New Vaquero first impressions

[Woodsy]

As I said in my "choosing a new bike" post, I bought a Candy Imperial Blue 2020 Vaquero in Los Angeles, 400 miles from home in the SF Bay Area.

I got a ride to LA on Thursday, 6/25/20 with a friend going to visit her mother in Pomona. She dropped me off at Wheels In Motion, a huge dealer at 1:45. There were hundreds of bikes from many brands, but mine was hiding somewhere. Met the salesman, handed over $, etc. and waited and waited and waited.

I was milling about and heard from somewhere in the building, rrrr rrrr VROOM burble burble burble VROOM. That was my bike breathing its first breath. They prep the bikes for display cosmetically, but they don't charge the battery and start them until sold. I followed the sound and busted in past the employees only sign and there it was. WOW! That blue. That shape. I don't know what possessed me, or where it came from, but I blurted out, "Behold the majesty that is Vaquero!" I pronounced it in Espanol, which I don't really speak; Bah KAY rro. The salesman and the Tech stared at me like I was crazy for a moment and went back to their work.

At 4:45 they sent me on my way. I had 200 miles to go to a cheap room I had reserved in Morro Bay. I set out west and rolled through Oxnard, where I saw a taco trailer called, "Vaquero Loco". Stopped there for dinner of course. The bike is so beautiful and impressive looking people are drawn to it. I was holding forth on what it is and how it rides and more to three guys and an old grandma while we waited for our dinners.

So, other than the positive neutral finder, which is annoying, I love the bike! It handles great and has plenty of cornering clearance. I rode some of Highway One like I was trying to set the lap record at Laguna Seca and nothing dragged or scraped. It's a perfect fit for me- bars, seat height, etc. I was instantly confident and smooth on it. I never felt that way on my previous bike, a 2006 Goldwing ABS. It was tall and top heavy.

I knew that this bike (and many others these days) is tuned to meet EPA and CARB standards. I am still surprised at how poorly it runs. Stumbling, surging, lugging and popping. All that when trying to ride smoothly. As the miles added up I explored higher RPM and it's quite powerful when you get up there. I'll pull the ECU Sunday night and send it off to Ivan. I had him flash my old V Star 1300 and it was night and day. I'm confident the Vaquero will run just fine.

I just did the 600 mile check over and oil change with Kawi filter and full synthetic just now. Garry's fork brace is on the way along with a vented Clearview windshield.

Thanks for reading all this.

[smokier]

Awesome first report. Sounds like you are well on your way to piling on many enjoyable miles!


Ride safe,
Smokier

[mbarr10]

Nice Observations, all correct in my experience also. The Flash will make it feel all new again. Big plus for me, it ran so crappy, after 200 miles I was ready to take mine back to the dealer. Then The flash made it a keeper.
Don't forget to loosen your drive belt some after you get a few miles on it.
Do not run it out of gas anymore, ...please
Check out Mike Fays things to do on a new Voyager/ Vaquero on his face book page. (Kawasaki 1700 Voyager owners) . Search for it. It is great reading.
Try 36-38 psi on the front tire, see if you like it better. Think Laguna seca, Hah.

Enjoy your new ride and Safe rides to you.

[DragonLady58]

1st of all, congrats on new steed. 2nd of all, your bike is gonna burp, fart, stumble....more or less stumble around till about the 18,000 mile mark, then, she'll start acting like a new bike. And you'll like it.
The engine won't have the rough edges off till about 15K. And about 18K, its like someone throws a switch....it starts running alot better!
Your 1st order of business should be to have Ivanized....Then, that new bike will be a dream to ride....

[duffy]

It's always nice to read about someone who found the right fit and is really happy with his ride.....when you park and walk into a business and don't look back at your bike it's time for a new one.

[ldhthept]

Been looking at the new Vaquero as well. Currently riding an 06 Nomad that has 68k on the meter. Recently developed an odd noise that at times taps out “you need a new bike!” Those graphics take a little getting used to but that blue and blacked out color is sharp.

[Bagger rider]

Great to hear a vaquero getting the needed TLC to make it the bike it should have been out of the shop , I have a 2019 and haven’t got to enjoy it due the COVID 19 epidemic. Been tinkering though !


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[buckey1313]

I agree with Dragon Lady as soon as you can get it Ivanized. I was ready to sell mine soon after I got it for lack of power and how it just ran so poorly and stumbled. I believe they back fire even in the stock mufflers even though you cannot hear them doing it through the stock pipes. You can hear the bike fires once you change pipes to any other type of after market pipes and it is frustrating to say the least.

Ivonization a new word I think I have come up with will cure 90% of the problems with these engines in how they run and you will not believe you are riding the same bike it just cures all the problems associated with this model of engines.

If you do not get it done you are missing out on the most enjoyment you can get out of this bike performance.

The two things if I did nothing else to a bike I would change in a Vulcan looking back and I pretty well changed everything on my bike would be a Russel Day Long Seat and Ivan's Flash if I did nothing else at all. It is a must. I doubt if the dealer would ever know you had it reprogramed at all unless they look very close at the ECU and that is doubtful they would look that close.

[Old Bear]

What a great first ride! I would add changing out the slip-ons and intake system as well. You want to do that at the same time as getting the ECU flashed, as you have to pick that option. Last big deal is, if you ride much distance, get a real distance seat! I went with Corbin, been loving it ever since!

[Woodsy]

Hey thanks for replies and advice everyone. ECU is on it's way back from Ivan right now. I'm riding about 250 miles with friends next Sunday. I can hardly wait.

[The Black Knight]

[Chuck A.]

Originally Posted by Woodsy

……….ECU is on it's way back from Ivan right now......

Be sure to follow the instructions for the initial start up. Enjoy the bike!

[schoeney]

Did this really happen without pictures?

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[mbarr10]

Originally Posted by schoeney

Did this really happen without pictures?

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Yah, We want proof.

Post some pics,.......... Please