Trying to narrow down when the VFR800 went from a 16k mile valve inspection interval to 24k miles.
My 2018 VFR800X shows it to be 24k miles, but the Owners Manual from a 2015 model shows it to be 16k miles - pics below. As the engine is the same as the VFR800F (8th Gen), I was wondering if anyone knew when they changed or we could get a few Owners Manuals from the various years 15-18 and see which year it changed.
My 2015 VFR800FD manual says 16K.
Clearly, Honda has updated the recommendation.
16K MILES seems way too low...
Case Closed! 😉
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Even more confused. My local Honda dealer is still saying 24,000 km or 16k miles. Could be a printer cockup!
Where is Mr Honda when you need him?
If its not a printing error it could be down to the expected use regime for the X verses the sports versions. Less likely to be thrashed hard much of the time !
9 hours ago, SkidsTrying to narrow down when the VFR800 went from a 16k mile valve inspection interval to 24k miles.
My 2018 VFR800X shows it to be 24k miles, but the Owners Manual from a 2015 model shows it to be 16k miles - pics below. As the engine is the same as the VFR800F (8th Gen), I was wondering if anyone knew when they changed or we could get a few Owners Manuals from the various years 15-18 and see which year it changed.
[image: 2018 VFR.jpg]
[image: 2015 VFR.jpg]
The manuals changed in 2016 apparently.
3 hours ago, VFR78Even more confused. My local Honda dealer is still saying 24,000 km or 16k miles. Could be a printer cockup!
Where is Mr Honda when you need him?
Highly unlikely there is a typo in the manual... Mr Honda IS the manual...
Seems pretty strange that Gen 6 was 24,000 kms all the way and Gen 8 was 24,000 for at least 4 years of it’s life. Why would it change. I have tried to get a handbook from the Japanese Honda site, ha ha. Not so easy!
Don’t get me wrong, I’m not pushing any barrow. In fact the longer interval would suit this retirees bank balance much better. Unfortunately, I’m probably the only anal Viffer rider who’s interested.
well there have been errors in manual before. I still suspect it's units conversion issue.
I recently filled out paperwork to ship bike from Canada to California. Said it weighed 210-kg with empty tank on numerous forms. I got back invoice saying 210-lbs !!! Ok, if they just want to charge to ship 210-lbs, that's fine by me!
Has anyone being using 36k-mile schedule? Has it working out OK between intervals?
Uh....I am on a 60k mile interval. Had 6 valves out of spec at the time . I posted about my experience in 2020.
DannoXYZ, 1/3/2021 at 8:33 PMwell there have been errors in manual before. I still suspect it's units conversion issue.
I recently filled out paperwork to ship bike from Canada to California. Said it weighed 210-kg with empty tank on numerous forms. I got back invoice saying 210-lbs !!! Ok, if they just want to charge to ship 210-lbs, that's fine by me!
Has anyone being using 36k-mile schedule? Has it working out OK between intervals?
Taken from VFRWORLD..
"Dear Mr. C,
Thank you for contacting Honda UK.
We would like to let you know that we have had a look and can confirm that when it comes to the 2014 VFR800 what we were able to locate on our system is that the valve inspection service has to be done at 24,000 miles.
For any additional information we can recommend discussing things further with your Honda authorized dealership, you can locate your closest Honda dealership here:
https://www.honda.co.uk/motorcycles/dealer-search.html
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
Alexander Ivanov
Honda Customer Service
"
Mmmm. The mystery continues!
Well its a bit of a disgrace that Honda have not released a Technical Service Bulletin to advise all service agents that the valve inspection interval has changed, especially if this goes back to the 2014 model.
There does appear to be plenty of good evidence for extending the interval. But why Honda hasn't made this common knowledge to there service agents is strange.
Bit like VFR78, the mystery continues!
My local Honda dealer claims it is still 16k miles.
My local dealer more or less refused to check the valves at 16k miles.
I had an independent shop check and adjust the valves at 38k miles and only two valves needed to be adjusted. YMMV.
Lifted from VFRworld.
However I decided to go one better and emailed Honda USA, and Honda UK if indeed the service interval is now 24000 miles. Honda UK responded to me inside of 24 hours, and I copy and paste their response:
Dear Mr. C,
Thank you for contacting Honda UK.
We would like to let you know that we have had a look and can confirm that when it comes to the 2014 VFR800 what we were able to locate on our system is that the valve inspection service has to be done at 24,000 miles.
