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1994 Harley Davidson VR1000 For Sale

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Harley Davidson VR1000 from S&S Cycle for sale
Harley Davidson VR1000 from S&S Cycle for sale

Got a note from Jeff Bailey about the VR1000 over at S&S Cycle, they’ve had it since 1994 but it’s currently being offered for sale. It’s number 20 of the 50 VRs Harley Davidson made so they could go road racing in AMA Superbike as a factory team. According to the AMA, homologation required it had to be street legal, so the VR1000 was street legal, … in Poland, no one specifically said it had to be legal in the U.S., it just had to be legal somewhere so they found a country that would give it the OK and Poland was it. Hey, … it’s racing, you do what you have to do.

This particular VR1000 was purchased by S&S Cycle to get an idea of where H-D might be going in the future. The bike and engine were all new, aluminum perimeter frame, top of the line suspension and lots of exotic light weight components. The engine was impressive, 60 degree V-twin, liquid cooling, 4 valve head, overhead cam shafts, and fuel injection. S&S worked for a couple years on the VR1000 expecting to see a version hit production or at least see it become street legal in the US. Power and torque were raised dramatically over the stock bike, special pistons, cams, head work, intake, and a high output exhaust were the majority of the improvements. In 1995 S&S took the VR out to the Bonneville Salt Flats. The bike was tall with a short wheelbase, perfect for road racing, but at Bonneville, not so good. At top speed on the salt the VR would just spin its rear tire. The upgrades did prove to be reliable and much faster than stock, it ran 166 mph on salt, not bad.

According to Jeff, the condition of this bike is outstanding. After the Bonneville runs, it was torn down completely and cleaned to ensure corrosion would not be a problem in the future. The bike was then reassembled and it’s been in S&S’s lobby and museum ever since. Although the bike has not been started in several years, it was properly stored and Jeff says it’s ready to fire.

Features and Equipment on this VR1000
This VR has factory race bodywork currently mounted on the bike. The factory street legal bodywork is included and in perfect condition. Also included in the sale are many special tools required to work on the engine, spare parts, NOS factory tires and other factory documentation. It only has 117 miles.

This bike needs a good home, it would make a fine addition to anyone’s collection so if you think you have a spot for this piece of Harley Davidson history, get in touch with Jeff. These original VRs rarely come up for sale so if you’ve ever thought about acquiring one, especially one in great condition and low mileage like this, here’s your chance.

Photo and contact info below:

VR1000 street bodywork
VR1000 street bodywork

Contact Jeff Bailey for more pictures and information: Jeff Bailey

Asking $55,000

Posted on Filed Under: Vintage Motorcycles

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Comments

  5. I would love to see someone roll up to the average Bike Night at the local bar with one of these, if for no other reason than to see the looks on all the cruiser riders’ faces when they see the giant “Harley-Davidson” decals on the fairing. Oh, and I’d also like to watch their heads asplode when they realise it’s for real.

    cl

  7. I love the “street legal,… in Poland” angle.

    Looks like HD were well on the way to building a fast, modern v-twin, then just gave up on it… Big mistake?

  9. Dan, H-D didn’t have to worry about making the bike look appealing. Unlike other homologated bikes this one was not based on a true street bike where looks have a lot to do with sales. This also goes to show that Erik Buell later realized his shortcomings and hired more talented designers to design bikes of his namesake.

    -todd

  10. Why in the world did Harley drop sportbike production? If only they had continued working with designs like this, then maybe they wouldn’t be in the financial straits they’re in now. Dumping the VR1000, underfunding and then shuttering Buell – and for what? So they can produce chromed monstrosities that no one can afford without a major financing commitment? No thanks.

  11. I used to walk by this bike often at work. I wish I could own it. I also went to Daytona to watch these run in ’96. They really weren’t that bad. Sure they didn’t keep up but once they got most of the bugs out they should have thought about a production version. Why do most companies think a bike must be a world beater to sell? It just needs to be good for it’s intended purpose. If you make somthing like this, good for the general public and street why wouldn’t it sell? Not to smart on their (HD) part and S&S should keep it in the museum.

