Brand new 2012 concours pulls to the right

[tonedeaf]

I don't do it a lot, but hands off, my '12 flies straighter than any other large scooter I have ridden.

[rcannon409]

Is there a possibility of the pulling being because of the way you sit on the bike?   Possibly weighting one side more than the other?

It would be interesting to add 20lbs to the left saddlebag and see if the pulling changes.

[Elfmaze]

did the tire get properly mounted, meaning proper sequence for tightening axle and pinch bolts?

There is a proper sequence?

[TJ]

New owner of a 2012 here as well, she flies as straight as an arrow. Just curious, have you tried different tire pressures?

[VirginiaJim]

One thing the OP could try is to find another C14 owner with ABS (no pulling to the right) and switch the wheels one at a time.  At least you could eliminate that from the equation.  He could also ask the other owner to ride his bike and vice versa to see if the perception of the problem is different.  If factory Kwak is saying there isn't a problem this could be one way to prove that there is...

[Rhino]

What state do you live in. Some have lemon laws. Are they admitting that the bike pulls to the right but say that is normal??? I would give Kawasaki 4 choices, 1: fix this bike 2: give me a new bike, 3: give me a full 100% refund or 4: see you in court. No bike should ever pull left or right straight from the showroom.

[VirginiaJim]

Agreed.  Total BS.

[stevewfl]

What state do you live in. Some have lemon laws. Are they admitting that the bike pulls to the right but say that is normal??? I would give Kawasaki 4 choices, 1: fix this bike 2: give me a new bike, 3: give me a full 100% refund or 4: see you in court. No bike should ever pull left or right straight from the showroom.

In most states motorcycles are "recreational vehicles" and fall under the boat/motorcycle/camper/rv category, lemon law won't cover.

[Taff]

So after complaining to the dealer of it pulling they had someone from kawasaki in california fly out. When he got here he said he wanted to get a demo bike. He said the demo bike pulls to the right as well.
The kawasaki guy and the tech at the dealer both said that my bike and the demo both pull to the right exactly the same way and that it is just a characteristic of the bike.
I dont know, just doesnt seem right to me.
Kinda upset about this, I would trade it in for something but I do like the concours. Just dont like the pull to the right.

Something as simple as engine mounting bolts not properly torqed could also be a problem.
Check the front forks to see if the pre-load adjusters are evenly set both sides.

Put bike on center stand and check for rear drive shaft play, rear wheel security and all bolts tight. check both rear torque link arm bolts for correct torque.

[Caffeinated]

Hmmm. Just saw this thread. My 2011 has always pulled slightly to the right. Don't notice it all all with the hands on the bars, but set the throttle lock and let go, and I have to lean way left to get it to stay straight. I've got 1k miles on Angels, and it does it just as much as with the stones. Strangly enough I experienced the same slight pulling on my C10 so I never really thought much about it on this bike. I will say that the handle bars vibrate a little more now with the Angels, which is troubling. I've checked the steering, and it's fine. I've rebalanced the wheels, so I'll have to check the engine mounting bolts next.

I was wondering if part of it could be due to the routing of the cables and brake lines? Possibly routed wrong and causing them have enough pressure on the fork tube? When the front is off the ground, it seems to smoothly turn from side to side, but it will not swing back completly by it's self because of the cables.

[Rhino]

In most states motorcycles are "recreational vehicles" and fall under the boat/motorcycle/camper/rv category, lemon law won't cover.

DOH!!

[rwilliamm]

What state do you live in. Some have lemon laws. Are they admitting that the bike pulls to the right but say that is normal??? I would give Kawasaki 4 choices, 1: fix this bike 2: give me a new bike, 3: give me a full 100% refund or 4: see you in court. No bike should ever pull left or right straight from the showroom.

yeah, im in florida, lemon law dont work for me, there is a maguson-moss warranty act though.
I tried calling kawasaki, they said the rep said its fine and thats it. They were useless. Asked to speak to someone else and his supervisor is on vacation. Ill have to wait til he comes back to return my call.
Im am looking for a lawyer now since kawasaki isnt interested in my safety or my bike that pulls to the right.

