2014 Vfr800Fe Snatchy Throttle Response

I have recently taken delivery of the new VFR800E. It has had its first service. At low speeds (20-40), it has a very snatchy throttle response regardless of gear/rpm: really irritating as I need to use it for commuting to/in London as well leisure. Above 50 or so it is fine. I am a tad surprised because the demonstrator I originally took out seemed ok and I have read nothing in reviews about a fuelling problem.  Is anybody else having the same problem? Is there an easy fix? I'm loathe to go down the Power Commander route (maps do not appear to be available anyway).

I'm seeing much better throttle behavior than on my '03, which was quite snatchy in low gear indeed. This may have trained me to be a bit less ham-fisted on the throttle. At any rate, I find the 2014 to be quite acceptable. In fact it's a bit better than by 600RR.

Since there seem to be a few others who agree with you, perhaps it is some sort of setup issue with respect to the throttle tube and/or cables.


Edited to add- I remembered almost 10 years ago there was an extensive discussion on this subject on a Canadian board, and the consensus seemed to be that starter valve timing issues may exist out of the crate on some bikes exacerbating this issue. Even then, though there was no consensus on this, with most respondents to the discussion saying they had no issue and a vocal minority expressing a problem.

You can look it up for yourself, it's still out there. Google "VFR snatchy throttle".

Starter Valve synchronisation may well be the problem. IIRC, they are not included in either the 5th or 6th Gen servicing schedules by Honda and therefore are not done if you get the bike serviced at a Honda dealer. This may well apply to the 8th Gen too, I don't know.

Has anyone taken a look under the tank of an 8th Gen to see how easy it would be to do, or is it even necessary? And what sync do you do? Stepped like the 5th Gen or identical like the 6th Gen (I presume it would be this).

If the OP would like to bring his 14 model up the A1 to J10, I can take a look for him and have a set of vacuum gauges available.

I found this on a 6th gen thread on snatchy throttle. Not sure it applies here but thought it might help/provide insight:

"Update!!!

The Raven is well again   :laugh:

It's been a few weeks (maybe more, since time flies when you've got too much to do --), and he's settled in and running like I remember my other two 6th gens.  It turns out that the wax motor (the thing you're not supposed to adjust   :blink:  ) wasn't set to speed up the idle when it was cold.   The idle when cold was in the  700 - 800 range.  When we previously synced the starter valves, it was with the wax motor set well below where it should be, which apparently made the throttle response really, really awful.  I'm pretty sure it came from the factory with the setting too low, the bike only had 5,000 miles on it when we brought it home, and I don't think the previous owner was much into wrenching.

We got everything apart in the evening, and  on a cool morning  set the wax motor so the cold engine  idled in the normal range, and resynced the starter valves again.  Then adjusted the warm running idle to the right range, and the running improved greatly.  It was probably really great right away, but I had adjusted to the poor running, and needed to relearn how to handle the throttle on a VFR that ran well.

Now that I've had a bunch of practice, it runs great, and the mileage is up to 42 mpg.    :fing02:"

Just checked the Vtec workshop manual and whilst it describes removal & refitting of the wax idle unit, there's no mention of how to adjust it.

Anyone know if this can be done & how?

From my experience it is largely a matter of trial and error, but if your engine starts from stone cold and fast idles at about 2000-2500 RPM and starts to cut back to normal idle at about 40-45 degrees C I would  leave it alone.

Adjustment is done by turning the nut on the end of the shaft, in = faster and out = slower, but beware, small changes in temperature affect it a lot.

As I understand it it works by opening the starter valves, ie the wax unit pulls on the starter valves and opens them thus increasing the idle speed.

By the time you are doing any starter valve synch, the wax unit is well and truly out of the equation, and completely disengaged since the engine should be at normal operating temp.

This is the link to the person's 6th gen thread that did this to her 6th gen (her name is Lacey): http://www.vfrdiscus...are-we-missing/

She should be able to provide some insight...she is a Forum Contributor so definitely a member of the vfr community 

As interesting as that thread is, it's also a great example of just how far afield you can get when taking advice on a web forum. Just sayin'...

Thanks for all the comments. Sounds like a glitch with my particular bike rather than a wider problem. Will take it up with Honda.

My 09 had a horribly snatchy throttle due to an overly rich mixture. Spent a long time chasing through the fuelling system and electronics without much improvement. I finally discovered that the clamps on the throttle isolator boots were not tightened down, creating a vacuum leak which affected both the MAP and the fuel pressure regulator.
As I was the original owner and only one to have worked on it, it came that way from the factory. Must have been a Friday afternoon bike. :o)
Tightening the clamps to spec (7 mm spacing) made a night and day difference. Could be worth having a look at if you can.

Thanks for all the comments. Sounds like a glitch with my particular bike rather than a wider problem. Will take it up with Honda.

Any update on this? Thx

I have recently taken delivery of the new VFR800E. It has had its first service. At low speeds (20-40), it has a very snatchy throttle response regardless of gear/rpm: really irritating as I need to use it for commuting to/in London as well leisure. Above 50 or so it is fine. I am a tad surprised because the demonstrator I originally took out seemed ok and I have read nothing in reviews about a fuelling problem.  Is anybody else having the same problem? Is there an easy fix? I'm loathe to go down the Power Commander route (maps do not appear to be available anyway).

I am having a similar issue with my bike too. I never noticed the snatchy throttle prior to the first service, but I sure do now. Would be very interested in whatever solution you discovered.

Good ol  starter valves ?