The first production sportbike

25088 Views 82 Replies 53 Participants Last post by bear56, Jul 26, 2006

motorcyclerider

Discussion Starter · Aug 4, 2000

We've been thru cafe racers and factory produced "cafe racers", Even though by the middle 80's bikes like the Yamaha FZ'z & Kawasaki GPZ series, gained more body work., they were still basicly the "cafe style" machine incased in more plastic.

What many consider the first true production sportbike was the 1983 VF750 by Honda, the bike was totally designed from a clean sheet of paper for Honda Superbike racing and a street version with the "V-4" motor was produced, with it's alum. perimiter style frame and racey bodywork, it made every other bike obsolete. The dawn of the age of "specialization" was born, the era of the "cafe racer" was laid to rest.

http://britrider.tripod.com/1983interceptor.jpg

1983 Honda VF750

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BJ Ondo, "Old Fart"
Colorado
1980 GS1100E Suzuki
"Classic Sport Bike"

[This message has been edited by motorcyclerider (edited August 04, 2000).]

1 - 20 of 83 Posts

JDM1200

· #2 · Aug 4, 2000

A true classic and another of my all time favs along with its 86 model brother the first VFR. And don't forget the VF500.

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Ride the Pace,
JD

auger

· #3 · Aug 4, 2000

I agree that the Honda VFR was probably the first capable(at winning races)sportbike from the big four.But the bike that started the racing crouch posture was the original Katana.(yes,I`m biased).

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AZ Scott

· #4 · Aug 4, 2000

Tsk, tsk, BJ! The VF750 had a STEEL frame! The VFR in 1987 introduced the aluminum frame to the Interceptor line...

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A fool and his money are soon partying.

motorcyclerider

Discussion Starter · #5 · Aug 4, 2000

AZ Scott, I guess ya figured "I don't get paid for this", LOL!

Your quite correct on the frame material.

Humm, the Orginal Katana was more a "exersize in styling" than the first production sport bike. Don't get me wrong, I think their pretty slick looking!

Will slowly add the "major players" in production sport bikes as we go along but I was around when "HONDA stunned the racing world with the VF-V4"! The "madness" of motorcycle specialization went nuts after that time period!

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BJ Ondo, "Old Fart"
Colorado
1980 GS1100E Suzuki
"Classic Sport Bike"

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mad kaw

· #6 · Aug 6, 2000

My first bike was an '86 VF500. At the time, it was THE bike to have (well the 750 was). All around great bike. You hardly ever see any 500's around any more, occasionally you will see a 750. I saw a 500 at a local bike shop a couple of months ago that was exactly like the one I had. I couldn't believe it, got all misty eyed and stuff. I just sat there and looked at it, remembering the "good old days", until the wife dragged me off, kicking and screaming.

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Warning: The Surgeon General has determined that sportbike riding will cause swelling of the testicles, shrinkage of the brain, and possible severe trauma to the ego.

RCjohn

· #7 · Aug 24, 2000

I missed one getting destroyed at Deal's Gap by about 10 minutes. Passed as the Troopers and Rescue Squads were pulling him back up to the road level. I was a shame the bike was a nice example of the VF500.

Rider broke an ankle and cracked a vertibrate(sp) and many bruises but he will recover. It was a couple of months ago so he may be riding a bike again. He is actually lucky that the tree caught him.

Whoa! That'll leave a mark.

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John

"If Harley made an airplane... would you fly in it?"

vfr750pilot

· #8 · Sep 4, 2000

My first Sportbike was a VF750 Interceptor.
I loved it and will always think that it was the first true Sportbike. Just my 2cents thanks for listening

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His_Suzuki

· #9 · Sep 7, 2000

The VFR's were the first to use the 16" front tire, too. Many of them went down at the tracks, because of the super quick steering. That's why I bought the GPZ 750 and then an RZ350 to compete with the 750 & 500 Interceptor's, on the race tracks. I have many pictures of these bikes that were taken on the race tracks.

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Todd Hoffmaster
'00 Katana 600
39 speeding tickets and now I have a V1.

His_Suzuki

· #10 · Sep 9, 2000

The mid '80's also saw the beginning of frame mounted fairings. Which started the new craze of full fairing sportbikes vs. naked sportbikes. It also helped with the sport touring people who now had better protection from the wind and they did not have to have the full dresser type bikes to travel on.
The '80's were grand

To go back in time would be great

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Todd Hoffmaster
'00 Katana 600
39 speeding tickets and now I have a V1.

