| Author | Message | ||
     Joojoo |
After watching posts since the release of the 12, I think the 9 is going to prove to be a stronger motor. Dont hear about any ping issues with the 9, or any oil out the intake issues. As well, shorter stroke, "should" live longer and take a harder beating. I dont know if the 9 would generate less heat than the 12....never looked into it. Any thoughts on the 9 vs the 12 reliability/durability? Jack | ||
| Darthane |
-=shrugs=- There are plenty of people on this board well over 20000 miles on 9s. Not sure what the highest mileage 12 is right now. I've got over 15K on mine (XB9R) without even the slightest engine-related issue of any kind. It sat without any special treatment for nine months and started right up after I put the battery back in. The days of Buell reliability problems are a thing of the past. For that matter, my 2001 Blast has been extremely reliable as well. Couple minor (in my eyes) things with it, but nothing that kept me off of it for more than an evening. (Message edited by darthane on August 17, 2004) | ||
| M1combat |
"Dont hear about any ping issues with the 9, or any oil out the intake issues. " Personally I feel that the people who do have these issues with the 12 would also have them with the 9. | ||
| Glitch |
This is one of those debates that can't be solved without time. I don't know for sure, but I've got twenty three or four something thousand miles one my nine. The only thing that has gone wrong with the engine is the stator went out at twenty thousand or so. No one knows why. My infamous belt broke because I tweeked it changing the tire. Lesson: Take your time and be patient. And Bryan, you think the trans smells bad? You ought to smell it after the stator cooks it! They emptied the dealership when they took off the primary case to look at the stator. The manager was in the showroom and thought there was a natural gas leak the stench was so bad coming from the service garage! | ||
| Darthane |
LOL...nothing smells worse than Mobil 1 75W90 Synth heated up. Instant vomit alert.  | ||
| 984_cc |
Since they are identical mechanically except for the crank and connecting rods. they should last about the same. Wouldn't the 12 actually have shorter connecting rods? If you were to ride the 9 and 12 exactly the same (revving them up towards redline alot), I would think that the 9 would have the advantage as far as cylinder/piston longevity (less sideloading)... and vibration is less too. | ||
| M1combat |
Hmmm, I could certainly be wrong, but I thought that the con-rods were the same but the made up the difference in the jugs? Now that I think about it though, that seems wrong... | ||
| 984_cc |
I'm not an expert on these particular engines. I just assumed that they would have shorter rods. | ||
| Buellgator |
I agree with Glitch on this one. It is going to take time to gather enough information as far as longevity goes. My opinion on it is this though: Buell had a history of malfunctions and recalls on the tube frames. I think Buell and H-D are trying very hard to move away from this with all of their motorcycles. They want to be rid of that stigma, and have gone to great lengths to insure that the XBs are rock solid. I believe that troubles on the 9 or 12 are going to be small and fairly insignificant compared to almost any other bike out there. Just MHO. | ||
| Lightisright |
The only way to change the stroke is to change the crankshaft throws. Lengthening or shortening the rods only would just change WHERE in the barrels the pistons run. A longer stroke (crank) or shorter rods both would increase the piston side loading on the barrels. | ||
| Joojoo |
M1Combat, "Personally I feel that the people who do have these issues with the 12 would also have them with the 9." You are a very smart man. Jack | ||
| 984_cc |
Lightisright- That is what I said. Different crank and shorter rods. If you changed the crank to have a +.687" throw and kept the same rods and did nothing to the cylinder length, you would smack the piston into the head. If you did nothing to the rods, you would have to decrease the piston heighth/change pin location to lower it .3435" on this engine. I believe they used shorter rods with the different (longer throw) crank (what I said). (Message edited by 984 cc on August 17, 2004) | ||
| 984_cc |
