Voyager XII shifting issues

[drewdavis]

I can't shift up.Shifts into 1st gear smooth & normal,clutch works fine,takes off fine,but can't shift up.It just goes into neutral.Then the only way I can shift after that is back into 1st.

Does anyone know what this could be?

[GrandpaDenny]

Kawasaki has a couple of cool features that other bikes don't. One is that unless you're moving you can't shift into 2nd. Makes it very very easy to find neutral. Another is, when the bike is cold, for the first mile or two (depending upon how cold it is) it won't shift into 2nd until about 3200 rpm.

So, my question is, are you having trouble shifting into 2nd whilst moving, or when sitting still?

[GrandpaDenny]

I can't shift up.Shifts into 1st gear smooth & normal,clutch works fine,takes off fine,but can't shift up.It just goes into neutral.Then the only way I can shift after that is back into 1st.

Does anyone know what this could be?

Looking at your post again, I see you say it's when you're moving. So, my guess is that it's cold out, the bike's cold, and once it warms up a little it'll be fine. Try running her up to about 3200rpm or so, she should shift then. Kinda weird, ain't it? I'm guess that's probably due to the same feature - the Kawasaki Positive Neutral Finder I think it's called - why you don't have to hunt around between 1st and 2nd trying to find neutral. When stopped, click up, right into Neutral, nowhere else. I like that.

[Conrad]

I concour, when i started riding my voyager the "won't shift to 2nd" thing threw me for a bit, especially with a cold engine. It does like to wind up a bit more before shifting until it's warmed up, but fine once you get used to it.

[cushman eagle]

I can't shift up.Shifts into 1st gear smooth & normal,clutch works fine,takes off fine,but can't shift up.It just goes into neutral.Then the only way I can shift after that is back into 1st.

Does anyone know what this could be?

Looking at your post again, I see you say it's when you're moving. So, my guess is that it's cold out, the bike's cold, and once it warms up a little it'll be fine. Try running her up to about 3200rpm or so, she should shift then. Kinda weird, ain't it? I'm guess that's probably due to the same feature - the Kawasaki Positive Neutral Finder I think it's called - why you don't have to hunt around between 1st and 2nd trying to find neutral. When stopped, click up, right into Neutral, nowhere else. I like that.

I agree Grandpa,when I first tried riding my VXII,I thought I had a trans problem,as I tried shifting at a low engine speed with a cold engine,and it would not go past 2nd.I tried revving it higher and it worked.

[Nails]

One is that unless you're moving you can't shift into 2nd.

I found out that "moving" does not mean just coasting. (I was trying to bump-start down a hill that wasn't very steep. It's also good to check the kill switch once in a while. A brain-dead circumstance after a long day in the saddle.)

[GrandpaDenny]

I found out that "moving" does not mean just coasting. (I was trying to bump-start down a hill that wasn't very steep. It's also good to check the kill switch once in a while. A brain-dead circumstance after a long day in the saddle.)

I was never able to bump-start Gertrude, no matter how fast I was going.