Topic: Questions on VFR

[stevenmgrr]

Ok,

I currently have a 71 CB500 and I am considering a second bike.  I had posted a thread requesting suggestions and received some great responses.  After trying out a few of the bikes I determined that they were just really bigger/modern versions of my bike (Monster, CB599, etc) which I consider more of a city bike.

After talking to a few people, I think what I really want is more of a sport touring bike.  Something that I can ride out of town, with a bit more power than my CB500, a fairing that I don't have to lay down on the tank to use, and something I can put bags on, but not a Harley bagger.

These were there suggestions
BMW 1100
Ducati ST3
Honda VFR 750
Honda VFR 800

I have already ruled out the BMW and Ducati as more money than what I wish to spend.  What do you guys know about the VFR bikes?

Thanks
Steve
 

[DarkRider]

Where to start? lol...Paxtonpony would have the best knowledge of the newer VFRs due to him having one prior to his buying a Blackbird. But i can provide a bit of info based off of what i know from the predecessor the VF. The VFR isn evolution of the VF sport bike. They started to become more sport touring type machines in 1990 after their final days in use as AMA superbike racing and replaced with the CBR 600 Hurricane in racing. They have a V4 engine that has a powerband more like a V twin then like your CB so expect a lot more low end grunt off of the line due to this. All of the VFRs are forgiving machines to ride and they make a perfect stepping stone from CB to something like a Blackbird as paxton proved. However they do have their quirks mostly contained in the first gen VF series with cam oiling issues. Im sure i will come up with more info as i remember it..

[stevenmgrr]

Thanks for the reply.  I just want to make sure I'm not going from my CB to some plastic crotch rocket.  Even though these seem to have all of the fairings, the riding posture seems to be more upright from what the kids are riding.     I'm glad to hear you say that these are forgiving bikes.

[DarkRider]

I find it ironic that they are as forgiving as they are. They were built to be racing machines from the factory. But yea my VF was the first bike i jumped back onto when i returned to riding. Another reason i like the VF/VFR is because of that upright riding position. Recommendation would be to stay away from the VTec bikes due to the sudden engagement of the VTec...could startle a rider not expecting it as the power suddenly ramps up like a 2 stroke would. However Vtec didnt appear till the 800s came along and i think it was the second gen of the 800s that started that...what it comes down to is the VFR 750 never had Vtec so if you stick with the 750s you wont have to deal with it.

[schwebel]

What about a SV 650/1000, or a V-strom. Those are great bikes, have gobs of torque and you can carry as much stuff as a goldwing. I am a big fan of the V-strom 1000, I put 500 miles on a friend of mines and what an awesome engine. I've ridden the SV650, but not the 1000, also a great bike with a less agressive riding position, but you can still lean down in on it and attack.

[jtb]

Steve, I've got an 86 VFR 750.  As Chris says it's very forgiving.  It's also very responsive and goes exactly where you point it.  But the most fun is from around 7500 or 8000 RPM to 12,000 or so.  If you're in first or second, it's a real kick in the pants. 

I switch back and forth between my cb and my vfr and ride each about equally.

[DarkRider]

Oh yes...that nice lil rise in power just as the torque tops out on the V4...crack the throttle open around 6 grand and shift around 8500 if not closer to 10 grand...However if you ride a V4 bike like that you better be ready to hang on because it will haul out and move rapidly. Other then that as said before they are very forgiving bikes to ride. That power surge in the upper rpms can be managed quite easily simply by just rolling the throttle open gradually. Ridden like that the bike will pull like a freight train and have a very linear and controllable powerband. Basicly the bike will do an impersonation of Dr jekal/Mr Hyde depending on how it is ridden. Basically you will have something that is the best of both worlds because the VF/VFR series of bikes are one of the best all round bikes that honda has ever built. From day one they were built as a Technological flagship for development of different features that will eventually make their way to other bikes. Basically a lot of the features in the CBRs of today probably existed in one form or another in the Interceptor. 

Once i have my CB up and running (which could very well be this winter since im getting a rebuilt engine for it that i just have to drop in.) I will be doing the exact same as JTB and switching back and forth between it and my Interceptor.

Just gonna touch on the naming thing....when the VF came out in 83 it was known as the Interceptor. In 1990 it was renamed to simply VFR...1998 saw the return of the Interceptor name. and 2002 saw the Interceptor Vtec come to life.

Sorry for the overload of info there steve....as Bill can tell ya...im obsessed with the VF/VFR and probably can say i know more about that model mechanically then i do the CB even though the CB750 was the bike that brought me back to motorcycle ownership...it was the VF750F that allowed me to put rubber to the street again.

Chris

[HondaMan]

This seems a bit new to me...I remember the Interceptors as the ones who could never finish our group rides together with us, breaking down along the way (gearboxes, frozen engines, overheating - one guy rode his from Estes Park with us, on the way back to Denver, stuck in 2nd, by running up to redline, then coasting with the clutch in, over and over, out in front of us). We had a riding club for a while at the church in the 1980s, with over 20 rider bikes participating. There were 6 of the Interceptors in the group. A typical ride would be a loop from Denver, north thru Rocky Mountain Park, south along the Winter Park Highlands, then home on I-70, or maybe a ride west to Buena Vista, north to Aspen, back to Vail and down I-70 to Denver. All the rides were typically in the 200-350 mile range. Mine was the lead bike and the only CB750, followed by BMWs, an occasional Yamaha, a Kaw or two, and up to 6 Interceptors on a typical day. My friend on his CX500 would bring up the rear, he and I having CB radios at the time, to keep all together. The only Interceptor that made all the rides without breaking down and having to ride home on a truck was one that was outfitted with Honda's bags and fairing, in a light blue. All 5 of the others died on one ride or another. And, they were frequently seen around here on the side of the road, like they had broken and someone walked off to get a tow or something.

