Words: Peter Elliott / Photos: Geoff Osborne
Appearances can be deceptive... very
deceptive, as the Vulcan proved.
I
found this a strange bike to review, you see
I just wasn’t certain who it was for; what
market Kawasaki was attempting to reach,
and whether it was New Zealand suitable.
I have been riding many litre-plus bikes
recently, and so to be fair to the Vulcan I had
to ride it exclusively for a while; ensuring I was
responding to what it did do, and not what it
didn’t. But I reached some conclusions after
quite a bit of time in the single saddle however,
and I can now make a fair fist of the arguments.
Fortunately the time aboard changed both my
opinion and my affinity with the bike and I found
myself enjoying its nimble nature, its terrific
growl when using the full rev range, and the low
centre of gravity which enabled me to flick it in
and out of motorway traffic with ease. I can see
why some owners become very fond of them
indeed, but I certainly wasn’t sold in the first
days. To start with it seemed odd that the things
you look for generally in a cruiser – a bit of brute
power, some serious street presence – not to say
menace – and a certain laid back cool-factor, are
missing. A Cruiser is usually adept at giving you the
attitude to deal with those highly strung, shaver-
engined racers shrieking past. So, at first glance,