Epic puffing and cussing in the garage when taken to the end of your tether with a b***ard of a job and in a tight space too. All been there. Loved the honesty of it. No rock music and clinical operating-theatre-like spannering: just a mallet, drilling out mashed up stuff, some top common sense problem solving and some elbow grease - the reality for all home mechanics. Top work. Tidy job. Love the V4, but the way Mr Honda shoehorned everything in, though brilliant, is an absolute ball ache to work on.

Always the same. Start one job end up doing half a dozen others. Nothing changes, glad you overcame your problems. Keep these videos coming.

Love the reality and honesty in these videos. Glad to see your wife is as happy as mine when I ask for help with maintenance! Been meaning to upgrade the 20yr old rear shock on my Fazer for a while now, you’ve given me the inspiration to bite the bullet.

Loved this video. I remember working on a vfr400 20 odd years ago doing the front valve shims. they were a pain with the limited tools I had. They were right on the limit. I was getting so stressed. I will always remember my dad who designed industrial electric motors coming along and saying to me " remember, every limit has a tolerance". That always stuck with me. 🤣

Well done fella, you deserve a beer!! I could feel the frustration through the screen

Had my VFR for 11 years now, been slowly replacing bits, it took me 5 days to get the new exhaust back on by myself, front on, rear falls off etc. - rear shock wasn't so bad - had to change the throttle bodies (sensor failure - ebay to the rescue), I have all new internals for the front forks. replaced the spark plug caps - could only get origninals -- 4 for 250 quid! but like you I got it cheap and with all the expense its still been cheaper than buying a second hand bike for a few grand; great series, great bike, keep the tips coming

Great video, makes me want an old VFR! I remember those downpipe gaskets on my SP1 OE silencers. I found a bit of copper grease and opening them up slightly with the neck of a small bottle helped a lot.

Love watching this guy, honest and real, just subscribed

Never worked on a VFR... but i've worked on some other Hondas... and the intro is 100% true! Like you have to do a ritual at the right planetary conjunction to be able to do what you want to do...

Over the years I have upgraded five bikes with new shocks from Hagon. Excellent service, excellent products, excellent value for money. Such an upgrade changes the ride so much.

When I changed the shock on mine, I had to give up pretty soon and get someone who actually knew what he was doing to sort it out 😁 I must be one of Hondas V4 biggest fans as I have been through lots of VFRS and Pans too. Brilliant bikes, a bit long in the tooth against modern stuff of course, but just dead solid well made machines. Will be keeping my low miler fi now I think, only ridden rarely between other bikes but still puts a retro smile on my face when I do, great vids more please.... 👍

the VFR major flaw is the mild steel exhaust system. if you take it off you pretty much need to do the stainless replacement because you don't want to take it off again

I salute you for perservering, I sold my VFR750 before it needed work doing to it because it was obviously going to be a bike the does not lend itself to spannering. This video has made me realise I made the right decision but I did love that bike..

I feel you … have just removed nuts and studs from my latest project bike. Fist bump on sorting it 👌

One of those jobs where you start off doing one thing and then the secret nightmares all start showing themselves, great entertainment watching you work through it.

Ohh John, I feel your frustrations mate, I've been spannering on my own bikes (and cars) since I was 17 so a looong time, and I've also had times when I wanted to burn the things, when confronted by poor design and poor workmanship by previous owners... well done for sticking with it, I look forward to further installments on the Viffer 👍

Lol 😅 the best bit was your wife chucking the gloves! Oh the joys of working on older well used bikes

Love the maintenance vid waiting for the next. And yes working on the bike is really a pleasure, i do love doing the brake on my GSA, i find it really relaxing and at 95000+ Km have done it more then once... plus doing the tire... pull of the shocks to have them rebuild... i found that doing it i bond with the machine!

You're a very patient man. All credit ro you.

Loving this series. Painful (on your part) but hugely satisfying! 😃👍

I've had my vfr 2000 year since new, replaced the rear shock earlier this year. With the exhaust can wheel heatsheild and lineages off , tank lifted and battery box removed and the rear tank bracket we managed to wriggle the shock out. Then wriggle the new back in. It was a case of this is in the way lets remove it but apart from the can the rest stayed put. I bought a hyperpro shock as that's what my local m/c dealer sold and what a difference best mod ever. But at 22 years old and nearly 50 thousand miles, I'm not looking forward to replacing the exhaust headers.

