New member, and new to me 98 VFR 800

So I've been riding for a solid amount of time and have had my ups and downs with riding. I got hit at the track and broke my collarbone really bad (for the second time on that specific colarbone) and then recently broke my femur racing motocross. Needless to say... I am in need of toning things down a fair bit. I was bringing a Vulcan 500 (my 14th bike) back to life to just have to fart around on, and it restored my interest in a street bike again. I then rode it for 150 miles... and it blew up on me.

it was a well timed situation. I came into a sizable chunk of change from some contract work I completed so I was in the market for a bike. I found a 1998 Honda VFR 800 in great condition (16k miles) and it impressed me... so I ran out and bought it. Now it's my 15th bike!



There it is in the parking lot of Timerline Lodge up here on Mt. Hood. I took it for a quick spin to see what it's about. Here's some initial thoughts, upon which maybe some of you can comment.

• Hit a big old false neutral... Why is this a honda problem? I had the same issue years ago on a CBR600F2. Factory pro shift kit is probably in order.
• Power... feels really underwhelming. My last two bikes were GSXR 750's and this bike just doesn't compare. I expected it to carry a lot more power from the low end.
• Chasis. The dunlop roadsmarts feel like crap on it, but they could be excessively aged. The suspension is also kind of mucky, specifically the front. It plunges right through the first 20% of front fork travel on braking, which in turn I think is making it feel wandering in some turns.

Initial plans and/or questions:

• Tires: I'm thinking Michellin Pilot Road 3's. I've had amazing success with Michellin on the street. Pilot Powers, Pilot Power 2ct's, Pilot Commanders. Really feeling thes
• Front fork rebuild and respring. At me being 215lbs or so, do you think revalving is required? Any other things I aughta know? Rear
• Perform pair valve modification, along with flapper mod, if these apply to this bike. What's involved with just removing these, and are there any true weight savings?
• Snorkel removal. Seems straight forward, and sensible. Airbox modification also seems sensible. Anyone got any dyno proof on these?
• Dyno tuning. We've got a great dyno tuner out here in the Pacific Northwest who's really helped me sort a lot of bikes for a very reasonable fee. Does anyone have any before and after charts to demonstrate that it's actually worth it though on these bikes?

 

you are going to want heavier springs, maybe a revalve as well.
I have nothing but good to say about the pr3 tires.
as far as power, prepare to hear a lot of people tell you that you got the wrong bike.
if you like modifying there is plenty to do (pm me and i will have plenty for you to do).
if you don't like modifying i would just stick to the basics:
Flapper, Pair valves, slip on, pc3, tune and a 520 one down up front sprocket kit.

as far as the flapper dyno, here you go, its in this tread:

http://vfrworld.com/forums/mechanics-garage/27350-airbox-mod-vfr800.html


We go through this about once a week. So get ready for the flame war. lol

 

Here incase you are too lazy lol

 

You're looking at about 1-2 whp.
While that doesn't amount to a whole lot, I am just making a point that taking it off doesn't hurt anything.

 

OK that is enough post whore ound:
Thanks candy red for entertain our noob
:welcome: to the madness good job posting picture.
Please ride safe and ATGATT.
BTW I think J found your perfect bike

 

ehhh im not so much into ducatis, but i could definitely do a 16rr. dream bike would be more like an aprilia rsv4.

 

Ya know... I've got the time... and I just may pony up the money if I come to like this bike enough... I could dyno this bike before mods before tune, with no mods and just exhaust and tuned, then mods and tuned to see where I land at.


First for sure though is some new front fork springs. I looked at what racetech recommends and OEM is way the hell off. The rear isn't nearly as off, which coincidentally coincides with what I was getting from riding the bike. Real soft up front... not sure why?

Now to see if I can find some used springs in .95 for up front, and possibly a rear shock spring at 16.1. Then just dump, pump and change the front, swap the rear, and see if I start to feel this bike a ton more.

I should add: With a side by side overlayed graph for the comparison. I've got a few of these for various bikes I've owned. CBR600F2 vs F4i (internet posturing), 06 GSXR 750 vs 00 GSXR 750 (the 2000 won!), etc etc.

 

Can you post those up please?




heres an overlay of a stock 07 and mine a few years back (pc3, motad, 2 bros, bmc, no snorkel/flapper)







and mine by itself (a whopping 100.93whp)




i have yet to dyno and tune it since, i have added:
pipercross air filter, r6 velocity stacks, ported throttle bodies, rapid bike fuel/ignition module,
and a two brothers full race system (currently sitting in box in garage)
but i am hopping for at least 110 to the wheel.

