VFR Thread, How many of us have 'em?

ACTION SHOT !!!


I just sold mine, after 52,000 miles of Yeee Haaaa!
I miss it already. This pic is from Mount Palomar, Ca.

I'm so happy. I just bought a 98 in completely excellent condition for $2,600. Helibars and corbin seat sweetened the deal even more.

This will be a keeper till I'm an old man!

Hi Tommy,

Mind me asking how many miles on yours?

I think I overpaid last fall for mine:eek1

It has 50,100 miles but, seriously, its super clean. I can only wish my KTM and GSXR would age so gracefully. The only thing I plan to do is replace the steering head bearings sometime this year.

I have an '98 VFR. Bought it new. I've had several other bikes in the meantime but have never considered selling the VFR.

Mine is a "real" VFR with the gear drive cams. Love the whine it makes on start up. Alast I think I'll think of selling as I have a crapped out hip and it will be a year or more before I need to consider replacement surgery. What used to be a reasonable amount of leg room is now too cramped for me.

Meanwhile my SD990, XRL and Uly will fill the bill as they are tolerable for me as of now.

David

Started off with an 84 VF750 then upgraded to a 95 VFR750. Loved it!! Then lost my wits and sold it after I picked up the GS. Regretted it but was able to finally pick up a 99 a year and a half ago. Now I have two great bikes.

I had 2 '04s in a year and a half, put about 20k miles on between them in that time. The first one came to an untimely end (i stuffed it) so i bought another with the insurance money. All in all, they were great bikes. I liked it, but i don't think i'll end up owning another.

Pros:
-that sound. I had staintunes on mine, LOVED that sound of the V4 winding out
-looks. It looks great, everyone loved the way it looked
-OEM luggage. Gotta have it, well worth the $$$
-headlights. they are fantastic, hands down

Cons:
-typical 6th gen VFR stuff- hesitation/ stumbling while cruising at constant throttle. both of my VFRs did this, even had a PCIII on the 2nd and it still did it.
-Thermostat went bad and the dealer had no clue how to check for it or fix it. The bike was under warranty, but i had to fix it myself (not a easy job on these bikes)
-gas mileage. Best i ever got was around 40mpg on either with all highway time (65-75 mph). It didn't matter how soft or hard i rode it, always got 38-40 mpg. Also, that damned gas gauge would say the tank was empty with 1.6 gallons left. Always. Both did it and again, the dealers had no idea how to fix it.


I got over most of the stuff, the hesitation is what really got to me. My advice? get a sargent seat (i never thought the stock was too bad until i got the sargent, then never looked back), keep the stock windscreen and buy a Windjammer II for the buffeting, buy the bags, ride the piss out of it on the back roads.


Picture of the beast (both looked exactly the same, this one is the 2nd one)

I sold my 2nd VFR in November and happened to just find a BMW K1200RS for a great price. I look it as larger, more powerfull, more comfortable VFR. Much better fueling, better brakes, no exhaust sound , but more comfortable for me to ride.

One thing I noticed with mine that I bought late last fall: the bike is 11 years old, but it still looks great. It only has 3000 miles on it, but even the fasteners don't have any surface corrosion. I have had other garage queens and it's all the little "bits" that start to make the bike look old.....Honda seems to be the best at getting the small details right.

Wow that's low miles. What was the bike doing for 11 years? Who owned it? How much did you pay? I thought I got a deal on my 98 with 4500 miles for 5k.

Not much of a story really. Retired guy that I bought it from bought it new. Kept it covered most of the time. I paid $3800 last fall. He was quite a character. I got 3 windscreens with it....He changed out the stock screen with an aftermarket one, then finally switched it out with a JDM one that is smoked that he bought while in Japan. He also purchased the mirrors from a Japanese market VFR because he liked the stalks better.

The bike also included a scottoiler and a Two Brothers Ti slip-on.

One thing about the way it vibrates through the pegs at high RPM. Is this normal? Most people rave about the smoothness of the bike.

I am beginning to see a pattern here. Those of us with only one bike have had a dual sport and own a VFR, and those who own more than one own a VFR and a dual sport. Am I seeing something here that isnt so, or am I just crazy. I had a KLR650 and hope to own another one when the VFR is paid for.

My 1986 VF1000R when I picked her up.....

My 1986 750 with my KLR. Had around 80,000 miles at this time and went through about 25 owners... Great bike and I would love to buy a 400cc next time... Looks like junk cosmetically but was mechanically very sound and no one would ever steal it. Kerker pipes were a bit too loud...

Check your chain for proper adjustment and tight spots. If that's good, have the starter valves synced.

I don't think it could be the chain, as the bike is equipped with an automatic oiler(scottoiler).


What are the "starter valves"?

Bought it last summer with 5200 miles on her with the Two Bros carbon pipe and the unmolested stocker included. Put alittle over 4k on her thru the fall. What a sweetheart, and I haven't owned a four banger since my 1982 CB900F.
Hope to never sell it. But I said that about the S3 and the Tiger.

Replace them with tapered bearings and live happily.

You can google the Honda part numbers pretty easily.

Just because the bike is equiped with an automatic chain oiler doesn't mean the chain can't be out of adjustment or worn out.

Starter valves are described beginning on page 5-78 of Honda service manual, and starter valve synchronization is described on page 5-81. They are associated with the f.i. system.

Thanks for the tip, the guy also had the service manual....didn't get much use with under 4k miles in 11 years

On an unrelated note: here in Illinois it is snowy and cold again. About three weeks ago it got up to 63 degrees. The streets had a lot of salt on them, so I declined to go for a ride even though I really wanted to. I thought "spring is here, wait to get the bike out until the roads are clear.....it isn't going to snow again"...........arghhh


Bill

I've got an '02:


In the garage with the FZ6 streetfighter: