vf 500f2, to buy or walk away?

Rclark · « **on:** 7 Mar 2014, 11:32 pm »

Buddy of mine had a vf500 back in the day that I used to borrow from time to time and I loved it, was a great bike, the v4 engine had a great charisma. Was comfortable, great on the highway.

Getting back into motorcycles. Was going to get a Ninja300, a 2012, but ran into an ad for this beauty, a European model 500, the f2

Anyway, put a deposit on the bike, and as I am not a mechanic, had them take the head off the engine to swe the condition of the internals.

The bike has 19,000 miles and apparently there is some cam pitting

I rode the bike for 20 minutes on a test ride and on the highway and it ran fine. Plan on using Bell Ethanol Defense in the gas and maintaining the bike well.

Will be a daily commuter and run on extended road trips. Will I be okay with this bike?

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #1 on:** 7 Mar 2014, 11:38 pm »

First

Buy only at very low price.
Jap vintage parts are expensive.
This is a occasional bike for special days, not every day comutter.
V4s are hard to get access to do maintenance, even change spark plugs;

Rclark · « **Reply #2 on:** 7 Mar 2014, 11:55 pm »

Parts don't seem that expensive, just rare. Even whole engines are relatively cheap, few hundred bucks.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #3 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 12:00 am »

So not bad news; Do you ride fast?
Consider brakes and suspension perform as vintage bikes;
If it not a prob...

Rclark · « **Reply #4 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 12:31 am »

Used to. Mostly worried about "slightly pitted cams". A problem you think? I get to see face to face on Tuesday

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #5 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 12:51 am »

I think its a prob indeed, she is DOCH, it use 4 cams and 16 valves.
How about the cluth? (its hidraulic-no cable)
But if these parts are cheap as you said...
I see in the past one open the engine and the prob are various.

Rclark · « **Reply #6 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 06:00 am »

Clutch good, engine ran well, strong.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #7 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 06:05 pm »

If pistons compression is strong, I see no prob looking from here. - sorry the pun.
I sure you already inspect her for chrashes and frame/suspension anomalies.
Good luck

mcgsxr · « **Reply #8 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 06:28 pm »

I wouldn't be too concerned with the stated cam wear given the mileage.

I'd have an extra eye on the fork tubes and steering head area though - from that one pic it appears that the frame has slid on the ground. If it was just a lowside accident, that might be OK, but if it sustained a front end hit, I'd be looking deeply.

Any paint missing on the fairing mount, or does it look suspiciously newer than the rest of the bike?

I owned a ton of bikes taken from the track, and put several back on the street. As long as it was taken down far enough to address what might have happened, and depending on the price, they are nice small bikes.

jtwrace · « **Reply #9 on:** 8 Mar 2014, 10:44 pm »

Quote from: Rclark on 7 Mar 2014, 11:32 pm

Getting back into motorcycles. Was going to get a Ninja300, a 2012, but ran into an ad for this beauty, a European model 500, the f2

I think for your needs I'd go with the Ninja. Unless you have spare funds to keep up with this bike and the knowledge to fix it, I think it could make for a miserable purchase. I'm all about classic but if can't afford to fix it, it will not be fun. I promise. Oh, and I'm a bit too far away to help you with it otherwise I would.

Rclark · « **Reply #10 on:** 9 Mar 2014, 10:58 pm »

Hmm. Tough decision. Thanks Jason, makes sense. I know I would love the Ninja. Part of me wants to see if the VF will be okay though, the dealer is Honda only, and reputable, and they did a bit of work on it already.

I'm going in Tuesday to get my own look inside.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #11 on:** 9 Mar 2014, 11:14 pm »

I would prefer a Savage 650 lots of confort and light rubber belt drive.
At RIDE-UK mag they reported the London bike couriers get 150K km with this cb500 just by using a more heavy oil.
Unfortunately it is a parallel twin.

Rclark · « **Reply #12 on:** 13 Mar 2014, 06:58 pm »

Well I've decided to just hunker down another month and get the bike I really want, the Kawasaki Ninja 300. Just seems lile the perfect motorcycle if there could be such a thing. Vids below are pretty convincing.

372 lbs gassed

off the charts corner speed
Antilock brakes

slipper clutch

light clutch pull
70 MPG, can go higher (makes cross country trips guilt free)
Tons of aftermarket support and upgrades.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6f_VHe1wKw

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C9B6ed0rdT0

I say hunker down, I've already spent near a grand on bike stuff so I can be ready when it gets here.

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #13 on:** 14 Mar 2014, 07:02 am »

Well, I unaware you like small monos.
Good luck

low.pfile · « **Reply #14 on:** 14 Mar 2014, 07:33 am »

hey Rclark, I'm clueless on modern bikes. I just don't pay attention these days. but looking at the youtube vids you posted of the Ninja, it looks really tight. A very advanced bang for the buck--so much more than the vf500f2. Although, I missed your type of riding, so I wonder if it fits your bill?
From
http://www.topspeed.com/motorcycles/motorcycle-reviews/kawasaki/2014-kawasaki-ninja-300-ar160322.html#main ...I see it's a parallel twin. my first question is how much does it scream [decibels] on the highway at 65mph?

after dirt bikes, I started on a 1986 VFR700F and just rode it around SF. then a 99 SV650 then a 03 SV650 all over the city and northern cal. The VFR was great on the highway for the long haul, but the SV is more fun, in general. It seems that the Ninja could be your ticket if you are not doing long haul touring and/or a bigger dude--FWIW, i'm a smaller, not fast dude.

good luck.

Rclark · « **Reply #15 on:** 18 Apr 2014, 02:51 am »

To put this thread to rest, I just today bought this '06 Ninja 500r for a song. Very happy. Got a fabulous price. Will be upgrading with full exhaust, suspension work, a solo seat, and other things.

For a daily rider commuter that can hang in the twisties, I think I did well.

Has already paid for itself. On the ride home I sailed past endless parked, angry throngs while in the carpool lane.

mcgsxr · « **Reply #16 on:** 18 Apr 2014, 12:31 pm »

My first bike was an '89 Suzi GS500E, the natural enemy of the Ninja 500!

The Ninja was always reputed to have a stronger motor, and mildly more sporting feel.

I think you made a great choice, have fun out there!

FullRangeMan · « **Reply #17 on:** 18 Apr 2014, 04:39 pm »

There is the Custom version:

Rclark · « **Reply #18 on:** 22 Apr 2014, 05:49 am »

Thanks! Absolutely loving this bike, and saved so much I was able to order lots of stuff with the remainder. I'll show the final result next month, the bike will be quite different.

First long road trip is this thursday. Got a giant Anker 15,000 mAh external battery for my phone, looking forward to plotting some nice twisty roads and having GPS announce the way in my helmet, and music too. Galaxy S4 is a pretty good sounding phone, btw, and I have a Music Unlimited subscription. So plenty of juice on hand to not worry about saving power.

Should be a good time, just been commuting and putting around a little bit. On Thursday though, either Mt.St.Helens or the ocean. Just waiting on my saddlebags to arrive.

Folsom · « **Reply #19 on:** 1 Jul 2014, 06:28 pm »

The big deal with the Honda v4's is whether or not they had the oil recall/update done.

I don't think a single other bike mentioned in this thread could even stand up to the Honda. The v4 puts out enough power to go onto the freeway. The rest of these would be frightening to ride on it.

That 500 is like a 750 DOHC inline 4, for power. If not a bit more until you compare it to early 90's or later.