nc24 issues

[tattytom]

hi there just needing some advive

i am looking at buying a vfr400 nc24 and i dont want to get ripped off

what price should i be paying and what problems should i look for specific to the nc24?

cheers tom

[Neosophist]

hi there just needing some advive

i am looking at buying a vfr400 nc24 and i dont want to get ripped off

what price should i be paying and what problems should i look for specific to the nc24?

cheers tom

no more than around 500 quid, 6-700 for something that is factory mint, and very low miles, ie 10,000 or less.

Not many problems. Regulator / rectifier can fail but is straight-forward to replace.

Even the newest one is going to be 24 years old now so check usual worn things, suspension bearings chain tyres.

Any particular reason why an NC24 and not an NC30?

The brakes, suspension and choice of tyres available for the NC30 are vastly superior. The ride is very different.

[tattytom]

reason is pretty much price and its going to be used throughout winter and rain what ever the weather

and its going to be my first "bigbike"

could you tell me the main differences between the 24 and the 30 ?

cheers tom

[Neosophist]

Well they are the cheapest V4 you will get on a budget but any bike thats almost quater of a century will most likely need money spending on it.

Parts and servicing arn't cheap either.

First question though.

NC24 vs NC30.

Main differences are the brakes and suspension on the NC30 are much much better. The NC24 has sliding 2 piston calipers and very soft 80s Honda suspension.

The suspension on the NC30 is nice and stiff and the bike feels well put together, the brakes will also stop the bike like throwing an anchor off the back.

The wheels on the NC24 are 16" and 18" which make getting grippy tyres impossible. The NC30 has less choices these days with stock wheels but you can still get much better tyres.

Just a word of warning though, you can read many many stories on here of old bikes costing an arm and a leg to keep going, even ones that have been well looked after occasionaly require a bit of shelling out on.

Personally I don't think an NC24 is a good starter big bike, especially if your wanting to ride it all the while as a commuter (they are not that comfy after some time).

While 10 years ago they might have been a fairly cheap stepping stone they are getting on a lot now.

There is still something nice about a small compact V4 and a shame nothing has been made since, but you get what you pay for.. anything cheap will likely turn into a bottemless pit in the long-run (and possibly even short term!) part of the reason why good clean examples are fetching more money these days.. many collectors want something good for peace of mind.

I shit you not, the last NC24 I brought (which wasnt cheap either) broke down less than 2 miles from the sellers house... the battery was fubarad and I stalled it at the traffic lights due to bent gear lever making it difficult to select gears. I pushed it back and the seller conveniently had a bike battery charger ready (I suspect he had charged the dead battery before I arrived)

he was kind enough to spring for a new battery and said he wouldnt hold it against me if I changed my mind(although finding a shop that was open and had a battery on a Sunday was epic enough) I took it.

After getting it home, giving it a full service and renewing things like fork oil and seals, vaccum hose, carb balance and valve check, new tyres chain and sprockets along with a replacement rear wheel bearing (65 quid alone!) and new genny / regularoy / battery I spent around 600 on top of what I paid.

Not at all cheap but after that it was a decent reliable jack of all trades bike which I still have. If I hadn't gone over it properly I'd always be worried about going out alone incase it broke down.


So without going on too much I think the moral of the story is that they are very seldom as cheap as they look, if you buy the NC24 I think it will be easy to get carried away with the spending, you might then feel stuck with it as many peopel dont want to cut their losses selling a bike for what they paid for it after spending a few hundred quid on it so get stuck with something.

Try as many bikes as you can before buying one. Ask on here if you have one in mind, many people can help.

As a first big bike theres plenty of other newer / more available mainstream bikes id also consider

[CMSMJ1]

What is your budget? At the end of the day, you do get what you pay for and buying a shitter as a first bike can be depressing.

NC24s are either dead cheap and plagued with rotten (£200+ to buy) exhausts and gernally are old and tired - @ £500 ish

Or they are still quite old and tired and still need an axhuast, though not as bad - for £800

You need a 400 due to insurance I suspect? Where re you based?