Still cant believe that the rep said they all do that, and now he has the people at the stealership thinking that too, damn how gullible are these people?

[Z71]

yeah, im in florida, lemon law dont work for me, there is a maguson-moss warranty act though.
I tried calling kawasaki, they said the rep said its fine and thats it. They were useless. Asked to speak to someone else and his supervisor is on vacation. Ill have to wait til he comes back to return my call.
Im am looking for a lawyer now since kawasaki isnt interested in my safety or my bike that pulls to the right.

Still cant believe that the rep said they all do that, and now he has the people at the stealership thinking that too, damn how gullible are these people?

This has nothing to do with gullibility.  They are telling you this BS because they evidently have had several similar complaints and they do not know what the cause is.  Rather than admitting that there is a problem and they do not know how to fix it, it is much easier to deny that there is a problem.  This way they are not obligated to do anything.   This seems to be standard mode of operation in auto industry as well - if you cannot find the cause of the problem, tell the customer the situation is normal.   A particularly useful excuse for vibration issues.
"It's a truck.  They all do it."  No they don't!

Try another dealership and then resort to legal action. 

As suggested in earlier posts, I would carefully look at routing of cables, harnesses, etc around the fork tubes to ensure there is no pressure that would cause the bike to drift to the right.   I would also check both brake caliper to see if the right one isn't dragging.

Also, loosen the pinch bolts on the front axle and axle nut itself and properly retorque the axle tighten the pinch nuts aft putting some weight on the forks with the front brake firmly applied.

[MrFurious]

I've noticed mine pulls to the right a little when I let go of the bars, but nothing drastic.  I don't notice a pull to the right any other time though so it may just be my body position or the crown in the road causing it.

[Z71]

Crown in the road should only affect four wheeled vehicles, and that is why caster settings are different on the two front wheels - to compensate for the road crown.

[VirginiaJim]

I would think that to eliminate crown you could find a large parking area and see if it pulls there.

[Rhino]

Rode my bike for Colorado Springs to Austin on Saturday. In the few areas where I had little or no wind I tested how it tracked and it was straight and true. So I though about a letter to Kawasaki:

"Dear Kawasaki, A person on our forum was told by their Kawasaki dealer that it was normal for his new Concours 14 pull to the right. Since my Concours 14 tracks straight I was wondering if I should bring it in for service so it can be made to pull to the right like a "normal" Concours. Regards, Rhino"

[stewart]

Very funny Rhino, actually we should demand a recall since the majority here run straight.

[stevewfl]

Very funny Rhino, actually we should demand a recall since the majority here run straight.

and a "class-action law suit"!

[MikeB]

Hello All, new member here...

I just purchased a brand new 2011 Concours off the show room floor w/zero miles.  It also pulls to the right, just as RWilliamm has described (although not near as noticeable with hands on grips as RWilliamms').  It's a noticeable pull when removing hands from the bars. I've also been having slight pain in left arm during my ride (compensating for bikes pull to right?). I've tried with gears engage, in neutral on the crown of the road, even on the opposite side of the road where the bike should have floated left due to rain pitch.  It still pulls to the right. It's not an unevenly weighted bike, happens with bags empty.  I've also checked my seating position to make sure I'm square on the seat with the tank.  Nor is it the wind as all during the same ride I've ridden East, West, North and South to no avail.  One thing I've noticed that RWilliamm did not mention, is that the bars are not completely square (off just a tad) from the center of the dash (looking especially at the key insert area).

I'm going to check the front axle, pinch bolts and brake drag as mentioned as I have some squeaking during breaking as well.  Also going to check for tire wear front and back to look at center wear as well as tracking, making sure rear is in line with front.  If there's nothing to this, it's back to the dealer.  Not cool....and kinda freakin' out a bit.  Hope this doesn't get too involved. 

Any resolve for you yet RWilliamm?  We should keep in touch.

Mike