Jump to content

New to me Y2K


5thGen316

Recommended Posts

Hey everyone. It's been awhile since I have been here, almost exactly a year since my 04 got stolen:mad:.  Anyway, I am very excited to be back on a 5th Gen. PO took great care of this thing and I have a whole list of things I want to do!  

 

This thing is a gem. The Bike has just over 5k miles on it and its only blem is on the right fairing. Got my vfrness installed and ready to do some riding! I have a chinese windscreen, Sargent seat and a few other fun things on order. Any other recommendations on 'must do' mods? I am excited to have the V4 music back in my life. The Magna is fun, but just not the same.

 

Chris

20171001_100944.jpg

Screenshot_20170924-094625.png

Screenshot_20170925-201842.png

20171001_113023.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

The problem with these low-miles, "perfectly preserved" 5th Gens is that in spite of their garage-queen status they are nonetheless still approaching 20 years old.  In the last 2 years I've purchased 2 low-mileage 5th Gen VFRs, and it seems (based on the evidence I've seen) that the kind of owner who owns a bike for almost 20 years while only putting on somewhere between 5,000 and 20,000 miles can be a bit of a strange guy when it comes to maintenance.  He's really into oil changes, which is great because when you buy his bike you get a like-new engine.  But he's just not into long-term maintenance, maybe because he's not a wrench-turning type, or maybe he's older or maybe he's too cheap to bring it to the dealership.

 

Both of my 5th Gen VFRs are wonderfully preserved bikes, but in both cases they hadn't received the long-term maintenance that they should have gotten.  I'm talking about nearly 20 year-old fork oil, fork seals, thermostat, fast-idle wax-core unit, crusty and age-flattened cooling system O-rings, never had the valves checked or adjusted, 20 years without cleaning out the hydraulic clutch master and slave cylinders and reservoirs, same goes for the brake system master cylinders and reservoirs, really old spark plugs (one of my 5th Gens, the '99 model, had the originals in there), ancient air filter element, ancient tires (horrifyingly old front tire and bald, squared-off rear tire) and the list goes on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

12 hours ago, Switchblade said:

I see the little Magna hiding in the back.  And welcome from the WORLD FAMOUS DRAGON ....

And if you look closely there's an even smaller 71 CL175 behind it.  I would love to take a ride down the dragon, have not had a chance to make it out there yet.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

9 hours ago, GreginDenver said:

The problem with these low-miles, "perfectly preserved" 5th Gens is that in spite of their garage-queen status they are nonetheless still approaching 20 years old.  In the last 2 years I've purchased 2 low-mileage 5th Gen VFRs, and it seems (based on the evidence I've seen) that the kind of owner who owns a bike for almost 20 years while only putting on somewhere between 5,000 and 20,000 miles can be a bit of a strange guy when it comes to maintenance.  He's really into oil changes, which is great because when you buy his bike you get a like-new engine.  But he's just not into long-term maintenance, maybe because he's not a wrench-turning type, or maybe he's older or maybe he's too cheap to bring it to the dealership.

 

Both of my 5th Gen VFRs are wonderfully preserved bikes, but in both cases they hadn't received the long-term maintenance that they should have gotten.  I'm talking about nearly 20 year-old fork oil, fork seals, thermostat, fast-idle wax-core unit, crusty and age-flattened cooling system O-rings, never had the valves checked or adjusted, 20 years without cleaning out the hydraulic clutch master and slave cylinders and reservoirs, same goes for the brake system master cylinders and reservoirs, really old spark plugs (one of my 5th Gens, the '99 model, had the originals in there), ancient air filter element, ancient tires (horrifyingly old front tire and bald, squared-off rear tire) and the list goes on.

 

6 hours ago, VFR Newbie said:

Yup.  I'm the middle of this as well.

 

pretty much every rubber part is getting replaced.

 

Yes, when I purchased this bike I pretty much expected all the PO had done was maybe change the oil.  None of the receipts he provided show anything but an oil change, new tires, and having the Micron slipon installed...  I have plans to flush all of the fluids, probably a K&N not sure if I will upgrade the front forks or just flush them out and check the seals.  I forgot to mention I have already replaced the 10+ year old tires with some Metzlers.  I don't like running anything over 5 or 6 years old. 

 

I am not sure where he stored the bike, but all of the plastic and rubber hoses don't show much deterioration and no cracking.  As for the thermostat, I hope to never have to do one again on a 5th gen as it is NOT fun at all!  I do have plenty of space to work on it, but I want to invest in a good vacuum bleeder as the hand pump can get a little old (especially with the 85 bleed points on the 5th gen brake system).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Congrats. I've had a couple of Y2Ks and my experience they take 20 years off ones age. And you'll have to fight off hordes of beautiful examples of the opposit sex. :pinocchio:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Very tidy VFR you have there, Chris.