Unashamed plug - but if you are near Sheffield come and see my mate's FZR400.. 12 months MOT, £800..sorted

I am a confirmed V4 person too..but you won't get much for less. (I have had several NC30s and an NC24)

[andy1472]

The chap is correct. I searched for a 21 to rebuild, found one very cheap, looked it over, brought it, new i'd be spending loads on it but wanted to save it from the scrap heap.

11 weeks later and about £1100 in parts, yes £1100 it was done (some I spent more than I needed but I wanted the best), mot'd, on the road and has never let me down once. It had 11k km on the clock.
Biggest headache was re-designing the collector so I can now detach it without dropping the engine should I need to replace it again and I have another new one in storage just in case. I also paid £30 for a full non-siezed engine for it and that sits nicely in my garage should I also need any spares. I never brought it to make money or to do up and sell. I will be keeping this and adding my fireblade to my collection.
I have been all over Wales on it and I find it very comfy and I'm 5'11". The forks are soft as shite though. Honda do not make genuine disks for them anymore as per david silvers message so I had to buy ebc ones at 120 each or there abouts and ebc pads to match or I'd invalid my disk warranty.
Lots to consider. I however only joy ride mine and walk to work instead so salt and bad weather isn't an issue to me.
If someone said "here's £800 go buy a bike for work" I'd def not buy a vfr series! It would be an Honda though.
Good luck whatever you decide to do.

[Neosophist]

The chap is correct. I searched for a 21 to rebuild, found one very cheap, looked it over, brought it, new i'd be spending loads on it but wanted to save it from the scrap heap.

11 weeks later and about £1100 in parts, yes £1100 it was done (some I spent more than I needed but I wanted the best), mot'd, on the road and has never let me down once. It had 11k km on the clock.
Biggest headache was re-designing the collector so I can now detach it without dropping the engine should I need to replace it again and I have another new one in storage just in case. I also paid £30 for a full non-siezed engine for it and that sits nicely in my garage should I also need any spares. I never brought it to make money or to do up and sell. I will be keeping this and adding my fireblade to my collection.
I have been all over Wales on it and I find it very comfy and I'm 5'11". The forks are soft as shite though. Honda do not make genuine disks for them anymore as per david silvers message so I had to buy ebc ones at 120 each or there abouts and ebc pads to match or I'd invalid my disk warranty.
Lots to consider. I however only joy ride mine and walk to work instead so salt and bad weather isn't an issue to me.
If someone said "here's £800 go buy a bike for work" I'd def not buy a vfr series! It would be an Honda though.
Good luck whatever you decide to do.

Totally agree. great cheap runaroud (althoug most of them are not cheap now with rebuild costs) will not set the world alight compared to say an NC30)

Problem is age and poularity, they were so successful most have been ragged to shit.

My friend in Japan has the mintest NC24 you could ever see, you can eat your dinner off it, that word is overused on ebay but it was featured on the Honda Japan website :)

He's had it from new though and its uber nice, although he does envy my NC30.

I like all the VFR bikes but there not cheap in the long run and unless you have the time / knowledge / money and experience to sort it your bike will make you want to comit suicide and you will be posting 100 page threads like other members trying to sort mundane stuff.

CBR600F comes to mind, the jelly moulds will outride the NC24 anyway, more power too, one of my favourite Hondas, even CRM (Super Admin) took a shine to his... got it for pennies, there are millions about and spares are cheap as chips.

[tattytom]

hey guys thanks for all the advice

im going to have a look at the above fzr at weekend

i am going to be on a a2 licence so anything i get is guna be pretty shit on perfomance aswell but i dont want a skinny 250 or something like that

i know if i get a 400 its going to be low on power but ill only be running around the city on it with the occasional trip out with my dad and his mates so wont really be a problem

and i am aware that most are uncomfy but im 20 and will sleep it off i just love the look of the 88-95 400s and how they look so i am sold on a 400 and no angry forum 400 hater is going to convince me to think differently ha which i doubt there is alot of on this forum ahah