jugs replace the Valk? Not in my mind. Same applies to the V-four. The Magna was a unique bike and I thought it filled a niche in the market that can't be filled with a reconfigured v-twin. I'd wager the Valk would still be a strong seller if it was still on the showroom floor. For sure those changes reflected Honda's corporate culture. To my mind it was not a positive reflection. Yamaha continues with their V-max and while it is not their most popular bike, year after year it creates a buzz in Yamaha circles. Go to a Yamaha demo days and check out the line up to test ride the Vmax. Many want to see that engine squeezed in to the Venture frame. Even if they tune it down a bit, the added HP would make the Venture a hell of a lot more fun. It seems to me Honda got stuck in a rut for a while, hesitant to offer anything new or unique. Please do not offer the Rune as an example of a unique machine. I always thought of the Rune as more of a concept bike, never ready for prime time.
From: Vito on 24 Jul 2010 07:08 don (Calgary) wrote: >> I'd wager the Valk would still be a strong seller if it was still on >> the showroom floor. >> Having really enjoyed an older GL1000, I seriously considered a Valk, but the owners I talked to complained about gas milage in the 25 mpg range and the limited distance one could go between gas stations. That turned me off.
From: The Older Gentleman on 24 Jul 2010 07:19 don (Calgary) <hd.flhr(a)telus.net> wrote: > I'd wager the Valk would still be a strong seller if it was still on > the showroom floor. The fact that it isn't suggests that it wasn't. If it had been, it still would be. IYSWIM. > > For sure those changes reflected Honda's corporate culture. To my mind > it was not a positive reflection. > > Yamaha continues with their V-max and while it is not their most > popular bike, year after year it creates a buzz in Yamaha circles. Go > to a Yamaha demo days and check out the line up to test ride the Vmax. > > Many want to see that engine squeezed in to the Venture frame. Even if > they tune it down a bit, the added HP would make the Venture a hell of > a lot more fun. No idea what the new VMax costs in the Americas, but it's something like �20k ($30k US) here. If a Max-engined Venture costs anywhere near the same, it'll be difficult to sell in decent numbers. > > It seems to me Honda got stuck in a rut for a while, hesitant to offer > anything new or unique. Please do not offer the Rune as an example of > a unique machine. I always thought of the Rune as more of a concept > bike, never ready for prime time. Agree 100%. -- BMW K1100LT Ducati 750SS Triumph Street Triple Honda CB400F Suzuki TS250 Suzuki GN250 chateaudotmurrayatidnetdotcom Nothing damages a machine more than an ignoramus with a manual, a can-do attitude and a set of cheap tools
From: The Older Gentleman on 24 Jul 2010 07:40 Vito <vito(a)cfl.rr.com> wrote: > don (Calgary) wrote: > >> I'd wager the Valk would still be a strong seller if it was still on > >> the showroom floor. > >> > Having really enjoyed an older GL1000, I seriously considered a Valk, but > the owners I talked to complained about gas milage in the 25 mpg range and > the limited distance one could go between gas stations. That turned me off. Neighbour with one reckons 30-35 mpg. Oh, hang about US gallons, Imperial gallons. As you were. -- BMW K1100LT Ducati 750SS Triumph Street Triple Honda CB400F Suzuki TS250 Suzuki GN250 chateaudotmurrayatidnetdotcom Nothing damages a machine more than an ignoramus with a manual, a can-do attitude and a set of cheap tools
From: don (Calgary) on 24 Jul 2010 10:06
On Sat, 24 Jul 2010 12:19:59 +0100, totallydeadmailbox(a)yahoo.co.uk (The Older Gentleman) wrote: >don (Calgary) <hd.flhr(a)telus.net> wrote: > >> I'd wager the Valk would still be a strong seller if it was still on >> the showroom floor. > >The fact that it isn't suggests that it wasn't. If it had been, it still >would be. IYSWIM. > We are both speculating. >> >> For sure those changes reflected Honda's corporate culture. To my mind >> it was not a positive reflection. >> >> Yamaha continues with their V-max and while it is not their most >> popular bike, year after year it creates a buzz in Yamaha circles. Go >> to a Yamaha demo days and check out the line up to test ride the Vmax. >> >> Many want to see that engine squeezed in to the Venture frame. Even if >> they tune it down a bit, the added HP would make the Venture a hell of >> a lot more fun. > >No idea what the new VMax costs in the Americas, but it's something like >�20k ($30k US) here. If a Max-engined Venture costs anywhere near the >same, it'll be difficult to sell in decent numbers. You're paying way too much. MSRP in Canada is $23K. List in the US is less than $20k. Of course you could have easily Googled all that information. You can pick up a brand new V-Max for $18K in Calgary. > >> >> It seems to me Honda got stuck in a rut for a while, hesitant to offer >> anything new or unique. Please do not offer the Rune as an example of >> a unique machine. I always thought of the Rune as more of a concept >> bike, never ready for prime time. > >Agree 100%. Then I must be wrong! |