Wow! I'm always so impressed by the dedication people put into these wonderful bikes. Definitely goes to show that regular maintenance saves the balls from much later aches.

Really enjoying the series, can’t wait for the next video.

I don't remember removing the headers and collector box to change my shock? I used a Nitron. You are right about the exhaust though, my motorcycling mate helped and it went much smoother. I had spent weeks prepping the bolts with penetrating agent though.

I bought a 2 owner, 97 VFR750 in June. 28k miles on it and I’ve done 4K miles till now, from Edinburgh to Inverness and down as far as Fishguard. MOT yesterday and it went straight through! What a piece of engineering.

OMG! I was at full sympathy for most of this because I have vivid memories of all the frustrating "get the thingamajig out of the whatsit without shearing or sweeping up 3 pounds of corroded bits and bobs" moments. However, I did go into hysterical laughter when you said "Don't let that put you off". I'm still giggling and getting funny looks from my nearest and dearest. I blame the lateness of the hour. Admittedly, it can feel like even more of an accomplisment when you have put some Herculean effort in against all the odds, no matter how "simple" the job was supposed to be. So, well done!

I have an old gs and I have to say I was ready to push it on to the street, but once you accomplish something successfully on an old bike it’s so rewarding!

Good video, came up on my yt suggestions. I've got a 2000 vfr800 50k miles and I was thinking of doing this job..you've put me off 😄

John, I did this exact job on my 2000 VFR800Fi... With a Nitron shock. It was nowhere near this bad... I can't really remember that well, I did it in 2019 but I vaguely remember that linkage nut being a touch difficult, having to use a bunch of tools connected together to get at it, but I didn't remove the exhaust at all. I did the job in half a day.

Not just hi-milers. I bought a new V-Strom 650 last year and they employed a chimp to assemble it from the crate. Loose front spacer as axle bolt not torqued up, cockeyed chain alignment and zero grease on gear selector linkage. However, its satisfying & confidence building to fettle your own bike. Bolts on my cbr945rr are either in good nick or replaced :-)

Strange, I've had the rear shock off and on my 2001 VFR800Fi a couple of times (replaced with a Nitron unit) and not needed to remove the exhaust. I did have to remove that collector bolt when replacing the engine but managed to undo it without the need to drill it out.

Can't believe you've put those old headers back on. Get the Delkevic system ordered ASAP. Enjoying these VFR videos 👍

I literally just fitted a Hagon shock to my Firestorm. Very impressed and fitted perfectly and didn't take long either! (Sorry!)

Oh did I laugh and cry…I thought it was just my ineptitude when restoring mine. It’s a challenge in every way. I have several vfr800fi how too’s to help others through the pain but what a great bike..great delivery 👍

Great video and about a bike I always liked but never owned. Gives all of us that are a bit scared of doing anything but the most rudimentary mechanics encouragement* *At least it will if I can find a house I can afford with a garage - working on a bike outside and watching a nut roll away and fall down your neighbours drain, or rain starting when the tank is off and carbs are in pieces around you is a little too much fun!😄

You can save a lot of money on jobs like this by shopping around and researching on eBay. For example, generic stainless bolts and nuts solve the rust issues, especially with exposed exhausts etc. And it’s easy to improvise rubber parts from multipacks available from DIY stores, Aldi or Lidl etc. Adapt and improvise.

I miss my VFR 800 (same as yours) Amazing bikes. Nice video.

Great vid mate 👍, But it did look rather challenging. I bet the swear box more than paid for all the parts, and a few well earned beers afterwards 😉 Haha.

I love a good high mileage bike. Love the series so far.

I feel your pain on the collector bolt. Last year I replaced the exhaust system on my '01 VFR - it's only done 27000 but the bolt was in a similar condition. It took hours of careful cutting and drilling. Was ready to burn it to the ground. Got to replace the shock as it's failed the MOT - at least the bolt should be easy this time as all the pipes and bolts in the new system are stainless.

I suppose when you are ready to replace the exhaust system it will come apart easy love my vfrs have 3 of them and yes do all my own repairs myself a hgv mechanic . Honda vfrs are a well made bike if you look after it will run ever both of my 750 models i replaced the exhaust system i replaced the shockers like you did top tip grease the the linkage every 2 years . my other vfr is 1200f love that as well that v4 motor is a beauty.

