Twins Times Two
TWINS TIMES TWO
Honda VTX1300R vs. Star V-Star 1300
DAVID EDWARDS
WHEN IT COMES TO CRUISERS, MUCH LIKE YOU, WE ARE manly men. Supersize us. We want cylinder bores you can stick a boot through. Torque numbers that would do a tugboat proud. Bigger is better. Greater is grander. More is mo’ better. Or is it? One of the unfortunate byproducts of big-inch cruiser motors has been an accompanying increase in overall vehicle weight and size. We became acutely aware of this excess a couple of summers ago during our mega-cruiser “Sturgis Shootout.” Fully fueled, three of our testbikes were at or above 800 pounds! Gastric bypass candidates. Just lifting them off their sidestands required firmly planted feet, a pretty good heave-ho...and maybe a properly adjusted truss. By comparison, the Harley-Davidson-whose forebears were nicknamed “Hogs,” remember-seemed positively petite.
“Do motorcycles really have to be this big?” one of our crew asked.
Nope. Meet a couple of today’s “middleweight” cruisers, never mind that they each displace 1300cc plus. When the big bruisers ring in at 1800-2300cc, anything between 900 and 1300cc qualifies as mid-weight, it’s the new math on two wheels.
Honda’s VTX1300C, introduced in 2004, was the first of
these new-gen middleweight cruisers. It impressed us as an entirely more manageable piece than its 1800cc brotherlighter, shorter, easier to handle at speed or in the garage, not to mention $3K less expensive. “Honda offers cruiser buyers a choice between brute power and bulk, and adequacy and balance,” we told readers. “You may be surprised which you prefer.” We preferred the 1300, calling it, “...maybe the best cruiser that Honda has yet built.”
This time we have the VTX1300R, the retro-styled version. There’s also an S-model variant, same-same but with spoked rims in place of the R’s cast jobbies. We like the latter for extended road work, as simple flats can be plugged in situ, no need to drop a wheel and patch the inner tube that spoked rims require.
Our other 2x2’er is the new-for-’07 Star V-Star 1300, the first truly clean-sheet design for the division since being spun off from Yamaha two years ago. We sampled the Tourer “bagger” version earlier this year and came away impressedif wishing for a shorter windscreen than the 23%-inch sail fitted as standard. We spent time on the road with and across the table from Masato “Maverick” Suzuki, head of the V-Star 1300 development team, and asked what he considered the bike’s primary competition. “Well, VTX, of course...,” he replied, “and Harley Fat Boy.”
Lofty goal, the latter, a comparison for another day. Let’s concentrate on immediate matters, Star vs. Honda.
Maverick’s motor is a 60-degree V-Twin, liquid-cooled, displacing 1304cc (an even 80 cubes) via 100mm bores and a relatively short 83mm stroke. A single overhead cam atop each cylinder runs four valves (36mm intake, 32mm exhaust), those valves actuated by friction-reducing roller rocker arms, kit not usually associated with cruisers. Downstairs there’s a single-pin crankshaft for that “strong, sensual pulse feeling,” though twin counterbalancers make sure things don’t get too carried away in the vibratory department.
Feeding the plot is a well-sorted fuel-injection system with all the modern conveniences-dual 40mm throttle bodies, 12hole injector nozzles, closed-loop, O2 sensor. Plumbed to the other end is a 2-into-l exhaust system housing a three-way catalyst that allows the V-Star to pass tough new 2008 EPA/ Euro 3 emissions standards.
When all the shouting is done, the Star pumps out 66.7 rear-wheel horsepower, 6 more than the Honda. That advantage carries over to the dragstrip, where it outsprints the VTX by a half-second, and to top-speed passes, where the V-Star comes out 9 mph to the good.
Performance advantage V-Star, then? Not so fast.
Honda’s 1312cc, 52-degree Vee also features liquid-cooling and a single-pin crank with counterbalancers. It, too, runs single overhead cams, this time activating three valves per jug (two 31mm intake, one 40mm exhaust). A carburetor, an air-fuel mixing device favored by the ancients, administers the unleaded-it’s even got a contraption called
a manual choke for cold starts. How quaint. Biggest difference between the two motors, though, is the bore/stroke relationship. The numbers are almost flipped, the Honda working through 89mm bores and a long 104mm stroke.
Translation? Not only does the VTX produce more peak torque at lower rpm, but between 2000 and 3800 rpm (i.e. most of the time), the Honda is making more torque and more horsepower. If the Honda weren’t carrying around an extra 56 pounds, the two bikes would be closer to dead-even in acceleration.
We also like the way the Honda motor feels as it goes
HONDA
VTX1300R
$9599
about its business, transmitting more of its rumble to the rider. Between the extra punch, the more perceptible power pulses and the better-sounding twice-pipes, it’s a more visceral experience.
There’s not much to choose between the bikes in a chassis comparison. Both use steel frames, and while the Star edges ahead with a single-shock rear suspension and double disc brakes up front, the Honda counters with an inch-lower seat height and half-inch-shorter wheelbase. The Star’s belt final drive is simpler and lighter, but the VTX’s shaft drive is a clean application and a lot of riders prefer a shafty’s all-enclosed mechanicals. Taller riders will fit the Star better, though in really tight U-turns their knees can foul the handlebar ends.
Pressed hard in the twisties, both bikes are serious sparkmakers, though the Honda drags its floorboards a few degrees sooner. Of course, if backroad blitzkriegs are a regular part of your riding agenda, you’ve bought the wrong bikes. They’re called cruisers, after all. Slow down, sightsee, enjoy.
Styling is another reason people are drawn toward cruisers, and while beauty is always in the eye of the title-holder, here’s our considered critique. Star first: While the heavily art-deco, 1850cc Roadliner is one of the most stylized cruisers on the market, the 1300 takes a more subtle approach. Undoubtedly, part of the plan was cost-savings but it also gives garage customizers more of a blank canvas for their modifications. Unfortunately, it’s also a bit of a bland canvas.
There’s much more of a “look” about the Honda, with its deeply valanced fenders, hooded headlight, tank-top instrument housing and sweeping exhausts. Squint just right and there’s even a touch of old Indian in the VTX. And if retrostyle ain’t your thing, right next door in the Honda catalog is still the 1300C, the original bobbed-fender, hot-rod version, one of the cleanest-looking customs on the market.
On the other hand, if you want a bagger, Star’s is painless-
ly turnkey, while a Honda buyer is forced to roll his own-or pay someone else to-either from the accessories book (our testbike wears Honda’s driving-light setup, a $340 option) or from the aftermarket. In fact, if mediumrange touring is in your future, we’d strongly recommend going straight to the V-Star 1300 Tourer, which comes with maybe the best luggage in cruiserdom. Compared to the Honda, it’s got a rangier riding position, slightly plusher suspension and fewer vibes, at a cost just $1100 above the base Star’s sticker. A good deal.
In this 2x2, though, the Honda wins. Not by much, but we like its feel, we like its looks-even if it doesn’t win the 80to-100-mph roll-on contests. It doesn’t need to. □
STAR
V-STAR 1300
$10,090
