2009 HONDA VFR800 VTEC

781cc | 107bhp | 805mm seat height

Dealer £4000-£5000 Private £3500-£4500 This one £3040, private sale Honda abandoned their muchpraised gear-driven cams and went back to chain driven cams with added VTEC, which opens just one valve of any pair at low revs and both at higher revs.

Usual fabulous Honda build quality and amazingly reliable, but the VTEC was criticised for coming in with a bang at high revs, making the engine a bit peaky. Sales never matched that of the gear-driven models and it was more ‘sports’ than ‘tourer’, especially two-up.

Buyer beware

Upswept exhausts limit luggage fitment, 16,000-mile services mean valve checks and are horrendously costly so ensure it’s had the cam chain tensioner mod done. Original equipment body panels can be expensive when bought new, so look for good used items to fix light damage on the cheap.