Hello, after years of riding the latest thing ( mainly ducati superbikes) I bought and old paso 907 ie and couldn’t believe how much fun It was to ride. It made me think of other bikes I really wanted back in the day. Top of the list is a VF1000R. What are the chances of finding one, and how much should I be paying for a nice one. (how long is a piece of string?!). Any advice would be much appreciated.
Hey Bungle,
welcome.
They actually come up reasonably regularly. There was one here in Ireland recently, entirely original and for a reasonable price too.
I missed out due to lack of funds.
Unrestored examples seem to fetch anything up to about €5k and good condition stuff goes up around £6k in English pounds.
They turn up on eBay but usually at the very high end of the market.
Keep an eye out though, they do turn up.
A
It depends where you are located. And what is your technical skill level. These bikes are over 30 years old and will need lots of maintenance if you want to have fun for a longer time.
I am observing the german market for over 2 year. I’ve got one, but I’m interesseted what is offered. The range I saw was 2000 - 10000 €.
What is very expensive to repair: engine. If you got one with broken camshaft you are in trouble. And if the previous riders tend to have high rpm at cold engine this is very likely. Some ofter parts are crankshaft bearings. They are hard to get. Long time without running engine can also bring trouble to piston rings. I don’t know if I can hear worn cams. If I ever buy one again, I will ask for open the cam covers.
As said before it is over 30 years old. If nobody did it before, you have to rework brakes (new seals, pistons, lines …), Suspension (new front fork seals and springs, rear Suspension), bearings. It mostly needs new tires, chain & sprocket. This will be 1500 to 2000 € for parts only. Paint Job is also 1500 to 2000 €.
Look inside the tank for rust. You have to be some kind of detective. Check the steering and fairing for hints that point to an accident. Ask for detailed photos. They tend to show only the best side.If they don’t cooperate forget about it.
From the first impression this one looks ok:
One I will never buy:
too expensive:
He tries it at this price for nearly a year:
https://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/details.html?id=250317517&damageUnrepaired=NO_DAMAGE_UNREPAIRED&isSearchRequest=true&makeModelVariant1.modelDescription=vf+1000+r&pageNumber=1&scopeId=MB&sfmr=false&searchId=17c8c22e-be07-5dfa-38e3-785a97497425