It should pretty much be common knowledge that an oversquare (XB9, 3.50" x 3.125" ) bore/stroke ratio will survive high RPM's better than an undersquare ratio (XB12, 3.5" x 3.812" ). | ||
| M1combat |
Of course it will, but the 12 doesn't rev as high. | ||
| 984_cc |
It's only 500 RPM. | ||
| M1combat |
800 I think... I believe the 12 revs out at 6800 and the 9 at 7600? | ||
| Unibear12r |
And the 12 can only hold 6800 for 3 seconds and then drops to 6400. The oil in the intake is usually from overfilling the oil tank. If your thinking of my case of oil in the filter that was not due to any mechanical reason. I keep the oil level right at the top line and pushed the bike hard enough over a four day run to get the oil to expand out the overflow ( my theory). I definitely expanded gas into my carbon cannister with interesting results but thats a different story. The amount of oil in my air filter was very small and about two thirds of my "missing" oil slowly returned to my tank during the next 100 miles after I topped it off making it overfull of course.  | ||
| Deerhunter17 |
"Personally I feel that the people who do have these issues with the 12 would also have them with the 9." You are a very smart man.  | ||
| Lightisright |
984, uh yea, what you said, sorry. Here's some quick math (pulled from an older thread). Even with the lower redline the 12 is still whipping them pistons around quicker, plus it should have more sideloading from the shorter rods. Big bore 9 sound good to anyone? XB9 3906fpm @ 7500rpm XB12 4320fpm @ 6800rpm XB12 4447fpm @ 7000rpm XB12 4754fpm @ 7500rpm | ||
| Gearhead |
I'm really enjoying my 12R, just turned 7200 miles in 11 months of ownership. I did have a few teething problems right away but they were Capitol Engine Works issues not Buell issues. They were quickly fixed and since the bike has been trouble free. I just got back from a track day at Road America and it never missed a beat after ringing it's neck all day!! | ||
| Fullpower |
8500 miles on my XB12. might be time for a front isolator, its still there, but seems somewhat sloppy. have one ordered up, buell parts are amazingly inexpensive. | ||
| Starter |
I was surprised that when I did piston speed on a couple of jap screamers that they were less than the XB9. "8500 miles on my XB12. might be time for a front isolator, its still there, but seems somewhat sloppy. have one ordered up, buell parts are amazingly inexpensive." Come to Australia and then say that. I think I've worked out the formula. Take the US price, multiply by 3 and then call it Aust Dollars. | ||
| Wyckedflesh |
You can change the stroke, use the same length of rods if you change the thickness of the pistons. Where the piston pin is located in relation to the top of the piston can have as much effect as a change in rods. It could also be a combination of the two. When you lengthen the stroke, and shorten the rod, the skirt of the piston comes even closer to the crank at the bottom of the stroke. | ||
| M1combat |
Yeah, I still think they used the same rods... | ||
| Bluey |
Why would you want a wimpy 9 when you could have a hefty 12??? Let's face it guys!! You bought the 9's cause they were cheaper.THE END....... | ||
| Chainsaw |
...or the 9's were the only engine option 2 years ago. | ||
| Glitch |
I bought my nine when the XB9S Lightning first came out. I would not have waited for the twelve even if I had known they were due to come out a year and a half later. I was more than happy with it then, I'm more than happy with it now. I could have traded it in when the twelves came out only losing a few hundred dollars. I went and test drove (flogged) one for a weekend, when we did the Buell Demo Rides during March Badness at T.W.O. Even though I liked the bike, I wasn't sold on owning one. So Bluey your generalization is as wrong as a generalization can be. Just because it fits you don't take it for granted that it fits everyone. Besides let's face it I have nothing to compensate for. | ||
| Wyckedflesh |
Bluey not everyone likes the 12. Many prefer the 9 over the 12 for their riding style. The rev range is one, and the "hyperness" of the 9 compared to the "mellowness" of the 12 is another. And yes I speak from my own experience. I prefer the 9 for race track situations and the 12 for street riding. | ||
| M1combat |
Bingo. I'll pick up a 9r at some point for track use. I'll also probably spend most of my engine money on the 9. Don't get me wrong... I LOVE my 12. | ||
| Bluey |
OK.....MY BAD!!  |