Awesome video man. Great work only thing I would do differently is that I would have wire wheeled the exhaust pipes for cleaner look other wise well done job👌

I can completely sympathise with you. My project bike, an nc30 has the same problem. Literally got to the point of taking the rear subframe completely off in an attempt to remove the exhaust manifold from the engine before resorting to an angle grinder lol. They're so tightly packed! It's the thing that makes them great aswell as utter turds to work on 😆

VFR's are well known for their corroded exhausts.

Great video!

Wow these bikes look like they had been submerged into the North Sea for a couple of years. Soo crusty and rusted up it's incredible.. I bought two of these VFRs 99' models. Rust free but both failed with electronics. Recertifiers two times. Both at 130 000kms. One was a dedicated track bike. No lights, mirrors, etc. Straight piped, no collector. Sounded awesome just like MotoGP.😊 When the rectifier failed i just finished the sixth session of the day, so it stopped at the end of the event but it nearly burnt down. The battery got such a load that it expanded into the frame and had to prie it out with tire irons and screwdrivers, when the whole thing cooled down. It was a mess. Oh well it was fun until it lasted.😅

One of my bikes is an ‘09 VFR with only about 75 000 kilometers. However, it’s been rigorously maintained, sheltered in a heated garage and (to my memory and good luck) never been ridden in the rain. By virtue of that weird history alone I can’t sell it; decent bike too!

Wow, I just enjoy the riding. Anyway, ride safe, god bless u.

You’ve got more patience than me! I’d have torched the bloody thing! 😂

Entertaining as normal. I struggle adjusting the chain😀

Richie Vida has one of those bikes and paid a company a small company mom and Pop to redo his bike and it came out phenomenally well. You should check that out. I wouldn’t be afraid to sink a lot of money into a bike like that if you are able to get the parts to make it like new or aftermarket parts to make it better than new . Odds are That bike would have a whole new lifespan ahead of it as the engines rarely give you any problem

Best stuff I've ever bought is 'PlusGas' release fluid. I don't know what they put in it but nothing else comes close. I spent over a week soaking a seized cylinder on a pre war Francis Barnett. Heated the iron barrel until the penetrating oil on top of the piston was actually bursting in to flames (did it outside and wore goggles. Not for snowflakes or the safety conscious) Used a lump hammer and wooden drift. Never budged a millimetre. Tried two types of fluid and even just regular oil. As a last resort i bought some PlusGas and within an hour it had freed the piston. It's amazing stuff!

I just carried this out on my VFR without any of the problems encountered here. Mine is the same 5th gen with 55k miles. The exhaust is stainless steel, replaced by a previous owner and DID NOT require removing at all. The new Nitron shock was a larger diameter than the original but still went in relatively easily, I just needed to lift the rear wheel up a bit to get the clearance. Don’t be put off doing this work. I had the old shock out in less than an hour.

:( I bought a Kawi Z400 a couple months ago and one of the first things I looked for was a haynes for it. Seems like they don't have anything past 2019 for Kawasaki, and didn't bother to make one in 2018 for either the Z400 or the Ninja 400

I’ve had my 99 VFR 800 since 2003, now with 45k on the clock. One regulator rectifier, one exhaust (replaced by high level custom s/s one), one headlight and one seat later (oh, and a FSH), and it’s as good as ever. Although if you could pop by and swap the shock I’d appreciate it… ;)

Plusgas is one of the best release sprays 👌

Great work - to be honest I think I walked around with a stupid grin on my face for about a week after successfully removing all 8 header bolts on my 17 year old GSXR1000 - it did take around a week before that of heat and gentle coaxing mind! 😏

I've resisted the urge to comment until I watched the whole video... As a fellow 5th gen VFR owner I know all of this pain and more. Great bike, absolute b*stard to service. The link plate on mine also had groves from a seized needle roller bearing on the dog bone, I've had more header studs snap than I can count so again, I feel your pain completely. Just when you think the header pipes are going to be the worst bit, the VFR has a surprise in store for you haha. I also bought new gaskets from wemoto, mine also didn't fit! I also ended up crushing them then gave up and just ran the old ones I've actually got a shelf in my garage dedicated to all the parts/bolts/fasteners/broken things that I had to get creative with when trying to remove - I call it my trophy shelf! The only thing I also did was replace the swingarm pivot bearing while I was rebuilding mine as it's often neglected because it's such a pain to get to!

