I had an 03 VFR, Great looking, typical Honda quality. About the same top end and quarter mile times as FZ6, but much heavier. What I couldnt stand was the damn v-tech, stupid idea that doesnt work very well and just adds high tech for the sake of high tech. Very expensive valve adjustments...
I dont about $18k, for that much there are an awful lot of options. You can buy a couple pretty cool bikes for that, or if all you care about is horsepower maybe a turbo on ZX14 or Busa
I had the same problems with a corbin on my Triumph Sprint ST, I also bought it for the back rest for my wife. It rubbed the paint and was very hard to get to latch, when ridding solo I would take that it off because it wasnt very comfortable. If your thinking about returning it, the yamaha...
Try a fram ca3559. remove your stock filter from its frame, use a dremmel type tool to enlarge the opening and pop the fram in. I know it sounds kind of hokey but if you are careful it fits perfect and has a rubber seal to make it air tight. Sorry for no pictures but I did this about a year ago...