Stable, comfortable, fast but also sweet when we want to caress a dirt road or enjoy the journey without haste. It has the beating heart of the “sport tourer” par excellence, that of the VFR 1200, the most famous four-cylinder V-cylinder in the world and a chassis that seems made especially for the scout motorbiker…
The air is that of a traveler who inspires respect. The VFR 1200 V 4 engine can be seen and not seen but you know that it is under there, ready to unleash a storm of horses on the road … It’s up to you, on your wrist to decide what to do. But how can we say? The end justifies the means!
The idea is to reach the hearts of tireless travelers, those who know very well when to open and when to slowly enjoy the road. For its part, the bike is a well-balanced knife, you can weigh it in your hand without difficulty and with the same ease launch it. Well, enough with the search for more or less daring comparisons. The best thing to do is to tell us about our direct experience before making the official presentations with the technical characteristics.
In order to give you the most precise sensation of this bike, we did the only thing we know how to do well: put it on the fork, cover almost three thousand kilometres in four days, get off the bike and start writing after drinking a nice cool beer to get back on our feet. We left from Milan, destination Slovenia, (our tour… you can find it on this issue of Scout Motorbikers). Highway, state roads, roads, dirt roads … Jupiter Pluvio has also helped to provide us with everything we need for a test of behavior in the wet.
Those who know the Honda product know well that the Japanese company’s motorcycles all have in common the ability to convey an immediate feeling with the rider. The Crosstourer does not shirk this commitment and as soon as you get on board our impression is that we have always ridden it. There’s everything you need to get going: two standard travel bags and a luggage rack. For the “all-out” maniacs, the top case is also available. Ready to start, go: the few kilometers that separate us from the highway we spend in urban traffic: certainly it is not a scooter and the kilos are all there, but as soon as the wheels are moving driving in traffic is not so challenging … Once taken measurements with the side bags, of course.
On the freeway at last. The torque is something disconcerting: you can change gear after gear by blending away quietly or open and open again, unloading dozens of horses at a time, surprising yourself for the total absence of vibration and for the good aerodynamic protection. Even the bags seem to have been created on this bike and never give signs of aerodynamic interference, not even in fast turns, and in climbing the cardan is not felt at all.
Queen of the highway then, but that extends its reign to the mixed fast and when it comes to dealing with a dirt road the 19-inch front wheel follows the irregular road surface almost like a real enduro, the brake with CBS device distributes the braking between the front and rear in an optimal way, the ABS and traction control do the rest. We can’t claim to have a suspension department that allows us to tackle road corners like a supersport without being a bit rigid in off-road, although we appreciate a certain progression that, in any case, allows us to get to the destination of the journey, wherever it is.
In short, Honda is once again at the centre of attention: the engine, first of all, a V4 with exceptional torque and exemplary elasticity, also equips the version with a dual clutch transmission, which makes available to the rider all the effectiveness of the robotic management of the gearbox in automatic mode, and all the freedom of manual functionality with the practical handlebar controls. Supplied as standard with the Traction Control System, the Crosstourer is also safe on all surfaces, especially those with low grip. Then there is the unmissable braking system combined with the antilock C-ABS Honda, which enhances the control of the Crosstourer on all types of surfaces and in all weather conditions.
So an exceptional combination of the performance of the V4 engine, the most advanced technologies to maximize safety and driving pleasure (C-ABS, traction control and dual clutch gearbox) and an excellent chassis with aluminum frame and perfect handling in both single and passenger driving, even at full load, on all routes and over any distance.
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