So far so good!

[st2sam]

A 5,000mi. update on my first ever cruiser.??

Dear Honda,
 You screwed up big time. Fire the guy in charge of marketing the Valkyrie.
This bike is a sport-touring-naked, or better yet, how about Goldwing Sport.
I put a new Michelin front tire on, can't wait to get rid of the rear Dunlop. (almost toast)

I also lowered the bars so I'm able to get more weight over the front when railing the corners.
IMO the only negative as far as handling goes is clearance. It comes with 1-1/2" feelers, why I'm not sure? (they are almost gone   )
I'm getting great mileage, (on regular grade corn crap) 45mpg., little to no interstate.  About 225 to reserve, 260mi. to empty.

So far so good.
 Oh, one more thing, wow this bike is all day comfortable! (yep, stock seat with beads.  )



Any of you guys ride this bike like it should be?
That is, like A fat pig of a sport-bike.  

[_Sheffjs_]

  

[wiggydotcom]

Glad you're liking it, Sam. I'm one of the few that happens to like the new Valk/Fb6.

I hope you have hundreds of thousands of great road chewing memories!

[dinosnake]

 

I said the same thing as you have: this is no "cruiser", the seating position isn't even close, forget about the rest of the package.

"Super Naked", "Touring Standard", "Naked sport tourer", even "Goldwing Sport" makes more marketing sense than "cruiser" for this bike!

Motorcyclist Magazine did a comparo review of the Valk against the VMax and the Diavel.  The result?  The Valk came in last, because...

And while it always feels willing and able to scorch the back tire, the Valky is just so smooth and composed that it rarely excites. Maybe that’s okay for you, and we’d understand completely choosing the Honda as your daily ride. The Honda is more refined and comfortable than the Ducati or Star by quite a sizable margin. But this is a category supposedly populated by rough-and-tumble machines. The Valkyrie is Clark Kent frantically looking for a phone booth.

That's right - the Valkyrie is TOO REFINED!!  ??? 

http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/cruiser-comparison-cruisers-test-ducati-diavel-vs-honda-gold-wing-valkyrie-vs-star-vmax-deal-devil

And THAT'S why motorcycle reviewers have turned into a group of MORONS.  To paraphrase what one blogger wrote, almost every motorcycle reviewers is an ex-wannabe, retired boy racer who can only see motorcycles through a single lens of their personal taste: the 1/4 mile times.  And that's why the rest of us are STUCK with a market filled with motorcycles that don't do what WE want them to do.

Ditch the "cruiser" appellation when you're test riding it and what do you find?  Probably one of the most balanced all-around big bike packages out there, anywhere.  Every time I ride her I say to myself "It's amazing what 10 years of refinement can do to a bike...!!!" (seriously, I do!)

[AdrianR]

Excellent post!  I agree...not much of a cruiser...to high strung for that...but man can it handle..and it is fast!

Saturday I am having new Michelins installed...can't wait...

Oh and btw...speed is just ONE attribute to what a great motorcycle is...A bike is way more then just fast...

The Valk is..fast enough man...

[mrtappan]

I'd call it a "Naked Tourer" myself since it's 95% Goldwing (100% mechanically Goldwing) but that's just me. 

It does ok.  I'd have liked to seen a slightly modified engine but other than that it's satisfactory for what it is.

[hungryeye]

There are Sport Bikes, Touring Bikes, Cruisers, Dual Sport, Sport Tour, Valkyrie.

Valkyrie is a class by itself.

[st2sam]

It does ok.  I'd have liked to seen a slightly modified engine but other than that it's satisfactory for what it is.

ding ding ding we have a winner,

and IMO the key word is slightly modified engine.

However, the regular gas and good mileage is a great feature I would hate to lose. 
 So, all in all Mr. Tappen hit the nail on the head, "it's satisfactory for what it is". 

You can't have it all!  

[hubcapsc]

You can't have it all!

With a Goldwing at its core, I think you can have it all... as
long as you're willing to fiddle with it. I mean, it will never be one
of those 200hp crotch rockets that winds up to 13,000 rpm, but
nobody thought that about it...



Here's a windy-uppy race-bike-handling cruiser... I don't know about the rest
of y'all, but I've sat on one... oh my aching back... especially after four or
five days...



-Mike

[mrtappan]

There are Sport Bikes, Touring Bikes, Cruisers, Dual Sport, Sport Tour, Valkyrie.

Valkyrie is a class by itself.

No, the Yamaha VMAX is in a class by itself.  The Valkyrie is a "naked Goldwing."  I'm glad you're crazy impressed by it, but it's simply a slightly faster due to less weight Goldwing

[dinosnake]

There are Sport Bikes, Touring Bikes, Cruisers, Dual Sport, Sport Tour, Valkyrie.

Valkyrie is a class by itself.

No, the Yamaha VMAX is in a class by itself.  The Valkyrie is a "naked Goldwing."  I'm glad you're crazy impressed by it, but it's simply a slightly faster due to less weight Goldwing

Maybe a bit of both, actually, IMHO.

