| Author | Message | ||
     Ulynerd |
sooo here goes... im prepared for people to yell at me for asking but I can take it  Is it bad to run the Uly engine up to red line. sometimes I hit it before I shift and I hear the engine pop... Just wondering if im killing it or if it just governs itself at that point and its no big deal. thx. -Scott | ||
| Rwven |
I hope not! | ||
| Hughlysses |
Scott- It has two built-in rev limits; one is "soft" and set at ~6600 RPM IIRC and a hard one set at 6800. You can exceed the lower rev limit for ~10 seconds before the limiter kicks in. If you hit 6800 RPM the rev limiter kicks in immediately. I don't think you'll hurt it. | ||
| Etennuly |
It has a built in rev limiter. You ain't gonna hurt it. You ever see them test motors to failure? It takes a while. | ||
| Froggy |
Its called a rev limit for a reason. It is there to prevent engine damage. | ||
| Bculy |
Is it easy to turn off? Not that I like to constantly hit redline, but I do like to RIDE my Uly. Hitting the rev limiter in a corner could pose a problem! I've ridden bikes a long time. All my vehicles are manuals. I know how shift and I don't think I abuse my rigs, too much - anyway. I'd like to turn off the rev limiters. Can it be done? | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Wouldn't recommend it. Large heavy things smash into small bendy things. If you are needing more head room, I'd suggest a 1050 Tiger. | ||
| Froggy |
Yep.
I recommend you learn how to ride your Uly instead. | ||
| Kalali |
I think the Race ECM allows for a bit higher redline. If you keep hitting the redline at corners, may be you need to modify your behavior. It does not buy you any more acceleration. | ||
| Woodreaux |
I have hit the rev limiter in 1st & 2nd entering the freeways here in Houston. During rush hour crossing 5 lanes of traffic to be where you need to be is not for philosophical discussion. For me the rev limiter is that a limiter. If hitting the rev limiter is bad for the engine then they need to raise the rev limiter or make better engines. | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
They DID make better engines! 2008 and up has larger crankpin and higher redline. | ||
| Etennuly |
Sounds like some still need to learn how to utilize the power that comes from torque. When you over rev these big twins you are beyond their hp and torque making range. Look at a chart from a dyno, you will see what I mean. It can take some practice to begin your shift at 6,000 rpm because they go from there to redline so quickly your reaction time makes it hit the limiter. It is to anticipate the shift rpm, in the first two gears especially, that will get you accelerating faster than over revving. | ||
| Froggy |
 | ||
| Osup |
You bounce off the limiter in the corners? Sounds like you need to learn how to utilize the TORQUE this engine provides. This bike excels in the corners if anything. | ||
| Osup |
And Froggy. They raised the limiter on the Rotax. But is it really a better engine? | ||
| Froggy |
Its the only DOHC engine I actually like, and I plan on owning one someday. Every vehicle I have owned before has been pushrod based, because I never liked the feel of DOHC. The 1125 is good, but not perfect and would be in my Sunday/trackday weapon, while I will do my commuting/touring on my Lightning. | ||
| Xbimmer |
If you guys are running into the limiter on a regular basis on the street then you're on the wrong bike. In 56K and three years I don't think I've ever hit the limiter and only gotten over 6000 rpm when I've had my head up my butt and wasn't paying attention. I'm even getting better at keeping the front tire planted while stressing the bejeezus out of the rear in the twisties when the bike pulls like a locomotive from 4000 rpm. I bought my Uly because of the low end grunt and utility and handling and sensible engineering. If I wanted to scream around at high rpm's all day I'd have bought a triple. Well there's my devalued $.02. | ||
| Dr_greg |
What would that "feel" be? As an engineer, just curious... --Doc | ||
| Crusty |
If you don't mind, I'll take a shot at it. I've ridden both the 1125R and the CR. Both are neat bikes, but I don't want either of them. If Buell made the mistake of replacing the pushrod Lump in the Uly with the Helicon engine, I'd probably start looking at other brands more seriously. "Feel" is a purely subjective sensation. The Helicon makes more horsepower, but it doesn't make the same HP and Torque at the same RPM. The engine doesn't have the same inertial resistance as the Lump. The pushrod engine has those massive flywheels, and the cams are much closer to the crankshaft. This affects how the motorcycle will handle and different inputs will be needed to make the bike accelerate, turn and stop. The engines also make very different mechanical sounds; and I believe that sound definitely adds to or diminishes my enjoyment of riding. Engine "Feel" is a major factor in the huge popularity of Cruisers. It's why the Japanese started building large displacement pushrod engines. If Horsepower and torque numbers were all there was to "Feel" then Hayabusas with extended front ends would be the hot seller. I really like the Lump. It makes the right amount of power in the right places, looks good and feels better than anything else out there. | ||
| Someday |
Well put Crusty. And the rev limit on the 2008 on up XB's is 7100rpm. | ||
| Electraglider_1997 |
Look what Ducati does with their air cooled engines. It sure would be nice if there were some happy medium where Buell could provide the Helicon without valve adjustments. They got rid of the TPS resets so why not valve adjustments on the Helicon. It's time they got real inventive. Shouldn't rest on their laurels. | ||