For any additional information we can recommend discussing things further with your Honda authorized dealership, you can locate your closest Honda dealership here:
https://www.honda.co.uk/motorcycles/dealer-search.html
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
Alexander Ivanov
Honda Customer Service
Interesting feedback. So it makes one wonder what, if anything Honda did differently on the 8th gen VTEC motor to extend the valve check interval, or if on 6th gens it was spec'd at an overly conservative level. Given that so many owners have skipped over the valve checks with no consequence, I'm guessing it's the latter. Thanks for doing this.
4 hours ago, CogswellInteresting feedback. So it makes one wonder what, if anything Honda did differently on the 8th gen VTEC motor to extend the valve check interval, or if on 6th gens it was spec'd at an overly conservative level. Given that so many owners have skipped over the valve checks with no consequence, I'm guessing it's the latter. Thanks for doing this.
That would be an interesting point. Are valve measurements the same for all gens?
Could advances in fuel and oil technology be the answer? After all, modern oils are so good compared to yesteryear, although reductions in Zinc (for emissions) and ethanol in fuel might suggest otherwise.
Valves generally tighten up as valve face/seat wears. Are the valves/heads on the later models made of harder materials? Are part numbers different?
Dirt coming through air filter can form an abrasive and cause valve wear. Could it be due to revised air box design on newer models (flapper deactivated and plugged)? I doubt it but...
Valve clearances can increase with coke buildup. Could it be this buildup is counteracting valve wear so gaps remain stable? That would require later models to encourage more buildup than older ones. Again, I doubt it.
Just spitballing...
UThis is mostly a gimmick intended to satisfy liabilities and scenarios that may not exists. For motorcycles it depends on many factors, like where you live. Many live below 5000 rpm some live at redline. What is the average? Feedback is a normal way of adjusting arbitrary set preventive service intervals, looks like Honda is using it. Another point, large portion or valves deemed needing adjustment is due to measurement errors since method is crude and rely on expirience to evaluate.
In car world, like Toyota for example, routine valve lash inspections are practically gone.
It would appear that between the 6th and 8th Gen, honda has updated their cam shaft part numbers. This could partially be a reason why
Can’t see how? Isn’t lash taken at unloaded part of the cam?
Yes, however, just shows that they have made updates to the internals. What those updates exactly are I don't know and I'm sure it's more than just the cams. But, it is possible that those updates helped with the keeping the clearance within spec longer
I would love to see Honda Engineering evals that lead to setting of the inspection periods. That would be fun...
12 hours ago, MagnetoI would love to see Honda Engineering evals that lead to setting of the inspection periods. That would be fun...
Taking part in those discussions on industrial consumer products was entertaining, followed by horribly boring statistical calculations padded with safety margins.
So I can only imagine that the initial testing efforts for larger products like motorcycles would be awesome! Minus the math
15 hours ago, MagnetoIn car world, like Toyota for example, routine valve lash inspections are practically gone.
At 240,000 miles I replaced the timing belt my Camry's 5S-FE. I bought the car with with ~100,000 miles on it and I doubt the valves had ever been checked by the P.O. I had to remove the cam cover to service a leaky spark plug tube so decided to check valve clearances while I was in there. All were within spec. Regardless of how long I keep this car, I'll never bother looking at them again.
2 minutes ago, CogswellAt 240,000 miles I replaced the timing belt my Camry's 5S-FE. I bought the car with with ~100,000 miles on it and I doubt the valves had ever been checked by the P.O. I had to remove the cam cover to service a leaky spark plug tube so decided to check valve clearances while I was in there. All were within spec. Regardless of how long I keep this car, I'll never bother looking at them again.
A lot of cars these days have hydraulic lifters or hydraulic tappets which eliminates the need to adjust valve lash as the lifter/tappet automatically compensates for wear. Unless the Lifter/tappet has gone bad.
A lot of motorcycles do not have hydraulic lifters or tappets because it adds complexity to the engine as there now has to be a complex route of oiling channels to provide oil pressure to these components.
From what I understand as well, higher RMP engines generally don't use hydraulic lifters do to some issues with supplying proper oil pressures and function properly due to added stresses.
1 hour ago, TriumphTraitorTaking part in those discussions on industrial consumer products was entertaining, followed by horribly boring statistical calculations padded with safety margins.
So I can only imagine that the initial testing efforts for larger products like motorcycles would be awesome! Minus the math
We routinely extend manufacturer recommended time based routine maintenance relying among others on JIT maintenance and value based maintenance. Knowing Honda way would be great. Math is king 🙂
I'm well late to this party. Just checked my owners manual for my 8th Gen VFR800FH 2017 and the valve clearance check line is completely blank. Did we ever establish the Honda approved interval for machines after 2014?
