2011-current HONDA VFR800X

It’s a VFR Jim, but not as we know it. Meet the Crossrunner...

THE CROSSRUNNER HAS always had a bit of an identity problem. Ask the average biker about it and they’ll say, “Oh yeah, that’s the big adventure bike with the VFR1200 motor and funny gearbox, isn’t it?” No, that’s the Crosstourer. “Oh, in that case it must be the small adventure bike with half a car engine, a scooter boot and the funny gearbox.” Nope, that’s the NC700/750X. “Oh. Dunno then.”

For the record, the Crossrunner hasn’t got a funny gearbox - it hasn’t got a funny anything. It’s basically just a VFR800 with a makeover. “An excellent, versatile motorcycle that works well and is great fun,” we said when we first rode it. But there was a problem. At just over nine grand at launch, it was seriously overpriced for a fairly basic bike built from long-in-the-tooth components (though it was cheaper than the VFR it was based on). For the same money in 2011 you could have had a Triumph Tiger 800 and kept £1700 in your pocket.

So it was no surprise the Crossrunner failed to fly out of dealers. But things change, and once those dealers started offering heavy discounts and sweetening the deal with optional extras like heated grips and luggage, they started attracting an audience of everyday riders - many of them former VFR owners - who appreciated its easy-going manners and relatively low running costs.