Considering a "baby" Interceptor - VTR250

[leftfield6]

Stumbled across a CL ad in Atlanta for a guy who is selling his entire collection of cars, car parts, motorcycles, random garage items, etc.  The guy must have a barn full of stuff, he is selling everything from a Model A to muscle car parts.

One item that caught my eye was a 1989 Honda Interceptor VTR250.  Supposedly running, in good shape, for $900. 

Any one have familiarity with this bike, i did a little research last night, but not a lot out there on this bike, I'd like to hear from someone who has had one.

[ariwhiteboy]

Depending on the condition, I say go for it.  Heck if the guy is getting rid of everything, he might take $750 for it.  It looks like it would be a fun little bike for running errands. 

P.S. Get some pics of this guys garage, I bet it's awesome!

[leftfield6]

No pics, but here is the CL ad.  Interesting collection of stuff he's got here.

http://atlanta.craigslist.org/atl/pts/2149788261.html

[Laminar]

From what I've seen, they're actually fairly desirable bikes. Lightweight and fun, great gas mileage. Oh, and from '89 on, they were no longer called "Interceptor."

The only one on eBay failed to sell for $810, but it might not have run.

[Munkey]

Maybe you could get him the throw those Playboy shifter handles in on the deal.

Just sayin'

[noahnsteph]

Hmmm, that one on Ebay looks more like a Ninja than an Interceptor. Of course I've never actually seen a 250 Interceptor before.

[leftfield6]

Gotta love the Miami Vice colors.  It's from the 80s, after all.  Crockett and Tubbs would love this bike!

[leftfield6]

Maybe you could get him the throw those Playboy shifter handles in on the deal.

Just sayin'

Yeah, I saw that.  Hmm, my Honda Element is a 5-speed, maybe, just maybe............

[ExTex]

I have a 1989 VTR250 and love it.  I got it last February and it had been sitting a long time. 
After the usual problems with a rusty gas tank and a sticking front brake, it has run without problems.
All the power and speed that I want. 80 MPH on the Interstate is no problem.  I haven't found the top speed.
Enough parts and supplies are available on Ebay and Honda.
I did add a center stand; all parts were available from Honda except the pivot rod, which I made.
I bought a new seat cover for $30 and installed it.

No known problem areas.  Sprockets are hard to find for the 428 chain.
Some POs have broken the plastic body panel mounts, but they can be patched or replacement bought off Ebay.

At that price, I would jump on it.


Ride safely,
 

[Laminar]

Hmmm, that one on Ebay looks more like a Ninja than an Interceptor. Of course I've never actually seen a 250 Interceptor before.

What do you think an Interceptor looks like?

[ariwhiteboy]

I"ll take the top one please.   

[Laminar]

You have something against the awesome teal/purple?

[ariwhiteboy]

Oh no, I'm just a sucker for those dual round headlights. 

[Laminar]

The FZR?

[Option13]

Oh no, I'm just a sucker for those dual round headlights.  

I feel the same way.



Yum.

[fishball]

Neat bike leftfield.  I like small displacement bikes, I bet it is fun to ride.

[leftfield6]

Just spoke to the seller.  Some good, some bad.

Good - only 9000 miles, all body panels and plastics in perfect condition, bike has never been dropped, carbs just cleaned,

Bad - hasn't been driven in years, tires old enough to be suspect, needs a new ignition switch, needs all four turn indicators replaced, needs replacement headlight glass.

Said he had broken the turn signals off at various times when moving stuff around his garage.  Looking at the list of stuff he has in there, that's believable. 

Said he was "fairly" negotiable on the price.

A quick perusal of eBay finds ignition switches starting at about $75, various turn signals at $10 each and up, and headlights starting at $25.  An eBay search for VTR250 turns up 27 pages of parts for sale.

I'll go take a look at it after we get a thaw.  He's about 45 minutes away.  He said he's getting hundreds of calls about stuff, but I was the first one asking about the VTR250.   Cool, maybe he will be VERY negotiable!!  I'd like to to get it for $600 or less.


ExTex, what kind of mpg do you get?  Also, how big of a PITA is working on that enclosed front brake?

