2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Classic LT

It may look the part of chopperized custom, The front 21 inch cast wheel and 80/90x21 tire simply does not provide enough contact patch for a nearly one litre motorcycle. Where the Vulcan 900 Custom Special Edition really comes up short is in the tire department. It's not in the same stump puller league that the late Vulcan 2000 owned, but then again its displacement is less than half of the former Kawasaki two wheeled Caterpillar D9.

The Vulcan 900 Custom Special Edition is propelled down the road by a 903cc liquid-cooled, SOHC, four-valve per cylinder, V-twin which generates a fairly respectable 58.2 foot pounds of torque at a reasonably low 3,500 rpm. It's the best handling of the three (with one gaping exception to follow), as well as the most technologically advanced. Strictly from a riding standpoint, the best choice is the Vulcan 900 Custom Special Edition. If the front wheel and tire looks like it just came off of a 1948 Oldsmobile, then it's either the Honda or the Harley. If it's fairly light and has a motocrosser front wheel, it's the Vulcan 900 Custom Special Edition.

From across a street the only hope you have of identifying the Kawi is by checking out the front end. They're all black on black on black, with highlights in… black! You could certainly be excused for wondering how to tell these virtual clones apart, as the paint job is certainly not going to give you any hints. Now which one is which?

Look, it's a 2011 Harley Davidson Sportster Forty Eight, and right next to it is a 2011 Honda Shadow Phantom, and next to that is a 2011 Kawasaki Vulcan 900 Custom Special Edition!