12 hours ago, PressonI'm well late to this party. Just checked my owners manual for my 8th Gen VFR800FH 2017 and the valve clearance check line is completely blank. Did we ever establish the Honda approved interval for machines after 2014?
Ah ha thats great, no longer required.!!! :fing02:
Rumors going around that the interval has been extended from 16000miles to 24000miles, and there is no doubt plenty of evidence to back up the reasoning for increasing the interval. However its interesting there appears to be no Technical Service Bulletin issued to dealerships to substantiate this and those that I've contacted in Australia are also unaware of any change to the valve inspection interval. Go figure!!!
For info, I've done over 80,000kms and haven't had the valves checked........naughty me! :ohmy:
1 hour ago, GrumFor info, I've done over 80,000kms and haven't had the valves checked........naughty me! :ohmy:
I may well follow the wisdom of the crowd here and wait much longer for the valve check than Honda recommend. It still leaves a slightly nagging feeling that the manufacturer knows something we don't; perhaps I'm being naive and they just have a policy of checking everything early to avoid later disappointment.
To try again to pin this down I've contacted Honda UK and also asked specifically from what year of manufacture any change in interval applies to. Let's see if this can flush out the answer. I'll post when I get their reply.
And the plot thickens. Just done a recall check on the Honda website against my frame number/VIN and it says there is a recall for an owner's manual printing error. Another route for a definitive answer perhaps and another excuse for a ride out to the nearest dealer ( obviously the long and winding way round)!
1 hour ago, PressonAnd the plot thickens. Just done a recall check on the Honda website against my frame number/VIN and it says there is a recall for an owner's manual printing error. Another route for a definitive answer perhaps and another excuse for a ride out to the nearest dealer ( obviously the long and winding way round)!
Hmmm, just done the same check and there are no recalls due on my 2018 VFR800X.
The main influences to valve wear & thus adjustment are user use i.e. revs & routine maintenance. If you rev the nuts off the engine & rarely change the oil you will wear the cam lobes & buckets &/or the high revs cause valve hammer which setts the valves back in the head.
you can tell which is happening by checking the valves. If they get loose you have cam/bucket wear, if they get tight you have valve recession in to the head.
On my 5th gen, #3 cylinder always tightens due to excessive heat due to the rear exhaust run & my revving the crap out of it on track days.
Which reminds me I need to adjust that cylinder as it was getting close to minimum at the end of 2019. Only done approx 500 miles since then due to Covid & dislocating my shoulder last year, which I just had operation on to fix the mess it left me with, so no spannering or riding for a couple or three months ☹️
Just spoke to Honda Letchworth and new Owners Manual on order to clear the recall. Hopefully that's going to have the valve check line complete. Also talked to the tech who said the VFR800F was still 16k miles but the Crossrunner was different although he didn't elaborate. Hoping to get an email from Honda UK/ Europe in response to my earlier query.
Thanks for the explanation Mohawk, very clear and helpful. Best wishes for a thoroughly successful recovery; keep up the physio you've hopefully been given to regain full mobility in the shoulder.
2 hours ago, PressonJust spoke to Honda Letchworth and new Owners Manual on order to clear the recall. Hopefully that's going to have the valve check line complete. Also talked to the tech who said the VFR800F was still 16k miles but the Crossrunner was different although he didn't elaborate. Hoping to get an email from Honda UK/ Europe in response to my earlier query.
Thanks for the explanation Mohawk, very clear and helpful. Best wishes for a thoroughly successful recovery; keep up the physio you've hopefully been given to regain full mobility in the shoulder.
Letchworth Honda are my local too 👋 .
I called them a few months ago and they told me the X was still 16k miles, despite my Owners Manual stating 24k miles.
If anyone has any Honda HQ contacts (national or Japan), perhaps they could request some clarification as this is a very confused issue.
There was a special in a shop I worked in my younger years. Free alignment check if all angles were in spec. Hardly anyone walk out without paying...
4 hours ago, PressonThanks for the explanation Mohawk, very clear and helpful. Best wishes for a thoroughly successful recovery; keep up the physio you've hopefully been given to regain full mobility in the shoulder.
Thanks another 2 weeks before sling off & then physio 👍
Presson, 3/26/2021 at 7:23 PMI'm well late to this party. Just checked my owners manual for my 8th Gen VFR800FH 2017 and the valve clearance check line is completely blank. Did we ever establish the Honda approved interval for machines after 2014?
