Production 1700 Voyager

I went to the Edmonton Motorcycle show today and checked out the Voyager.The sales Rep. I talked to said one of the 3 Bikes on display was a Production Voyager.If this is true I'm disappointed with the quality of this bike.The hard bags and Tour pack seem cheep and flimsy, the lower fairings appear to be the same.Another turn off was the use of chromed plastic on the outer portions of the rear fender.I own a 07 Nomad and all the chrome on this bike is made of metal the way it should be and the Hard bags are HARD.I think if Kawi. wants to use plastic they should paint it and not cheapen it even more with chrome....Just my opinion. Madno?

[rewindgy]

I believe the guy was an idiot! We just had the Calgary show and the bikes are all the same for the circuit. None of them were production - there were locks but no working hardware - the wiring was not completely installed! And yes the ones on display were a poor showing!! If Kawi would get their heads out of their asses they wouldn't look so shoddy! The Nomad they brought bag's were of the same material ( flimsy) as the pre-production Voyager as the Kawi Rep ( not a Dealer) couldn't state whether it was a production or pre-production unit! When the trunk was closed on the Voyager you could push your hand up under the lid and stick your whole arm into the trunk ( that's safe!).
Now, I liked the Voyager concept - just not the finish! Also, the Nomad's bags ( same as Voyager) not so much!!! If you stand at the front of the bike and look towards the back the bags have a huge gap and look just plain out of place! IMHO My 06 bags leak but at least they don't look like crap! Also, I found that for us short legged people, when standing at a light my legs are touching the engine - that could be very hot!
I gues Ima keepin the 06 Nad for a while!

[pooker]

Quote; We just had the Calgary show and the bikes are all the same for the circuit. None of them were production - there were locks but no working hardware - the wiring was not completely installed! And yes the ones on display were a poor showing!! Quote

I went to the show in Toronto Canada in December just to see the Voyager. They had a red and blue one there.
I have to disagree with rewindgy, both of these bikes had working everything, lights, horn, radio and the trunk and saddlebags opened as well as the two small pockets on the faring! As a matter of fact the red one, was the one that the dealers test rode.
I wanted one is the worse way and I am so glad that I went to the show because these bike are CRAP! (this is my opinion)
I couldn't believe my eye's. They will have to drop the price by 5-7 thousand dollars before I would I buy.
The Nomads,....I feel the same. If you remove anything the bike isn't finished under that part. So, to turn it into a bagger you will have to buy stuff to hide the frame and wires.
No, I'm not happy with the new line up.
I bought a new 2008 Nomad instead and loving it!

[meat]

This is hard to believe. They build such a great bike for so many years and now the new model is sub-standard. My dealer said he was told the finished product will be quality.

[rickyboy]

The bike show rolls into the Vancouver area, {Abbotsford actually} next week. I'm not so anxious to see the new Voyager or Nomad now, since I've read all the opinions from guys across Canada and the U.S.of A.. I dropped into the dealer here in Langley and they told me the Voyager is probably going to be more like a 2010 release. Said they have prototypes ready for the shows but nothing ready to go. But that's one guy talking and it's probably 2nd, 3rd, maybe 4th hand info..

[nighthawk700]

When they were in DC last week, I went to the Voyager, opened a saddle bag, and flexed the top a bit to see how weak it was. A rep came running up to me and said "It's a pre-production, we know about it and it will be fixed!" Guess they have been getting the message.

[taranis]

Ditto the message I got here in Dallas at the show.
If I compared Nomad to Nomad, I'd have to go with the '08 style.
If they truly fix the quality issues with the Voyager, that might very well be my next bike in 3-5 years. We shall see.

[pooker]

If ??

They can say, "Prototype" cause it doesn't cost them anything.

[rewindgy]

Then they got to have different bikes for different shows then! Even after the Rep from Kawi stated they were the same! The Dealer from Red Deer and I went over the two Voyager's and he picked apart more thing's than I found! He had asked if they could start one of the bikes when they were unloading them and setting up and was told point blank that they didn't run. When I was looking under the trunk on the Blue / Black one the rear LED strip terminal plug was there but no wiring harness to it! I couldn't find the harness for the tail light either? Also the Kawi Rep claimed they didn't have any keys for any of them???
It's startin to be a little bit fishy with Kawi and the Rep's they are sending out?
I do agree with Pooker - Ima glad I got my 06!

As I said before they had 3 bikes to view.The colors were blue/black, red ,and the one they claim was the production bike was silver/black.But thats not to say the rep. was correct in saying it was a production Voyager.I think Kawasaki made a huge mistake displaying these bikes like this, a lot of bad press before they even leave the gates!! Madno?

[roseman]

This is hard to believe. They build such a great bike for so many years and now the new model is sub-standard. My dealer said he was told the finished product will be quality.

holy crap. the dealer said that the production bike will be substantially higher quality than the pre-production? If that is true, they turned a lot of potential customers away by touring a less-than quality product that does not match what they will actually sell.

I hope you are right (I hated what I saw), but that would speak volumes about the marketing dept.

[rewindgy]

The Red Deer show is this weekend and Ima gonna make a trip up there if possible! My mom passed away on Saturday and the Funeral is Friday but I'm still gonna try to get up there and have a second look! This time I will try and slide my hands into the voyager's trunks without openning them! If all three are the same then it's settled - they are either pre-production or just Crap! The Nomad they had in calgary had the bags locked so I couldn't open them to see if they were as flimsy as the Voyager's. Will try to see in Red Deer!

[roseman]

As I said before they had 3 bikes to view.The colors were blue/black, red ,and the one they claim was the production bike was silver/black.But thats not to say the rep. was correct in saying it was a production Voyager.I think Kawasaki made a huge mistake displaying these bikes like this, a lot of bad press before they even leave the gates!! Madno?

the show in detroit had the same bike except the red one. They told me that they pulled the red because they decided that it was not going to be produced for the first year. They also told me that these are preproduction bikes. BUT, what you see is supposed to be what you get. These bikes are supposed to roll into the dealers. They had preproduction because they had not started the production line yet. Not because they are still developing.

My belief is that 2009 will see the bike you saw at the show, flimsy plastic and all. They have gotten lots of complaints (the rep told me she has been hearing the same things at all the shows). Those comments might impact 2010 or beyond...we will see. But there will be limited production this year, and anything "new" will get quite a few buyers who want the first at any cost.

just my belief.....take it for what you paid for it! ;)

[Blue Rebel]

Apparently the Kawi reps do not understand the concept & philosophy of Pre-Production Models.

[nomadrider1600]

I saw a nice blue Voyager at the New York City International Bike Show. They had it on a platform about 4 foot off the ground. Everything was locked, but dam that was a nice looking bike.

Paul Sr.

[fish]

Re: 1700 Nomad Discussion........
« Reply #139 on Jan 18, 2009, 10:02pm »

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back from the NY motorcycle show,
If had to to pick between the voyager, nomad and 1700 LT I think I'd go with the 1700LT
I think the frames are the same but the LT felt like it had more leg room and I'd rather have the soft bags then those cheapass hard bags

[fish]

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