I had not ridden in sometime and purchased a1989 . First had to replace stator and regulator . Then had to replace that regulator with a good Schendergen Mossfet and charging system now fine . I had great difficulty starting off from a stop and in turns . Thought I had forgotten how to ride and really haggled up turns and taking off . Had it jacked up to grease rear splines and discovered a bad notch in steering bearings
which was make riding difficult . I doubted it would help significantly , but installed a zerk and filled with Mobil 1 grease . The result has been almost beyond belief and improvement is at least 90% . Can hardly feel the notch at all and is like a completely different bike .
love the bike , but am disappointed that Kawasaki did not have mandatory regulation regarding recalls . I am also disappointed in what I consider to be terrible gear ratios . Fine if you want a dragster , but nearly 3,000 rpm at 40 mph is ridiculous . Would have been a wonderful cruiser if geared properly . This is my last Kawasaki product after learning that they really do not stand behind their products .

I don't think I understand a couple of things, you bought the bike used and it's an 89 model which means it's near 25 yo, don't know who has a 25 yr. warranty...
BTW-John Deere won't stand behind their manure spreaders at all, and I've been told they are very good...lol......
The rpms run high because its a smaller engine and gets its power by rpms mostly...JMO...
Welcome to the madness, just hang in here, these folks'll help you out, I don't own a vn750 anymore but have stuck around...
FOB---Have a good one...Old Dog...

Hi Old Dog
Only had 15,000 miles when I got it and have had it sometime . So many have had alternator problems that to me at least indicates a flaw in design that owners are expected to take care of . Maybe I don't understand gearing to power ratios ,
but would seem to have sufficient power to have a comfortable highway gear . Bet the govt. Would have made Ford or Toyota or ? take care if an inherent flaw .

Yeah, they have had some stator problems, and I know what you mean about the gearing, a lot of folks on here search for that 6th gear...lol... But the lower gearing does give it guite a bit of gitty up and go, and lets you stay in 5th gear a good bit in the mountains... I really don't like for my 1200 Sportster to get too low in rpms, I'll down shift if it gets down around 2k... I don't think it's too good for an engine to lug too low...
FOB---Have a good one...Old Dog...

The VN750 was designed by Japanese engineers, whom designed it to run at higher RPMs than traditional american V-twins. So you say 3k RPM @ 40mph... which is more than fine.

It's really meant to cruise at 55-60. That was the national speed limit at the time, and it does that amazingly well and comfortable. It has no issues handing 90mph for hours on end, either.

In regards to charging system issues, well, pretty much most bikes with stators of the era the VN was designed have issues. Stators do not last forever, no matter what bike. Same with regulators, new technology has made them better, but Kawasaki shouldn't have to upgrade your 25+ year old bike every time new tech comes out.

I really think you are expecting too much out of a 25+ year old cruiser. It is your typical 80s cruiser, take it for what it is.

Hi thtanner ,
My point was really not that Kawasaki should maintain any
bike for 25 yrs. Rather that a design flaw which was apparently revealed early on should have been addressed by Kawasaki . I don't recall the year I purchased it , but didn't seem old enough for that sort of major failure . I installed the Electrex stator myself and was not a fun job . I do like the bike more than any I have owned . Cant get anybody to ride with me at my high cruise speed if 45 mph ! Ha! I know it can go really fast in short order , but high rpms can't be good for machinery I wouldn't think . I am sure the gearing would be great in the mountains .

I think you're used to really large displacement engines, or cars, as the RPM range of the VN750 is not considered high by any means. If you are comparing it to 1500cc cruiser engines, then of course RPMs will be higher in general. Compare the VN to similar sized bikes of the time and the RPMs are similar (shadow, virago.. etc). It's just how the engine was designed, and to be honest, could probably be ran at or near redline for 1000s of operating hours without any adverse affects. The engine was designed for it.

There is no overall design flaw to speak of. Stators failing at 15-30k are super common for any 80s motorcycle. The design of the rectifier (shunt style) also contributed to this, but again, that's just a byproduct of the age of the bike. Newer MOSFET style regulators are easier on the stators, and they last longer. I think the biggest "design flaw" is the fact you have to drop the engine to swap it, as it is a serviceable item. You could criticize them on the regulator placement, though, as it does get hot in it's stock location.

Overall, any bike of the age would have the same issues. I even had to do the stator and rectifier on my wife's 99 VFR. Sure it had 75k miles, but still.. same thing.

....Speakin of manure spreaders.....we mods need to really beat down on dual memberships and checkin IPs again.....

...Hay NewRider...netsinger's just a lil ways from you (45 mins ?)....can ya make a lil time to ride down and teach him a few things bro ?.....I'll throw a few "extras" into the box with yer FWDs is ya do....

Hey Wolfe ,
Go ahead and educate me . I'm always willin to learn .
netsinger

the VN750 doesn't even get into it's power range until it hits 4Krpm...don't be afraid to cruise at higher RPM....the bike was designed for it.
cruising 75mph at 5-6Krpm is where mine lives on the interstate....and loves it!