The VMax and the Diavel are classic "muscle cruisers".  All they are is the modern epitome of the genre - the most power, the largest rear tires, etc.  They are both in a "class by themselves", possibly including the Suzuki M109R and the Harley-Davidson V-Rod, as there are no other real "muscle cruisers" around.  A class of, at most, 4; the VMax's only other 'special' property is its power output.

Arguably the Valkyrie should, also, really be in its own class.  They label it a "cruiser" but we all pretty much agree that's pushing the description, there is nothing really "cruiser" about it in terms of character and, especially, seating position.  It should be "Mega-standard" (the only standard out there this large) or maybe "Naked sport-tourer", with only a few other bikes filling that same description (maybe the new BMW R1200R?).

The new BMW S1000XR gets a new class, of one, "Supersport Adventure" to describe it - why can't the Valkyrie get a more accurate description as well?

It's all just garbage marketing-speak.

[maddoggie501]

Well st2sam, I think you hit the nail on the head.   I'm offended when someone calls it a cruiser.  I prefer, its a naked Gold Wing.  With the Pilot Roads on it, the handling is close to a sport tourer I've owned.  I ride it as such and if I wanted a cruiser I guess I would get a Harley.  Great bike, with no amenities.

[ledany]

When I introduce my bike, I say it's a naked GW (alas for the brakes, the stand, the heated grips, the amazing lights, probably the temp etc.). But to tell the truth, I use the bike as a naked tourer (30 Kkm this year). As I have no car, I drive slowly in Paris, a little faster in suburban highways and I like to travel as far as possible within let's say a 12 hour trip (Spain, but it could be Italy or Germany or Romania).

[mrtappan]

Well to me, what doesn't put it "in a class of its own" is the fact that it just literally is a naked Goldwing.  If it had some engine modifications, higher HP/TQ, etc, than a Goldwing then yes I'd agree.   As it is now, it's simply a cruiser with a flat six.  Yay......

[AdrianR]

 As it is now, it's simply a cruiser with a flat six.  Yay......

Walter!!!

[dinosnake]

Well to me, what doesn't put it "in a class of its own" is the fact that it just literally is a naked Goldwing.  If it had some engine modifications, higher HP/TQ, etc, than a Goldwing then yes I'd agree.   As it is now, it's simply a cruiser with a flat six.  Yay......

I'll agree to that.

Also, please remember that a VMax is just a cruiser with a V-4; the S1000XR is just a tall bike with an inline-4; a McLaren is simply a car with a V-8, and the Great Pyramid is just a pile of blocks.

If we are afraid to describe things, let's be fair about it.

I don't think the Valkyrie is exceptionally exceptional, it's just...different.  Maybe that is what is preventing people from loving it, all too many people want to slot it into one of the pre-existing motorcycle types and it really doesn't fit -it bridges several categories.  And that's the basis of the discussion: it would be a cruiser if it didn't have an uoright seating position; it would be a tourer if only it had more bodywork; it would be a standard if only it didn't have touring genes; it would be a sport if only it weren't so big.  So, because people can't instantly categorize it...they pass it by.

The point of the discussion is that calling it a cruiser just turns people off most, because almost everyone has a predeterminrd notion of what that means - feet-forward seating position in a retro-influenced design - and that's not even close to what you get here.  So people leave it alone rather than expore what it is, versus what its NOT.  Even happens here, with some 1500'ers dismissing it just on looks because it's not retro.

Honda needs to rethink their marketing on this bike before it is too late (hey, but I got mine!  And dirt cheap, too, thanks to the fickleness of others!)

[mrtappan]

Since it's built on their touring frame, they should just call it a touring bike.  To me you can "stretch out" on a cruiser.  I feel like I'm sitting at a desk on Valkyrie.  Everything is right angles.  Legs at 90* from hips, knees bent 90* down, arms almost 90* out from body......

[hungryeye]

There are Sport Bikes, Touring Bikes, Cruisers, Dual Sport, Sport Tour, Valkyrie.

Valkyrie is a class by itself.

No, the Yamaha VMAX is in a class by itself.  The Valkyrie is a "naked Goldwing."  I'm glad you're crazy impressed by it, but it's simply a slightly faster due to less weight Goldwing

 
I don't know where you would get that I was "crazy impressed", I do like it and it fits me well. I did own a 97 V-max, and a ZRX, Bandit, FZ1, 919, all similar bikes known as naked standards. I also have owned 2 naked Goldwings, a 78 and an 80, and an 02 Valk. they all had a character  of their own.

[rusty]

yes dino i got mine very cheap 1 under 11,000. i guess there just not selling. which does not make sense to me. people see this bike and cant believe i paid that. ive only owned it for a month, and i have had more complements than my 1520. i have that for 14 years.... rip.  what ever this bike is or is not... its plenty good for me, and i feel like i stole it.   and proud to be on it.

[AdrianR]

yes dino i got mine very cheap 1 under 11,000. i guess there just not selling. which does not make sense to me. people see this bike and cant believe i paid that. ive only owned it for a month, and i have had more complements than my 1520. i have that for 14 years.... rip.  what ever this bike is or is not... its plenty good for me, and i feel like i stole it.   and proud to be on it.

Absolutely...it by far represents the best value out there now for a large displacement bike...the engine is just tremendous...synth oil and corn free fuel and it just screams man...smooth as hell!