I hear ya. That a lot of money for a pretty simple engine design. Isn't that where all the R & D is supposed to go? My Craftsman garden tractor has the same type of engine.
Been watching some YouTube videos of people who have ridden the new TC and the bike is downright gorgeous and looks like top build quality...though we know that is par for the course for Honda and Yamaha.
What I have noticed in the ride videos is that the TC does not seem to have a lot of "get up and go". I am watching one guy right now who is rolling hard on the throttle and it seems to accelerate similarly to my old VStar 1100...which was a slow bike.
I am not sure how big of a deal this is, as I'll take torque over horsepower any day...but...I keep going back to my ride to work where I often end up behind a garbage truck or some other utility truck and I need to rocket past them in the limited areas I have available to pass on my commute. Flat-six Honda? Noooooo problem. This 1800 Yamaha, however, may be too much of a piggy even for a rider like me who scrapes a peg about once every two years.