yamaha venture 1983 or 84

[dbag51]

I am considering purchasing an 83 or 84 venture for touring, am wondering about reliability and the 2nd gear issue? They seem to be good looking bikes, but I dont see a lot of them on the road compared to wings, etc. Anybody have feedback on this?

[strom]

I want one too?

LP

[sixtysix]

I had an 83, great bike but too heavy in my opinion. The 83 had issues with the frames cracking, this was fixed for the 84 model year with stronger frames. Only a few had this issue, was chalked up to bad welds or bad steel or frame holes allowing water to sit inside frame. I think the 83-85 had a few 'second gear issues' as well but I don't remember exactly. Check out the http://www.venturers.org/ page for more details on this bike. The engines are fairly bullet proof and was later punched to 1300 for both the Venture and V-max. My 83 needed a lot of TLC and some expensive exhaust parts (the collectors go bad - where the 4 pipes come together) about $300 worth if I remember right. There early computers and dashes had issues with loose solder joints, I thought mine was junk but an hour with a solder gun fixed all the problems. If i had my choice the 86-up would be the way to go, they had cruise control!!

There are 2 models the Standard and the Royale...the royale had an on-board air compressor for the adjustable suspension and a radio and tape deck along with other goodies.

If you are cookied with imagestation you will see a picture of my 83 that I sold to a former list member in Mohawk, NY. If not won't see nothing

[Winterhawk]

I have a 1983 Venture also. 2nd gear is out and I just skip 2nd. Instead of fixing it I bought the XS1100 from E-Bay.

[dbag51]

ventures!

Well, that answered my questions, thanks for all the info!
I guess its hard to beat a good "wing", for touring on a low budget! Those ventures sure have a good look!, better than the wings in my opinion.

[sixtysix]

Re: ventures!

Originally posted by dbag51
Well, that answered my questions, thanks for all the info!
I guess its hard to beat a good "wing", for touring on a low budget! Those ventures sure have a good look!, better than the wings in my opinion.

They also handle better, have more ground clearence for cornering, and more power , I would look for an 86 and up, but if you can get a first gen for cheap (mine was $800), go for it.