Great video and great bike even if it does end up costing you a couple of grand it’ll do the same mileage again!

I hate asking my wife for help but when I do, she reacts just like yours. Lol

Ouch ... that looked slightly frustrating ... anyway all done for a long time now.

Long time no see, John! Now I know why. Bike is looking good, apart from the exhaust manifolds 😂

9:20....yea...she was happy. God blessed you with an awesome wife. I swear ,the entire deal looked like a nightmare. Thanks for not doing the KZfaq magic install video.

and yet...still looks like a ton of fun to do

I've had a 96 VFR750 . The exhaust had a ball joint to swing it out of the way to remove the rear wheel. Also had a 2002 VFR 800 first of the VTEC motors. Owned it for 9 yrs put 85000kms on it. Only normal maintenance and tyres. Still had the original chain and sprockets when I traded it in. We don't have salt on our roads in Australia. 🦘

I had to chuckle watching this again, we've all been there, shiny sockets and spanners and a Haynes manual, what could possibly go wrong ?. Three hours later, bleeding knuckles, face covered in grease and contemplating phoning the scrap man. I replaced my VFR800 shock with a YSS unit last week and struggled to get the old shock out at first, I had to drop the top mount as far as it could go then unbolt it from the shock, the shock then fell on the floor, fitting the new shock was the reverse.

I’ve done a couple shocks on Vfr’s without much trouble but none of the bikes had 100k. I did have one exhaust stud that came out with the nut. I do like the Hagon shock but haven’t seen it available here in the US. I had my exhaust system JetHot coated early on and have had a couple of Delkevic header systems over the years. Unfortunately the don’t tuck in as nicely as the stock system and somewhat interfere with the center stand.

I see like my wife with my shoes, your wife wears your shoes for ease 😂

Ive got a 5th gen vfr and i agree working on them is a nightmare 😂

I'm having a combination of palpitations and flashbacks watching this. My own journey of pain was exactly the same of yours. I too fitted a Hagon rear shock and had the mother of all battles with the same bolt and the entirely crud-ridden seized 'dog bone' linkage piece. I used penetrating spray, mallets, hammers, freeze spray and eventually got the nut off with an angle grinder. My exhaust studs all snapped and the header gaskets were a pig to fit. This was in 2015 after I'd rescued my 1999 VFR from certain death by buying it back from a colleague I'd previously sold it to in 2005. I originally bought it in 2001. It was now in crap order having been left in a wet lean-to for years. Every metal part that could rust had done so, but after throwing a couple of grand at it and stripping it all down, then putting it all back together with new parts it lived on and still does today, in my garage. The moral if this tale is to stick with it because they are just so wonderful!

Im the owner of a 1984 VF750F with 50000km on it....I have often thought of upgrading to a VFR800 1999 to 2003 gear driven model but every time I see anyone working on one the complexity seems 10 times more than my old bike...so I have not pulled the trigger to upgrade...but darn do I like the look of the 800....If the 800 is anything like the VF750 Im expecting the bike to fit my 6foot 4 size very well.

Great and honest video! Is there a playlist for all the VFR videos?

Superb real world vid. I loathe & despise that kind of bolt-access design, that they could so easily get around designing differently. I'm a bit surprised you went for an original replacement - I know you couldn't get a patent, but maybe some sort of rig-up of your own? That original looks like a poor thing. Anyway, well done!

Great content

Don’t think I ever had to take the exh. off to get the shock out but I have broken a exh stud off. I made a wood ramp to keep the swing arm/wheel up. Grease the gaskets to keep them in place.

Have almost new stock shock, a twin clicked from Fox, oem headers good shape.

A great example of why you should lash everything under the covers on a VFR with old engine oil then it wont end up a corroded mess like this one . Engine/shock/stand/oil pipes and copper slip your exhaust nuts .:)

I have always had Low price higher mileage bikes 30,000mi+. your not buying for economy and know your going to be replacing/ maintaining it to YOUR standard.... Yes absolutely an uneconomical task but the fun lies in making it YOURS to be enjoyed in your way, where Purity isn't such a factor in putting you off REALLY enjoying your machine

@bennetts any chance we can get radiator coolant reviews. Love to see to what the after effects are with leading manufacturers..?

