VTR1000 firestorms, any problems to look for when buying??

[tony]

as per the title, been offered what seems to be quite a smart firestorm and quite fancy it, but know nowt about them

tis a 1997 model in repsol colours

cheap but a long way form me so trying to find out any problems that I need to ask about or check should I make the trip to see it

thanks

[graham22]

My dad had one and he liked it far more than his ZX9R.

They are pretty much reliable but do suffer from cam-chain tensioners letting go. His happened twice on the same cylinder. Problem is they let go without warning, his first was at tickover and it just needed the tensioner replacing (£15-£20). the second time it went was at speed damaging valves (pistons/seats OK).

For the cost involved it's worth replacing them every couple of years. Just make sure the one you looking at has compression - they may still run with slightly bent valves.

Otherwise they are typical Honda build quality, handle reasonably OK, nice V-twin alternative to a CBR600. People moan about the fuel range but you can get over 100miles to the tankful, the trick is to fill the bike up whilst upright.

Repsol coloured - is it down this way? Fonzie's one?

[VTR]

People moan about the fuel range but you can get over 100miles to the tankful, the trick is to fill the bike up whilst upright.

I doubt whether you'd get that much more in compared to filling it on the side stand. The 'trick' is to not ride it like an il4 (in other words thrash it all the time), if you use the torque of the v twin motor it's quite easy to see silly speeds as well as return around 115 - 125 miles till the light came on. Admittedly the tank is small at 16 litres (as far as I remember).

I had one for 7 years, bought it new, rode it in all weathers, done a bit of touring on it & it served me very well. Nothing ever went wrong with it in the time that I owned it.
I have heard of problems with the cam chain tensioner (although it never happened to me), & I beleive it was mainly the early bikes like the one you are looking at. Check if they've been replaced & if not factor in the cost of doing so.
They can have a tendancy to cough & die at junctions/traffic lights when idling, this mainly happened in the 1st 1000 miles from new (not a problem for the bike you're looking at!!!) & can be solved by turning the idle speed up slightly, just to the higher value quoted in the manual. Also the standard exhaust can strangle the mid range a bit, putting different cans on smooths this out, it also sorts the coughing, gives better fuel consumption & of course improves the sound Having it set up properly on dyno would improve things more, but it's not strictly necessary.
Build quality is good, as you'd expect from a Honda, but I think it was built to a price. Not bargin basement like say a Bandit, but as I had a VFR 750 before, the difference was noticeable.
Weather protection isn't that good as the bike is quite slim. The riding position is ok, but can get a tiny bit achey on the wrists if you find yourself stuck in town traffic for a long time, but generally it's not that bad.
Personally I thought it was a good, capable, low maintenance bike that you could just bimble around on, or turn up the wick & have some fun......a bit like a torquier VFR with half the fairing.

[TLS-Moose]

On the other hand, buy what the VTR should have been ....... a TL

[Bladerunner]

On the other hand, buy what the VTR should have been ....... a TL

The original TLS was a good bit of kit despite the poor suspension, but he TLR was rubbish, suzuki killed it in the design stages after being heavily caned by 'More Crap than News'. They made it way too heavy and under-powered.

The VTR Firestorm was a good bike, I have worked for Honda dealerships for approx 7 years, 3 of which as a workshop manager for one of the biggest Honda dealers in the country, and the only prob that springs to mind is as already mentioned the cam chain tensioner on early models.

Early models also respond very well to fitting a K&N filter and Dynojet Kit, makes them much more responsive with big midrange BHP gains. Also makes them great fun for wheelies if you're that way inclined......

[tony]

cheers guys, its £700 so cheap enough to not be too fussy

looks like Im off to wales some time soon

[Mike Rowley]

cheers guys, its £700 so cheap enough to not be too fussy

looks like Im off to wales some time soon

Like VTR I had one from new from 1999, chopped it in for a new SP2 in late August.

