86 Kawasaki Voyager, thoughts?

[Neil]

Hello,
       A friend of mine is looking at an '86 Kawasaki Voyager, 31k miles. $800 or best offer. Needs tires , battery, don't know what else. Bike has been in storage for two years. Any thoughts from the experts here? He's looking for a Gold Wing style bike to lower some of miles he's putting on his truck ( gas prices, as you well know) for commuting, doctor visits, etc. Thanks.
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[Ncdan]

They were Kawasaki‘s competition for the Goldwing.
Great bikes for land yacht type motorcycles.
Heavy, comfortable and dependable.
I would be careful and know exactly what it needs prior to the purchase. The value is low and the two tires alone will about push it over the edge as far are recouping his investment. IMHO.

[twowheeladdict]

I owned a 2001 Kawasaki Voyager for 50,000 miles.  It felt about the same as my 1977 Yamaha XS750 with full touring package.

Low seat height, very maneuverable, quick and comfortable.  I only sold mine because my wife didn't like my being across country on a bike most dealers had forgotten about by 2009. 

If I am remembering correctly, 1986 was the first year and there were changes made in 1987.  I have known guys with over 300,000 miles on Voyager XIIs. 

There is the American Voyager Association which would be a good source of information.  https://www.amervoyassoc.org/

I do know that some parts will be hard to come by and he might have to buy a donor bike, or search ebay for needed items. 

[bad Chad]

For the price, I would do it.  Very well done machine.

[usedtobefast]

Is he mechanically inclined and interested/capable of fixing stuff? 

For a non running 1986 model, it would be reasonable to expect it needs a bunch of basic work ... carbs cleaned & rebuilt, brake master/slave rebuilt with new brake lines, inside of tank rust?  need a recoat?  leaks?, new fuel lines, most any rubber part is probably aged/cracked/leaking and on and on.

If he thinks he is getting a cheap touring bike to go off on multi day trouble free rides ... and all it needs is a new battery and some fresh gas ... I think he would be very disappointed.

If he is excited about the project and bringing it back to life ... I think it could be fun.

From a work/pain/money perspective ... I think it is much better to find a running one that the current owner has already done a good chunk of the updates.  Then what is needed to fix it is worlds less and more known.  Like if he found a running one for say $2000, with decent tires, working brakes, non leaking tank and he can take a brief test ride on it ... a worlds better use of time/money IMO.  Unless he wants a project.

[Wayne Orwig]

I put about 100,000 miles on one. Those years had a bug in the ignition module. It would backfire against the starter and occasionally do a LOT of damage.
You needed to split the motor to replace the starter chain and tensioner, and of course the ignition module. Pretty pricey.

Other than that glitch it was a pretty good bike.

[Turin]

Looking at the picture, all I can think is "sometimes free is too expensive".

[dxhall]

I have very negative thoughts about buying an old Japanese touring bike.  I bought one last winter - a ‘95 Honda VFR750.

This was represented to be a low mile, running bike.  After many hour of work by me, it was.  80 miles after I got it all back together, the starter clutch cracked.  The starter now spins without turning the motor.

So, you say, replace the starter clutch.  Ha!  On back order for the past three months.  Maybe here by July.

I’d check the forums on a bike like this and find out what parts availability is.  When it comes to getting parts for old bikes, Guzzi owners are spoiled.

[Scott of the Sahara]

Do not buy, Run Away!!!
My Friend bought an older Gold wing with just a couple of problems, it turned out to be a really big expensive problem, he got took. The biggest problem is he did not take anyone with him to look at the bike, he trusted the seller. The bike sat in his garage for years and he never got to ride it. I don't know what he eventually sold it for but it was less ......

[Navydad]

NO! Not unless he is good at twisting wrenches and even then it may well be a money pit. Parts will be hard to find and expensive. If the bike needs shop work good luck because I doubt any shop will touch it. Lots of independent shops that typically work on anything will no longer touch the big touring rigs from days gone by. Labor rates for working on these bikes can build up very quickly and it doesn't take much for that $800 great find to become a $5000 mistake. Walk away.

[Furbo]

Mechanically an oversized higher geared Concours. They made the Concourse from '84 until 06 and I have trouble getting parts for my 05.  I....would not. Think he'll be happier on a decent used 'Wing if he wants a 2 wheeled land yacht.  If he just needs to save gas, get a good Suz DL650. Good wind protection, comfy, light, can do 90 all day. $3K buys top.

[Wayne Orwig]

Mechanically an oversized higher geared Concours. They made the Concourse from '84 until 06 and I have trouble getting parts for my 05.

The Voyager 1200 had twin balancers to get rid of the buzz from the inline 4. And it hydraulic lifters. Pretty sure the Concourse did not have either.
And the cam, or gearing, or stroke length or something, makes the Voyager 1200 feel like it has a lot more grunt than the Concourse.

But about like any inline 4, I found it boring after a while, and moved to Guzzi's.

Long story:
I will never forget the magazine article from one of the leading magazines, that my Gold Wing riding friend sent me a copy of at the time. A group of riders rode a Voyager 1200, Suzuki Cavalcade, A Harley XYZ????, and a Goldwing, across the country. Each day they swapped rides to compare them. In the end, they claimed that the Voyager was the lightest and sportiest. The Cavalcade was the most luxurious. The Harley was the most enjoyable at eating long highway miles. So they highly recommended the Gold Wing.
I always knew those magazine articles were worthless to me, but that was the most obvious one I had ever seen.
 

[s1120]

If he doesnt do his own work he should pass on it 100%. Tires I never factor into a buy. I figure no matter how good they are, im buying new ones within a year anyways no matter the deal. If its been sitting you just KNOW there is bad gas stewing in the carbs as we speak..  Ive not worked on one of them, but any big Turing bike I have, can be a real pain to get to ANYTHING. Other then that, its age, and can you get parts. If its real solid, and clean, and he does his own work, it could be a nice project. If he has to find someone to work on it, and it needs a lot...  well its no value.