new to the board. 86 cmx450

[JunkyardDog]

That's cool. I always liked the BUBF better than the Classic, it wasn't an unabashed Harley copy, and it seemed to be a lot more reliable as well. They may very well use the same filter as the 750, but the housing is different. I remember wondering about that years ago, when I wanted to put the solid chrome 1500 covers on my 750, and they do look like they are the same shape, but I was told they would not fit. Jerry.

[Shadow Shack]

I liked mine as well, but I wish I could have staked a claim in the reliability end. I'd probably still have it if that were the case, but I wisened up and sold it before the extended warranty expired. Basically it was a race to see if I could peel off enough rind before the warranty died LOL Even the new owner got to "benefit" from that warranty for a brief time, I had seen the bike in the shop where I traded it in several times for work.

But beyond that issue, it had the recipe for being a perfect bike.

[JunkyardDog]

A big issue with the older Vulcan 1500s, including the first few years of the Classic, was that Kawasaki used a plastic oil pump gear, which tended to fail like clockwork, usually around the 30,000 mile mark. I have no clue why Kawasaki would do such a thing, and especially continue doing it after it became apparent it was a problem. I do know that they fixed a lot of bikes out of warranty because of this problem, but if you buy one of them now, you are on your own, and it requires a total engine rebuild. For some unknown reason, the 1500 Classic seemed to have a lot more problems than the 1500A. Unfortunately, before they got everything sorted out, they added FI, and I have no interest in that. Jerry.

[Shadow Shack]

Originally Posted by JunkyardDog

Unfortunately, before they got everything sorted out, they added FI

Funny thing about the FI in relation to the 1500 (well, it's not a direct relation, but read on): the 1500 had numerous factory recalls issued every model year since inception until Y2K when they went to FI. My 95 had some sort of driveshaft recall that had been addressed prior to purchase (I bought it used from a dealer and the PO had the extended warranty that transferred over).

Considering how it debuted in 1987, that's 13 years it took Kawi to "iron out the bugs". The lead tech at the dealer I had my bikes serviced at called teh 1500 Vulcan "the official engine rebuild of the week model" and it was true: every time I went to visit there was a different 1500 rolling chassis on the lift with its motor scattered all over the shop. Fortunately mine never made it that far...I just had everything else go wrong with it.