I had sidekick titanium high level race cans, a K & N filter, had it Dyna jetted, fitted kevlar brake lines and fitted a 14 tooth front sprocket to lower the gear ratio. When I chopped it in it had done 24,000 miles. In that time I had fitted a new set of head bearings. Other than that only routine servicing was needed. Never had a problem with the cam tensioners.

The dyno read 106 bhp at the back wheel which probably meant about 116 - 120 bhp at the engine. This was done by Bridges when the bike had done about 2500 miles so it was probably still a bit tight. The filter and jetting sorted out the coughing at low revs when snapping open the throttle that I experienced when the bike was new.

I used to get about 116 miles to the low fuel light on average, this meant I had about 30 miles left in the tank but on one track day in France I managed to get that down to 69 miles, that was really hammering it though. Like VTR says, you don't need to thrash these bikes on the road, the linear power delivery is awsome.

All in all the bike was totally reliable, handled really well for a parts bin bike and was quick enough to keep up with any sportsbike. The weak points were probably the suspension and brakes which I would describe as adequate. However, I am comparing them to the SP2 which is probably unfair.

Overall it was an excellent bike and very under rated by the journos in my opinion. If it is your first big V twin it is a very reliable and forgiving bike.

Mike

[deej]

mike/vtr was there any problems with the sp1s at all and would you have any advice on buying one ?

[Mike Rowley]

mike/vtr was there any problems with the sp1s at all and would you have any advice on buying one ?

Hi Deej

Not sure about SP1s, never owned one. I think they had problems with jerky throttle response, particularly at low revs but also a very on-off type response with little progression. This was addressed with the SP2 by increasing the number of jets on the injectors to 12 I think. I had a litle bit of the low rev snatching with the SP2 but it has more or less gone away with fitting a Power Commander and Remus cans. There is sometimes a need to adjust the starter valves to cure this completely.

Some people find the gearing a bit tall. When you think of the bikes pedigree its not surprising really, they were built for the track. People have fitted a non-standard sprockets to drop the ratio. The fuel range is a bit low, I get about 128 to the low fuel light which is about 45 mpg but I have heard of people dropping this to 75 miles to a tank when really caining it.

Some people have changed the fork springs and fitted an Ohlins shock on the rear. The thinking is that the standard fork springs are too soft and the standard shock is too stiff. I haven't had any problems in this respect but if you were racing or tend to ride very quickly this seems to be the norm.

Other than that I have not heard of any problems, they seem to be standard Honda - bullet proof. Quite a lot of SP1s have been used as track bikes, you probably know the tell tale signs.

Have a look on the Honda Forums, there is quite a lot of info specific to SPs on there.

[deej]

cool, thanks for the advice mate

[Mike Rowley]

Have a look here, forum.honda-forums.com. If you log in you will find a whole section devoted to SP1/2s. Just about all the info you need is on there.

Cheers.

[VTR]

mike/vtr was there any problems with the sp1s at all and would you have any advice on buying one ?

I too have only ever had the SP2 so can't comment about any problems with regard to the SP1. As Dynamight has an SP1 he may be able to let you know of any problems, & Mike has pretty much mentioned everything in his post. There were a few differences in as much as the SP2 was made slightly less stiff to allow more feedback to the rider, but I suppose unless your racing the average rider wouldn't notice any difference to be honest

The starter valves adjustment I'd recommend to anyone with an Fi bike, it's basically similar to balancing/synching the carbs back in the old days before Fi. It's probably more noticeable with a twin or v4 than an il4.....I know my VFR 800Fi runs a lot smoother since I adjusted them, & they were quite a way out too The VFR vtec is apparently transformed from a snatchy bike to a much smoother, manageable bike at low revs/speeds.

If you're interested have a read of these 2 threads from the VFR forum on Bikers Oracle, the 1st ones a bit long winded but describes the reasons behind doing the adjustment & the 2nd one is a walk through of how to do it on a VFR. I guess the op would be similar on other bikes too.

http://www.bikersoracle.com/vfr/forum/s ... ter+valves

http://www.bikersoracle.com/vfr/forum/s ... hp?t=77127

[deej]

cheers guys, looks a good site with lots of info