Honda VFR800F 2018 — Specifications

How can a motorcycle traverse decades without losing its aura, while also submitting to the whims of regulations? The Honda VFR800F, this sport-GT with blue blood, poses this question with quiet elegance. In 2018, it transitions to Euro 4 with the discretion of a diplomat: a slightly retouched exhaust for a cleaner breath, a modified airbox, and the addition of retroreflectors. The result? An extra kilogram, almost a formality. But in the shadows, a small victory: the end of a Japanese restriction offers one horsepower and a bit of torque. It's an update so subtle that it seems invisible, allowing this icon to continue its journey without a wrinkle.

Look at this Honda VFR800F RC79. Its design, revised in 2014, marks a return to a more classic rigor, far from the plastic aggressions of its contemporaries. The X-shaped headlight, the mirrors integrating the turn signals, the LED diodes – a first for Honda for front lighting – give it a restrained modernity. But the real surprise is under the seat: the abandonment of side exits for a return to a traditional exhaust. This is not a stylistic whim, but a weight-reduction strategy. Seven kilograms have vanished thanks to this choice, an unexpected slimming cure for a machine that, since its transition to 800 cm³, had rather tended to gain weight. Honda has also shaved off three kilograms from the rear frame, now in aluminum. The result? A VFR800F that weighs 239 kg when fully fueled, a figure that finally starts to appeal to riders sensitive to mass.

The equipment, for its part, is enriched without complex. ABS is standard, and it welcomes a new companion: a disconnectable traction control system. Note that the CBR1000RR, the house’s hypersport, did not benefit from this at the time. The 43 mm HMAS fork sees its calipers switch to a radial four-piston mounting, and the discs grow from 296 to 310 mm. We regret the disappearance of the CBS linked braking system, but the gain in precision is tangible. The famous Pro-Arm single-sided swingarm, a signature of the lineage since 1990, is revisited with finesse, connected to an adjustable preload and rebound damper. And those spoked wheels… they are simply superb.

But let’s open the hood. The mutation is striking on the surface, but wise in the entrails. The aluminum “Pivotless” frame remains identical, a foundation of reliability. The 782 cm³ V4 engine, this heart with a mythical sound, does not change displacement. The adjustment is subtle: a recalibration of the VTEC system to fluidify the transition between the 2 and 4 valve modes, and an update of the valve timing diagram. The objective? Improve muscle at low and mid-revs. The maximum power of 107 hp now arrives at 10,250 rpm, and the torque of 75.1 Nm at 8,500 rpm. Honda seeks efficiency, not excess. With a consumption approaching 5.15 L/100 km, this machine remains an economical touring bike.

So, what is this Honda VFR800F Honda 800 VFR 2025 in spirit? A sport-touring bike that defies time. Its audience? The demanding globetrotter who wants to cover hundreds of kilometers without fatigue, the enthusiast of noble mechanics who cherishes the V4, and even the urban rider who appreciates its agility despite its weight. At €12,999, it positions itself in a category where the competition is fierce, facing the Yamaha Tracer 9 or the Suzuki V-Strom 1000. Its strength is not in the raw numbers – 107 hp seem modest today – but in its legendary homogeneity, its complete equipment (standard heated grips, automatic turn signal recall), and its unique character.

Its flaw? Justly, this modesty. We sometimes dream that Honda launches the VFR that everyone is waiting for: a 1000 cm³ V4, freed from VTEC, offering 140 horsepower without excess, on this already perfect chassis. But perhaps this expectation is the price of its status: the Honda VFR800F is a machine that cultivates active nostalgia, a motorcycle that makes travel a mechanic of emotion, not a race to specifications. It gently slides from history towards legend, and that may be its greatest achievement.