bye, bye 1700 Nomad lust

[dandantmm]

So a little history to this post. My good friend Mike and I both got back into riding at the same time. We both purchased a 2001 Honda ACE 750 after a local bike show. Ever since then we have moved up to different bikes together....2002 Nomad...then 2005 Wings (should have known better than to go to the Honda Hoot). You see the pattern, we always buy the same bike together. Well, for the first time we don't ride the same bike....well they have the same name but they are different. I have an 08 Nomad and he just recently purchased an 09 leftover. Because of this, I was suffering from a little 1700 lust since he has more gizmos on his bike, and it is newer so it has to be better...right?

So, we were riding this past weekend and I asked if we could switch bikes so I could at least experience the differences between the two. Wow! What a difference.

Right off I can't believe the seat difference. I mean it has cushion. It feels almost squishy after riding on my stock seat with AirHawk pad. Someone finally put some work in making a seat that is usable. That was nice.

We had stopped on the side of a highway so we needed to get going pretty quick which meant I didn't have time to do much more than get on and go. I go to put it in first gear and dang near miss the shifter. I caught it with the heal of my boot, barely. Wow, that thing is really close. I have to extend my leg to reach it on my 1600.

So it's in gear and we are off. Right away I notice that I'm not getting much wind. It was in the mid 90s so it was pretty warm and I wear a mesh jacket with a cooling vest underneath. I noticed right away that my cooling vest wasn't getting the amount of wind I'm used to.

That windshield is close to my head. WAY closer than my 1600, and it slants more too. He has his on the lowest setting where mine is at the highest but I wasn't getting any noticable buffeting. I wondered if the additional slant improved gas mileage.

I go to stretch my feet out like I do on mine and they went off the end of the floorboards practically. They definately hit the controls. Then I realize just how cramped this bike feels compared to my 1600 and I'm only 5' 8". I now understand all those posts where people of the 6ft stature say the bike is too small for them. I start paying attention to that and I notice that it feels like I'm sitting on top of the motor where the 1600 feels like I'm sitting behind it. The bars are really close, the windshield is close, the controls are close....it's like they cut 4 inches out of the middle of the bike and put it back together. I was not expecting this at all.

So we've been riding for a few miles now and I'm really starting to feel the heat. His bike does have the heat fix installed in case you are wondering. I was having flashbacks to my Wing before I added Baker air wings. The 1700 definately gives you more heat and I really think a lot of it has to do with the amount of wind you get. I wasn't getting near the wind on my legs and torso and I started looking around to figure out why. There are two major differences between the two. One is the shape of the tank. The 1700 tank almost looks square when you look down on it. It's about as wide at the seat as it is in the front. The 1600 tank is much narrower at the seat than at the front. That narrow design on the 1600 allows air to come up around the rear of the tank up to your torso. The 1700 square design seems to block a lot of that. But what I think is the biggest wind blocker are those lovely air cleaner covers. They look awesome, but boy do they stick out past the tank. I can hardly see the dog bowls on my bike, but those big chrome things are out there, and they are deflecting a LOT of the wind from the rider. Not only do they stick out but they also go down the engine more and stick out farther down the motor. I think the wind hits that and deflects right off the rider, and probably the passenger. I think this may be the biggest heat problem in reality. There was no wind getting to my legs or the rear cylinder head, and since you practically sit right on top of it all that heat comes up to you. I think if there was more air flow in that area a lot of the heat issues would go away.

So, I'm past the heat issue for now and on to other things...like the overdrive. I really wanted to see how much of a difference it made, but we really weren't going fast enough to tell. :( I didn't notice a huge difference from the 1600, at least not what I had invisioned it would be like. It did ride really smooth in overdrive for sure, and it seemed like it had plenty of power. Speaking of power, I just didn't come away feeling like the 1600 was underpowered compared to 1700. I was really glad about that too.

Ride was smooth and cushy. He keeps his rear shocks way low and I run about 14 in mine so some of it has to do with that, and the age difference in the bikes factors in too. But the ride did feel totally different than my 1600. More cushy is how I would describe it.

I didn't get a chance to play with the cruise control because I forgot to ask how to set it and I didn't want to crash his new bike trying to read those little buttons. But, I had a Wing so I know what cruise is like, so it wasn't on the top of my list to try. I'm sure it works just fine.

Then our swap time came to an end. The first thing I said was "I see what you mean about the heat". The first thing he said was "Your bike feels like a chopper with the long tank and the bars farther out". I thought that was pretty funny actually.

They may have the same name but they are definately not the same bike. I used to think I would trade my 1600 in on a Voyager one day, but the ride ended that idea. I told him no offense, but I couldn't own that bike because it just feels too cramped. I felt like I was riding a much smaller bike when I thought I would feel like I was on a larger one. I was kind of bummed but then I was relieved because I'm just that much happier with my 1600.

We've coined nicknames for our bikes now...."stretch" and "stumpy".

[Top Cat]

Good info and well thought out.Thanks

[recumbentbob]

Your conclusion is the same as mine.

I did not ride one just sat on me and I was w a y to cramped. I'm 6'5" and the reason I bought my 08 Nomad was the leg room.

[cactusjack]

I've ridden both a 1700 Nomad and a Voyager, and that was the first thing I noticed. I'm about 6'1" and don't have real long legs and although I probably could get used to it, I wasn't real comfortable on them. I've also ridden a few different Harleys and they are similar. Kawasaki should have left well enough alone, in my humble opinion. They shouldn't have changed the saddlebags, the seating position, the floorboards or anything else. They could have upgraded the engine, transmission, and added cruise control and ABS and they'd have had damn near the perfect bike, as far as I'm concerned.

[ringadingh]

Thats a good report, Ive never ridden a 1700 but would like to someday.
I know they are smaller but that saves you from having to install risers and make other changes a lot of us have made.
I have ridden a few Harleys and they are smaller as well, you sit differently on them but I find them quite comfortable as well.
I agree with CJ's suggestions, that would have made a real nice bike.

[cnc]

Good post. I have looked at the Voyager as maybe a bike to trade up to in the future, but have yet to ride one. From time to time I stop in and see the guys who sold me my 2008. They often have a voyager ready for a demo ride. Armed with your info I will be a little less enthusiastic about bothering with trying one.

[fish]

I rode a voyager and I might add the voyager was more nimble. I was in a demo ride ridding 2-up and I had some tight maneuvering around cars and thought to myself this is going to be tricky. I was surprised how easy to was to handle.

[schoeney]

Thanks for the report. It gives me some things to consider if/when I decide to get a new bike. Hopefully there will be enough aftermarket items to be able to correct some of the shortcomings.

[timebandit]

I would like to see the voyager fairing on my 2008 nomad ::)
Where could a guy get one to see how it looks?

[thedude]

Thanks for taking the time to write that review of the 1700 vs. 1600.

[Idaho]

Great write-up Dan. Thank you. I now know that I will keep my Nomad until the wheel seeze up or Kawi builds a more comfortable bike, whichever comes first. It won't be this generation of Nomads.

[skeeter]

great info. thanks.

[billmac]

Good report. I like the way you mentioned what you noticed first and the most. Your comment on the heat explains maybe why the 1700 feels hotter. Nice to read an objective review. Thanks.

[wiz]

Good write up. I wanted a Voyager until I sat on a preproduction model at the '08 Biketoberfest and found that it was not the big roomy ride I was hoping for. I wouldn't mind that fairing, trunk and motor in my '07!

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Thanks for the nice report on the 1700. I am not in the market for a new bike. I am just getting mine broken in. I am only 5' 8" and everything feels just right to me. I will keep the Nomad til it wears out or I do.