RoadVitals

2003 Kawasaki VN1500-L4 Problems

Owner-reported complaints filed with NHTSA, grouped by component

Data refreshed

Owner complaintsComplaints are reports submitted to NHTSA by owners and drivers. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a complaint does not establish that a defect exists. Volume is influenced by how many of a vehicle were sold, how long it has been on the road, and how much attention an issue has received.
2
Latest Sep 22, 2013
Components namedHow many of our component categories appear on at least one report for this model year. One report can name several.
2
Crash or fire reportedComplaints whose submitter recorded that a crash or a fire occurred. These are the reporter's own answers on the NHTSA form, not verified findings.
0

What this page shows

Everything below is an owner-reported complaint submitted to NHTSA about the 2003 Kawasaki VN1500-L4, grouped by the component NHTSA recorded on the report. These are not confirmed defects, and they are not recalls. NHTSA does not verify most reports before publishing them, and a category with more reports in it is not evidence that a part is defective.

Complaints are reports submitted by owners and drivers to NHTSA. They are not verified and do not establish that a defect exists.

Reports by component

Ranked by how many owner reports name each component category

  • Engine150.0%
  • Tires & wheels150.0%

Percentages are of component mentions. A single complaint can name more than one component, so these do not sum to the total complaint count.

Each component in detail

What the reports in each category say, in the owners' own words

Engine

Reports naming the engine itself — including stalling, misfires, oil consumption, cooling and internal engine components.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

KAWASAKI'S UNLIMITED MILEAGE WARRANTY IS A RIPOFF! I OWN A 2003 KAWASAKI NOMAD MOTORCYCLE WITH 170,345 MILES ON THE ODOMETER AND MY EXTENDED "UNLIMITED MILEAGE" WARRANTY EXPIRES ON 8/19/2008. ON 9-25-06, I NOTICED A MAJOR OIL LEAK COMING FROM A HOLE IN THE LEFT SIDE #1 CYLINDER SPARK PLUG SLEEVE. ON 9-27-06, I TOOK MY BIKE (BY TRAILER) TO MY DEALER IN ORDER TO HAVE IT REPAIRED. ON 10-14-06, I WAS NOTIFIED BY MY DEALER (WHO WAS EAGER TO REPAIR THE BIKE) THAT KAWASAKI WOULD NOT AUTHORIZE WARRANTY WORK TO BE DONE BECAUSE OF NORMAL WEAR AND TEAR. ON 10-16-06, I CALLED KAWASAKI CUSTOMER SERVICE AND WAS TOLD THAT BECAUSE OF THE HIGH MILEAGE ON MY BIKE, KAWASAKI WOULD NOT AUTHORIZE THE REPAIR UNDER WARRANTY DUE TO WEAR AND DETERIORATION OCCASIONED BY USE OF THE PRODUCT. THE OIL LEAK WAS CAUSED BY A DEFECT IN THE DESIGN OF THE AUTOMATIC CAM CHAIN TENSIONERS WHICH ALLOWED THE CAM CHAIN OVER TIME TO STRETCH AND RUB A HOLE IN THE SPARK PLUG SLEEVE. IF THE CAM CHAIN WERE TO BREAK, THIS COULD CAUSE THE MOTOR TO SIEZE AND CAUSE INJURY TO THE RIDER. I HAVE DISCOVERED THIS IS A COMMON PROBLEM WITH MOST KAWASAKI ENGINES AND ONE KAWASAKI SHOULD BE AWARE OF. IN FACT, KAWASAKI OF CANADA HAS A CAM CHAIN TENSIONER EXTENDER (PART #92027-1500-DE) THAT CORRECTS THIS PROBLEM, YET KAWASAKI USA HAS NO SUCH PART. WHY IS THIS? FURTHERMORE, I ASKED WHY KAWASAKI MOTORS REPAIRED MY BIKE IN MARCH 2006 FOR A WORN OUT STATOR, IN JUNE 2006 FOR WORN OUT WHEEL BEARINGS AND FORK SEALS AND IN AUGUST 2006 FOR A WORN OUT U-JOINT AND DRIVE SHAFT; ALL UNDER THE "UNLIMITED MILEAGE" WARRANTY. THEY AGAIN HAD NO ANSWER. WELL, I THINK I KNOW THE ANSWER: M-O-N-E-Y! IN ORDER TO FIX THE OIL LEAK, KAWASAKI WOULD HAVE TO REMOVE THE ENGINE FROM THE FRAME, REPLACE CAM CHAINS, SPARK PLUG SLEEVES, GASKETS, ETC. ETC. THIS WOULD COST KAWASAKI MEGABUCKS, SO THEY SAID IN ESSENCE WE WON'T HONOR THE WARRANTY SO FIX IT YOURSELF. I ORDERED THE PARTS AND DID THE REPAIR WORK MYSELF. *NM

NHTSA ID 10171980 · filed Oct 27, 2006

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Tires & wheels

Reports naming tires, wheels, hubs, or the tire-pressure monitoring system.

1
report

From owner reports, verbatim

THE RUBBER ON MY REAR TIRE (160/80 B 16 M/C 75H) BROKE AT THE TREAD GROVES AND SEPARATED FROM THE CASING, CAUSING THE TIRE TO GO FLAT. FORTUNATELY THE BIKE WAS PARKED WHEN THE TIRE WENT FLAT. THIS IS THE SECOND INCIDENT I HAVE HAD WITH THIS BRAND AND MODEL. THE FIRST THE SIDEWALL HAD SEPARATED RESULTING IN A LARGE BULGE. IT ALSO WENT FLAT WHILE PARKED. TIRE PRESSURES ARE CHECKED ONCE PER WEEK AND BEFORE ANY LONG TRIP. PRESSURE IS MAINTAINED AT 40PSI PER MANUF. SPEC

NHTSA ID 10544861 · filed Sep 22, 2013

Too few reports in this category for a page of its own — they appear in the full complaint list.

Higher-selling and older vehicles accumulate more reports. Counts are not failure rates and are not directly comparable between vehicles that sold in very different numbers.

Elsewhere on this vehicle

Data sources

Data on this page last refreshed .