THEN AND NOW: HONDA VFR800

Launched in 1998, the Honda VFR800 was once lauded as the world’s best sports-touring motorcycle.

While it can no longer lay claim to being the greatest, it has evolved significantly over the years and is still a fantastic multi-use bike.

Honda already had a long (and somewhat chequered) history with 90° V4 motorcycles prior to the 1998 introduction of the VFR800.

In fact it was way back in 1982 when Honda introduced the VF750S, which was replaced a year later by the sportier VF750F.

But the V4 engine proved fickle, with issues including fast-wearing cam chain adjusters and upper cylinder lubrication issues that resulted in pitted camshafts.

These issues were resolved with the launch of the VFR750 in 1986, which featured a redesigned 90° V4 with much more reliable gear-driven cams.

The VFR also scored a 180° crank instead of the 360° used in the VF750F, which gave it a completely different characteristic and a very unique (and pleasing) exhaust note.

All of a sudden Honda had a sports-touring hit on its hands.

The final incarnation of the VFR750F was available from 1994 to 1997; it was replaced by the VFR800 in 1998.

Then – 1998
Launched in 1998, the Honda VFR800Fi was a worthy successor to the brand’s popular VFR750F, which was widely regarded as the best sports-touring motorcycle of the era.

The VFR800 had a lot to live up to and it didn’t disappoint, with a super-smooth fuel-injected V4 engine delivering more than adequate power and torque throughout the rev range, a sweet handling chassis, a well padded seat and a comfortable riding position allowing for long, uninterrupted stints in the saddle.

Power came courtesy of a torque-laden, electronically fuel injected 782cc 90° V4 powerplant with gear-driven double overhead cams.

Claimed peak output was a healthy 81kW of power and 82Nm of torque.

Importantly for fans of the VFR, the injected 800 retained its predecessor’s fantastic gear-driven cam whine, along with that sweet V4 exhaust note, which could be (and usually was) enhanced by replacing the standard muffler with an aftermarket slip-on item.

High-rise exhaust systems were popular too, as they offered an uninterrupted view of the rear wheel, which was mounted to a trick single-sided swingarm.

Other than that swingarm, the rest of the chassis package was quite conservative, with an aluminium twin-spar frame, a preload adjustable 41mm fork up front and preload and rebound adjustable monoshock rear.

Honda equipped the VFR800 with a Dual Combined Braking System (DCBS), which linked the front and rear brakes via plumbing to the three-piston callipers.

While some ‘more enthusiastic’ riders were not fans of the linked braking system, others were more than happy with them, as they were well suited the sports-touring duties most VFRs were subjected to.

With a wet weight of 235kg, the VFR800 was not as light as some of the sportsbikes of the time, but it offered predictable handling and could be punted along at quite a clip in the right hands.

A relatively upright seating position and a generously padded seat provided ample touring comfort for rider and pillion alike, and attractive styling without racy graphics appealed to many who were over the boy-racer thing.

The current generation VFR800 was launched in 2014 and despite the same sports-touring mantra of the original model it is now a very different machine.

These days the VFR800 has chain driven cams and VTEC (Variable Valve Timing & Lift Electronic Control) valve actuation, which is a technology aimed at meeting ever-stricter noise and emissions standards, while offering good rideability at low revs and strong power output at high revs.

With VTEC, only two valves per cylinder are operated at low engine speeds and four valves per cylinder are operated once a set engine speed has been achieved.

VTEC technology, which was first introduced on the 2002 model VFR800, was not universally applauded at the time; many riders complained that the transition between two- and four-valve operation was too abrupt, so Honda tweaked the system in 2006.

The 2002-2013 model also had an under-seat exhaust system, which ate into valuable storage space.

While the current generation VFR800 retains the same chassis and engine as its immediate predecessor, a number of upgrades have brought it well and truly into the 21st Century.

It scores two-channel ABS and electronic traction control (TCS), a revised subframe, new bodywork, a new swingarm and a single side-mounted exhaust.

Overall weight savings amount to 10kg compared to its immediate predecessor.

Honda also upgraded the braking hardware in 2014 by fitting radial-mount four-piston callipers up front.

The VRF800 is still a comfortable long-distance mile eater and seat height on the current model can be adjusted by 20mm to suit riders of different statures.

A digital dash displays speed, engine revs, gear position, ambient temperature, fuel consumption and clock, and the VFR now has LED headlights, LED rear light unit with integrated indicators and positional lights in the mirrors.

The VFR800 is no longer Honda’s sports-touring flagship – that honour now goes to the VFR1200, which, ironically, has a less complex ‘Unicam’ SOHC engine without the VFR800’s VTEC system – but for those after a bike that can do everything well, this middleweight machine is still a jack of all trades.