Looking for a 4th or 5th gen VFR

I don't know all that much about VFR's. I have had Honda's CB-1, 599 and 919.
I am looking for something different. A VFR this time.
I like the looks of the 98-01's better.
Anything to look out for?

I am looking in the 3000-3800 price range. I have seen a few with only 20-25k miles on them.

 

You should be able to find what your looking for within that price range. The biggest issue with the 5 Gens is burnt connectors, dead RRs and/or stators. Basically when looking at one, see if you can get a closer look at the wiring under the fairings and see if there is any sign of over heated/melted connectors and/or wiring. The engines on the other hand seem to be pretty bullet proof.

Other than that, the suspension is the other thing that you might want to upgrade, of course depending on how you plan on using it. For commuting/touring and general street use, it's probably fine, but if you plan on pushing it in the canyons, new "legs" would make a big difference.

That being said, Welcome to The World x919!

 

Thanks OOTV

Checked out a 95 at lunch today. Just a short test ride , really liked how the bike fit.

 

Welcome welcome . Yep they are out there, just depends on what your gut is telling you. A clean 4th that's been taken care of can go as high as $3500 or low $1200. 5ths a tad more, there's a couple in the classified section here that might work, just depends on your location. Of coarse CL has em here and there too. As noted the Electric charging rectifier is its achilles heal, other than that, it's your typical motorcycle when it comes to what to look at when buying one, chain, tires, over finish, etc. Feel free to throw your questions out here, more than likely folks here will be glad to give their opinions

 

i'd go with a 98/99 over the last two years of the 5th gen. no catalytic converter, and a manual enrichment circuit for cold starts. May seem an odd bonus, but seeing as the auto wax idle gives tons of folks trouble on later vfr's, I actually prefer the manual linkage found on the 98/99.

charging system thing is NOT a VFR issue. it's an all Honda thing. from your cb-1 all the way up. In fact it's not even a Honda thing, it's an any manufacturer who uses that style of electrics thing which is pretty much everybody. for example just google "gsxr regulator problems" for example.

replace the voltage regulator with a MOSFET one, remove the plug and direct solder to stator wires. no need for wacky auxiliary harnesses.

 

A small but important correction: The fast idle circuit does not change enrichment/fuel ratio. It opens the starter valves, an alternate path for the air as the butterflies are closed at idle. Using temperature sensor input, the ECU determines the mixture at cold just like at any temperature. This circuit is the same as pulling the throttle, but using a different air path. The user-controlled lever is like a throttle lock to warm up the engine by increasing the rpm.