Just bought my 2004 VFR800 Jolly Rodger

I have never owned a bike, though I've always wanted one. When I was in the USAF in the late '80s my buds all had motorcycles and I was the one with a car. Whenever they wanted to go on a date they were asking to borrow my vehicle when I wasn't doing anything. After a period of time I decided to get a motorcycle license and I made a deal with all that if they wanted my car I got their bike for the night. Fortunately, I was in Utah and one of my friends had a scooter that was 150cc and I was able to use it for the motorcycle riding test. My learning to ride bike was on my roommates 1982 Suzuki GS550ES, which I would recommend for anyone to learn on. Sooooo, from 1986-87 I was able to choose from a Hurricane 600, Ninja 600, VFR750 (shaft drive), and a 600 Katana to ride almost on a weekly basis. The VFR was my bike of choice at the time. Those were a fun couple of years. It's been a little over 20 years since then and I'll be 44 before the end of 2010 and I have "finally!" bought my dream bike. I had the fever this weekend and trolled Craigslist like a fiend and found a dealership that had the bike with my name on it.
The irony is that I have not ridden since the late '80s and I need to get a new "M" on my drivers license. I want to jump on the bike and start riding again, but I "need" to be careful and take it slow or I know I'll do something my body doesn't want to pay for, since I'm not used to riding these many years. Fortunately, my neighbor has a CBR1000 and he'll help me along. I'm going to take the local motorcycle driving safety class etc and ease back into it and enjoy myself. The bike came with a Two Brothers Exhaust, Competition Werkes Fender Eliminator, Billet Reservoir Caps, Satin Matte Black Finish, and a pair of New Tires.
Needless to say...I'm eXcited!!

 

Welcome to the madness! You will absolutely love the VFR, and it will provide you with many, many great miles of riding.

 

Thanks a bunch

 

Yes, welcome to the board! I've put only abotu 1000 miles on my 02 since I got it and have enjoyed every one of them.

 

Congrats man. That 2004 is the stock color and was only available on 2004 models. It is called asphalt black. See my picture to the left. Being a 2004 there are several recalls concerning the brakes and wiring harness that you should look into. Just call your local Honda dealer or Honda North America, give them your VIN, and they can tell you if the recalls have been completed or not. If not, they are free of charge to have done and will prevent your bike from melting down into a pile of metal and burnt plastic as well as keep you from rear ending a minivan and going through the rear window

The Honda and pirate logos on the side fairings aren't stock but the wings on the tank and interceptor logos on the back are. If you decide you want the factory color matched luggage then you will be better off to buy a different color and have it painted. In the last year I have religiously searched for matching hard bags and only came across a single set that were factory matched. Us 2004 asphalt black guys are few and far between. Get fresh fluid in everything and she will last you for forever. And by everything I mean it. Coolant, oil, brakes, cluch, AND forks. If she is your dream bike, what better time to start making the dream last forever than right from the start. Give it a few months and it will be time to start modding

 

Thanks Meatloaf. New fluids all around it is.

Now to find a damn manual!

This manual from:
http://www.themotorbookstore.com/hovfvtrema20.html

Looks pretty good and a decent price. The local bike store said it would be around $60 to order one through them.
Anyone have a preference...

 

congrats on the bike, looks great.
you can download a manual here if you would like.
the 2002 covers up to 2009 link below
http://vfrworld.com/forums/specifications/3161-downloadable-parts-catalogs-service-manuals.html

 

Thanks 02 VFR Rider

 

You will find any information you will ever need concerning your bike here on the forums. If it isn't in text it can be discussed in the chat and all will be revealed.

I dont know which 2 bros. pipe you've got but if you've got the stash, you may not be aware that the left pipe is a dummy pipe that can be used for storage as well.

That link is the official honda service manual and weighs in at about 192MB in size. I have it as well as a hard copy that I picked up off ebay for $20. Since I lost my job right before the VFR, I didn't have work's resources to have the manual printed and bound like I did my last bike. I enjoy having it in both forms. The pdf is handy for researching and quick lookups while the paper version is nice for working in the shop so that I don't have to get my dirty hands all over the laptop.

 

The bike looks really awesome!!

Looks like you are off to a good start, taking the school and having a riding buddy to discuss the various situations and how to mitigate risk. As you probably have figured out by now the new generation bikes have a performance envelope that far exceeds the abilities of the machines you rode in the eighties. They accelerate, brake an turn in a manner which is difficult to explain to mear mortal Cage drivers unless they have a Z06 vette or other expensive toys of that caliber. Spend the cash to get some good riding gear and wear it at all times. When you start to feel like you are comfortable on the bike, take and advanced riding school to bring your abilities up as high as possible. These skills will help you if things go bad on the street and there isn't time to think, you just have to react.

I'm looking forward to hearing more about your experiences this year!

Best Regards,

Brad.

 

Thanks Jethro.

Now to order the ICON Burn Baby Burn helmet in Black :

Ride Icon

 

Welcome aboard Vanth! +1 on the motorcycle driving class or MSF. Check this out:

Motorcycle Safety Foundation

Good luck and remember: ATGATT (All the gear, all the time)!

 

Great point Meatloaf (Hoosier)

 

Welcome aboard, Just sold a same bike for my friend Sad to see it go