1999 Honda VFR800 Interceptor. Owner: Emond Ling, Paso Robles, California.
This is the so-called fifth generation of the VFR?and it was essentially a new machine. The most obvious change was the slightly bigger V4 engine, enlarged from the 750?s 748cc to 781.7cc, just to be precise, and called the 800. The 750 figures were a bore of 70mm, stroke, 48.6mm, while the 800 had a 72mm bore and was mildly destroked to 48mm. No great change, really, with the shorter-stroke version spinning the dyno with 95 rear-wheel horsepower at 10,000 rpm. Nice torque, though not much in the lower revs, some 54 lb-ft coming on at 8,500.
A tail only a mother could love"
As most of us have heard many times, Honda had high hopes for this V4 engine when it was first introduced back in 1982. Soichiro Honda was not noted for his modesty, although he was very polite, and was rightfully proud of his 1969 CB750 with its in-line four engine that set the example for the Universal Japanese Motorcycle. And though he had officially retired in 1973, he thought the company could do it again with this new engine, which was appreciably narrower than the in-line four?all the better for cornering purposes. Nissin calipers gripped petal-style rotors.
The initial V4, the 1983 VF750F V45 Interceptor, had serious engine problems, and Honda chose to regenerate customer confidence in the design by completely redoing the machine from the wheels up, coming out with the first VFR in 1986. Minor changes were made over t...