I rode a 400cc after a long time and it was incredibly fun. (ZZR400)
The high-RPM feel you can’t get on a liter bike, the nimbleness of the chassis—it just feels right for a Japanese body frame, and I found myself really appreciating that today.
Now that I think about it, the first 400 I owned was a CBR400RR (a salvage bike). (It was a hand-me-down—those were good times.) Since I’d only ridden up to 250cc before that, I was amazed at how fast it was back then.
I thought, wow, I’ve gotten my hands on something seriously powerful.
After that I rode a ZX-4 (another hand-me-down—more good times), and I still remember practicing in a parking lot at night to get my unrestricted license.
Of course, I didn’t have the unrestricted license yet and had never ridden a big bike, so when I got on the test bike VFR, I was shocked at the torque.
Big bikes are easy to ride on torque alone without revving them up, and the speed comes instantly. If you gradually work your way up through larger displacements, you’ll definitely fall in love with big bikes.
But as you get older…
The sidestand feels heavy to lift. Swinging your leg over feels like a chore. Once you’re on it’s easy, but don’t you find yourself grunting “heave-ho” as you mount?
Then what comes to mind? The idea that dropping the displacement naturally drops the weight too.
Oh, it’s light! Swinging over is easy! The foot pegs are perfectly placed—there are so many good things about it. In the end, maybe it really is a Super Cub.
Coming from a big bike, the acceleration feels sluggish in comparison, but you learn to enjoy revving it up according to its displacement, and honestly, that’s a blast.
The engine’s screaming, the fan’s screaming—I was a little worried, but the water temperature gauge was sitting at about half. (ZZR400)
People say it all the time, but… I wish I’d kept that RVF400.
It was in great condition. Honda’s V4 400 is seriously awesome.
