Vulcan 900 Stator Information Thread

[SouthBend Vulcan900]

I do have a cheap torque wrench but I will borrow a better one thanks for the tip! By the way what is the pressure for the bolts?

[stormin]

Last month the "noise" appeared on my 07 LT. Loaded it up and dropped it off at the dealer. $1,215, and 3 weeks waiting for parts and it's turn has left a real bad taste in my mouth. I did have Roamain and Sfair information but unable toget parts quickly here. I am changing bikes. Hope this Spring I will be able to sell my old girl. Really ticked. So enjoyed reading for hours on end this great forum. Helped me with things like the gas guage. Will stay with you until the bike is sold but my new wheels (2011 Yamaha FJR)is my new riding buddy.

[Romans5.8]

Originally Posted by stormin

Last month the "noise" appeared on my 07 LT. Loaded it up and dropped it off at the dealer. $1,215, and 3 weeks waiting for parts and it's turn has left a real bad taste in my mouth. I did have Roamain and Sfair information but unable toget parts quickly here. I am changing bikes. Hope this Spring I will be able to sell my old girl. Really ticked. So enjoyed reading for hours on end this great forum. Helped me with things like the gas guage. Will stay with you until the bike is sold but my new wheels (2011 Yamaha FJR)is my new riding buddy.

Sorry to hear that.

Having done the work and spent under ~$200 to do that I just figured it was no big deal and I can live with Kawasaki's very poor stator setup on these bikes. If I had to pay $1,200 though? Not likely I'd be so nonchalant about the issue. That does appear to be on-par for what people seemed to need to pay to do it.

For future reference Rick's motorsports DOES ship to Canada now... so in case any other canadians are reading this you CAN get the Rick's stator for about $150 (plus whatever shipping and customs is involved)

It seems concentrated to the '06 and '07 models (or maybe those are the only ones with enough use in volume, that is to say, the only models where you will find LOTS of models with the magic 15 or so k miles where they seem to fail.)

Hope you stick around the forums, though! I love my 900 a lot so I grudgingly put up with the stator shortcomings. I also knew about them going in so I was prepared to shell out a couple hundred bucks to fix it. Sure enough, a few months into owning her, I got "the noise". I can imagine if the bike didn't fit and ride so well I probably would have never bought it. Or if I had, I'd probably own something different by now. As I read through some other V-Twin motorcycle forums, or even other Vulcan models here on this forum, though, I am reminded that the 900 IS a reliable bike... just that DARN stator. But, at least we aren't talking about cam chains snappng, pulleys spinning free of the wheels, shafts exploding on the highway, factory electronics frying, bearings locking up, transmissions failing, etc. etc. But.. again.. THAT DARN STATOR! LOL.

[1barron]

Originally Posted by stormin

Last month the "noise" appeared on my 07 LT. Loaded it up and dropped it off at the dealer. $1,215, and 3 weeks waiting for parts and it's turn has left a real bad taste in my mouth. I did have Roamain and Sfair information but unable toget parts quickly here. I am changing bikes. Hope this Spring I will be able to sell my old girl. Really ticked. So enjoyed reading for hours on end this great forum. Helped me with things like the gas guage. Will stay with you until the bike is sold but my new wheels (2011 Yamaha FJR)is my new riding buddy.

This is the kind of thing that can harm the Kawasaki brand. Kawasaki and dealers should be working with the consumer to correct the problem.

[sfair]

Although maybe more frequent, stator failure is NOT a unique concept to the 900.
It happens to all makes and models.

[Romans5.8]

Originally Posted by sfair

Although maybe more frequent, stator failure is NOT a unique concept to the 900.
It happens to all makes and models.

+1. Like I said before the million mile Harley got a new stator about every 50k.

Sfair what would you say the 'average life' for a motorcycle stator would be?

[stormin]

Thought I had better add these few words before I go back to my usual in this forum of reading for hours on end. I feel the 900 is a great bike.The seat should be more comfortable, and the lean angle is not great but it starts every time and runs without heating and sounds so good when you accelerate. And as sfair said no bike is perfect. I am hoping to vacate the 900 because I do not want to have that weakness over my head again. I might have been less ready to change had I known that I could get a stator for around $200 and keep it on hand. But still not sure about that. I will always be fond of my experiences with the 900 and recommend it to anyone but not pull any punches about it's weaknesses. Thanks again Romains and sfair. You guys are great to be around.

[sfair]

Originally Posted by Romans5.8

Sfair what would you say the 'average life' for a motorcycle stator would be?

Too many variables. I am guessing that if a 900 was only driven in town at low rpm's, always short shifted, etc, that the stator may last for ever.
One may find a trend for failures on bikes that are frequently driven on the highway, possibly sustained high rpm. too high a gear in town, or winding out in every gear. Anything where vibration is present.
I have no data to back that up and trying to get people to confess their driving habits may be difficult, but it would be an interesting undertaking.

Stators that last forever could be used, but for the following three reasons:

1. Cost
2. Cost.
3. Cost.

[Romans5.8]

Originally Posted by sfair

Too many variables. I am guessing that if a 900 was only driven in town at low rpm's, always short shifted, etc, that the stator may last for ever.
One may find a trend for failures on bikes that are frequently driven on the highway, possibly sustained high rpm. too high a gear in town, or winding out in every gear. Anything where vibration is present.
I have no data to back that up and trying to get people to confess their driving habits may be difficult, but it would be an interesting undertaking.

Stators that last forever could be used, but for the following three reasons:

1. Cost
2. Cost.
3. Cost.

It's consistent with my experience at least. I do a lot of interstate riding and live in a rural area, so if I'm not on the interstate I'm doing 55+ mph. I've done nothing to reduce the vibrations on my bike (stock size tires, stock pulley's, etc.) Mine failed right around 15,000 miles. Failed completely and kind of all at once, voltage actually dropped once the bike was started, and stayed the same across the RPM band! Had a dead short.

I hope the Rick's stator will last me longer than that. It's not as easy as a change of riding habit for me.. I'd have to move! haha. If I can avoid living in suburban or urban areas for the rest of my life I'd be just fine with that Guess I'll just go through more Stators haha.

[johnnyplano]

Found a little basic info on the http://www.electrosport.com site.
Although they do not offer a replacement stator, the info may be useful. (my 2010 LT has over 25k miles and so far has no stator issues)


Common Technical Issues : Vulcan 900 Classic / LT (06-11)

BRAND : KAWASAKI
MODEL : Vulcan 900 Classic / LT (06-11)
CATEGORY : Street Bikes

TECHNICAL ISSUE DETAILS


These bikes have what is called a "permanent magnet system" for charging the battery, consisting of a 3-phase stator, a permanent magnet flywheel or rotor, and a separate regulator/rectifier.

The 3-phase stator has three output wire leads which feed into the regulator/rectifier unit. This unit rectifies the AC coming from the stator into DC power and regulates it to around 14.5Vdc. The output wire leads from the regulator/rectifier connect to the battery through a main fuse.

These permanent magnet systems have proven to be very reliable overall, which is why they have been used on almost all motorcycles for the past 40 years.


MOST COMMON FAILURES:

1) The stator can quit producing power usually due to the insulation failing. This is commonly caused by age or overheating.

2) The regulator/rectifier can have one or more rectifier diodes fail, which causes the output to drop to zero, or it can have the regulation circuit fail which causes the output voltage to be unregulated and liable to climb past 16Vdc.


DIAGNOSIS:

We recommend using our well known Comprehensive Fault Finding Chart for troubleshooting and diagnosis.

And to help with testing a rectifier bridge in the regulator/rectifier we have created a special Diode Testing Guide.

As always: ensure you have good connections everywhere. Simply disconnecting every connector on the bike one by one, spraying with contact cleaner, and reconnecting goes a long way towards reliability.

When replacing stators: ensure you seat the stator completely in the case without pinching any wire leads. Check to make sure the screws that bolt the stator down are tight, and ALWAYS use thread locking compound such as Locktite to prevent the screws from working themselves loose. Also replace the alternator cover gasket and use some liquid gasket on the rubber grommet to ensure 100% sealing.

Most importantly: Solid and clean electrical connections are the key to a reliable system. We cannot stress this enough!

Contact ElectroSport if you cannot find the problem. We will be happy to assist you in diagnosing your charging system.