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One of the sweetest engines ever but between two wheels, and one of the sweetest 400cc sports bikes of all time!
The VFR400 series of motorcycles were essentially a scaled down version of the 700 and 750 VFR models, and the NC30 taking it’s styling from the HRC RC30 homologation model. Markets mainly in Japan, because of that countries licensing laws, it was still exported for a relatively short period to some countries, Austria, France, Germany and the U.K. The USA imported machines for racing in their ‘Mini’ Super-Bike class.
The first generation of VFR400R was the 1986-87 NC21, which had replaced the VF400F when the Honda VF series was phased out (mainly due to reliability issues). This model had a full fairing, single rectangular headlight, a conventional dual-sided swing arm.
The next generation of VFR400R was the VFR400R NC24, produced for the 1987 and 1988 model years, the first production Honda motorcycle to utilise an ELF-designed Pro-Arm single-sided swing-arm ,which became one of the trademarks of the Honda VFR series.
The third generation of VFR400R and the best known, the VFR400R NC30, was released in 1989 and ran until 1992, although unsold machines were still available at Honda dealers for some two years afterwards, giving the impression they wee made for longer!
VFR400 engines produce a noticeable whine when the engine is running, due to the gear driven overhead camshafts, and an exhaust note to set most enthusiasts hair on end!.
The Honda VFR400R NC30 is widely acknowledged to be one of the best handling road bikes ever made. The engine has a very wide power-band for a ‘400’ instilling confidence in the rider. The 65bhp @ 12500rpm with a safe limit of 14500rpm, combined with 40nm of torque @10000 rpm simply cemented this machines place in Bike Lore history! A future classic? The NC30 was one, the day Honda announced it!