NHTSA Complaint #10126627 — 2004 KAWASAKI VN2000 A1

2004 KAWASAKI VULCAN 2000 MOTORCYCLE REAR PULLEY (REAR BELT SPROCKET) BEARING FAILURE. SEE PICTURES AND SHORT .AVI MOVIE WITH SOUND AT HTTP://WWW.NEWSNOT.COM/~EMONK/PICTURES/MOTORCYCLE/VN2000/V2K_PULLEY_BEARING_BLOWOUT BEARING FAILED WHILE RIDING MOTORCYCLE SOUTH ON I-35 NEAR CLEAR LAKE, IA. SPEED WAS ABOUT 55 AT THE TIME (DUE TO RAIN). SLIGHT SHIMMY WAS MOMENTARILY FELT IN REAR OF BIKE (WHICH WENT AWAY), ALONG WITH A PERSISTENT NOISE. BEARING FAILED AT 15,400 MILES ON JUNE 20, 2005. VEHICLE WAS PURCHASED NEW IN MARCH 2004. I AM THE ONLY OWNER OF THIS VEHICLE. NO ACCIDENT OCCURRED, THOUGH I CAN SEE THIS POSSIBLY CAUSING A REAR TIRE LOCKUP AT HIGHWAY SPEEDS, WHICH WOULD SURELY CAUSE AN ACCIDENT. FROM CONVERSATIONS WITH OTHER VULCAN 2000 OWNERS (SAME MAKE/MODEL/YEAR), THIS IS BY FAR NOT THE FIRST TIME THIS KIND OF FAILURE HAS HAPPENED. ONE OWNER'S BEARING FAILED AT 10,100 MILES. SEE HTTP://ROGUEOWNERSGROUP.COM/ROGUEBUGS.ASPX AND LOOK FOR ITEM DESCRIBED AS "BEARING AND SEAL FAILURE". THERE IS A REAL POSSIBILITY THAT THIS BEARING FAILURE COULD CAUSE A REAR TIRE LOCKUP AT SPEED, WHICH IS A SERIOUS SITUATION FOR A MOTORCYCLIST TO BE IN. KAWASAKI REPLACED ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT BEARING WITH A NEW ONE UNDER A PURCHASED EXTENDED WARRANTY. IN THE NEAR FUTURE, I AM PLANNING ON REPLACING THE REPLACEMENT BEARING WITH A BOCA BEARING MR6006-2RS ($15.95), WHICH IS DOUBLE SEALED. ORIGINAL EQUIPMENT BEARING APPARENTLY ONLY HAS AN OUTSIDE DUST SHIELD. I BELIEVE WITH THE HIGH RISK OF FAILURE AND THE APPARENT HIGH RATE OF FAILURE THAT THIS ITEM SHOULD BE A VERY GOOD CANDIDATE FOR A SAFETY RECALL. MOTORCYCLE DEALER/SHOP THAT REPLACED FAILED BEARING UNDER WARRANTY (FOR INFORMATION ON REPLACED PART AND KAWASAKI PART NUMBER): ADAMS CYCLES INC. (515) 382-6900 631 W LINCOLN HWY NEVADA, IA 50201 PLEASE CONTACT ME IF YOU REQUIRE ANY FURTHER DETAILS.