- Joined
- Feb 28, 2003
- Messages
- 51,226
- Reaction score
- 8,211
- Location
- Huntsville
- First Name
- Scott
- Last Name
- Friday
Howdy,
Well, when I had my 01 VFR in the shop for its' 32K service I broke down and had Race Tech springs installed up front and an Ohlins rear shock installed in the rear. I chose to forgoe the cartridges in the forks due to cost and the fact that I think the stock damping characteristics of the VFR front end are pretty good. Patrick at Motorcycles Unlimited got me setup for a great price and helped me dial in the settings. The next day I left for a week of riding in Arkansas, a great place to test out the suspension.
We rode really fast sweepers and really really tight switchbacks all week. I was riding solo with a GIVI 50 liter topcase stuffed to capacity and then some. About 95% of the time, the bike felt great. Ocassionally the front end felt like it could use a little more damping, particularly on rebound. The rear was incredible. Once I got the compression and rebound set right it was superstable when railing through the corners. This was definitely money well spent!
Money spent trying to gain a few extra horsepower or torque is much better spent on better suspension. Having the better suspension will give you much greater confidence in the bike to handle the undulations of the pavement, hold its line and to keep the tires in contact with the road. This will make you a lot faster and smoother than squeezing a few more HP out of your engine. Don't get me wrong, Power Commanders and pipes are great if you want to smooth out the engine's power delivery and throttle snatchiness. It made a world of difference on our 98 VFR.
I ran out of money so the 98 only got the front end done. Hopefully, in the not too distant future we can get the Ohlins installed on the rear and that bike will be darn near perfect! Well except for the fact that it's my wife's bike and not mine
Well, when I had my 01 VFR in the shop for its' 32K service I broke down and had Race Tech springs installed up front and an Ohlins rear shock installed in the rear. I chose to forgoe the cartridges in the forks due to cost and the fact that I think the stock damping characteristics of the VFR front end are pretty good. Patrick at Motorcycles Unlimited got me setup for a great price and helped me dial in the settings. The next day I left for a week of riding in Arkansas, a great place to test out the suspension.
We rode really fast sweepers and really really tight switchbacks all week. I was riding solo with a GIVI 50 liter topcase stuffed to capacity and then some. About 95% of the time, the bike felt great. Ocassionally the front end felt like it could use a little more damping, particularly on rebound. The rear was incredible. Once I got the compression and rebound set right it was superstable when railing through the corners. This was definitely money well spent!
Money spent trying to gain a few extra horsepower or torque is much better spent on better suspension. Having the better suspension will give you much greater confidence in the bike to handle the undulations of the pavement, hold its line and to keep the tires in contact with the road. This will make you a lot faster and smoother than squeezing a few more HP out of your engine. Don't get me wrong, Power Commanders and pipes are great if you want to smooth out the engine's power delivery and throttle snatchiness. It made a world of difference on our 98 VFR.
I ran out of money so the 98 only got the front end done. Hopefully, in the not too distant future we can get the Ohlins installed on the rear and that bike will be darn near perfect! Well except for the fact that it's my wife's bike and not mine