I have a base, and an R, and I only ride them on track. The R is definitely more exhilarating to ride. Back to back, the engine feels ballistic. But, when I compare data, peak velocity and lap times are pretty much the same. The R feels faster, because the engine makes more noise, and sounds amazing. In isolation, the base bike is every bit as exciting. I don't think the R is worth £15k more than the base. There's no real difference in riding them. Typically, on the R, you're just always 2k rpm higher up. The engines are, pretty much, as flexible as each other. I never once, jumped off the 1103, onto the R, and thought "this doesn't pull" out of corners Owning the R, does feel a bit more special, than owning a base. But, in reality, hardly anything separates them. Pays your money, takes your choices.
Does anyone have any manual suspension settings for the V4S to use as a starting point? I'm thinking of converting mines to track/race use only but worried about the electronic suspension not being up to it.
Any setting will likely be a bad start for you... Different track, different tyres, different ride weights and style I would let it do it's thing, set it to FULL AUTO and then go from there. just remember to change one thing at a time and not all at once otherwise you'll never know what actually made the difference... JMHO
Its not just about how fast you are it is about where you fit into the " standard rider size" as suspension has a range it works best with the weight sat on it. I had an 18 V4S which was only track and a BMW Gen 3 Track only which had traditional Ohlins, and I rode them back to back at Andalucia which has some challenging corners with mixes of camber and some areas where you cross parts of the track that can have a slightly different configuration and I realised whilst I managed the same overall time, the V4S was struggling in a few areas suspension wise. I was thinking about the change anyway but bit the bullet and built a track only V4 with traditional Ohlins forks and TTX shock, it also has Marchesinis, and many many more track parts, it stands me a good few ££ but I am faster on it than the S. It will be up for sale shortly as I am buying a 2024 V4R