  13. As a former team owner that raced VR1000 SN#001, I can tell you that the VR was a beautiful bike in person, with some truly Bimota-like detail work, but the heads were so screwed up it’s a wonder the bike even ran. We had a lease agreement with Gemini Racing, at the time COMMANDED by Steve Scheibe, and co-piloted by Pete Mohar.

    The best FACTORY/GEMINI engine that we ever got made 128 hp and 77 ft lbs. of torque, and would really not rev above 10,500 rpm.

    At Daytona in the FUSA class, we could only draft supersport level GSXR 750’s, and if Joe tried to pull out to pass, it was instant reverse.

    I could go on forever, but the worst thing that ever happened was to take this bike away from Erik and give it to Gemini.

    Some day, I will write a long book on this bike that I still have love/hate feelings about. So much potential pissed away by the anti-sportbike crowd associated with HD.

    The joys of spinning bearings every race, cam sensors that would fail after 2 laps, and on and on……..

    Oh, did I mention the $ 8,000 tank/seat section and the $ 2600 fairing?

    Oh well……………………………….

    Mark L.

  14. It DID make it into production, with a few modifications. What do you think a V-Rod is based on? Still, I always thought that they should have at least paid lip service to the VR 1000 with a Cafe Racer version of the V-Rod, or stuffed that engine into a Buell frame instead of the Sportster motor.

  15. I went out to H-D to \test\ their street legal VR when I was the editor of Hot Bike. I rode the bike all over Milwaukee–being snubbed by the Harley crowd. Eventually made it out of the city to some twisty roads and that bike was amazing. Rock solid chassis design, turned quickly and easily, held a line in bumpy corners well and it was fast for the street. Probably not enough power for the track, but it would have been a killer stret bike

  16. I enjoy tweeking the Bar Bike crowd with my different take on Harleys. I modified my Evo Sporty with a Flat Track seat and Tail from Storz, Lifted the front fender, dirt bike style to build something of an adventure Sportster. I wear colorfull leathers and helmet and do not fit in anywhere I go, Good Fun! Im now working on a fully faired Iron head road race replica complete with the 1/2 and 1/2 Orange and Black paint treatment. I bet that will get snubbed also, Snubbed by the Sport Bike guys and the Harley Pirates, Will I never learn?

  17. I’ve always wished that Harley/Buell would make fully faired XR750 road racer, as tribute to Mert Lawwill, Mark Brelsford, Cal Rayborn, and the other factory riders that took on the rest of the world. For a company that thrives off of their history, I’ve never understood why Harley wasn’t found a way to cash on this bit of nostalgia.
    Time to build my own!

  19. “aichbe 12.17.09 at 3:04 am
    It DID make it into production, with a few modifications. What do you think a V-Rod is based on? Still, I always thought that they should have at least paid lip service to the VR 1000 with a Cafe Racer version of the V-Rod, or stuffed that engine into a Buell frame instead of the Sportster motor.”

    aichbe, the VR1000 engine and that of the V-Rod share no parts. None. Maybe a distant cousin thrice removed, but that is about as close as it gets. And Erik Buell had the opportunity to put the V-Rod engine into his excellent bikes but passed. Too big, too heavy. I love the Sporty derived engine in my XB9R.

  20. Howard, good to see you kickin’ about. Tin Man 2 ,you also get snubbed if you ride a full custom bike. I would check your rides out as a true bike guy likes a lot of different rides. Harley really missed on more than one count. Lets just hope they don’t get to the 10 count.

  22. I will never understand HD. They could make easy money putting out a new VR1000 with the current VRod engine, a new frame, and the HD parts bin for the rest. Not a world beater, but an American sport bike that would be fun on the street. One of the most collectable bikes around is the XLCR. What would it cost to resurect that with the current 1200 Sporty motor and XR 1200 frame? The cost to inventory longer shocks and bikini fairings?

    I get that they have to “satisfy the core” in this tough economy. 100,000 recalls don’t help with the core satisfaction. They really need to look hard at expanding their brand before their core out grows them.

  23. If I had a budget for it and some free time I’d love to build two things (among others) to gauge interest:
    1. A sport bike based on a VRod engine. I’m not talking V-Roehr but something parts-bin like “craigj” suggests above.
    2. An Adventure Touring VRod. Again, this could use a bunch of stock H-D parts. Not to try to make a better GS or KTM but at least to put something together that’s “American”.

    -todd