I was torn between the knowledge that repair or just maintenance of a watercooled V-four with DOHC and 16 valves was likely to be expensive and the exhilaration that the brief test rider had provided. The dealer was no fool, he had seen the way I had looked longingly at the VFR750F's exquisite lines and noted the way I caressed the controls. I was a bit surprised that he actually let me have a test ride on a machine in immaculate condition, only a year old and with 5200 miles on the clock. But it was a cold January and stock was evidently hard to shift.
What finalised the deal was his revelation that the Honda engine featured gear driven camshafts. No more camchain tensioner nightmares like I had endured on my last machine, a CBX550F. I got the bike for 30% off the list price of a new machine, so the actual depreciation the original owner had to suffer does not bear thinking about. I thought then that I had acquired a bargain and 45000 miles later I have no reason to doubt that conclusion.
The V-four engine is a gem. It combines the low torque effortless nature of a V-twin with the gung-ho 'rev it until it dies' craziness of an across the frame four. It was as happy slouching about in top gear just above tickover as it was zooming down the back lanes held flat out in third or fourth. It was as comfortable cruising along at a steady ton as it was in the cut and thrust of the metropolis. I soon realised that the VFR was the most versatile of motorcycles I had come across.
Make no mistake, though, it was one heavy motorcycle The one time it fell over when the sidestand gave way on some soft tarmac I had to summon help to get the beast upright. Lugging it around at low speeds without using the engine was a right pain, not helped any by the way the three disc brakes stuck on. Once or twice the mass caught me out at low speeds when I didn’t correct it fast enough and a quick job of the boot was required to avoid metal and flesh destruction.
Most of the time, once more than 10mph was up, the mass faded into the background and the handling revealed itself as particularly precise, the bike stayed on line whilst chuckability was on par with the CBX550. Performance was exhilarating. The motor's mixture of mighty torque and high rev power was intoxicating, arm wrenching stuff. You could leave the bike in top gear from 30mph onwards, just grabbing a handful of throttle sufficient to propel the machine off into the distance at a thunderous rate.
I often found myself hurtling along the wrong side of the ton with an inane grin on my face, although beyond 120mph. a speed reached with remarkable ease, I chickened out as things happened far too fast for my liking.
The bike’s ease with top gear running was just as well as the gearbox was not the most precise device in the world and by the time 50000 miles were up had developed a couple of false neutrals. However, the Honda and I had aged together, and I was able to adapt my gear changing technique to the wear that went with increased mileage. It was, in fact, a far better change than I had experienced on past Honda fours so no great hassle to cope with — it just depends what you are used to.
The bike came with a set of new cheapo Contis which were barely adequate in coping with the way the power hit the back wheel in fast bands. The machine felt stable enough, but I was always aware that the tyres were not quite up to the power, and in the wet the bike often went into quite alarming slides when l was less than cautious with the twistgrip. The rear lasted for 5000 miles, the front would probably have gone for another 3000 miles, but I took the demise of the rear as an opportunity to fit a set of Roadrunners.
I was impressed by the improved grip and better wet weather manners but not so overjoyed when the rear was worn out in just 3000 miles. However, the front had plenty of tread left, so rather than risk mixing tyre brands or types I stuck another rear Avon on. The front did 6000 miles, which coincided with the second rear tyre wearing out.
Impressed with the roadholding of the Avons. I decided to try a set of Avon radials. I'm glad I let the tyre shop fit them, they had a hell of a job. The new rubber made the bike feel more comfortable as the construction of the tyres helps soak up minor road irregularities. The Honda's suspension is on the hard side of sports/touring, so a set of radials is an excellent way to tone down the ride for the more touring orientated rider.
Grip and feedback was as good, if not better, than the Roadrunners. I was happy to find out that the increased life of the radials more than compensated for their higher cost, the rear doing 7000 and the front 10000 miles. I later fitted a set of Metzeler Lasers but the rear was dead in 2500 miles and the front in 3750 miles. Although the grip was the best I had experienced it was not that much better than the radials, so I went back to Avons pretty damn quick.
Servicing the machine at the dealers cost £175 to £185 depending on the bits needed. I only let them have it every 10000 miles and did an oil change every 2500 miles to keep my mind at some kind of peace. Reliability of the engine and electrics has been absolute and power has not dropped off to any degree that I can detect over the 45000 miles I have done. However, the normally vibration free motor did develop a bit of midrange roughness once 30000 miles were on the clock. Especially annoying as this coincides with my 80-90mph motorway cruising speed. With 40k up, there was a slight tingling coming up through the footrests at most revs and engine noise had increased appreciably. However, a mate had a spin on it and thought it was wonderful, so perhaps I am being over critical.
Several things needed attention by the time the machine had accumulated 20000 miles. Most annoying was all three calipers sticking on simultaneously. A strip down cured that and they lasted for about 18000 miles before requiring yet further treatment. Front pads went for about 8000 miles, rears for twice that. Both the chain and sprockets were in need of replacement, although to be fair the chain was the original O-ring job and had required minimal attention. Subsequent chains only lasted 12000 miles, although the second set of sprockets are still on there with 50000 miles on the clock.
Rather more expensive was collector box demise and the rear shock's damping doing a disappearing act (must be made by the same people who produce FVQs). The latter had actually given up the ghost at 15000 miles but I had soldiered on for another 5000 miles, suffering a slight wallow through curves and a high speed weave for my pains. By the time I had rectified all the faults at 20000 miles I was 700 notes poorer and not a very happy man.
I had actually gone to the trouble of tearing the mono-shock linkages apart and smothering everything in grease. It paid off, as there is still no movement at the back end. The same couldn’t be said for the front end. The steering head bearings went at 27500 miles, the forks seals 2000 miles later and the wheel bearings at 37500 miles. My god, for a while I thought there would be no end to the hassle, but it did settle down again and hasn’t given much trouble recently.
It still looks smart in its pearl white finish, although the fairing has some nasty scratches where the machine fell over. Wheel finish is poor and various cycle bits have lost their gloss. That fairing is an excellent piece of work, it provides useful body and hand protection without being excessive in width.
The riding position is the perfect compromise and with the comfortable seat (although not for the pillion) I have done 750 miles in a day without inflicting too much bodily harm upon myself.
Fuel consumption has varied between 30 and 60mpg. It usually averages close to 45mpg, although lately it has been nearer to 40mpg. It still consumes no oil between changes, there are no engine leaks and no blue smoke out of the exhaust. I still have enough faith in the motor to plan 4000 mile rides into Europe and really have no intention of selling the machine yet - for the money I could get there is little that I could find to replace it.
Jack Flowers