Top 20 1999 kawasaki VN 1500 Vulcan Classic Questions & Answers

Take a look at the exhaust valves. If the exhaust valves are not opening, the pressure will build (sort of like an air compressor). There should be a cam for the intake and the exhaust, make sure the cam and the valves are operating correctly. Also, check your base gasket and head gaskets. If either gasket is too small, it'll boost your cylinder pressure. It is common to switch out the base gasket and/or head gaskets with thinner ones as an inexpensive mod to boost cylinder pressure. Lastly, too much carbon on the piston head or cylinder head can boost cylinder pressures (rare); the carbon can be a problem which can lead to detonation as well.

If you have not done so, I would suggest taking the carbs out and cleaning them thoroughly. Clean all the jets, check and adjust the float level. Check your air/fuel mixture. Back firing is typically a sign that you are running too lean.

to just loose all power , it may be a ground wire fault, loose battery terminal , blown fuse

Bike has pulser coil on the flywheel that sends 1volt pulse to CDI that fires pulse to coils underneath tank. Secondary of coils fire across spark plugs. Check simple stuff first, bad caps on plug wires, etc

buy a work shop manual they are available through bike shops or E-Bay

Nasty sounds like the gear selector needs either adjusting or replacing which means a pull down of the gearbox

Belt dressing on drive sounds like clutching system. Maybe talk to service.

32 psi front 39 psi rear Semper Fi, Z

sounds like carb, is airfilter set up ok, it can act as an air restrictor to match the jetting

There is a better than not posibility that your carb is gummed up from sitting for a long period of time. The BEST way to overcome this problem is return to the dealer and ask them to clean and adjust your carb. You can do it ... if you have proper tool and cleaners. It will not hurt at all to have your 14 year old Kawasaki properly attended to as a new owner. After you get this this repaired, I recommend you use a guel conditioner which will lessen the occurrence of gum build up on your machine due to inactivity.

Hi the thing to do is wash your bike off remove bags and stuff that you can, then take it for a short ride and just look for the area where it is leaking.try not to ride it to fast because oil on a hot motor will blow all over making it hard to determin where it is coming from.

it must be an wiring problem in rear / middle part of a bike.

Either the pickup coil is bad (triggers the coils) or maybe the ground is bad .
Or maybe they are both bad at the same time.Also check the ignition switch.Remove the ignition switch wiring harness out.Disconnect the wires, then clean them and reconnect and then check voltage to the wires, if all is perfect, then try to start, it will give spark, if still no spark and coils are new and replaced, then its short in ignition switch issue.Check the ignition switch wires, any of the wire is crimped/pinched and got cut in between or got loose from its connection.--------------Or its a bad ground issue.-------
This should help.Thanks.Helpmech.

Before adjusting the carb, has the bike been setting for a long period of time? Has anything been done to the bike that would change carb settings? If it's been setting, there is probably a gum build-up in the jets and fuel passages. If it sat all winter, my solution is to add 1/2 can of SeaFoam to the gas, lock down the front brake and rock the bike back and forth mixing the fuel and additive well. Start the bike and run at a high idle until engine temp is normal. Shut it down and let set for an hour or two, allowing the mixture to work in the carbs. Restart and run at high idle again. If it seems to clear up somewhat, ride the bike several miles to check if it worked.

Check the voltage on the starter solenoid with the starter button pushed, you should get 12 volts.There are so many safety interlocks that will prevent the bike from running/starting: kick stand, neutral safety switch, clutch safety switch, low oil switch.Get this switch voltage checked.If all checked out, ok, then check spark at spark plugs and check voltages.There is a tool to check spark plugs. Click the link below:--- http://www.lislecorp.com/divisions/products/?product=312&division=1&category=8 ------------- Remove one of the front spark plug wires, install tool and crank over a few times looking for spark.Do the same with rear cylinder. Testing the spark from plug to plug and hook the ground to the frame near the coil, if you see it spark at the coil , there is grounding issue.Get the wire reconnected.-------- But if there is no spark, then Might be the ignition coils or a burnt or grounded wire to them. ----------- First make sure your new battery is fully charged. Most new batteries need to be charged before use. The exception would be gel cell batteries. Always charge the battery out of the bike, or with the cables off. Use a trickle charger. Verify the battery is charged and good using a load tester. (Any battery store or service station should be able to do this for you.) I have seen many new batteries that are no good. Also clean your cables and make sure all the ground wires are connected.Once you have verified that you have a good battery, put a volt meter on the battery and run the bike. Voltage should range from battery voltage (12 or 12.5) at an idle to 14.5 at 4,000 rpm. If the voltage drops when you run the bike, you know that there is no charging output.If you have a weak charging system, you can check the actual amperage rate if you rig up a special cable to your tester so you can run it inline while running your bike. You would need an auto type amperage gauge and some cable. If your voltage test shows only battery voltage, then you can probably skip this.The next test is the alternator output. You test this with your tester in AC mode using the three yellow wires coming out of the alternator/stator going to the regulator/rectifier. With the ignition off you can also test from wire to wire for a broken or shorted circuit.If your alternator voltage is correct and your battery is good, then by elimination you have a bad regulator/rectifier. ------------ get this checked.This will help.thanks.Helpmech.

Have you checked if the power is reaching the starter ?
And the earth lead from yhe motor to the frame for corrosion or looseness ?
If the power is getting to the starter when you press the button and the leads are all clean then the next thing to check would be for a dead field on the sarter motor. Remove the starter and turn the armature around a bit then see if it works. this can also be the case if the brushes are worn.
Whether you can get the motor to work or not if you are satisfied that power is present at the stater motor when you activate the starter button, then the starter motor needs a service or swap. Do not trust it if you get it to spin after turning it as it will let you down at the worst possible time according to Murphy.

Hello,

This sounds like a Float issue. If the Float becomes saturated with fuel, it will be too heavy to stop fuel flowing into the carburetor, hence fuel coming out the air filter. It also could be an adjustment of the Float. One other thing that could cause your problem is the needle/seat. Check for excessive wear.

Hope this helps. If you find this information useful, please vote on this post. Thank you.

If you need more help with this issue, please post a Comment and I will get back to you as soon as I can.

Regards,

Oz

That's quality for you.

New Clutches should be approx 130 and up.
A shop will charge 150 and up to change them.
So $280 and up for that model, and depending on the labor rate.

Hi
Some thing is expanding with heat or moving slightly to cause a dead short
if the solenoid click when the fuse blows I would suspect the starter motor brushes / wiring, insulating washer on lead from solenoid or the starter motors internal components

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