Good effort, we’ve all been there. That annoying half hour job that turns into an 8 hr job 🙄

A perfect opportunity to replace that filthy heavy header with a stainless aftermarket system. I got 10 more hp out of my old '99 VFR by doing that.

Im watching your pain and feeling it. I have a 1997 GSXR1100 and its a pain in ass {38.000 miles}. I had to buy a new bike because i cant rely on it to take me anywhere. I only ride where there is cell phone reception within a small radius of home in case it shits out again again.

I did all that a year ago fitting Maxton shock, I had already replaced the original exhaust system with Delkevic so getting the shock our was a lot easier. Did you realise if you take off the tank and the hinged holder there is a big nut under there that holds the top of the shock bracket on the bike. Release this and the entire thing drops out no need to struggle with the top of the shock under the bike. Plus you need a bike ramp badly, or better still a skylifter.

Having owned many singles, twins and inline fours, I once owned a VF750F, and soon became enamoured with it (till some dimwit cager pulled out on me me), so yeas, I WOULD have a VFR (particularly love the early 3rd gen in red, or the 4th in 'NR' colouring/styling..), HOWEVER.. It's this particular nightmare that makes me think, yes - IF I had a large garage AND IF I had a ramp AND IF I had a good sized work bench AND IF I had a vast tool setup THEN YES I WOULD get one hahahaha Otherwise I'll happily stick with my Front garden, the tools I have, and an aircooled or liquid cooled 4... As sadly, not everyone even has a basic garage, but, I've done alright so far 👍😉🤞 😎🇬🇧

That moment in the garage (on your knees in more ways than one) is unfortunately quite familiar to me! My mate has a 2015 facelift Crossrunner 800 and was considering swapping the standard shock out for something newer / better. I told him it was a great idea, but although his bike looks a lot cleaner / less corroded than your VFR, I'm now wondering if the exhaust system on it is just as fiendish as this frustrating setup?!

This is a prime example of why I'd rather just put it into a bike shop to be fixed. Does do my head in at times as my father in his 70s still rebuilds motorbikes the new project being a CB 500 prior to that a 1950s panther. If I'd only took his advice and went into engineering 🤔

I've got 4 older bikes, your description of the trials and tribulations as you work through it are very apt - but how good do you feel when you've conquered the problems ! Honda have this great reputation of finish, but hell do they make bad decisions in some areas - on my vfr750 I cracked off a piece of engine casing because a mild steel pipe support, case bolt and aluminium casing had utterly bonded together - used releasing agents, heat etc etc thought I'd loosened it, only for a piece of aluminium to break by the threaded case section

Hi mate I put a nitron r1 shock on my vfr750 ,it was a job I did with no problems, must have been lucky

Great video! 😂

@4:50 Cadwell , my favourite track in the UK bar none 🙂

Makes me glad I own an old air-cooled GS 500 twin to work on... I'll pay someone else to work on my 2011 yamaha xj6....

HECS (catalytic convertor equipped) VFR800s have rubbish mild steel exhausts - my 16k mile 2000 bike wasn't amazing. And that cat/collector box bolt was knackered on mine, too. Gen 6 VFR800 ones fit, and are stainless, and are cheap on eBay. You just have to chop off the centre stand rubber stop bracket (it's on the collector box/cat rather than the rear can on the Gen 6, because of the high mounted pipes).

Did you replace the collector box bracket bolt With an Oem one. Doing this job now what a massive pain to remove that bolt same as yours completely corroded have it our now as I'm fitting a full stainless exhaust and the centr stand is a pain aswell. Love your videos their making my job a bit easier to do , I'm goimg to replace the rear shock aswell .

Appears to be this was not a design problem, more like a location issue. Here in Australia we don't have an 'off season', no salt on the roads (even on those two days when it does rain) and the beers here are famous for removing any and all stress (...ed bolts).

Keep em coming on the vfr because I'm nursing a 80k 98 model on the daily commute. How did the overheating go mine doesn't like traffic or hot days fan on over time in the high 90s

I feel your pain

You needed a MAP gas torch. I have some oxy-acetylene left but I don't think you can get acetylene any more. Propane is probably as good for red heat.

I hope you've got a decent sized swear jar😜🤣

Black widow full high level (get the rear wheel straight off) stainless steel all gasket & a fitting kit £400 it literally fell on. No collector box bollocks.

We’ve all been there 😂😂😂😂😂