Buell's new street bike

[tt_four]

Some pictures of Erik Buell's new street legal bike finally came out yesterday. It's a shame to think about all the talent that Harley wasted by giving him so many constant restrictions on what he was and wasn't allowed to do. Changing some restrictions, some good PR/support, and a dealer network not made up of white trash and they could've actually made some good money on some serious bikes. To think he came up with this bike from the ground up after being tossed out on his ass just a year and a half ago. Unfortunately it'll probably be a while before they're able to make bikes normal people can afford. The first article even quotes Erik saying he really wants one, but doesn't even have the cash to buy one because all of his money is tied up in the company.

http://www.roadracingworld.com/news/article/?article=43359

http://www.cycleworld.com/motorcycle_news/first_looks_articles/11q1/erik_buell_racing_ebr_1190rs_-_first_look

[seamax]

   I like. It would have been cool if he kept the underbelly exhaust sytem so the bike has a cleaner line.

[Twisted]

Found one of these parked up next to my Ducati when I came out to the carpark at the mall the other day. Looked impressive but I think the naked ones still look better imo.

[tt_four]

 I like. It would have been cool if he kept the underbelly exhaust sytem so the bike has a cleaner line.

It has an underbelly exhaust, the part you see is a 2nd exhaust just to quiet the bike down more due to the output. It sounds like the bike was designed so that changing the exhaust and fuel map will give you a huge jump in performance, so any aftermarket exhaust will probably only be the part under the motor. I think he started off with just the underbelly exhaust, but then emissions requirements changed and they had to make a last minute update and just stuck the 2nd exhaust on. The 2nd exhaust also makes the bike legal world wide, as bikes in japan apparently are required to have a high rear facing exhaust to be legal. The actual race bike doesn't have that exhaust on it.

Found one of these parked up next to my Ducati when I came out to the carpark at the mall the other day. Looked impressive but I think the naked ones still look better imo.

I've never gotten used to the 1125R, I like the CR, but I just can't wrap my mind around that massive fairing. It's way too wide and mounted about half a foot too high. The pods are ok, but he should've just used the normal firebolt fairing.

[yamahonkawazuki]

So you consider me white trash Eh?, wtf. because i owned a harley product, so i guess im white trash now lol. lets be a lil more condescneding Eh?. anyhoo that first bike looks like a honda. almsot has tehir mark on teh tank

[Twisted]

I saw on the ducati forum that it was gonna cost 40 grand to buy it? Ouch.

[XealotX]

So you consider me white trash Eh?, wtf. because i owned a harley product, so i guess im white trash now lol. lets be a lil more condescneding Eh?. ...

Depending on how you read his post he might be implying that Harley "dealers" were white trash...not Harley owners.

Now...if you owned a Harley motorcycle AND a Harley dealership...then I guess you're white trash. 

[tt_four]

I saw on the ducati forum that it was gonna cost 40 grand to buy it? Ouch.

Yup, it'll be up there. Everything on the bike is carbon though. Not just the bodywork, but all the brackets and everything else. Eventually they'll make one with some metal and plastic that would be a little more affordable.

and yes, I specifically said "dealer network made up of white trash". The dealerships unwillingness to support and sell the bikes was one of the biggest problems for Buell. HD made the dealerships sell the bikes, and then the dealerships would just stuff the bikes back into a corner and do their best to forget they were there. Even after you bought one of the bikes it's still a hassle to get anything worked on or get spare parts, unless you're lucky enough to find one of the dealerships that actually has a few employees who like the bikes. HD is supposed to make parts for 10 years, but you can already walk into plenty of HD dealerships and they'll just blow you off and tell you the parts are discontinued. What are you gonna do, force the dealerships to order you a part? Even normal dealerships carry a variety of bikes from sportsbikes to cruisers, dirtbikes and scooters, and someone will be happy to sell you whatever you want. HD dealerships are usually the only place where you'll find 50 bikes that all look exactly the same, and you get scoffed at if you ask about anything different. My bitterness is based entirely around the dealerships, not the people who like the bikes.

[jserio]

I personally don't have an issue with any dealer only wanting to deal with one specific bike and nothing else. If I want to look at harley's, I go to their dealer. If I want to look at yamaha's, I go to their dealer. Did Buell ever have their own dedicated dealerships?

