Originally slated to replace Harley’s XR platform, the VR was the MoCo’s attempt at dethroning Ducati in AMA racing. Supposedly race-tuned versions were making as much as 150 horses in the early ‘90s. However a series of events lead to the VR not being released until ’94, at which point it had grown noticeably long in the tooth and was no longer the competitive machine Harley had hoped it’d be.
Though Harley had previously built its fair share of racers, the VR1000 was supposedly the very first competition machine developed purely for racing from the ground up by the Milwaukee-based brand. First debuting at the ’94 Daytona Superbike race, the VR boasted top-shelf suspension, brakes, and full carbon fiber bodywork, allowing for its sub-390 lb wet weight. Only 50 of these machines were produced at $49,490 a pop.
To pass homologation rules, Harley was required to churn out no less than 50 units. Passing emissions tests in the US was an exceedingly tall order, so Harley instead opted to sell all 50 examples in Poland, where regulations were less strict.
At the heart of the VR was a liquid-cooled, 1,000cc, four-stroke 60-degree, DOHC, V-Twin that supposedly put down 135hp at the 10,000 rpm mark. Wrapped around the Roush-developed V-Twin — which was married to a five-speed with a dry, multidisc clutch — was an aluminum twin-spar chassis that was surprisingly advanced, at least for a Harley.
With only 50 examples produced, the VR1K is an extraordinarily special machine. This isn’t your ordinary VR too, as it is brand new with zero miles! Though this example is sold sans bill of sale, it does come with an official letter from Harley authenticating the exotic American. The seller also just so happens to have the “full factory tool kit” which, like the bike itself, is brand spankin’ new. For a more extensive look at the development and story of the VR1000, I highly recommend checking out the stellar write-up on OddBike.
You can find this road-going, zero-mile 1994 Harley-Davidson VR1000 for sale here at Iconic Motorbikes in Los Angeles, California with a price of $80,000.