The 1997 Kawasaki Vn1500 has 2 NHTSA recall campaigns affecting an estimated 5,752 vehicles. Recall repairs are always free at any authorized dealer. Owners have filed 2 complaints with NHTSA, most often about the power train. Last updated July 5, 2026.
VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: MOTORCYCLES. AN IMPROPERLY MANUFACTURED TRANSMISSION GEAR CAN CAUSE WEAKENING AND EVENTUAL BREAKAGE OF AN ADJACENT GEAR.
GEAR BREAKAGE CAN RESULT IN TRANSMISSION LOCKUP, CAUSING THE OPERATOR TO LOSE CONTROL OF THE MOTORCYCLE.
DEALERS WILL INSPECT THESE MOTORCYCLES AND REPAIR AFFECTED UNITS.
PRESSURE ON THE BATTERY GROUND LEAD (THE CRIMPED AND SOLDERED TERMINATION OF THE BATTERY CABLE) FROM THE BASE OF THE OPERATOR'S SEAT CAN CAUSE THE BATTERY TERMINAL TO SHORT OUT INSIDE THE BATTERY.
THIS CONDITION COULD DISABLE THE BATTERY AND THE MOTORCYCLE'S ELECTRICAL SYSTEM INCREASING THE RISK OF A VEHICLE CRASH.
DEALERS WILL REPLACE THE EXISTING BATTERY CABLES WITH A NEWLY DESIGNED CABLE AND INSPECT THE BATTERY TO VERIFY THAT NO DAMAGE HAS OCCURRED.
Verbatim reports filed with NHTSA, lightly edited for readability and with personal information removed.
“Transmission locked up after changing into 2nd gear after leaving a stop... Kawasaki had a recall for this problem for certain bikes this same year but tell me that my bike does not one of the bikes under the recall. Only 25,600 miles on the bike.”
“Tire should carry 28 psi. Cccconsumer called dunlop manufacturer, and dunlop stated that tire should have 35 to 40 psi. Tires make sidewall wear before center.*ak”
Recall, complaint, and investigation records from official NHTSA datasets (FLAT_RCL, FLAT_CMPL, FLAT_INV), synced weekly. Counts reflect NHTSA records for the 1997 Kawasaki Vn1500 as of July 5, 2026. Complaint narratives are consumer-submitted and unverified. This page contains ads and affiliate links. Full methodology.