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Jealous!

Having that bike sitting in the driveaway awaiting a ride would be like waking up on Christmas morning and finding a stack of presents under the tree. What an artistic masterpiece.

V4 with gear driven cams. What a glorious sound!

Breathing a collective sigh of relief this didn't include the infamous railway section, lol... Thank you for the trip back down The Red Wings Golden Era

Of all the bikes in Daily Rider, I would have this one.

That was painful to watch at the end lol. Love these classic bikes. Every time I open my garage and see my ZX7R I smile, and that's what riding is all about, no matter what we own..

All I have to say is “Wow!” This bike is motorbike perfection incarnate. Honda V4s are killer.

"I'm also very scared of tipping this bike over, obviously"... proceeds to go rather slow speed with no hands...

My brother in law has an RC30 in mint condition that he bought brand new, but he hasn't been on it in years and needs the carbs rebuilt. So my sister in law says to him " you should just give to Tony (me) because you don't even ride anymore" I had the biggest smile on my you ever seen and my brother in law had the biggest frown you ever seen at the same time!!! Nice ride and great video!! Thank you

Years ago I heard a Nc24 (400) come screaming past me and I just loved the sound. I saw one for sale and bought it. Epic bike. Then I found a 5th gen VFR800Fi for sale and bought it. That was years ago 2001 model and I still have it. What a piece of genius. Seriously good mileage. Few years ago I bought a NC30 for my son and we had a great time eating up the roads all over. His 1st gear got to almost 110kmh as he redlined it. Seriously tall first gear. Honda makes fantastic bikes. Regards from South Africa

Still one of the most beautiful motorcycles ever created.

I cannot believe you've let the key dangle on the top triple clamp🧐😳 for shame...

There’s something about the mystique of 80’s and 90’s bikes that keep my motorcycle interests stuck in that era. I recently acquired a mint condition 1990 Bimota YB6 EXUP that cost $20,000 in 1990 while the RC30 cost $15,000, and there were only 114 YB6’s produced.

I only regret that I have but one thumbs up to give to this video.

Owned two of these back in the day. My first had issues with valve seat material, second blew a crank coming home from 500cc Grand Prix at Donnington, been to watch Lawson Doohan, Rainey and Co. Honda repaired it all on Warranty. . Still remember my first ride on one. High seat, tall first gear, red hot right thigh at the traffic light's, intoxicating induction roar and gorgeous bark from that exhaust. I traded one for a OWO1 plus cash but prefer the Honda. Went on to own the RC45 also . The RC30 will always be special for me. Still looks fabulous even today . Gone but never forgotten.

I’ll bet that Zack, at some point, imagined that he was a small man from Northern Ireland blasting past the grandstands down towards Bray Hill.

Can you do the bigger touring cousin of this? I'd like to see how a 5th gen VFR stacks up on the leaderboard.

30 years old and it still makes such an impression that Zack has to rethink the whole leaderboard system. RC30

"Less is more" that's what those bikes are all about...beautiful machine!!!Dream bike for sure!!!

More collabs with iconic motorbikes please... They have so much hidden jewels to showcase!

might be time for a "weekend rider" rating alongside. this is a second bike to have, and it would make sense to put it on a scale of other second bikes

You park a rc30 in your living room and very rarely drive on the street. I would always be worried about bad things happening to the rc30 on the street. Love the review. Thanks

@4:42 If you have closed captions on when he revs the bike leaving the parking lot, the CC simply says [Music]. Got that right...

Zack should review a VFR 800 👀

Holy smokes, it's beautiful.

What a machine. Sport bike styling peaked in the 80s/early 90s. Such an iconic look.

Thanks for "taking one for the team ". RC 30 ride = best day ever. ✌

This is one of my fav bikes EVER! Everything from the color combo, to the way it sounds is so beautiful. One of the first bikes I remember seeing with a an incredible looking wheel+single sided swingarm combo that I liked, it just looks "meant to be". At the time, it looked like something from 10 years ahead of its time, just amazing, and a testament to how important precision has to Honda.

Still pretty much the coolest sportbike from those days. I still remember when they were sitting in showrooms for 11 grand CAD and leftover because the other brands were faster. All that mattered back then was HP and top speed numbers. I wish I could have got one when they were cheap !

This bike would have pegged the "cool" on the old two dimensional Daily Rider leader board, something was lost in the transition. A heart sticker is poor substitute. Thanks for allowing us to ride along, not really a good daily rider, but you expressed the magic well.

Thank you for correcting motor to engine I’m a Porsche technician when I hear motor when people are talking about engines they automatically lose credibility and don’t know what they’re talking about. It’s a minor thing but in higher class shops you gotta call it what it is. Mom and pop shops call it whatever you want.