[ariwhiteboy]

With the work you will have to put into it, I would offer $500 cash for it or walk.  The guy is a collector, and will most likely accept knowing the bike will be going to a good home and not to some 18 year old who just wants any motorcycle.  Let us know what happens.

[hppants]

Good luck leftfield - bet you'll get 70 mpg on that bike.

One of the fastest bikes I ever rode was a twin eye 750 Gixxer - Blue/White.  That thing was stupid fast - if I owned one of those, I'd be dead.  I know me -  dead

[ExTex]

The enclosed front brake was different but as easy as a standard disk brake to work on.  Just had to adjust your reassembly technique.
The gas tank is so big for my 20 mile round trip rides that I have never gotten a good MPG number.  But I would estimate about 70 MPG
unless you do a lot of 80 MPH highway miles.  And at least 50 MPG town driving...   But it is a blast to wind up the engine.

Usually you can disassemble the ignition switch and clean it.

I forgot that my mirror broke so I fabricated some mirror extenders and installed standard 650 Nighthawk mirrors.  They work well.

The front turn lights are single filament (no running lights) so you can replace all 4 turn lights with identical ones.  There are a lot of
Thailand turn lights that are pretty cheap.  Modern VTR250s (same engine but a naked bike) are made popular in Australia and Thailand.
These look good and not expensive:  http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/Honda-Front-Turn-Signal-VTR250R-Interceptor-VTR-/140255929490?pt=Motorcycles_Parts_Accessories&hash=item20a7e7a492

That teal blue is a bit hard to take, but the royal blue is pretty nice.  I repainted my front fender royal blue to match the gas tank using
royal blue spray paint from Lowes.  I plan to take the side panels to a paint shop and get the teal blue covered over.

I'll be happy to answer any more questions.  There is a good user forum:  http://www.vtr250.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl

It and Ebay are a bit inactive during the winter months.

Here is what my bike should look like after painting later this month.  


Ride Safely,
 

[twoodard]

Had a 88 blue and white one.  cool bike with great MPG. 

[ExTex]

Please update.... did you very look at it ?
Did you buy it ?

I saw 2 sell on EBay this week for $1700 & $2100.  so they are gaining value.
Admittedly, these 2 were in great shape.  But  any ridable VTR250 is worth $500 to me.

Ride Safely,
 

[leftfield6]

Thought I'd jump in here with an update.  Still have not purchased this, but I made an offer weeks ago.  Bike looks pretty good, but not perfect. 

All the plastic is there, no broken tabs, etc, cosmetically it needs a freshening though.  Not a deal killer, as I would want to switch from the Miami Vice color scheme to something more like the mid-80s Interceptors in red/white/blue.  Seller, as part of getting the bike ready to sell had the tank cleaned out and resealed, then carbs cleaned, adjusted and sync'd.

Motor starts and runs fine, with typical choke use until warmed up.  Revs out good with no odd noises, and no leaks I could spot.  Tires are past their expiration date, although the seller insists the rear is fine just because it has tread like a new tire.  It may have been a new tire when it was mounted in 1998 (date on sidewall) but it's certainly not new enough now!

Overall, bike was about what I expected.  I made him a cash offer, even showing him the bills.  He balked at the offer, and counter-offered a price only $50 off his asking price, basically saying with what he has spent on tank/carbs/etc, that the bike is worth a lot more than I offered.  Maybe he's right, but I'm holding out.  He's going to have to come down another $150 before I'll buy it.

By next weekend, maybe he and I will come to an agreement.  I know I'm in the minority in this, but I LOVE a small displacement bike.  A redline at 11K is a lot of fun.  On my test ride I found it pretty easy to keep the powerplant up in the right rev range.  A relaxed long-haul mile-eater it is not, but I could easily see this extremely light, flickable bike, with it's engine kept up in the upper ranges of the tach, being able to keep up with much bigger bikes in the twisties.  This bike was made for the Dragon!!

Unless someone snags it out from under me, and with gas approaching $4 a gallon it might happen, I think I'll have this sitting in my garage in a few weeks.  My offer has got to look better and better each day that goes by.

[cpayne5]

My wife has really enjoyed hers.


It's a fun little bike.

[tbante]

You are willing to lose that bike over $150?