29th Apr 2008, 22:09

I bought a 1991 Venture Royale in 2001 - off the Internet without a mechanic's appraisal - mistake!

I had to put new fork seals, shaft drive seals, new stator and have the carbs rebuilt by the local Yamaha dealer. But the power and comfort are soooo nice!

The frame apparently shares lineage with smaller sport bikes because it is fun to ride fast - well fast for a BIG BIKE!

I don't use the CB but the cruise is nice, the air adjustable shocks comfortable and the engine is smooth and vibration free for long ride times. At this point after testing various other bikes, only the new Goldwing seems to be its peer.

Best part - its unusual appearance. Nothing else looks like it in a world full of Harley & BMW clones. I really like the bike!

13th May 2008, 13:52

I bought the first 1983 Venture Royale to roll off the show room floor of Kearney Mesa Yamaha in southern California and I loved that bike, lost it the divorce. I have since had a 1984 and a 1985, and these bikes without exception were, and in my opinion are, still way ahead of their time. I refuse to buy a Harley look alike, and only hope that someday Yamaha gets their head out and comes back with a design that rivals the Goldwing.

Once you ride and experience one of these bikes, nothing else will ever satisfy you. I have even considered the VMAX, because its engine design came from the Venture, but there is just something about that bike that keeps bringing me back.

I'm currently looking for another one now, and I'm going to keep this one no matter what.

5th Jun 2008, 20:41

I own 1988 1300 Yamaha Venture Royale. I had a modulator installed so my head light would pulsate. I really liked the idea because I think it's a great safety feature. I had it professionally installed. Well the dumb thing would work for a while, then shut off after a couple of miles. If I would switch from high beam to low beam real fast, it would start working again for awhile. That just didn't cut it. The company sent us another one thinking the first one was faulty, but the results were the same. As bad as I wanted one on my bike, we had to send it back. So now I'm without one!! Does anyone have any ideas as to why it wouldn't work on my bike?

Any help would be very much appreciated. I really want one on my bike!!!

2nd Jul 2008, 00:55

I bought a 93 Venture Royale 1300 last year, and have since put about twenty thousand miles on it without a problem. I have almost 70 thousand miles on it now, and it runs great.

My only concern is it sounds good when it idles while cold, but after a long trip when it's all warmed up, I hear a constant rattling at idle. It seems to be coming from the right side of the engine case. Any ideas?

Also, does a stator give any clues that it's about to fail? Any help would be appreciated.

12th Jul 2008, 00:57

For the guy trying the headlight modulator, check your wiring. Also check the box to see if it has a limiter, which would cause it to cut out after a timed period. Wire it up independent of the on-board wiring, so there aren't any compatibility problems. Shield the wiring using RFI cable or similar HD stuff, that can carry the amperage without trouble. Wrap the wiring against the weather.

If all this fails, junk the one you have and step up to a police-quality unit. Or modify a headlight flasher, such as one used in cruisers. Good luck!

15th Jul 2008, 22:09

Just bought a 1988 Venture Royale.

This is my first street bike, and I can't wait to go on my first road trip. The bike has 58'000 miles and looks like it was maintained average. I am looking for:

1. What should I look for on this year and mileage, to check or fix, to make for a worry free trip?

2. What type of checklist would someone like to share so I can do a "preflight check".

Thank you.

16th Aug 2008, 05:28

I purchased a 1989 Venture new in January of 1990, the bike has been very dependable.

I replaced front fork seals about 7 years ago and front brake pads just recently; I have 43,000 miles on this machine!

I am having a problem with the Air Suspension system (it does not work) and the display has an "error code of either E1 or E4! Does anyone have a suggestion how to fix this problem?

This is a great motorcycle, and I wish that Yamaha would introduce a new product similar to the the Venture instead of trying to copy the Harley Davidson!

17th Aug 2008, 23:59

My first VR was a 1986, I rode that scoot for over 120,000 miles and would still have it except it was involved in an accident! The Venture Royale is an excellent machine, very fast, Excellent storage, and the seating for one or two riders is the best I've seen.

I presently own a 1987 VR and have put about 20,000 on this one. Because these bikes are 20 plus years old I have had to get into this one a lot deeper that the 86'. Everything from muffler replacement, to upgraded fuse box replacement to repairing the air ride control panel to repairing the speedo/dash cluster. I am currently replacing the 21 year old linked brake system with the more modern brake system from the Yamaha R1, and delinking the brakes! What a project!!

The VR was a very advanced machine for it's time and to this day, I don't think there is another motorcycle company out there including Yamaha that makes a motorcycle like the Venture Royale in my honest opinion.

If anyone has any questions about any of the upgrades I have done to my 87' VR my e-mail address is

earlharrell@atlanticbb.net

Ride Safe,

Skydoc_17.

25th Aug 2008, 21:08

Must have been a BUNCH of '88-'89 VRs made. I've had mine, an '88, about two years, did a fork seal job, replaced air lines with HDPE tubing and quick-connects, put in new battery.

As in other posts, I had an Air Ride problem; fixed a bad solder joint on the electronic controller. 44,000 miles on it now, starts and runs great, no problems with 2nd gear.

Currently have problem with switching radio to helmet speakers. Press the H-PH button and the indicator light blinks but does not switch - sound to the fairing speakers works fine, intercom works OK. Any ideas? hillcarroll@gmail.com

2nd Sep 2008, 14:11

To those having problems, a good website is www.venturers.org, which offers tech support for 1st gen 83-93 and 2nd gen 99-08 Ventures.

24th May 2009, 20:48

I bought a 1985 Royale 1200.

I enjoy the crap out of it, it's very dependable, except today it was running funny. I was going up a hill in 3rd gear and suddenly it slipped between 3rd and 4th, I just had to shift it back down to get it out. I don't know what was wrong with it.

But other than that, it seems to beat the hell out of my dad's 2005 Honda Goldwing 1800 in comfort and style.