I got to ride an HRC kitted RC30 that came to the shop after the owner went to Bike Week and bought it after Daytona. Phenomenal motorcycle.. As for ABS, a competent rider can outstop ABS every time. That's the last thing I'd put on any motorcycle, unless I were looking for more weight and less performance.

Still want one after all these years. Most beautiful bike ever built.

The other bike I had in mind was the RVF400 V4, very beautiful and I really wish Honda make another version of it.

I have seen this bike in 1990 first time . Made me buy a silver Vfr 800 i 2001 model. Made 120 K on it . Been allover Europe with it. I'll keep this bike forever!

I absolutely LOVE the 80's and 90's aesthetic of bikes from the era. What a beauty!

With the stock tires the bike was very stable but required a hard push to turn into a corner. The OEM tires were a bias ply front and radial rear (Bridgestone’s first production radial). I’ve had a variety of tire on mine over the years and most have made turn in easier but the only rears you can buy now are sport touring compounds, but they stick better than those OEM ties anyway.

The V4 engine in the 750s and the 5th gen 800 is by far one of the best engines made.

I’m an engineer both engine and motor can be used for an internal combustion engine. Electric motors are just motors. The word motor in a nutshell means a mechanical device used to convert one form of energy eg. electricity or fuel into mechanical energy. The people on their high horse about the usage of the word motor are wrong. So don’t worry Zach you were correct the first time, no need to appease the trolls.

My dad has an NC 30, a 400cc higher revving version of this bike, so i've got a little experience with something similar. The awesome throttle response and good power spread throughout the rev range carries over to the 400, as does the tall 1st gear and close ratios. I prefer 180 degree V4s myself, but the 360 on these bikes sounds pretty cool, especially with the gear driven cams. If you want an RC30 but can't bring yourself to dump 35k + on a bike, the NC30/NC35 is a much cheaper alternative that looks like it will give almost the same experience, but with 59 horsepower instead of 118. @ 20:16 The top gas tank vent line may look cool, but its a t errible design. It gets in the way if you want to tuck way down, and the vent line is easily pinched, making can make you wonder why your bike suddenly lost all power. Another fault, which i'm not sure if its the case here, but it is on the 400, the front fairing, gauges, and handlebars are all too close together. If you have the brake and clutch levers adjusted to a reasonable height, they can bump into the fairing and the gauges, so they have to be tilted way down in an unnatural position. Its really a shame as the bike is such a gem everywhere else. Nice video!

That’s a dash board!! That sound, those headlights!! The paint!! Wow.

I would pick an RC-30 over all of those bikes combined....there was a 0 mile RC-30 at a dealership I worked for 22 years ago, it was absolutely stunning.

Its a Legacy , im crying in happiness ... A Legendary bike is on this channel omg 😊😄

Im a big fan of Abhi ever since I saw him on Jay Leno's Garage in 2015. Everyone should get his T-shirt and support him. Plus he's a another east coast transplant. Apparently being a two wheeled lover, I'm finding I should be living in California instead. Great job as usual. One last question...no cruise control?

I saw the caption and immediately got jealous lol. Another great video Zack and keep up the great work man.

Zack, PLEASE find a 90's CBR250RR. That would be an epic episode I'm pretty sure everyone would love to watch.

My 85 VF700 still gets the looks from the youngsters, they can't believe the performance from an old bike. Handles Mulholland hwy like it was made for that road.....

I'm not proud... I've watched this video 3 times already. The RC30 is a work of art, and Zack is the Sister Wendy Beckett of motorcycles.

Gorgeous machine. Just sold my 98 VFR 800. Currently saving up to buy it back.

Wanna hear funny? Working in the cycle industry for many years, we typically used the NADA guide for helping value trade-in's. On special models such as this RC-30, (or the GSXR-750 LTD, Yamaha FZR-750 OW01, etc.) let's just say the good folks at NADA were uhhhh, 'slightly behind the curve' regarding what these superb machines were actually trading hands for on the open market. So, if you happen to be moronic enough, or living under a rock and somehow didn't know what you had, your friendly local Honda dealer would be absolutely thrilled to provide you with a $4,500 trade value on your RC towards that shiny new CRF-450L or perhaps CBR-600RR you've been eyeballing... can you imagine? lol -- fwiw, 32 years since this RC was built, still NEVER seen one of these just cruising down the road. Most that weren't raced or wrecked now reside in exclusive collections where they're waxed with a diaper and started twice a year. What a shame.

Still sounds creamy good, mechanical music at its finest 👌

So nice! Don't forget a heart for the RZ350!

I was lucky enough to have had a 1990 RC30 back in tbe mid 90's in the UK. Still the best bike I have ever ridden and the best looking. I have owned modern litre bikes too.