Manual for my 2017 is the same, it's a printing error. Speaking to my local Honda dealer it's 16,000 miles, they quoted £550 for the full service inc. valve checks.
30 minutes ago, PedalHeadManual for my 2017 is the same, it's a printing error. Speaking to my local Honda dealer it's 16,000 miles, they quoted £550 for the full service inc. valve checks.
Glad to hear PedalHead it's not just me! Might be worth checking your VIN against the Honda UK recall list ; go to Honda UK/ motorcycles and look in the menu under 'owners'. My 2017 had a recall for the owners manual which is now on order after a telephone call to the local Honda dealership. I asked them to mail it to me but I I'll have to send the old one back so they can prove its been destroyed.
As far as the actual valve check goes, £550 to £600 from a honda dealer seems pretty standard. An independent will be less, maybe £400+ or so as the cams gave to come out if the shims need changing and then possibly again after a re-check.
However, the experience of many owners here suggests that us 8th Gen owners are probably safe going well beyond the 16k interval. Personally, I'm thinking in terms of 30k now unless I start detecting a significant drop in performance. Mohawk gave a very helpful explanation a couple of post above about valve wear behaviour. I suspect most of us road riders, even those of us that love to 'haul ass' and do a bit of ' low flying' only hold the engine above the VTEC threshold for a minute or two at a time max. Hence my theory that we would tend to see widening clearance and a longer interval for checking would be safe.
Tell me ( I'm sure you will) if I'm outside the curve.
13 hours ago, PressonGlad to hear PedalHead it's not just me! Might be worth checking your VIN against the Honda UK recall list ; go to Honda UK/ motorcycles and look in the menu under 'owners'. My 2017 had a recall for the owners manual which is now on order after a telephone call to the local Honda dealership. I asked them to mail it to me but I I'll have to send the old one back so they can prove its been destroyed.
As far as the actual valve check goes, £550 to £600 from a honda dealer seems pretty standard. An independent will be less, maybe £400+ or so as the cams gave to come out if the shims need changing and then possibly again after a re-check.
However, the experience of many owners here suggests that us 8th Gen owners are probably safe going well beyond the 16k interval. Personally, I'm thinking in terms of 30k now unless I start detecting a significant drop in performance. Mohawk gave a very helpful explanation a couple of post above about valve wear behaviour. I suspect most of us road riders, even those of us that love to 'haul ass' and do a bit of ' low flying' only hold the engine above the VTEC threshold for a minute or two at a time max. Hence my theory that we would tend to see widening clearance and a longer interval for checking would be safe.
Tell me ( I'm sure you will) if I'm outside the curve.
I'm planning on having the checks done at 16k. My rational for this is that I will need it doing once during the time I'm likely to own the bike , and in doing it sooner I'll avoid any potential pitfalls and having the service stamp at the recommended interval will remove any excuse an eventual buyer may use to beat the price down. I'll be having the service done sometime in the next couple of months.
My 2019 manual clearly shows 24k miles or 36k km
hope this helps some
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[image: EDFF3888-D057-4757-99F4-193EFDF9B48F.jpeg]
3 hours ago, PedalHeadI'm planning on having the checks done at 16k. My rational for this is that I will need it doing once during the time I'm likely to own the bike , and in doing it sooner I'll avoid any potential pitfalls and having the service stamp at the recommended interval will remove any excuse an eventual buyer may use to beat the price down. I'll be having the service done sometime in the next couple of months.
Good point about resale value. Do post your results when you've had it done - useful intelligence to know what if anything needed changing. I don't think I'll be selling mine; very happy and CinC Home has given me some very odd looks when I mention the idea of increasing or even changing the stable!
Just got an email from Honda UK:
HONDA UK Info <info.UK.car@honda-eu.com>
Dear Mr. H,
Thank you for contacting Honda UK.
Please find a PDF copy of your Honda VRF800F's Owner's Manual, where it is stated that the bike's Valve Clearance should be inspected at 24000 miles.
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
Rositsa Ruseva
Honda Customer Service
_____________________
Honda Motor Europe Ltd.
Honda UK
I've added the PDF here and I'll put a copy in the downloads section. I note the Honda copyright date inside is 2016. Presumably it applies to VFR800F models from 2016 on.
It seems the local dealer hasn't got the message as a number of us have been told 16K rather than the wallet friendlier 24K miles specified.
VFR800.pdf
Great work m8. :beer:
I shall contact them to ask the same question for the VFR800X as we share the same engine and the confusion affects us too.
Bloody hell, very confusing.
I have been sticking to the 24,000 kilometre version of the manual and at 60,000 kms have had the clearance checked twice. No adjustment required either time. So on that basis, 24,000miles seems adequate.
