Description
Please note: This is part of the Damon Schuetze collection.
Typically we ask sellers to include a starting video or allow us to include one when we list a motorbike to ensure the motor is good but the seller had all these bikes professionally prepped for storage and wants to keep them that way. He had the bikes inside his home so they are dry on fuel and ready to add into a collection or get running again (Iconic is happy to help with that). Iconic sold him the GSX-R750RK, the ZX-7RR and the 1986 Suzuki RB50 GAG so we have prior running videos of those in our archives but the rest came from other sources. Adam knows many of these bikes from seeing them in the past as he nearly bought the RC45 from Bob Weaver, remembers the OW01 at a live auction, and a couple of the others. They are from credible sources even before the seller acquired them and again, we’d love to get them prepped to ride again for the buyer if he/she elects to do so.
Click here for a VINData Motorcycle History Report on this 1994 Honda RC45. Additional photos are available here for your perusal.
The successor to the legendary RC30, Honda’s RC45 (or RVF750R) was a limited run homologation special created to help Honda re-establish supremacy in World Superbike. Though it was ridden to back-to-back titles in ’88 and ’89, by 1993 the RC30 had grown noticeably long in the tooth and it was clear that a new race weapon was needed to dethrone Ducati and its mighty twin. Honda’s answer came in 1994 in the form of the RC45.
Like the RC30, the RC45 was powered by a liquid-cooled, 749cc, DOHC, 16V, four-stroke, 90-degree V4, though unlike its carbureted predecessor, the RC45 was bestowed with tunable electronic fuel-injection borrowed from the development of the NR750. The bike also benefited from knowledge and experience gained in Honda’s RVF factory endurance race program. The RVF’s V4 boasted low-friction pistons, ceramic and graphite impregnated cylinder liners, titanium conrods, and close-ratio six-speed gearboxes with undercut shift dogs.
Until the RC45, all of Honda’s V4 machines used a consistent bore and stroke of 70mm x 48.6mm, but the RC45 ended that tradition instead using a 72mm x 46mm setup. The RC45 also used gear-driven cams like the RC30, however, the drive was relocated to the side of the engine to allow for a narrower package. Wrapped around the V4 was a twin-spar aluminum chassis that had been slightly reworked with tweaked dimensions and slightly thinner walls. Suspension on the RC45 consisted of upside-down 41mm forks and a gas-charged shock absorber out back paired with ELF’s single-sided swing-arm which was slightly longer than the unit on the RC30. Both ends were adjustable for rebound, preload, and compression. The RVF’s riding position was still sporty but not nearly as hunched over as its predecessor’s, with a 50mm lower seat height.
Honda saw some races success with the RVF750R: Miguel Duhamel won the 1995 AMA Superbike Championship and the 1996 Daytona 200, while Ben Bostrom nabbed the 1998 AMA Superbike title, and Aaron Slight, John Kocinski, Carl Fogarty, and Colin Edwards all secured WSBK wins plus a trio of Suzuka 8 Hour wins in ’97, ’98, and ’99. While Honda’s current flagship supersport is powered by an inline-four, the firm still uses V4 engines in its current crop of MotoGP missiles that can trace than development back to bikes like the RC30 and RC45.
Manufactured in February of 1994, this example is VIN: JH2RC450XRM000034. Damon tells a great story how he came to own this bike, “This was Bob Weaver’s bike. It went through Mecum Las Vegas a few years back, as part of a matching numbers bike, RC30 and RC45. The lot didn’t sell so they split the bikes and ran them through individually. A guy from Seattle ended up with the RC30 and the RC45 didn’t hit reserve. I negotiated for the bike via a third party because I was out of town but we didn’t make a deal. A few years later I was in Seattle buying the 851, the seller was the owner of the RC30 and that is how I met him. He asked me what else I was looking for, I told him the RC45, and he said he knew a guy in New York selling one. Turns out it was Bob Weaver. He had his cell number and arranged a call where Bob and I talked, he remembered our negotiations a few years earlier and we finished up a deal on that call.”
The odometer shows 6,332 miles.
Maintenance:
In preparation for the listing, the seller had us perform a safety inspection. Our service department notes the following in their condition report:
Gas Tank Condition: Ok
Tire Years – Front: 4100; Rear: 2601
Tire Life – Front/ Rear: 100%
Tire Pressure – Front/Rear: 36 PSI
Brake Life – Front/Rear: 80 /80
Suspension Leaks – Front: None; Rear: Leaks
Hydraulic Fluid – Front/Rear: Ok;
Clutch: No Pressure
Drive Chain Condition: Ok
Engine Oil – Level: Ok; Quality: Aged
Coolant – Level: Ok; Quality: Ok
Low Beam: Ok
High Beam: Ok
Passing Light: Ok
Parking Light: Ok
Turn Signals: Not Working
Tail Light: Ok
Brake Light: Ok
Plate Light: Ok
Killswitch: Ok
Horn: Ok
Battery: NO BATTERY INSTALLED
Notes:
– Reproduction turn signals with incorrect hardware; loose fit + inoperable
Modifications:
Aftermarket steering cap.
Aftermarket seat pad.
Inside of the tank:
It is riding on Michelin Pilot tires that have aged out.
The sale includes one key.
Cosmetic Blemishes: please see the album up top for all known cosmetic blemishes. Here is a selection:
Currently located at our facility in Santa Monica, California, (please make an appointment for an inspection), this Honda is offered on a clean Nevada title. Have any RC45 stories or questions about this listing? Let us know in the “Comments” tab!