| Hughlysses |
It'll be interesting to see where they go with the Helicon engine in the future. No doubt they could add hydraulic valve clearance adjustment, probably at the cost of lowering the redline somewhat. The DOHC, 4-valve configuration gives them a lot more flexibility in tuning the engine's power band. They could play with bore/stroke and come up with an engine more suited for the Uly. The most interesting thing I've heard about the Helicon is that Buell pays considerably LESS for it than they do the XB engines. (Buell basically buys their engines from Rotax or Harley). If that's true, that'd be a pretty big incentive to move towards more Helicon variants to power future bikes. | ||
| Thunderbox |
I would bet it's not true and thats why they haven't made the switch. The other reason is why in the name of Pete would the Motor Company change anything in their best selling machine, the Uly. I would bet if they put the Helicon in the Uly they would sell to a different demographic than they do now. They probably know sales would go down and that would be a mistake they ain't ready to make at this juncture. I am one of those who would look elsewhere. Others have said the same thing. We once prided ourselves on the simplistic servicabity of the XB engines. Suddenly we forgot one of the prime reasons for owning a Buell. I vote to save the lump. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Ducati's done a really good job of producing both air-cooled and water-cooled engines, and I kind of expect Buell to do the same thing. I do think they've basically reached the limit with the current XB engine. Not because of the pushrods or 45 degree V, but because of that two-piece, pressed together crankshaft. I'm still amazed that they can reliably produce those on a production line. The thing has to be accurately aligned in three dimensions after it's pressed together. The combination of that crankshaft and the knife/fork, roller bearing big end on the connecting rods (which is pretty heavy) has got to be the ultimate reason for the RPM limits. The other thing that hampers that engine is the relatively long/wide dimensions due to the transmission placement and chain primary drive. Undoubtedly a superior 45 degree, air-cooled, pushrod V-twin could be built. I'd love to see what Buell could do with a clean sheet design for this engine. Maybe a one piece crank, with side-by-side rods with conventional bearings, a new transmission/primary design that makes the engine shorter and narrower. The $1000 question is could they get Harley to build it, or is the only way we'll ever see it if Rotax builds it? | ||
| Hardlya |
The limiting factor for the Sportster based Uly motor is "piston skirt speed". Short stroke motors have low piston skirt speed and the resulting lower internal frictional losses (heat). All that low end horsepower and torque of the Uly is directly related to it's long stroke (under square motor). To take the current motor to higher rpm potential can only happen when you kill it's soul by shorting the stroke which will take away that awesome midrange punch. Everything in life is about trade offs. I too suggest learning to ride the Uly in the mod it excels at. I always ride in the next higher gear and I've not been the last one to dinner yet! | ||
| Natexlh1000 |
It's too bad that the XB9 is fading away. The XB9s I took out for the demo was pretty sweet in terms of smoothness and power delivery. Perhaps the thing to do is to stroke out the helicon a bit. That would have the friendly low end torque that the uly user would want. Imagine a 1250 helicon with a slightly lower redline? that sounds about right to me. The reduced outer engine volume would allow for more fuel space in the frame too. | ||
| Hooper |
I test-rode a CR last Saturday and got that old grin again. I'm too tall for the bike as stock (I'd need the tall bars and some sort of adjustment on the pegs), but god love it, I loved it. There was SO much clean power, speed, kick-in-the-back fun, and ENGINE TONE (in other words, it sounded better than I thought it would). The handling was Buell-great, so I don't need to talk about that. And I love the look. But that's also Buell-like. If the Helicon was in the Uly? I think I might be a little psyched. I love the lump - I will ALWAYS own a Uly X. But, I was really knocked out by the instantaneous, fuss-less, and rocket-like power on the CR. It reminded me of the powerful sport-touring bikes that I've ridden in the past that I've enjoyed for their racelike speed and vigor. I'll say it again: I'll always own a Uly X (unless the engine is made by Puch - remember Puch?). The concept and platform are perfect. I hit the rev limiter on my Uly last Saturday in 3rd gear on a highway because I was comparing acceleration to a fellow Uly rider who was having tuning problems. I pinned it in 3rd and forgot to shift to 5th. That's what the grin will do. | ||
| Ulynerd |
WOW - I have been pretty busy and haven't had a chance to check back on this post until today. looks like I opened up a can... anyhow, thanks for the info on the limiter!  | ||
| Barker |
my niner has seen alotta rev limiter action. 30k miles, and I beat it like it owes me money. No problems, still runs strong. | ||
| Hmartin |
I've noticed that my ear has gotten better and better as I've added miles. I identify 100% with Woodreaux about staying in front of traffic. You can't be staring at your tach in places like that, and bumping off that rev limiter actually slows you down. Now, I've gotten to where my ear can detect 6,500 rpm pretty closely, so now I get that shift done and I'm still hauling a$$ instead of sputtering along. It probably helps that my car's rev limiter is also set at 6,800 rpm. |