 

I'll have to dig them up, it's been a while

I have the 06 vs 00 gsxr 750 on my wall if I need to scan it again though.

Those are some good gains on your 07. Seems typical to me. A lot of people don't realize that these bikes are fixed fueling system, with a set amount of fuel for a given RPM and throttle. They don't just magically adjust themselves when you throw parts on them.

 

Alright, here are two I dug up:



CBR 600 F2 vs CBR600F4i. Both tuned, aftermarket exhaust, K+N Filters.



My 07 GSXR 750 tuned.


I never scanned the 2000 GSXR 750 vs 00 gsxr 750. I bought it, did one track day, got a dyno run on it while I was there... then got hit and broke my colarbone and later sold the bike. I'll scan the chart sometime though. I'm proud of the comparison between those two. The 00 GSXR 750 was putting out 135 HP and had a lot of power over the 2006 all accross the powerband. The 06 however had an extra 750rpm available to it.

 

So what is that second pic? The 2006 stock versus tuned? Man I would love to have that much power, but you are talking major money there. That would require cylinder head port/polishing/milling and big cams on top of what I have now, and probably 75mm over bore high compression pistons (848cc). Not to mention extending the rev limiter at least another 1000 rpms.
One day....

 

Second pic is GSXR 750 with LeoVince slip on and K+N Air filter before dyno tune and afterwards. As most people should know, simply slapping shit on or changing things up doesn't add power, and infact frequently sometimes makes a bike run worse or dangerously lean.

In the case of my GSXR, I gained a good amount of power and smooth throttle response with the dyno tuning.

The 2000 GSXR 750 I had with a super sport engine build though was friggen nuts. 6 more HP over the 06 all accross the board and it pulled like a freight train. The thing hit plaid speed on straighaways at the race track.


This is all why I'm finding the VFR800 a bit drab. I didn't expect as much top end power, but I expected more torque and a broader spectrum of power. I'm finding I have to ride this thing like a 600cc sport bike though. Downshift to pass, not nearly the low-end torque it should have... Not all that impressed. Modifications to come though... but nothing on par with boring the engine out or anything.

First is the front forks. Respringing them and changing out the oil seems to be a mighty simply task on these puppies.

 

If you look at both of our graphs, the gsxr and vfr are both crossing the 50 ft/lb mark at about 7250. id say the power under 7000 is equal. i dont think its the lack of lowend power that youre feeling, I would say it is more of excess weight as opposed to the gixxer that you are feeling.

If you want to remedy this you need to focus on reducing weight. both static and rotational weight. It all adds up.
Also, a 520 one down up front kit works wonders, along side an ignition advance. My vfr pulls like a freight train down low.
Bumping up the ignition on the bottom end adds a tremendous amount of ass in the 3000-7000 rpm range, roughly 8% more power to the wheel at 5000 rpms.

 

I'm not saying this bike lacks lowend power compared to the GSXR 750, I'm saying the GSXR 750 lacks low end power and is a top end screamer, and yet it has the same profile as the VFR 800... only the VFR800 signs off way earlier. So it's the same as a bike lacking low end power on the bottom, and then falls off where even 600cc bikes take off. I guess I just expected with so much top end loss we'd have a notable low end gain. Like a Ducati or an SV1000 where the torque band is really wide despite a slightly inferior top end power delivery.


Enough complaining about that though... tell me more about the ignition advance! I'm not so interested in dropping a tooth up front as I want to maintain mileage, although a tooth or two up in the rear might be in order, for just a bit of extra spunk.

 

-1 tooth front equals +2.5 in back right?
anyways, the vfr800 is tuned for regular fuel. get a rapid bike 2 or 3. that will give you the ability to tune the ignition mapping. then you can tune it for 93.

 

It will depends on the gearing ratio.

Rapid bike, I've not heard of this. I'll research it.

Good to know about being tuned for regular fuel. So am I just wasting dollars by going with premium? I don't want to hear any quality blah blah from any random people either! I know it's largely about volatility and ability to stand compression before igniting and potential energy.

EDIT: I don't mean this for you mind you, you obviously know your stuff. I just tire of people with no idea telling me it's about fuel QUALITY when it has nothing to do with that at all...

 

Oh, and I'm not seeing a rapid bike 2 or 3 for my VFR800Fi?