[tt_four]

They didn't, HD only sent the bikes to HD dealerships, and the dealerships wanted nothing to do with them. It was a pretty poor system. They like to keep a short leash on their projects. It definitely could have been a different story if they were sitting in show rooms with other sport oriented bikes. No one browsing through a HD dealership was gonna get distracted by a sportbike, but they definitely could've gotten some attention mixed in between some SV650s and Z1000s.

BMW is the same way, they want their own showrooms and don't usually let dealerships combine BMW bikes with other bikes. I'm sure they think it's for a good reason, but I think it's just because they don't want their customers to see that there are other options out there. Out of site out of mind.

[Twisted]

Is there anyone out there making aftermarket parts for them? I know with Ducati there are guys out there making cheaper (same materials as oem) parts and selling them on web sites at a fraction of the cost of OEM. Seems if it has Ducati Geniune part on it it is a reason to mark up the price. Timing belts as an example -

Genuine Ducati - $260

Aftermarket brand - $120

[yamahonkawazuki]

the buell xb series, were well tehy used engines with higher compression heads, from teh harley sportster. teh xb9 was an 883. teh 12, well, a 1200 i think buell briefly used a rotax engine? the old thunderbolts were sportie based as well. the under exhaust actually flowed quite well, as good as, and sometimes better than a high pipe or an underseat. the hd engines have 2 cylinders yes, BUT 1 pin on the crankshaft for teh con rods to attach to. rods were siamesed. so say a 1340 evo. was in essence a 1340 thumper. cool thing about that, is you can change teh displacement of engine by changing the cylinders of said engine. using original con rod, and head. i briefly had a 1340 sportster. ( largest oen can go before changing more things. i picked up the cylinders at a swap meet, and the pistons off of ebay. NIB. honed cylinders installed rings, installed the cylinders and the supercharger ( driven from crankshaft) a piece my uncle made up for me in peoria az. it voided the hell out of my warranty. well would have lol. but if i ever had to bring it in. the things i did could be undone in 2 hours. anyhoo sorry about the long winded recollection, its like parts by suzuki, say oil filters. there are essentially 3 manufacturers. suzi's oil filter has a cross referenceand can be had for far less. same with oil. or rad caps from motos. etc. cam belts same way. sometimes teh aftermarket oens even cheaper are better than OEM. but if someone is going to drop 40big into a bike, id understand oif they wanted to use theOEM stuff.

[tt_four]

Is there anyone out there making aftermarket parts for them? I know with Ducati there are guys out there making cheaper (same materials as oem) parts and selling them on web sites at a fraction of the cost of OEM.

No one's really making anything yet, but the bike isn't even in production yet. Aftermarket has always been pretty low for Buells. I always wondered why no one else started making aftermarket airboxes and flyscreens. Tons of companies can shape plastic for windscreens and bodywork. I would've loved to see someone putting out more bodywork in different colors. It only takes 10 minutes to change the color of my bike and it would've been great to have some green pieces, I'm sure a lot of people would be into pink and other random colors. Some companies make fender eliminators and stuff like that, but no one really makes replacement parts, aside from things like air filters. The 1190s are pretty serious bikes though, and if you can afford to pay $40k for a bike, I doubt you're gonna care what replacement parts cost. Eventually they'll make some cheaper ones. Also, for what it's worth, a lot of the motor parts can just be replace with normal 1125 parts, so that'll help with cost.

Yama: the newer 1125s are all rotax engines. The 1190 also has the same motor as the 1125, but once they get them from rotax they're upping the displacement, putting in some titanium valves and various other things. I guess for a company that small it's cheaper to stick with the old motor and modify them, rather than having Rotax start making all new motors.

[SAFE-T]

Buell had apparently started on this bike when HD pulled the plug.

I was listening to a commentary about Apple, and Steve Jobs. At one point he got fired from Apple ~ had worked all his adult life to make the Apple product and then he was out on his keister at 30. Looking back he realizes it was the best thing that could have happened since forced him to pursue other ventures, and he eventually returned to Apple a better person.

It's taken more than 20+ years, but finally Eric Buell seems to have made a motorcycle worth buying, even if it is a boutique marquee.   

[ohgood]

why al the positive love for buell ? even when he was with hd people were all lovey dovey for his bikes because he was doing something "different" according to some circles.

the engine is antiquated, the price astronomical, and parts are, well, who knows tomorrow.

I understand it has two wheels, and that's a reason to enjoy it , but otherwise, I just don't get why people defend these bikes.

please take this as a question, not a criticism. the gs is fractions of the price, exponentially more reliable, etc

[Twism86]

Easy up with the HD bashing 

[makenzie71]

I just wish when Erik Buell ran with the ZTR/whatever front brake that he thought ahead about wheels instead of buying 11,000,000 units of the first thing that came his way.

