86 VFR700F Repair Questions

[lnorton89]

I have an 86 VFR700F in white that has been sitting for 10+ years in my garage and I want to get it running again. I just pulled the rusted varnished tank off and am in the process of cleaning it. It will try and start so that's a good sign but I'm thinking it needs a carb rebuild/replacement. I'm new to bikes so I was wondering where should I start to get this thing running again once the tank is clean.

I was thinking new oil, oil filter, plugs, carb rebuild, battery, fuel filter, the pump is still good, but other than that I don't have any clue on where to go next.

[speed]

after you clean the tank you will need to disassemble the carbs and clean then throughly , now pay attention to how they come apart so you can get it all back together correctly good luck

[lnorton89]

Okay, to remove the carb I'm guessing remove the air filter box and go from there?

[derstuka]

Welcome to the forum! Congrats on the resurrection!

First thing, you need a manual bud. Don't start any major service/repair without one nearby. I don't think that we have your year, but here is the link to our downloadable manuals anyways. VFRDiscussion might have the correct downloadable manual for your '86.

Downloadable Parts Catalogs and Service Manuals

[DANIMAL]

The fact that the bike will turn over is a good sign. If you put it in neutral can you roll the bike? if you put it in gear and pull in the clutch will it roll then? Have you rebuilt carbs before? then no problem. they are a bitch to remove, the rubber insulators that hold them on get stiff with age. replace them. you will wish you had. Replace the ten yr old TIRES, do the brakes flush em and change seals in the master cylinders and calipers. clutch is hydraulic to you may need to rebuild master and slave cylinders. i'll bet you they won't hold and they will leak. for the tank there is a product POR-15 POR-15 Inc. their three step system works I can personally vouch for it
brake fluid is hell on rubber seals when it just sits I have resurrected a bike exactly like yours and i loved it and rode it for many thousands more miles till I bought a new VFR in april 06. Good look and may the motorcycle gods smile down and find favor with your chosen task. Also, feel free to ask questions.

[lnorton89]

Originally Posted by DANIMAL

The fact that the bike will turn over is a good sign. If you put it in neutral can you roll the bike? if you put it in gear and pull in the clutch will it roll then? Have you rebuilt carbs before? then no problem. they are a bitch to remove, the rubber insulators that hold them on get stiff with age. replace them. you will wish you had. Replace the ten yr old TIRES, do the brakes flush em and change seals in the master cylinders and calipers. clutch is hydraulic to you may need to rebuild master and slave cylinders. i'll bet you they won't hold and they will leak. for the tank there is a product POR-15 POR-15 Inc. their three step system works I can personally vouch for it
brake fluid is hell on rubber seals when it just sits I have resurrected a bike exactly like yours and i loved it and rode it for many thousands more miles till I bought a new VFR in april 06. Good look and may the motorcycle gods smile down and find favor with your chosen task. Also, feel free to ask questions.

Yes it rolls in neutral and in gear while clutched. I've emptied out most of the old gas and rust but it sounds like there is still liquid in the tank, I'm guessing a reserve tank? Theres a toggle on the side for ON/OFF/RESERVE so that's what I'm guessing..where can I pick up a service manual? I took off the seat yesterday and the original owners manual is there :P.

EDIT: Turns out it does NOT roll in gear with the clutch pushed in...

[DKC'sVFR]

I have an '86 VFR 700. I bought it off a guy for $550 about 10 days ago. He couldn't get it to run. The fairings were pretty busted up as well. I think he took out his anger on the bike and tore the tail fairing to pieces before throwing in the towel and selling the bike. I did a compression test before purchasing it. It had 150 psi on all cylinders. I suggest that you do a compression test before you get too deep into your project. It will give you an estimate of the cost of repairs to just the motor. This was cold after the cycle had been sitting for half the year. His complaint was that it was loosing power. It had a hard life, not garaged. The first thing you have to do is get a copy of the repair manual. You should actually get a copy of more than the '86 manual. You should get a copy of the '90 manual as well. It's going to be very frustrating unless you have a decent manual, even if you are mechanical.

I could not get a manual to download from the VFRworld manual's site. I can't tell you how frustrating it was to go back time and again and be denied. One night I stayed awake all night trying to down load the Clymer manual they have on the site from England. It would go for hours and then at about half way it would send an error message. I did this twice. I went to my local library and read through a 99 CBR manual. I was very frustrated. Days went by and all I had was just another inert pile of junk in my garage. Then I got a break. I got a hold of two manuals by accident. Three days later I had found out why the bike would not start/run. The kill switch had corroded in the weather. It was cutting down/off the flow of current to the ICM (ignition control module) and subsequently the FCOR (fuel cut off relay) would not operate normally. The bike acted like it had a fuel starvation problem but it was actually a minor electrical problem. She up started last night. That was all that was keeping her from starting. In the meantime I had managed to put new dent in the tank by not having it on a good foundation while using it to test the fuel pump. The guy had sold me what he said had been a strong runner with new Pierrelli's on it, because of a gunked up kill switch. I had gone for fuel instead of electrical because I hadn't a clue without a manual. I got a nice big dent in the tank as a result. I would still be holding my thing in my hand had it not been for getting the manual and knowing how to use it. Get a manual.

When you struggle hard and finally figure it out, well, its a great feeling. The world is not perfect and the old girl still needs a lot of attention and care, but my worlds a little more beautiful for having figured it out.

This was only the beginning of the frustrations I face. You face even more. If you can't handle it I'll be glad to take that tail fairing off you or any other 86 plastic is still in decent enough shape for repair and paint.