G

· #11 · Sep 13, 2000

Hey Ondo,yea lets see....the year was 83 and I was the baddest mofo on my slightly modified 81 900F....not even the CBX guys could catch me and the Katana 1100,GS1000s' were just too rare,no one in town had one.Then one day my neighbor shows up with the VF750 with a "V" motor....HA....stay out of my way...NOT!I was furious some little 750 could pull my 900....and talk about a huge jump in handling...the perimeter frame had changed everything.I stayed awake nights plotting my revenge...to no avail...I couldn't catch him without a piston kit......until 86 when I got my FZ750 and I was once again out front!

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xxman

[This message has been edited by wtempleton (edited September 13, 2000).]

[This message has been edited by wtempleton (edited September 13, 2000).]

1G Interceper

· #12 · Sep 14, 2000

I have just bought a 84' 1000 Interceptor and I hauls ASSS... My ? is this.I ws wandering about how high the temp gets on these things before you should be concerned.My temp guage usally runs pretty cold but the guage ran up to a little past the halfway mark.Should I be worried or is that just the nature of the beast.Picked it up Mon. for $1800 and it is as close to cherry as a 16 yr old bike can be.

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1984 1000 HONDA INTERCEPTER

His_Suzuki

· #13 · Sep 15, 2000

1 G,

I would check the anti-freeze and maybe change it out, just to make yourself feel better. The bike should be ok, though.

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Todd Hoffmaster
'00 Katana 600
39 speeding tickets and now I have a V1.

JCS

· #14 · Mar 19, 2001

VF1000F temp

I have had one of these bikes for a long time. In normal riding on the road the temp will not get too high. In city traffic is another thing. The gauge will show very high. The fan will eventually kick on but not until it shows very hot. The dealers told me that this is normal but I did not like this. We mounted a switch on the dash that starts the fan manually. It is running until you turn it off. With the switch off, the fan functions normally.

Gentlegiant

· #15 · Dec 21, 2001

I loved my 84 VF500F

My first bike was 1984 VF500. It didn't really move by today's standards but living in the city, you really don't need tons of power. It handled great ran a but a little hot. Mine sat for about two years before I but it and the radiator was a little blocked up. It would stay cool till unless I ran it at high speed on long trips. I had the radiator serviced. After this it ran perfect for a long time. I only had to have the valves timed. After a while though the clutch went out. That cost about six hundred bucks. But oh well.
Any way I sold it last summer. Now me and my dad are sharing time on a Vt1100 cruiser.

PJ1

· #16 · Dec 21, 2001

VFR 750 Interceptor was a geat bike if you only made right turns.
If you made a left turn and leaned that baby over too far the center stand would touch and lever the rear tire off the gound sending you off the road into never never land. We all stood there in amazement as our friend Eric found this out on his brand spankin new "Interceptor". Thank godness the only thing seriously hurt was Eric's pride and of course his new bike!

PJ1

· #17 · Dec 21, 2001

The VF 500 Interceptor had short lived glory as the king of middleweight sportbikes. In 1985 Kawasaki built the ZX600GPZ Ninja.

This bike rocked in it's day. Piped with an early D&D my Ninja was faster than my nieghbors Honda and looked way cooler.

waynofzr

· #18 · Dec 21, 2001

My first sportbike was a VF500. I LOVED it! No one, and I mean no one, could leave me in the twisties in those days. All I had to do was keep it spinning between 10K and 12.5K and I was BAD! Too bad I totaled it trying to keep up with a FZ750. I also had a VF750 that I loved, my brother had a VF700 (remember those?) and I have a VF1000 sitting in my garage right now (it needs some work and belongs to a friend). Those V-4's were the perfect pulling engines.

P.S. Does anyone know if the later VFR1000 bodywork will fit? Or maybe Airtech or Sharkskins? We would like something more than the half fairing on my friend's '84 VF1000. Thanks for any help out there!

TripodMeat

· #19 · Dec 22, 2001

The Vf500F was my second bike ( '74 CB360 in '83 was first),
I had a brand spankin' new 1985, and it was a nice bike...

I never really rode it that hard, because in 1986, Suzuki
came out with a thing called the GSXR-1100, and I HAD to
have one!! ( blue&white)

all together now: "BITD" (Back in the day!!!)

Sambuca

· #20 · Dec 26, 2001

Here's my 1985 FZ 750

Here's my 1985 FZ 750

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