Triple chainrings allow gearing over a larger range that becomes useful when engaged in long-range touring - hauling camping gear up long mountain passes makes for tough going. Starting in 1982 Schwinn sold the first Voyageur that came with triple chainrings–the Voyageur SP (as opposed to 11.8 which retained the previous years’ double gearing). As far as I know all vintage Voyageur & Voyageur SP frames were sourced from Panasonic in Japan, but the later years (1986-1991) might have been sourced elsewhere. The original “World” label denoted imported frames used on all these lightweight bicycles. Schwinn started selling bicycles simply labelled Voyageur after the success of the World Voyageur, Voyageur II, and Voyageur 11.8.
Schwinn still makes a bicycle called “Voyageur”, but it’s a comfort oriented hybrid bicycle. This page attempts to collect useful information of the vintage touring version of the Schwinn Voyageur. When I started looking for a Schwinn Voyageur I couldn’t find much information on the web about this touring bicycle.
