![]() ![]() Here is what riders became quickly aware of when it came to the Vulcan 88, just how quickly both the suspension and brakes would be overwhelmed by the engine. What this means is that even smaller capacity cruisers of the time like the Honda Shadow 750 would out-perform the Vulcan on the twisty backroads while they might get places faster, there were few if any that would get you there more comfortably. So the strength of the big engine was in its ability to chase down the miles effortlessly whether absorbing the scenery on the backroads or pounding down the highway. I think the key thing to remember with the Vulcan is that it was built as a cruiser, and not a high-performing sportsbike. However, it wasn’t so intrusive that it would put you off pulling on the throttle. Vibrations would kick in at highway speeds, this was regardless of a counterbalancer and rubber mounts being implemented. However, it did make balancing the heavy bike and getting into neutral a breeze when at a stop light. The only downside to this nice touch was that when crawling at slow speeds you could find yourself hitting neutral before finding 2nd gear on a regular basis. Gear changes are heavy, you feel it when you do make that change which is a good thing in this case and Kawasaki fitted a Positive Neutral Finder, which prevents you from switching from 1st to 2nd at a standstill. ![]() The need to shift gears would dissipate as riders could just stay in the same gear at any speed for as long as they liked thanks to the even spread of power, something not really heard of with V-twin cruisers at the time. In terms of power then the huge 1,470cc V-twin engine produced 64 horsepower and 112 Nm of torque, which gave plenty of get up and go across the range and would pull at any given moment in any gear. The rider had plenty of space to move freely thanks to a large wheelbase of 1,605mm equally the pillion wouldn’t feel cramped at all with the pad and backrest being of the most comfortable in the cruiser class at the time.Īt no point now or then would a rider complain of discomfort aboard the stretch limo that was the Kawasaki Vulcan 1500. The end result was a riding position that was likened to that of a lazy boy chair, being pulled along by a cruise ship or freight train. The forward-mounted floorboards completed the look. Mounted on the front were huge forks and which in turn had wide, pulled back handlebars that had a tall rise.Ī big 16 liter fuel capacity tank sat on the frame followed by an oversized plush leather saddle topped with a pillion pad behind. To start with, the bike was equipped with a double-cradle steel frame that was big enough and strong enough to house the engine. There was a heavy focus on making the bike the ultimate cruiser so comfort, handling and performance were absolute priority with traditional styling forming part of the package. Named after its capacity the Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 (AKA Vulcan 88) was born. In order for the big Kawasaki Vulcan to seriously contend with Harley, the designers and engineers both knew that they had to get serious and produce some big performance numbers along with superb riding qualities.įrom the ground up, Kawasaki started with the big boy engine that was going to power the groundbreaking bike and the result was a liquid-cooled 1,470cc (88 Cubic Inches) V-twin. The Vulcan 1500 was only superseded in size by the 1600, 17, however upon its release in 1987 it was bigger than HD’s Evolution engines of 1,340cc and that was enough to give it serious brownie points. The Kawasaki Vulcan 1500 was third in the line to take the name it followed the Vulcan 750 released in 1985 and the Vulcan 400 in 1986. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |