| Author | Message | ||
     Ducbsa |
I read this article and was underwhelmed. 90 HP! I'll stick with my 100 hp 2007 XBS. https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-review s/harley-davidson-nightster-first-ride-review-2022 / | ||
| Crusty |
Remember when all the magazine articles said that Buells were underpowered and that they needed steering dampers? I also remember how Motorcyclist bragged how they tried to blow up the engine on an S2 and had nothing good to say about it. (I also discovered later on that the Editor of said rag (Mitch Boehm) was on Honda's payroll) Most of you (if not all) haven't even seen one in the flesh; nor have you taken a demo ride. Woody9225 has posted on the XL Forum about taking one out, along with a Sportster S and a few big Twins at a Demo Event. His conclusion was, The only bike I rode on the demo that I almost instantly fell in love with was the Nightster. I damn near went in and ordered one on the spot. Of course all of these are just first impressions and more seat time could change my mind. His post is here: http://xlforum.net/forums/showthread.php?p=5951215 #post5951215 Everybody sneered that Hardley-Ableson didn't know how to build an Adventure- Tourer, yet the Pan America is selling like ice cold beer at a biker rally in Death Valley. It was a demo ride on an S2-T that made me fall in love with Buells. Until I do take a demo ride, I won't badmouth the bike, I want to form my own opinion. | ||
| Oldog |
I caught a vid on the engines tech and the pan am build, HD learned a great deal from Buell. I wonder If rotax was tapped for the Helicon platform because of politics. HD it seems has the talent to do the tech. The machines are impressive, so was the V-rod. | ||
| Mad_max |
Probably not a coincidence. The 1250 Rev Max has identical bore & stroke, 4 valves, 60 deg V, and water cooled just like the V-rod. https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/h-d/harley _davidson_v%20rod%20muscle%2016.htm What I don’t understand is why the Sportster got the 120hp engine and the 150hp engine went in the Pan America. | ||
| Stimbrell |
The Sportster S got the 120 hp version, the Nightster only gets 90 hp and only has a claimed top speed of 112mph, the old 1200s with less power would make 120 mph. I have no idea what HD are thinking. The Nightster not only has less CC but a changed engine stroke as well making upgrades expensive. | ||
| Oldog |
Same thinking that closed buell, hd may become tshirts and trinkets an mc is special order, | ||
| Patches |
http://beantownbaggers.net/2014/03/31/harley-davidson-acquired-by-japanese-owned-kawasaki-motor-company-ltd/  | ||
| Mad_max |
I think the prototype was better. Mono shock rear, equal length header, inverted shocks, radial mounted brake calipers, and twin rotors.   | ||
| 86129squids |
DANG if that prototype pic aint just giggity gorgeous... but, it must've got shitcanned because it certainly looks waay too Buelly. The production bikes look predictably Willy G. ish. Bleh and meh. That said, an old Buell hooligan buddy has a new Sportster and LOVES it. And, I've ridden the Pan America... given that it is intended to compete with the Gelande Strasse, I do believe it is a better bike. INCREDIBLE motor. I also spoke with a local motor officer, who tested one the day before I did... he says the PA should be police issue.  | ||
| Patches |
Erik Buell "shitcanned" Buell not Willy G. or Harley-Davidson Corp. Remember this?  The V-Rod engine... Instead, Erik Buell took Harley-Davidson Corp.'s Check Book and built his own engine on Harley-Davidson Corp.'s dime. Remember Erik Buell took American Motorcycles OFF the name plate, making Them Un-American! And then you have the balls to ask Are You A True Patriot American? Really? The 1125Rs had nothing to do with Harley-Davidson Corp. yet Erik Buell expected to get Harley-Davidson Corp. International Dealer Network, Factory Warranty Service and OEM Parts Supply Service "!FREE!" on Harley-Davidson Corp. DIME! Then Erik Buell "CRUSHED THE BLAST!" The Best Selling Buell Motorcycles ever. The Bike Harley-Davidson Corp. used in the Rider's Edge training course. Leaving Harley-Davidson Corp. nothing at all to do with Buell Motorcycles and no bike for the Rider's Edge training course.  Erik Buell "shitcanned" Buell NOT Willy G. or Harley-Davidson Corp. Idiot! Maby if Erik Buell were to use the "Revolution Engine" to help promote the V-Rod, instead of just spending Harley-Davidson Corp. Money on what he wanted, later he could have changed to the Rev-Max engine. We could still buy a New Buell Motorcycle and have New Parts for them. | ||
| Hootowl |
You are badly misinformed. | ||
| Damnut |
Very badly misinformed............ | ||
| Crusty |
You haven't got a clue about what really happened. | ||
| Patches |
I purchased a Buell Blast at $1000.00 below MSRP, a month later I purchased a Buell M2L Cyclone at $2000.00 below MSRP. Both Bikes Brand New but had been sitting in the Showroom for over a Year. At the same time, you had to put down $500.00 and get on the waiting list for a Sportster or Big Twin of your choice you wanted and pay well above MSRP+ Dealer Addon BULLCRAP. Right? Buell wasn't a good money maker for Harley Davidson. They couldn't give away the 1125s. No part no them was Harley Davidson. Why would Harley Davidson give Buell an open Checkbook? Kindly Stupid Right? By the way, the Blast is the most dependable maintenance free bike I've ever owned. Any motor vehicle is only as good as the last Monkey that put a wrench to it. Right? | ||
| Needs_o2 |
Mad max, The prototype your showing is not that of a Sportster, it's the Bronx, which they sh!tcanned!!! | ||
| Patches |