I have to say though, Honda is doing a pretty piss poor job of managing their records and technical advice.
16 hours ago, PressonJust got an email from Honda UK:
HONDA UK Info <info.UK.car@honda-eu.com>
Dear Mr. H,
Thank you for contacting Honda UK.
Please find a PDF copy of your Honda VRF800F's Owner's Manual, where it is stated that the bike's Valve Clearance should be inspected at 24000 miles.
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please don't hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
Rositsa Ruseva
Honda Customer Service
_____________________
Honda Motor Europe Ltd.
Honda UK
I've added the PDF here and I'll put a copy in the downloads section. I note the Honda copyright date inside is 2016. Presumably it applies to VFR800F models from 2016 on.
It seems the local dealer hasn't got the message as a number of us have been told 16K rather than the wallet friendlier 24K miles specified.
Looks like Russians took over Honda UK.... and message from Kremlin is consistent 24k miles valve service recommendation.
flya750, 2/25/2021 at 1:06 AMTaken from VFRWORLD..
"Dear Mr. C,
Thank you for contacting Honda UK.
We would like to let you know that we have had a look and can confirm that when it comes to the 2014 VFR800 what we were able to locate on our system is that the valve inspection service has to be done at 24,000 miles.
For any additional information we can recommend discussing things further with your Honda authorized dealership, you can locate your closest Honda dealership here:
https://www.honda.co.uk/motorcycles/dealer-search.html
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
Alexander Ivanov
Honda Customer Service
"
The 1st valve inspection on my 4th gen was at 90,000km.... :tongue:
Apart from the obvious errors, this email response backs up that at least the 2018+ VFR800X now has 24k MILE valve check.
HONDA UK Info <info.UK.car@honda-eu.com> To: xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 30/03/21 14:29 1Dear Mr. xxxxxxxx,
Thank you for contacting Honda (UK).
We have checked and indeed the owner’s manual for the ’18 VRX800s states that the valve clearance check needs to be performed every 24 000 miles. The older VRX800 need the same service every 16 000 miles.
You could check with an alternative dealership, if you are interested. You can find one on: https://www.honda.co.uk/motorcycles/dealer-search.html
Thank you for contacting Honda. If we can be of any further assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us.
Kind Regards,
George Poptodorov
Honda Customer Service
_____________________
Honda Motor Europe Ltd.
Honda UK
www.honda.co.uk
Please be informed that we have saved your personal data in order to process your query.
For more information please visit http://www.honda.co.uk/cars/useful-links/privacy-policy.html.
If you have any further questions or feedback please complete our feedback form at www.honda.co.uk/cars/contact-us.html or call our Honda (UK) Contact Centre on 0345 200 8000. Option 3.
19 hours ago, MagnetoLooks like Russians took over Honda UK.... and message from Kremlin is consistent 24k miles valve service recommendation.
Hey Magneto think you're correct.
We have, Ruseva, Ivanov and now Poptodorov!!!
Gotta be a KGB infiltration. 😆
Comrades, keep a look out for this years release of the VFRSKI :tour: :fing02:
None of this proves that 24,000 miles is correct, or that 24,000 kms is correct. Local Honda dealers or distributors regurgitating handbooks means Jack Shit. It’s obvious that the handbook proof readers don’t even know what Mr Honda recommends. It’s clearly also so “important” that no one at Honda really cares. So now I don’t care and vote that we all adopt a 100,000km check interval.
Big boys in the industrial maintenance wised up to manufacturer maintenance recommendations some time ago. My Husky apparently requires engine overhaul every 100 hours....
Did valve clearances on my 10,500 mile 5th gen engine and one of them was on the very edge of spec. If I’d waited for 16,000 miles it would have been out of spec for sure.
Of course it would still run OK but wouldn’t be ideal.
Maybe I’m too anal to leave internal maintenance for long but this sort of thing keeps me up at night!
Probably it was set in like that. There is no edge of spec as we are using a gauge and acquired technique to feel it, meaning there is no direct measurement. It would be nice to know if you would notice/ feel any changes 6k from now if left as found.
2 hours ago, StrayDid valve clearances on my 10,500 mile 5th gen engine and one of them was on the very edge of spec. If I’d waited for 16,000 miles it would have been out of spec for sure.
Of course it would still run OK but wouldn’t be ideal.
Maybe I’m too anal to leave internal maintenance for long but this sort of thing keeps me up at night!
It's a relatively straightforward job on the 5th Gen so why not if it means peace of mind. :beer: