2005 Kawasaki Vulcan 7600 Nomad
By KIT PALMER
PHOTOS BY KINNEY JONES
f the 1500 Nomad was already one of
Kawasaki's most popular cruisers, it
will no doubt be even more popular,
now that it has 1000 more cubic centimeters and a multitude of enhancements for 2005. In fact, it has enough
changes that Kawasaki tells us that, even
I
intake air temperature, atmospheric pressure, intake air pressure and throttle position, has new settings to better suit the
Nomad's increased displacement.
Other engine-related refinements
include larger engine mounts and a geardriven engine counterbalancer to tone
down the vibration of the single-pin crank
design.
Otherwise, the 1600 car-
though some basic designs are carried over
ries over the same basic
from the 1500 Nomad, it is for all intents
and purposes an all-new motorcycle. At a
recent unveiling of the new Nomad, a
Kawasaki spokesperson said that it has
been changed so much that even saying it's
"based" on the 1500 would be inaccurate.
To us, though, it still looks like the classic 1500 Nomad, but with a bit more
chrome, new engine guards and new paint
schemes, but most of the important
changes are not so apparent, such as the
increased displacement (from 1470cc to
I552cc) and the modifications to the electronic fuel-injection system. The EFl's 16bit electronic control unit (ECU), which
motor designs, such as the
single overhead cams and
four valves per cylinder,
which, along with the cam
monitors engine coolant temperature,
38
chain tensioners, are self-
adjusting.
To improve slowspeed stability, Kawasaki
fiddled with the offset of
the front fork to
where there is less
trail, making it slightly easier to maneuver in parking lots.
The 1600 is more
passenger friendly,
MARCH 9, 2005 • CYCLE NEWS
now that it comes with a backrest, thicker
seat padding, new grab bars and passenger
floorboards.
Kawasaki recently gave Cycle News a
chance to ride the new Vulcan 1600
Nomad, and Iwas the lucky one who got to
go. Between rainstorms, Kawasaki led
myself and a few other journalists on a
casual, one-day tour of the avocado-strewn
The new Kawasaki Vulcan
Nomad gets more
displacement and more
chrome.
hillsides of northern San Diego County.
Designed for long-distance cruising, the
new Vulcan 1600 Nomad treated me well.
Although it's been quite awhile since I last
rode the 1500 Nomad, the 1600
seemed to vibrate less - especially
at low rpm - than I remembered.
It just felt a bit more refined
overall, yet it still retained just
