Front Bevel Gear Case Shaft Bearing

[eagleman]

Has anyone had issues with this. I am hearing from a Metric mechanic that is is a real issue and can cause the rear wheel to lock up at any speed if it goes bad. He tells me it is such an issue that Kawasaki has created a replacement kit for this item that costs about $500 and plus the cost of installation which requires removing the engine. I have a friend with a Vulcan 900 that seems to be having symptoms associated with this issue going bad. The mechanic said it is an issue with the Vulcan line only. If you "Google" - "Kawasaki Vulcan engine whine" you will get hits that explain this issue more fully. Can anyone shed any information about this issue that could cause our great Nomads to go south while riding them.

Ealgeman

[Cajunrider]

Ask LW if it's an issue. His cratered 5 or 6 weeks ago.

[05nomader]

Yes I had that bearing failure on my wife’s 2004 1500 nomad last summer, that was the determining factor that caused me to pull the engine, that and the transmission would jump out of second gear. The noise it made sounded more like a bad u-joint but after tearing it down it was obvious the noise was the bevel gears not meshing correctly because of the bad bearing. I replaced the bearing at a cost of around $15.00 as I found a replacement at a local bearing supplier and since I had the engine totally disassembled it wasn’t that big of a deal. I ended up completely overhauling the engine, transmission and fixing the engine final drive at a cost of around $1250.00. That includes all parts and machine work on the heads and cylinders and myself doing the overhaul. The engine only had 27,000 miles on it so to answer your question I have had this issue.

[AlabamaNomadRider]

Here is a PM from LW. I ask him a couple of days ago and here is his reply. Maybe this will give you some guidance.

Re: What's Up With Lucille?
« Message sent Yesterday at 4:33pm »

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I am supposed to be off work all week on my regular long-change in the shift rotation, but I'm working 90 hours of overtime instead to make the repair bill hurt less. I'd rather pay cash even if it means taking longer to execute the repair. $1300 just for the OEM bevel gear assembly (local Kaw dealer matching online source's price saving $200 over Kaw book price), but that should cut the labor hours down since it is more of a direct plug & play replacement than a rebuild of the gears, seals, shims, etc. I like the 1yr parts warranty on the complete assembly as well. I dont want to go through this again. I should be able to drop her off in a week or so. She should be back on the road by Thanksgiving.
I was fortunate that a friend of mine gave me her 2009 900 Classic LT to ride until Luci is on the road again. In return I'm giving her riding lessons to get her ready to take the MSF course to get her license.

[lw]

Fortunately mine didnt lock up but it failed in grand style on October 3rd ruining a weeklong trip and then some. At the time of the incident Lucille had 34000 miles on the odometer. Were my wrenching skills of a higher calibre I would take a shot at the replacement myself, but I havent developed that skill set as yet.

Be on the lookout for an extreme howl on deceleration (you could miss this symptom developing if you're like me and ride with ipod earplugs in all the time), progressing into a limp clutch lever as the brake fluid boils due to the placement of the clutch slave cylinder immediately adjacent to the failing bearing and the heat it is generating. The clutch action improved after cooling off for a bit but after only a few miles the heat overcame the fluid again.
I never felt a vibration in the left floorboard from the gears clashing, but I understand that is a "dying quiver" symptom as the outboard bearing disintegrates causing misalignment of the bevel gears.

[MAS Tequila]

Who said you have to remove the engine to change this?

The front bevel gear drive cover can be removed with the engine in the bike. I have done it more than once.

Drop the swingarm bolt, seperate the driveshaft from the output shaft, remove the rear motor mount, remove the exhaust, raise the rear of the engine with a jack, remove the fbgd cover.

I did this twice after my last rebuild, to access the gear change mechanism.

It can be done in a little under two hours.

MT

[rez]

Is this something that should/could be considered for 'preventative maintenance'? Pull it apart and replace the bearing??? Or would that be considered overkill and leave well enough alone??? I have an '05 with 86K km...no issue or noises indicating a problem with the bevel gear set. Sounds like this could cause lots of damage and expense if it went bad. It is a job I could handle myself.

[macmac]

If regular swing arm service is done, the bevel gear bearing can be checked by attempting to wiggle the bevel gear spline that mates with the drive shaft. That splin should not wiggle a bit up/ down or sideways.

It is a lot better to replace a bearing than an entire gear. I haven't been there personally on a Nomad, and have only done like work on ring and pinions in some very few cars.

Besides the above i read of one account where the bike burned for the heat caused. Out of mesh gears create a hell of a heat. Riding a bike with these gears out of spec is sucidal, and will cost a lot more than any 15 bucks after the metal are all ground to chips and run thru the engine / tranny oil.

I think Kawii should extend the warrenty for this one. A recall of a sort.

[MAS Tequila]

http://fiche.ronayers.com/Index.cfm/...evel_Gear(1/3)

Look for 92045, that is one of the bearings in question. The other that goes bad is on the case and the output shaft rides on it. IIRC they have the same part number. Both are oiled by the engines oiling system. There is no maintenance involved.

When one of them goes bad it is catastrophic. I have one in the garage that went south. All that is left are the inner and outer race and the balls. The rest of the structure ended up through out the engine.

It doesn't have to howl or vibrate terribly to be bad.

MT

[lw]

Originally Posted by macmac

I think Kawii should extend the warrenty for this one. A recall of a sort.

+1000 especially when all scheduled maintenance/service has been done. But I'm not holding my breath waiting for that to happen.

[macmac]

Mas, Really 92045? I would have guessed 13101 B/C meaning that bearing.

So the bevel gear spline won't wiggle or as much as I had dreamed up huh?

[MAS Tequila]

13101 B/C are not bearings. The other bearing 92116 can be changed without much trouble.

Like I said, I have the remains of one out in the garage.

MT

[Yellow Jacket]

Originally Posted by MAS Tequila

http://fiche.ronayers.com/Index.cfm/Module/Main/TypeID/26/Type/Motorcycle/MakeID/3/Make/Kawasaki/YearID/ 44/Year/2003/ModelID/2915/Model/Vulcan_1600_Classic/GroupID/69525/Group/Front_Bevel_Gear(1/3)

Look for 92045, that is one of the bearings in question. The other that goes bad is on the case and the output shaft rides on it. IIRC they have the same part number. Both are oiled by the engines oiling system. There is no maintenance involved.
.

MT

How many bearings are involved? 1 or 2 of the 92045 and 1 92116? I only see one of the 92045 in the fiche but you mentioned that two of them have the same part number.

[MAS Tequila]

http://fiche.ronayers.com/Index.cfm/...Crankcase(1/2)

92045B below the crankcase drain. The output (or 3rd-4th-5th) shaft rides on this bearing, which is directly connected to the bevel gear.

MT

[snarleybill08]

does this bearing failure ever happen on an 08 nomad, or has kaw addressed the issue on the 1600's?