Then, they just disappeared from this area. I hadn't seen one in years. It's interesting to hear they are 'back' in another form. I hope they are more reliable than they were back then. 

[DarkRider]

The new Interceptors that came out in 98 were sport touring oriented machines. the name disappeared with the last of the pure racing based Interceptors back in 89. Between 90 and 98 the same basic machine was known as the VFR. I have owned 3 Interceptors over the past couple years starting with the 85 i still have i also had an 83 and an 84 both of which are long gone now. the 84 because it was a lemon from the get go and the 83 because a friend needed a bike to ride..the same friend had sold me the 83 a few months prior but after his harley burned up he wanted it back. Now that friend traded it off to someone else who wanted it for a project bike. That bike is currently in the stages of rehab. I will be working over my 85 once i have another bike running or over the winter..havent decided which yet. Anyways..my 85 has completed long distance trips a few times. Back in june i participated in a 240 km poker run with it and the bike handled it nicely except for the fuel milage. Other then that i didnt see my temp needle rise much over 1/2 the entire trip. However what some of that could be could be the use of modern coolants and newer grades of fuel along with newer oils.

Chris

[Operator]

I used to have a 1984 VF 1000 Interceptor. All I can say is that it was a phenomenal piece of machinery! I have read in the thread about reliability issues but I had mine for three years and never suffered any of these and it never left me on the side of the road. At one point I was putting nearly 1000kms a week on it back and forth to home from work every weekend for a 12 week period. It was a very comfortable bike to ride long distance with little driver fatigue.

I will however, state that I had the oil injector mod done to solve the top end lube issue and had a toggle switch on my rad fan so I could run it when I saw a slowdown or was coming off the highway into the city. The Interceptors were known for overheating caused by the fact that the cooling fan wouldn't kick in until the temp guage hit the red. Another point to note is the fuel. I always ran high test(gold/premium) through it with one exception, when the local station only had regular. Running regular fuel, it ran like a complete bag of hammers. Spitted and sputtered like my grandma eating hot oatmeal.

Even though it was heavy at 618 lbs, It handled like a dream, diving into corners and eating up the highway on the straights. As I posted in the top speed thread, I posted a speed of 240kph (possibly 245 but I didn't want to look down) and it still had more to go.

Sadly, as phenomenal as these bikes are......they don't hydroplane well, and I slid out of a corner during a downpour, I walked away feeling like I had hipchecked a dump truck, and the bike came face to face with the guardrail and sadly had to be put down.

All in all it was one of my favorite bikes I have ever owned and would lovingly welcome the opportunity to ride another one.

Operator

[DavePhipps]

Vfs and VFRs are a blast to  ride.  The early VFRs are my favorite. I was riding a vf 700 for 2 years in Washington, and it was a blast. The tourque coming ou of corners is great, no need to downshift in most  cases. Just open the throttle and it goes, no matter what  RPM. If you do  get  an ealy one you might consider the CBR600 wheel mod for the front. it gives much better handling.

[DarkRider]

the CBR wheel mod and top end oiling mods are must haves to enhance the handling and longevity of the cams...same with the toggle switch on the fan.

[Operator]

With the oil mod and the fan switch I could redline mine all day and it would stay cool as a polar bear's arse

[DarkRider]

One day i would love to get ahold of either a VF1000F or a VF1000R...but thats a long time down the road.

[stevenmgrr]

Okay, you guys have convinced me.  I am going to be looking at a 1998 VFR800 this weekend.  From what I have read, these were extremely refined bikes.  I have also read to stay away from the VTEC models since they are more complex.

Any thoughts?

[DarkRider]

Yes the 5th gen (98-02 non vtec bikes) were the best of the VFRs. The most refined of the original basic machine. 98 also marked the return to the Interceptor name. As for the VTec model. They are good bikes but yes they are more complex and they have a twitchy powerband due to the Vtec...the Vtec itself kicks in abruptly which as said before can startle a rider if they arent expecting it. Which as you can guess would be extremely bad if it occured in a turn.

[tsflstb]

I had a '92 VFR for a while.  I lived in Atlanta and it was perfect for the 80 mile highway ride up to the mountains, a 200 mile loop of twisty road, and another 80 miles back home.  I lived in an apartment, so it sat outside and saw minimal maintenance.  Sold it with 49,000 miles and it had zero issues.  Loved the v4 and the swingarm always got comments.

 

For the same money, I'd also consider a pre-2006 Yamaha FZ1.  It's like a comfortable R1.  I came this close to buying one, and still might.  My biggest gripe with the VFR was all the plastic you had to deal with (hence the minimal maintenance).  The FZ1 or even a Suzuki Bandit have good wind protection, lots of luggage options and the engine is easily accessible.

[paxtonpony]

Haven't been on in quite some time.  Two reasons.  One, I sold my CB earlier this year (yes, I'm still kicking myself).  Two, I  just got back from Afghanistan.

So, to the point.  The VFR is a great bike.  I had my 95 VFR750 for about a year.  Great, great bike but I got the itch for more.  Why?  To this day I couldn't tell you.  The VFR is more than enough bike.  But I had the itch and found a low mile Blackbird.  The rest is history as they say.  I ran into the lady I sold it to the other day.  She rides the wheels off of it and absolutley loves it.  She took off and man do I miss the sound that bike makes.  Absolutely nothing like it on 2 wheels.

The VFR750 is one of the most reliable bikes Honda has ever built.  They over-enginered it specifically because of the early reputation of the VF's.  200k miles for a 90-97 VFR isn't unusual.  I've even read an article by a courier in England that did 400k before his first rebuild.  He wound up doing another 400k on the second motor.  His last 2 rides were both Blackbirds (he did 200k+ on both of those).