[yamahonkawazuki]

why al the positive love for buell ? even when he was with hd people were all lovey dovey for his bikes because he was doing something "different" according to some circles.

the engine is antiquated, the price astronomical, and parts are, well, who knows tomorrow.

I understand it has two wheels, and that's a reason to enjoy it , but otherwise, I just don't get why people defend these bikes.

please take this as a question, not a criticism. the gs is fractions of the price, exponentially more reliable, etc

well ill take it as bashing, im used to hd bashing here on the twin. funny my gs had let me down more than my hd ever did. that aside i loved em both equally. now, you may call it marketing or whatever, they hold their value extremely well. the engines, IF using the pushrod sportster plants, parts will be available infinately. plus you can change engine displacement easily. and with minimal expense. all you need are 2 cylinders ( like say a 1340 evo.) and 2 pistons. everything else from the buell will work

[tt_four]

why al the positive love for buell ? even when he was with hd people were all lovey dovey for his bikes because he was doing something "different" according to some circles.

the engine is antiquated, the price astronomical, and parts are, well, who knows tomorrow.

I understand it has two wheels, and that's a reason to enjoy it , but otherwise, I just don't get why people defend these bikes.

please take this as a question, not a criticism. the gs is fractions of the price, exponentially more reliable, etc

The price is high compared to the GS, but I think it's pretty fair compared to other naked 1000cc bikes. The engine is old, but Erik managed to squeeze twice as much HP out of it as it originally produced, and it still makes way more torque than all of the usual inline 4 motors you see. To be fair it's not like the GSs motor is really all that much younger. Buddha is probably the only one who could rattle off the exact year by memory, but I'd say the GS motor is based off of an original from at least the 1970s, if not older. It's not the same 180mph rocket engine you're used to seeing, but it's perfect for riding on the street which works well considering it's a street bike made for riding on the road, not a race bike with headlights and a tail light bolted on. The GS definitely costs less, but the XB comes with a real suspension, good brakes a shorter wheelbase, and a motor that I would consider just as reliable as the GSs. I see way more problem related posts on this forum than I do over on the XB forum, there's rarely any issues with these motors. The valves even adjust themselves, which to me is amazing.

These bikes are just something that get into some peoples heads and you can't push them out. Spend enough time around them and a lot of japanese sportbikes just look kind of bland, even if they do make 170hp. If it wasn't for the Monster, Ducati wouldn't even be around anymore. That bike carried Ducati through the 90s, and it's the same old style of air cooled 90some hp motor that seems weak compared to other bikes. The important thing to me, is that not many companies seem to take naked bikes seriously. Japan makes some, but aside from the Z1000, which is still 50lbs heavier than the xb, all the other bikes you usually see are just considered budget commuters. They all come with cheap parts and a crappy nonadjustable suspension. Buells are one of the few naked bikes that are actually made for having fun, and not just being cheap. They were designed as naked bikes, instead of just recycling an old motor in a cheap steal frame with a bunch of parts that were laying around. Erik Buell has a ton of passion for what he does, so I can definitely appreciate the bike for being the only american sportbike around. You've gotta give him credit for making a bike that can even relatively compete with some of the bikes the huge japanese companies are putting out there. Even though japan could make a nicer bike if they wanted to, it's just not the same as some guy from here in Pittsburgh that started building and racing his own bikes that has actually gotten as far as he has. You can literally send a message to Erik on facebook with a question, and get a response from him the same day. He goes above and beyond what anyone at one of the japanese companies would ever do and I'd much rather support him. Not that I don't like japanese bikes too. I have the GS, and the next bike I'm gonna get will probably just be a drzsm, but I'll ride it for a while and move on. I'm hoping I still have my xb when I die haha.

[yamahonkawazuki]

you can get 150k out of top end, with nothign but oil changes. 200k out of bottom. and all of 3 hours rebuilding it. that aside, can get more, if you allow them to warm up PROPERLY. a low tech method for hd hell for any bike. the top end, cyls, and bottom end expand at 3 different rates. if its got fins , after starting, periodically touch fins with back of hand, ( on side) when they become too hot to do so, it is properly warmed. as long as you feel heat with your hands, this works. and = long life out of engine. if you cant wait that long, ( yes i know it happens,) take it EASY on any bike until warmed up then give her hell