"The Bronx"? Stupid Squids(NON Ryders) shitcanned the Bronx platform most likely. Insurance companies no longer want to insure Pantie Rockets because Morons buy them, crash them(lack of real skills) then expect other people to buy them a new bike. That is why you pay higher Insurance rates on your Cruiser now. Why do you think Pantie Rocket(NON Ryders) Squids have changed to Baggers? They keep going Insurance companies no longer want to insure Motorcycle period. You can't sale a bike that can't be Insured, right. Remember the Real Muscle Cars of the 60's? Insurance companies stopped Insuring them. You can't sale vary many cars that can't be legally operated on the road, right. I can't believe kids these days think a Honda 4 cylinder is a Muscle Car engine, they for sure have NEVER road in a Real Muscle Car! | ||
| Mad_max |
I said it was a prototype. H-D Streetfighter 975 according to MCS. https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/h-d/Harley_Davidson_Streetfighter_Proto.html and in 2018 https://www.zigwheels.com/news-features/news/harley-davidson-streetfighter-975-in-pictures/30817/ This is what they had for the Bronx 2020-2021 https://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/model/h-d/harley_bronx_975_20.html If you search the 2 names, a lot of the pictures are swapped and I’m not sure if the Bronx had the 975, the 1250, or both engines? They were better looking, probably better performing bikes, and neither was produced.  May not be dead after all. https://www.cycleworld.com/story/motorcycle-news/harley-davidson-bronx-streetfighter-production-update/ (Message edited by Mad_max on May 23, 2022) | ||
| Needs_o2 |
Zeitz probably would have back burnered the Pan America if it had not been so far down the pipeline! Gee, maybe they like the attention and sales the Pan America is pulling in for them, ya think. Mad max, thanks for the update link on the Bronx, good to know and hear. | ||
| Ourdee |
Patches,  | ||
| Ratbuell |
The V-Rod engine... Oh, you mean the liquid-cooled engine that Harley tried to shove down Erik's throat, after they porked it up, covered it in chrome, decreed what it should look like (look up the engineering cost of the water pump assembly, so you could "see the v-twin design"), and made the engine weigh as much as an ENTIRE XB? THAT V-rod engine? making Them Un-American So, do tell...where are most of your beloved Harley's made these days? Where do THEIR parts come from? Your apparently-beloved Revolution motor? Porsche. Those folks are German, by the way.... Every single Buell ever built, came down a production line in East Troy, Wisconsin. Built in America, by Americans, for a company in America. | ||
| Patches |
If Erik Buell were to have used the V-Rod engine there might still be a production line in "East Troy, Wisconsin" with Harley-Davidson Corp. International Dealer Network, Factory Warranty Service and OEM Parts Supply Service "!FREE!" on Harley-Davidson Corp. Mammon... Right Ratbuell | ||
| Damnut |
Patches.... you are completely clueless on the history of the V-Rod engine. Buell did not use the V-Rod engine because HD made it too big and heavy for Buell to use it. It was suppose to be an engine that BOTH companies would use until HD did what HD does....... f'ed it all up. | ||
| Hootowl |
Buell would have only sold a handful of vrod-equipped motorcycles. Overweight, underpowered, wheelbase too long. A non-competitive bike, it would have been. They were right to reject it, work the bugs out of the old XL motor to create the XB and then pursue a new motor in partnership with Rotax. All those engines were build in America. | ||
| Raceautobody |
Here is a very condensed history of the vr1000/vrod engine https://roaddirt.tv/legendary-bikes-harleys-vr1000 -and-v-rod-destroyer/ | ||
| Hybridmomentspass |
It's a good looking bike, the front frame area near the neck looks a lot like a VROD unit. Is it just plastic bits covering a hole or is there something behind there in front of the tank? | ||
| Patches |
History The company was founded in 1920 in Dresden, Germany, as ROTAX-WERK AG. In 1930, it was taken over by Fichtel & Sachs and transferred its operations to Schweinfurt, Germany. Operations were moved to Wels, Austria, in 1943 and finally to Gunskirchen, Austria, in 1947. In 1959, the majority of Rotax shares were taken over by the Vienna-based Lohner-Werke, a manufacturer of car and railway wagon bodies. In 1970, Lohner-Rotax was bought by the Canadian Bombardier Inc. The former Bombardier branch, Bombardier Recreational Products, now an independent company, uses Rotax engines in its ground vehicles, personal water craft, and snowmobiles. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rotax Real Murakin got-it' or Can-dannie-an. Any info on, revolution max 1250cc vs buell helicon 1125cc | ||
| 1313 |
Remember Erik Buell took American Motorcycles OFF the name plate, making Them Un-American! Just like Honda Japanese Motorcycles & Ducati Italian Motorcycles & BMW Deutsche Motorcycles?!?! Oh, how could I forget, Harley-Davidson American Motorcycles?!?! Get a grip, dude! You have a very slanted view of reality! | ||
| Court |
Patches: Just for the official record, as the guy who wrote the book on Buell history . . . every single thing you stated in your post of Monday, May 23, 2022 - 02:04 pm: is PATENTLY INACCURATE. Court Canfield Riding Buells since 1987 Spent years doing testing and promotion riding (both HD and Buell) Made over 200 appearances on behalf of HD Execs and HD/Buell media firms such as Lauglin-Constable of Chicago. Owned (in addition the factory Harley and Buells I was given) 9 of my own including a 1977 XLCR and a 1983 XR-1000. Was manager of TEAM ELVES who snagged more Land Speed Records than I can count Wrote the book 25 Years of Buell along with my partner Dave Gess who was an "old timer" last Buell when I came on the scene in 1987. Just sayin. . . . (Message edited by Court on May 24, 2022) | ||
| Patches |
Why did Harley Davidson End the Buell "Product" line? Court. | ||
| Patches |
What made Erik Buell want to use the Sportster engine for his "Product" line, seeing how Harley Davidson air-cooled engines are such overweight P.O.S.es? Just saying. |
