Jump to content

Hello from SF Bay - new(ish) to bikes coming from cars


timmoer

Recommended Posts

Nice to meet everyone, I'm Tim, new(ish) to bikes, coming from the car world. I've been a car enthusiast as long as I can remember, got my first car (BMW E46) back in 2015 and it's still going strong at 366k km (~227k miles) today. My first (sort-of far-fetched) experience with motorcycles was FSAE, where we used a CBR600RR engine and I've been one of the drivers on our team all the years I was on it during undergrad - also did a ground-up wire harness and dyno tune with a Motec M150 which was a super-cool and fulfilling project. Ever since then I've always had a slight interest in motorcycles but living in an area (at the time) with lots of snow, expensive insurance, with parents etc. etc. and not having that much of a desire to actually own one meant it was not a priority.

 

But come November 2021 I'd just moved to the SF Bay and a very close friend had a couple bikes - somehow I got to riding pillion on one of them and that moment on I'd decided I HAD to have one. Other pluses were (mostly) good weather year-round with winding roads 10 minutes from my house, cheap insurance, having the motorcycle as my "daily" meant my car could go on collector's car insurance (with the mileage, I'd get pennies for it, and it's a somewhat special model in excellent condition), and lane splitting. Coincidentally my friend was moving back to Canada and was debating on whether to bring his bikes up with him, in the end he decided against it and I bought the bike I had my very first experience in, a 2006 SV650S. I've had it just over a year now and have put 5k miles since then, been to the hills a few times but nowadays its my commuter.

 

Sound is a very important element to me and as I researched and got more into motorcycles I came across the VFR - after watching a few youtube videos I knew I had to have one at some point since it sounds like a high-revving flat-plane crank V8 at full tilt. I wasn't super fussy with which generation, only that it had to be EFI (5th gen +) but was partial to the 5th gen because of the gear-driven cams, adding to the ear-orgasming appeal.

 

I'd been watching on and off the usual places for ads for some time, and 2 weeks ago I came across a reasonably-priced 1999 VFR with 36k miles on the clock not that far from me on craigslist. It was posted on a Friday afternoon, I came across it at 9PM that day and immediately called the owner. We spent about an hour on the phone and agreed to a visit the next afternoon - I poured over every page of the service manual writing down things to check and spent time lurking the forums for common issues.

Long story short everything major checked out, with the only real problems being a weak battery (I verified the charging system worked, owner said the reg/rec was upgraded at some point) and a front tire from 2007. Big bonus is that it came with the best plate ever, since in California the plates can stay with the vehicle. The VFR became mine within 24 hours of the craigslist posting, I think it was meant to be.

 

Anyways I'm looking forward to being a part of the community and hoping to learn and discuss common tricks and tips to keep these bikes going strong for the years to come! Some pics of my toys:

 

20230422_175743.thumb.jpg.4be0f0c274daca3aaf6096187e29703d.jpg

 

20230415_183751.thumb.jpg.d40b23d087351976a1d1942e22a37478.jpg

 

20230422_195422.thumb.jpg.f1fa671f0bb555fc224f2720ed955bfe.jpg

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome timmoer.

Glad you've caught the VFR V4 bug. Nice intro, a well cared for 5gen is a great machine, good news its already had a R/R upgrade. Sounds like you've done some good research.  Grounds and charging issues are what seem to affect the 5gen the most otherwise it's a reliable bike.

Hope it brings you many miles of enjoyment.

Cheers.:fing02: :wheel:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Welcome timmoer,

Your FSAE experience reminds me of mine a couple years back... except it was kind of the opposite situation. I already had my VFR but then I joined the EV team and that grew into cars. Good times. Anyways welcome, and maybe we could ride together! Im in the Bay Area too!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

That is a great plate indeed!