 

I never liked the very squidgy footage rubbers and changed them. The VTec pegs have a firmer pad and look better to boot. (I also changed to the condom-less mirrors, but your Y2K already has 'em)

 

I painted the heat shield silver grey, trying to match it to the frame. And painted the wheels white - though rear in this pic is a 3rd gen 8-spoke.

A Yoshimura RS3 is, imnsho, the best looking muffler, but might be difficult to locate now.

 

med_gallery_6146_6562_229497.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 12/21/2017 at 8:15 PM, 5thGen316 said:

 

 

Yes, when I purchased this bike I pretty much expected all the PO had done was maybe change the oil.  None of the receipts he provided show anything but an oil change, new tires, and having the Micron slipon installed...  I have plans to flush all of the fluids, probably a K&N not sure if I will upgrade the front forks or just flush them out and check the seals.  I forgot to mention I have already replaced the 10+ year old tires with some Metzlers.  I don't like running anything over 5 or 6 years old. 

 

I am not sure where he stored the bike, but all of the plastic and rubber hoses don't show much deterioration and no cracking.  As for the thermostat, I hope to never have to do one again on a 5th gen as it is NOT fun at all!  I do have plenty of space to work on it, but I want to invest in a good vacuum bleeder as the hand pump can get a little old (especially with the 85 bleed points on the 5th gen brake system).

 

A 5th Gen VFR800 developing thermostat problems seems to be an inevitable thing, apparently it's gonna happen, just a question of when.  The "how" of the failure mode of the thermostat in any particular individual 5th Gen VFR800 is the part of the problem that's highly variable.  I've read forum thread posts that described: Thermostat stuck in full-open position, Thermostat stuck in full-closed postition, Thermostat stuck in a somewhere-in-between positioin, and Thermostat still moving but obviously only moving through part of its intended range.  And each of these various failure modes manifests in its own set of symptoms when the bike is ridden, sometimes noticable only during hot weather or only cold weather, etc.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 4 weeks later...
On 22/12/2017 at 5:13 AM, GreginDenver said:

The problem with these low-miles, "perfectly preserved" 5th Gens is that in spite of their garage-queen status they are nonetheless still approaching 20 years old.  In the last 2 years I've purchased 2 low-mileage 5th Gen VFRs, and it seems (based on the evidence I've seen) that the kind of owner who owns a bike for almost 20 years while only putting on somewhere between 5,000 and 20,000 miles can be a bit of a strange guy when it comes to maintenance.  He's really into oil changes, which is great because when you buy his bike you get a like-new engine.  But he's just not into long-term maintenance, maybe because he's not a wrench-turning type, or maybe he's older or maybe he's too cheap to bring it to the dealership.

 

Both of my 5th Gen VFRs are wonderfully preserved bikes, but in both cases they hadn't received the long-term maintenance that they should have gotten.  I'm talking about nearly 20 year-old fork oil, fork seals, thermostat, fast-idle wax-core unit, crusty and age-flattened cooling system O-rings, never had the valves checked or adjusted, 20 years without cleaning out the hydraulic clutch master and slave cylinders and reservoirs, same goes for the brake system master cylinders and reservoirs, really old spark plugs (one of my 5th Gens, the '99 model, had the originals in there), ancient air filter element, ancient tires (horrifyingly old front tire and bald, squared-off rear tire) and the list goes on.

Thanks for this brilliant advice. Am about to take delivery of my first VFR, a nice 5th Gen 1999 with 21,000 miles on the clock. Have done deep maintenance on other modern bikes but the VFR will be a whole new learning curve for me. Looking forward to it with anticipation!576078960.thumb.jpg.6f63ab62d3c444eb328517d345ed1597.jpg576079154.thumb.jpg.ffab863642e5dd99c14b6090d77b8313.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

To 5thgen216: that's quite a quiver of two-wheeled machines. Good for you. I've had a couple of 2000s and they un-age a person by 20 years. And they are babe' magnets. :pinocchio:

18 hours ago, autopilotone said:

Thanks for this brilliant advice. Am about to take delivery of my first VFR, a nice 5th Gen 1999 with 21,000 miles on the clock. Have done deep maintenance on other modern bikes but the VFR will be a whole new learning curve for me. Looking forward to it with anticipation!

Welcome to the asylum. You obviously have great taste in mc's and VFRs. Best gen in the fastest color.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Privacy Policy.