| 1985 Kawasaki VN700, 1986–2006 VN750 Vulcan |
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| Performance |    |
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| It is hard to believe this was Kawasaki's first V-twin, because they got the motor right and it remained in production for 22 years. Power is nothing that would inspire fear or awe, but not bad for a 750 cruiser. Torquey, but with a nice spread of power from down low all the way to upper revs. Overhead cams and 4 valves per cylinder are somewhat unusual for a large V-twin cruiser. Tariff-busting '85 700cc version gives up just a tiny bit in performance. |
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| Handling | |
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| Not great, but no worse than average by cruiser standards. Ground clearance is the major complaint. |
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| Looks | |
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| The engine is happily free of fakery. Crankcase side covers are plain and flat. The overhead cam configuration is plainly evident. No beauty covers or faux cooling fins have been added to make it look like something is isn't. Viewed out of the bike, it would look equally at home in a sport bike. I really like that. The rest of the bike, however, is busy and confused. The exhaust has too many changes in diameter, looks like a cobbled together homemade set of pipes. Tank has more rearward slope than anything this side of a Swede-style chopper. The odd oval air intakes are placed too far forward. |
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| Reliability | |
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| They are under-stressed and have just about every maintenance-reducing feature you can think of—hydraulic valves, shaft drive, electronic ignition, liquid cooling. You can't bust 'em. Like most bikes, cam chain adjusters wear out after 50-60K miles, and electrical/charging gremlins eventually show up, but examples from late in the model run should still have plenty of life left in them. |
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| Practicality | |
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| The ergonomics are poor even by cruiser standards. A windshield is absolutely required for any sort of distance travel. Your lower back will still hurt after a while, but that's okay because the teardrop tank limits range between fuel stops. Twisty roads need to be taken at a sedate pace. But for boulevard riding/commuting, many cruiser riders would be happier overall on the VN750 than their more stylin' current bike. |
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| Desirability | |
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| Its four-point engine gets dragged down by a one-point chassis. |
March 6th, 2010 at 8:04 pm
Hey Tan, A couple notes…
Thanks for reviewing the bike, and I wanted to let you know that you are dead on with your conclusion of the VN750. The motor is amazing, and so is the rest of the drivetrain. And that picture of the motor in a standard chassis is beautiful!
That being said, (and I can say these things because I own one, and can attest to the piss-poor ergos)This bike looks better without a standard windshield, But that’s just not possible for me, because I DO ride long distances on my VN750, if only because the motor deserves to be run, I love it so…
I’m a fairly big & tall fellow, so the placement of the footpegs is a bit wonky & uncomfortable for longer rides, and the stock seat is absolutely atrocious! If you ride much longer than 2 hours on it, under any road condition, your ass goes completely numb, and your back starts to ache. And the tank is definitely not big enough.
I just can’t tell anyone enough how much I love the engine though…