 

Welcome from the north bay. Thanks mainly to member JeffyJeff we manage to put together a ride or two each year, keep an eye out here at VFRD. Anyway I'm sure you'll end up at Alice's many times, just up the hill from you. Best wishes for lots of fun riding on a great bike in the fastest color!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
16 hours ago, timmoer said:

I'm Tim, new(ish) to bikes, coming from the car world

Welcome, Tim, and congratulations on finding a tidy 5th gen VFR800 - and a tasty looking E46 (w/M-Sport trim?).

You live near some great motorcycling roads: PCH, Cal-49, Mt Hamilton, Cal-25, but then they will all be familiar to you.

Always thought that white wheels look great on any VFR, this was my then new '98. And below is my M46 325Ci with M-sport trim at 135K km/80K miles.

 

gallery_6146_6562_574530.jpg

 

 

D200-F31311e2.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Welcome aboard! Them red 5 Gens are just so hard not to love! I bought my first VFR in 2011, a black '09 but something told me I needed another one, a little older and in red. Prior to a little health "hiccup" I suffered, both bikes were ridden quite often, the '09 as a commuter and the '01 as my track/canyon weapon.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for the warm welcome everyone!

 

On 5/8/2023 at 8:22 PM, Grum said:

Welcome timmoer.

Glad you've caught the VFR V4 bug. Nice intro, a well cared for 5gen is a great machine, good news its already had a R/R upgrade. Sounds like you've done some good research.  Grounds and charging issues are what seem to affect the 5gen the most otherwise it's a reliable bike.

Hope it brings you many miles of enjoyment.

Cheers.:fing02: :wheel:

 

That was my #1 worry - the battery was just 'ok' on the test ride and indicated 12.1 V after we got back. But I think we inadvertently left the ignition on for ~10 minutes while we talked and it got down to 10 V. We charged it a bit before riding to my place, I left it for a full week and the battery voltage didn't really change. Multimeter also didn't indicate any measurable drains so I was now confident I could commute to work and not get stranded. For good measure, I threw in an Antigravity battery just in case. 

 

Turns out my R/R is Rick's Motorsport I think (previous owner mentioned he installed it 10+ years ago) - not one of the Shindengen units everyone talks about. But checking voltage it does charge right off idle and voltage rises with engine speed so I think it's good enough!

0m0Qttc0q6sOQop1TLqucmrwZsMbXEU773xiY_B93dCOcHvy0bC4Su7MhDLG5me1eLax9ymzNRhNQZQZdylZYR5xDJAqJo_cAEkTdeoQ6MHxtOcJwDdsPH625f98kHGErImOXE4rg_NgU7tsHT8X0wribcee3gyBRPUYQd1VY0p1GdiBC1nGwNkX8TRq1emKftj1PytzR8xR85v1L2BodvZ15hQ0dZhuOA-WfUXwQaa4---IEtuiPrQsr9EQgzdMwqb9yBQ_Dm2EQwcEzzT336EHIxJYF-G5ARCvkuHi2d_yMsbfkWFtKf5rCsTgiHfKolPnv5wNaoUPMQvUuMOeiP8jFi_dg5WG_HLVR1P9iLxZKMzq8YqSA9NluTDhA64GeZ4Asvj2bJHbwD5bzBQVfYX0S1Pq25yzAGSz5JPDotxFuXehJraux2sWMrauDhIgxNIZVtM7H0h1w4Xc39EvuChHkoYoyxeDzQXKdrZyOaOA3llNg0eyJrwirCLOkPDqAL8gdbYvRBASAKf-mbyqS3Xga-AC8EFR0zZboi7Id6_2IeQFbO7Fwnh0d2wq8Kod--Tm04qRXGf_Z1HINtPbtVQt2BNlkMyFYMNYCMgi0TZK9dbmJJYh3RBn0uv7BNdr8HpQeyxg_Td_PatkX3qDz36e6CPwZE1VszKMbKwesIeKNUwLvOiwO1Z4s6-Pxf4Hy_hoAPGdN1I53ELNJlgYuESozXjIi2WSsAswwRZB8jdODn38mJBt4jFMSySu3-gHL2aH8bCIn6uJo7tayIYjL_Jtu9TzVUFncUnsk6aappaenk9Yd4b8mtGq9gp1sVnJvq2bJRL5RjOZIM_d2fcanRhMSjy_-NWzxpN_JfJsTUL3meKn_lk5zKf-gQKDPBf7SaSxbUxiMZzU_2r5d0kgJ7mKxJSN4lL1I1lxBIxHPccdydLpC8JSymLabycp9aIMxxgztOh5d09C=w1249-h937-s-no?authuser=0

