The Honda VF 400 series was born from the racing pedigree of it's older and bigger brothers, the 750 class. The reason for such a small cc size is simple - until recently it was almost impossible to obtain a licence in the native Japan for anything above 400cc, so to cater for the fashion conscious home market and the associated disposable income, a range of smaller bikes were cast in the image of the bigger bikes, making them available to all.
The series started as the VF400 in 1983 and continued through the VFR400R (NC21) and VFR400Z (NC24) in 1986 to the introduction of the very popular VFR400R (NC30) model in 1989. The success of the VFR750R (RC30) in racing - it won just about everything it was entered for - meant that the almost identical NC30 sold by the container load both in the home market and overseas.
The NC30 was so popular it was even officially imported to the UK for 18 months, but the price tag of £5899 on introduction, which climbed to a whopping £6500 in April 1991, meant that it didn't suit the pockets - you could buy a new CBR600 from the same dealer for under 5 grand! The main source of bikes was the boom of the "grey" market, where container loads of nearly-new bikes were imported
and sold at reasonable prices. Again the Japanese market was to blame as second-hand bikes were difficult to keep legal and also the culture is very fashion conscious - why have a year-old bike when you can have a new one?
With the VFR750R (RC30) evolving into the RVF750R (RC45), the RVF400R (NC35) was introduced in 1994 and was the update that the VFR400 needed. The engine is basically the same gear-driven cam with 55x42mm pistons, but the upgrade includes thicker USD forks, lighter 17" wheels, uprated suspension, better flowing carbs and restyled bodywork. The exact same paint scheme as the RC45 also ensured the bike would be an instant winner.
So what makes the little RVF so popular? The 14K red line? The precision handling? The air induction noise? The light weight? The beauty of the single-sided swing-arm? The whine from the engine? The immaculate build quality? The bike is a whole package that is so much more than the sum of it's parts.
Considered as an exotic sports bike by the magazines, it always rates highly on group tests. MCN recently rated it higher than other mini-superbikes like the Aprilia RS250, Suzuki RGV250 and the Yamaha FZR400RR. RiDE gave it a recommendation as a superbike you must own for £3500, even though the model it tested was £4195! Even that bastion of professional journalism BiKE magazine said, compared against the NC30, "The later NC35 is even more gorgeous (and expensive): an utter work of art." And Neil should know - he serviced mine!
I love my RVF - it's just sheer quality from which ever angle you look at it. There's always something that you hadn't noticed before; a perfect weld, a lovingly turned piece of aluminium or a high-class bit of equipment. It's done over 26,000 kilometres (16K of those with me on it) and it's still as sweet as the day I first rode it, even despite Neil servicing it. It's been used in the deepest winter and it still manages to shine like the day it rolled off the line. It's never broken down, never failed to start and always runs perfectly.
It's also a little rocket - it goes off the clocks past the 220kph indicator and underneath the "K/P/H" marker. It accelerates faster than my old RGV250, which had a power "curve" like the north face of Everest, and it easily stuffs bigger bikes round the corners on track days if you've got the bottle.
If you haven't ridden one yet, find a dealer that has one for sale and ask him for a test ride... you might just be surprised!
