Overview

This motorcycle has saddlebags, a special seat, passenger backrest, and windshield as standard issue.

Kawasaki is matching the introduction of its new Vulcan® 900 Classic with another new model with added performance and style. The new Vulcan 900 Classic LT will find a place right alongside its sibling when it comes to acceptance by a wide audience of riders, but the classic LT will be particularly attractive to those seeking an out-of-the-crate cruiser dressed up for cruising around town, or ready for open road touring.

This new V-twin entry for Kawasaki delivers all of the same riding characteristics as the Vulcan 900 Classic—featuring a category-leading 903cc engine displacement combined with “big-bike” look and feel, and torque to spare—but does it in an eye-appealing invitation to those for whom touring represents the ultimate get-away.

Kawasaki accessorizes the Vulcan 900 LT with saddlebags, a special seat, passenger backrest and an adjustable windshield. The only add-on that doesn’t show-up on the showroom hang-tag is the riding enjoyment that this new Vulcan addition will provide its owners.

The stylish saddlebags are made of reinforced top grain cowhide that has been carefully selected to minimize leather flaws and deep-dyed so the finish can’t be scraped off. These perfectly sized bags provide a slant-top opening, fastened with two 1.5-inch wide leather straps that feature chrome buckles and quick release stealth fasteners. Rounding out the look of these bags is an embossed Vulcan logo on the reinforced, dual panel lids, and chrome plated brass stud accents. Helping to protect both the bags and their contents are metal reinforced upper edges to help maintain shape, and rolled and riveted top lids to help keep unwanted moisture out.

The seat and passenger backrest combine to offer both comfort and a look that helps this touring machine take its place among the most stylish on the highway. The seat is detailed with chrome plated brass studs to match the bags, while the classic, tombstone-shaped passenger backrest sports identical studded appeal.

This long, low ride takes wind protection seriously; thick, optically correct acrylic plastic is used for the windscreen that’s shaped to smooth the airflow around the rider.

Once past the packaged look of the new Vulcan 900 Classic LT, the motorcyclist finds himself astride a ride that previously was only found with larger cruisers. Based on much of what has propelled acceptance of Kawasaki’s Vulcan 2000, the two new 900 Vulcan models deliver exceptional roll-on acceleration, easy maneuverability, and performance the equal of larger displacement competitors.

Curved engine fins add visual interest to the traditional look of the big, fuel-injected V-twin, while the four valves per cylinder, liquid cooled reliability, and smooth highway cruising aided by the engine’s counter balancer make this a worthy new entry in Kawasaki’s Vulcan stable.

The Vulcan 900 Classic LT features a belt drive that keeps the overall weight down and improves rear-end styling. Any mention of rear-end styling has to include this unit’s use of a large, 180mm wide rear tire, largest in the category. The beefy, “big-bike” look inherent with the larger tire adds to the guttural, classic V-twin sound that is produced by the use of a single-pin crankshaft. Both look and sound evoke the feel of a much larger motorcycle.

But the larger look and feel need not exclude any potential rider. The low seat height makes the Vulcan 900 accessible to shorter riders and its tapered and studded seat flows comfortably into the fuel tank and lower chassis rails and provides a narrowed shape, which makes it comfortable for all riders.

At home around town or when the open road calls for long-range stability, this motorcycle is built for hour upon hour of touring pleasure. The combination of wide handlebars and an ideal relationship between the bars, seat, and big-bike looking footboards offers an extremely comfortable mount for any motorcyclist. The ergonomically designed front bucket seat is comfortable enough for any distance, and the pillion pad make sharing the two-wheeled experience with a friend effortless.

Some of the other features that make the Vulcan 900 so appealing to such a wide audience are:

Description