Such a sweet bike and you're riding through traffic talking about MPG.

A Legend of a bike that gave meaning to the words "If you don't own wings you'll never fly"

Rode one of these in about 1990. Wasn’t super fast as I recall but my overwhelming memory was how balanced it felt. Like a hot knife thru butter. Beautiful. Wish I had the $16K NZ it cost back then.

I used to ride a VFR750FH and I loved it. My friends also commented that the throttle response was like riding an electric motor. Although it's not quite the same bike this was a huge nostalgia trip for me. Thank you.

Forget the new bikes.... I would take rc30 over any new bike ... So special....beautiful machine

Watching that lil key bounce around on the top yoke.

that rc30 is still in really good condition! that motor sound brought my old memory back. i used to ride an nc30(400cc version of rc30) daily in tokyo. i miss my old bike. thanks for a great vid :)

1986....IOM TT....Joey Dunlop....on an RC30....you had to be there, luckily I was. It's a memory that I will take to the grave. :)

I happen to live just a mile or so from where the legendary Joey Dunlop did. Great vid, Love from N. Ireland. Stupidly I sold my own NC30 (mini RC30) I regret that!

I was fortunate to own one here in NZ. We got the small headlight variant which I think looked way better. Mine wasn’t stock. It had a NC-30 front wheel which was 17 x 3.5 inches vs. the stock 17 x 3 inches. They came stock with a 110 wide front tire so the 3.5 wide rim meant you could install a 120 wide front and have it work correctly. Mine also had a 3 spoke 17 x 5.5 inch Marchesini rear rim which solved the awkward rear tire choice issue. It had a rear ride height adjuster fitted to compensate for the smaller diameter rear rim. I ran a set of cast iron drilled PVM discs, braided lines and a Kerker pipe (remember them?) so it sounded glorious. The 360 degree crank created a unique exhaust note. It was simply awesome to ride and everyone who had half an idea of what it was wanted to talk about it and check it out. I still rue the day I sold it some 22 years ago!

Probably the epitome of analog race bike technology! Certainly its mission was never to be a daily rider, but a finely tuned track bike that was homologated for professional level racing. I remember them when new. Hard for me to fathom that its now 30-some years old! And that I am as old as I am! I enjoyed the commute as always. Thanks!

Had one of these back in the day. Lovely machine. Better dash than any bike of today.

The V4 is a wonderful engine. Honda should bring them back!

Awesome stuff as always Zack! Keep the passion flowing and ride safe.

Sitting in UK with the grandad of the RC30, ride the Honda CB1100RC which is the last of the air cooled super bikes. It won everything when racers, is handbuilt. Can be ridden every day and parts are easily available even though it was built in 1982

This bike makes me nostalgic for when I was kid, running to the mailbox and drooling over the latest issue of cycle world magazine.

Casual power wheelies, backing it in. Hilarious seeing how fun these old Hondas are even on the street.

Got a 2001 fifth gen VFR(RC46) with BOS exhaust that sounds just epic. can well see where the heritage comes from:D

After this one I would love to see you try a CBR 900 RR SC28 or a Ducati 996.

Needed that ride down nostalgia blvd this morning. Thanks to you and Iconic for making it possible.

My friend owned two RC 30's - The ride is sublime , handling is wonderful and that drone of the VFR engine is absorbing at high rev's - Power output ,92.6 bhp at 12.500 rpm at the back wheel add 2% if taken from the crank- The bike was tested in 1989 on a dyno/ roling road . Tall first gear capable of doing 70 +mph- 158 mph prone , 145.5 upright. Not much difference in power output compared to the then current VFR 750 Interceptor but the design was light years away in terms of quality engine internals , gearbox and tuning . . In order to race in the newly created 'World Superbike' series Honda had to produce a homologation model - Total number built worldwide 5000 bikes. Before the RC30 was produced the NC30 400 VFR -R was sold in Japan and Europe - Part of the amazing family of VFR's ...

Not surprised the footless stop is so tricky. After all, a bike that doesn't want to stand upright will fall into the bends much easier...and that's what this bike was designed to do. Also, you're quite right about carbs not coming back - but I'd be happy if drive-by-wire throttles went away. With that dead spot when you first start to twist the grip, the way you can't feel the cables take up the slack and start moving the throttle plates...and the stepper motors in factory road bikes don't seem able to react to inputs as quickly. I love what injection does for an engine, but I still want a mechanical connection between my hand and the throttle butterflies.

Saw one of these new in a dealership in 1990 and is still my favorite bike to this day. Well done !

The first motorcycle I fell in love with at 10 years old

Amazing bike but you can pick up a good used Gen 5 VFR for almost nothing. I have a '98 which retains the gear driven cams, has FI and the '98 & '99 are pre cat. Mine has a staintune pipe, is so fast and is the best sounding bike I have ever heard. Also very comfortable for sport touring. Great value for the price.

