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1100 V-star TROUBLE

We had a great time at Sturgis. But a little trouble. My new 1100 V-star only made it to Council Bluffs Iowa on the trip to Sturgis. It started making a tick, then it lost a cylinder. After we rented a truck and got it to the yamaha dealer in Council Bluffs,he said i broke a camshaft. lost oil pressure. We left the bike with him and I rode on the back of Jay's bike to Sturgis. We had a great time. I got a lot more pictures this way and he let me cruise down Main Street Sturgis a couple of time on his Roadstar. i didn't get to "ride my own" through the black hills, but still had a good time. We rode back to Council Bluffs and rented a truck to take my poor sick bike home. She's still sitting in the garage. No one has ever heard of a 1100 breaking a camshaft. Even the Star tech rep at Sturgis. Everyone is interested in why it did this. I'm heartbroken. this bike has given me a lot of trouble. I've already replaced the battery and starter. We haven't had time to tear her down to see why this happened. So now I'm riding my son's 81 Kaw, 440 LTD, until we can afford to fix her. Bummer.

Anybody ever have this same problem

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Comment by Rdcnslr on August 18, 2010 at 8:22am: Robin, Sorry to hear about the breakdown. Sure does not sound like the usual stories about the 1100. How new was it? Did you buy it used? Didn't you ride the 650 for a long time? I have not been on the site much so have missed connecting with people. Hope they can get to bottom of the problem and get you back on the road.

Comment by Robin Willey on August 18, 2010 at 2:04pm: I put 30,000 miles on my 650. Loved her a lot, but we thought I needed an upgrade since we were heading west to Sturgis. i bought this bike used from the local Harley dealer. Felt like I rescued her. Its a 2005 with 32,000 miles. IT was a perfect fit for me. Traded in the 650, too. Hurt like getting rid of an old dog. boohoo. Now I have nothing. I will keep you updated. Might be a while, got no funds left from the trip and the rental truck

Comment by Gary King on February 17, 2011 at 8:18am: Does anyone out there have good experiences with these 1100's on road trips? It seems to me that the gearing is simply not up to long highway speeds. I sold a Shadow 1100 years ago that handled 80 mph with no problem. My 2009 V Star 1100 seems to lack . . .