 

19 hours ago, Greedy said:

Welcome timmoer,

Your FSAE experience reminds me of mine a couple years back... except it was kind of the opposite situation. I already had my VFR but then I joined the EV team and that grew into cars. Good times. Anyways welcome, and maybe we could ride together! Im in the Bay Area too!

 

Nice! I wonder how many 5th gens we have around the SF bay - I had never seen one in person up until I got mine. And then just 1 week later I saw another red one turning off Portola onto Old La Honda. Don't suppose that was you?

 

12 hours ago, St. Stephen said:

That is a great plate indeed!

 

Welcome from the north bay. Thanks mainly to member JeffyJeff we manage to put together a ride or two each year, keep an eye out here at VFRD. Anyway I'm sure you'll end up at Alice's many times, just up the hill from you. Best wishes for lots of fun riding on a great bike in the fastest color!

 

Will keep an eye out! Been to Alice's quite a few times with the old SV. Certainly some great riding roads around here.

 

8 hours ago, Lorne said:

Welcome, Tim, and congratulations on finding a tidy 5th gen VFR800 - and a tasty looking E46 (w/M-Sport trim?).

You live near some great motorcycling roads: PCH, Cal-49, Mt Hamilton, Cal-25, but then they will all be familiar to you.

Always thought that white wheels look great on any VFR, this was my then new '98. And below is my M46 325Ci with M-sport trim at 135K km/80K miles.

 

gallery_6146_6562_574530.jpg

 

 

D200-F31311e2.JPG

 

Glad to see someone with a mutual interest in these cars - yours is very pretty and I'm sure much less rusty than mine. I imported mine to California from Toronto (in fact, drove cross-country 3 times). It's technically a 'ZAM' (so Canadian ZHP, just no red needles on cluster). I have serious respect for this car - I did the math and I towed a ~2k lb trailer for my move no problem!

 

H-TEmbBm9UstXagDza8rEqY_PndmpPe2ydE1aUKwAkhqDENrCUtvO_ArmBEUpqx1nLVqefrplb_kpayzKb0-Q6A8QQCzUzr0S7_QszH8DdT394qBuqY8EFFhabNbEYUIBR2FCIiQcKFyMzrMNleuYDQF0p7JRq5C9KgfN1rKWaXzkcKckItZsGx7_-LaJreuk6Rycx8JtV50bDANmQG-wElCYjEin7PtpuhPpJ6lHt4qY7MIavJjYHr1xmXx7wXw5_qLoIct34NWziA9TcGjQZCqKERhjODXm1MmrhnYvi0-bgVNLRSFkS2wE0C4XlO-9Xo506ApYyD4Pxbsr8tyPSkOFvALJ1kDXIyS9J4DYMsPlVZ7UXqKkfmysPtot72q2T5i1QsCAwOD2wlOPCunPDXzLM-NuGU1pnYpd9eAnJgQg027ctDQG7VePLLJ6k-t7DpR56a0gKhaZNW5CFARhPoBIIUli8UANQOB0mwEarKMCyeyyhnBjx_jEm6A0j-XXVmQke_YJ0-DOA42_psdg7eX63Ge5RbZAHuLwGjce0dFt7SzV23zEZa4RnWNTvlZHCkBiAgKZMJDcWQ-cEj5_GhECuDD1DeEwtqFRUwpEcnQHF1jaMDxVMv3uSBcGzO9nJ69aGgj1i8zmGoV2IsBeq8JwSfXjVO86hMEF0MRhfGzTX31wB_Ja4LIslbaWBSAuH_hZh_C8ea4wnYJPAuptE9R42ncgyjWe2JQSSTzieUzrhCx9PEAjcZbVxDFzMawv-NCQ1L_qO61c0Y8R3HsOjmpApOplLa3uNE0Iho2aMNFbfoKid5z8MwUHHkPo5-0QocVH7dpFhoeJLZICSw8dMUZQoTZ30Yu7KucBArg9TFxtHE0DaqinySOdatqXSheRRTvkz3xElfcftTKo7c4xvmMo9fhazYBj35XNiOmcS8wAeoGhv72pkn165S8tc8SdnzDN8UbkOCq=w1249-h937-s-no?authuser=0