Never been someone who actually follows bike racing or been into older sport bikes but my god thats beautiful.

Zack, thank you so much for this vid! You have brought back the best memories for me. I had a RC30 and RC31. The RC30 wasn't the quickest or nimblest bike then, but it was the very most composed suspension that existed then. It was an endurance racer, it was the easiest bike to race that i have ridden. Throttle and shifting by thought. Your giggles when riding are what is was; it was that much fun to ride at the end of a racing stint as at the beginning...

Thanks for reviewing something as cool as this bike. Growing up in the 90s there’s hardly any videos or info on these bikes and where I live there is no chance of seeing one. This is a great video I hope there’s more like this coming along with riding the usual modern bikes too.

Jesus Christ, a RC30 on the road, not in a living room as a museum piece !!! I wanna cry ! Soooo cool ! 😭 (I cry, emotion...)

That sound brought back memories. My 1st ever sport bike was an '85 Ninja 600R (GPZ600) and along with memorizing Nick Ienatsch's article in Motorcyclist July '92 titled "Higher Performance Riding", I learned a ton on that motorcycle. Digging the various rides and it's cool to recognize the nearby areas you explore on bikes. 👍

Great video Zack on such a brilliant bike. The RC30 along with Honda’s CB1100R from the early 80s will always be on my dream bike list. They were awesome bikes back in the day and I think they still are today.

The legend in all it's precision engineered glory. What a timeless beauty. And no contemporary emission laws to mess up the carburation.

battletoad FTW!! Nothing like a custom junker for everyday rides!!

I cant wait for late '80s and early '90s styling to come back. I'll admit, I hated the look of them with the stupid bug-eyes, but now, I cant get enough of it. The punched-in face, the single sided swingarm, the massive fairings even going over the rear tire, the flat line from the tank to the cowl with a deep notch for the rider to sit in- so amazing. You see one of these and you think "That's old af, but I bet it RIPS"

Zack can ride!! A wheelie and backing it in. So much for taking it easy.

I have an nc30, the baby brother of the rc30. Currently getting restored but even looking at it is a pleasure.

Privileged to say that my Dad had one in my youth so I’ve seen it up close and personal. It’s an absolutely beautiful bike and so well engineered. I was worried though when he pulled out of the lot and gave it a bit of a rev and I looked at the temp gauge being dead cold!,

WOW! Thank You for posting! I remember being in a Moto Dealer when the staff rolled out the RC30 for sale from their back room. I was 15. I was there with my cousin, he was bike shopping, I knew nothing about bikes but that day, I fell in love with the RC-30. I can't afford one, so I bought a RC-31 Hawk GT instead. Thank You Again. .

I owned a Canadian VFR750R from 1989 to 1994 . They weren't called RC30 in Canada. I believe name RC30 came from the serial number, and by the time the bike launched in the US, RC30 had already become legend. I loved that bike in so many ways. IMO the prettiest bike ever made. It was so mechanical with the 360 crank, gear driven cams, etc. You felt so connected on the bike. Tires for the rear was always a problem with so few options, and that was when it was current. All the street stuff like the turn signals broke off due to vibration. The stock exhaust cracked where it was kinked to make room for the chain, but boy did the bike have character in spades. The stupidest thing I've ever done is sold that bike. Sold it for more than I bought it for, but would rather have it in my garage.

What an awesome video. It’s one of my 3 favorite bikes of all time. Having learned on a 500 Interceptor and later moving up to a 86 VFR750F (which I still own) V4s are in my blood. It may not be number one on the daily ride but if I had to do a daily stare I couldn’t imagine many bikes would beat this one.

I daily'd my 1990 mc22 cbr250rr for a while. The eargasmic noises it made, made it worth while! haha

Thanks for a wonderful memory, brought to life. I had an ‘86 Interceptor 500 in the same color scheme and same engine configuration. Those earlier bikes had steel, square-cross-section frames. I also had a ‘95 750, an ‘06 800, and there’s a ‘14 resting in the garage.

You’ve been upgraded!!! After the last couple of bikes, this is a nice surprise. I saw/heard an RC30 on the road a couple of years ago. I may have broken some traffic laws turning around and catching up to get a better look/listen… RC30 has a reservation at my dream garage!

So cool, I remember loving this bike when I was like 11 years old. Dang it I'm old. But she is still a work of art. Love it

Caught myself smiling a lot watching this, thanks man.

The brakes with the original pads in were fantastic. I had one from new and raced it, the first time at the track and I was easily outbraking one of the top racers here on a new TZ250, wore that set of pads out in a day tho