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Rick's should be fine as long as the rest of the system is working properly. I've had them in multiple bikes without issue. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

19 hours ago, timmoer said:

Nice! I wonder how many 5th gens we have around the SF bay - I had never seen one in person up until I got mine. And then just 1 week later I saw another red one turning off Portola onto Old La Honda. Don't suppose that was you?

Haha probably not. Yea they are very few given how old the bike is, but you do spot one every now and then. Hit me up if you wanna ride!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

5 hours ago, vfrgiving said:

Welcome.  36K miles should be nothing for a 5th generation as long as it was decently looked after.  I've put 36K on one in the last 8 months without much fuss.

haha what the hell, where the heck do you ride?! That's more than most people put in all their vehicles over a year

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer

Greetings & Salutations!!! 👋

 

I really do miss all the good rides in S.F. Bay Area!  Have you taken ride out to Pt. Reyes Lighthouse yet?

Going down to Santa Cruz on Skyline is also awesome. Don't forget Black Rd. and Bear Creek Rd. between Hwy 17 & Hwy 9

Link to comment
Share on other sites

6 hours ago, timmoer said:

haha what the hell, where the heck do you ride?! That's more than most people put in all their vehicles over a year

 

daily commuting use, rides across country, and other trips miles add up quick.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
On 5/10/2023 at 4:25 AM, timmoer said:

Nice! I wonder how many 5th gens we have around the SF bay - I had never seen one in person up until I got mine. And then just 1 week later I saw another red one turning off Portola onto Old La Honda. Don't suppose that was you?

 

After a while with these bikes you won't need to have seen it to know it was a VFR... :tongue:

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 hours ago, DannoXYZ said:

Greetings & Salutations!!! 👋

 

I really do miss all the good rides in S.F. Bay Area!  Have you taken ride out to Pt. Reyes Lighthouse yet?

Going down to Santa Cruz on Skyline is also awesome. Don't forget Black Rd. and Bear Creek Rd. between Hwy 17 & Hwy 9

 

Have not but maybe I should check it out! Have done Hwy 9 - so smooth with less risk than some of the other roads, especially in their current state. My typical route is San Mateo -> Hwy 92 -> Skyline -> La Honda out to San Gregorio -> Half Moon Bay -> San Mateo. Good little loop!

 

3 hours ago, JZH said:

 

After a while with these bikes you won't need to have seen it to know it was a VFR... :tongue:

 

Ciao,

 

JZH

 

That's why I was so drawn to this one particularly, with the gear-driven cams 😝

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • Member Contributer
40 minutes ago, timmoer said:

 

Have not but maybe I should check it out! Have done Hwy 9 - so smooth with less risk than some of the other roads, especially in their current state. My typical route is San Mateo -> Hwy 92 -> Skyline -> La Honda out to San Gregorio -> Half Moon Bay -> San Mateo. Good little loop!

 

 

 

That is a nice loop, so many good roads up there!  That's a sweet bike, maybe we should get another Bay Area Roll Call Ride going....

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.