Should i buy a buell lightning

Advanced Search. Page 1 of 2 1 2 Last Jump to page: Results 1 to 10 of Thread: Buying a Buell in Buying a Buell in Hello any and all Buell owners! I have loved these bikes for years but just never had the chance to purchase one.

An '09 XB12R with miles and pristine condition has popped up at a dealer near me and I am so close to pulling the trigger on it. My big question is, would you all recommend getting into Buell this late in the game?

Are parts drying up or becoming overpriced? I am pretty handy with a wrench; oil changes, valve adjustments that kind of stuff, so will I be able to tough it out? Sounds like a good deal 09 is a great yr. How much?? I am exited for you. Broly, These are pretty reliable bikes, oil changes are straightforward, and valve lash is hydraulic. Granted that XB is not something for an old guy like me to do long distances with but putting less than miles a day is not bad.

This bike is a keeper. I have a XB12S that I bought new and have ridden it on numerous mile one day trips. Rear shock was toast quickly. Replaced under warranty but it also failed so replaced with a Penske. Shook like an Israeli carp. Exhaust mounts cracked repeatedly. Fun bike though. My brother passed and his son ruined the bike. So sad. I owned a Buell S3 Thunderbolt and a Ulysses.

Both were comfortable, plenty good for all day riding. Great article, Clem. It brought back lots of memories, and made me feel young again. I had a roommate back in the day who had an early Buell. They were hard core bikes for hard core riders. I had a X1, bought it used and rode it for a couple of years. Didnt like the twitchy handling so much. But that could have been the Gordon tires it had on it. Sold it for more than I paid for it 6 years later. But the most valuable lesson i learned, which is true in any aspect of life is that… despite fear childhood, fall off yz80 and into year old grape vine and being looked at like im some sorta lame, when im trying to spend money at your store who is too stupid realize that a bolt that held the foot peg on a HD of any kind… will work on a buell… Eagles nest my ass should be pigeon perch.

Still own and ride them, in fact 3. Wonderful machines. Love them. They are what Sportsters should have been. HD came close with the XR, but my tube frame Buells were lighter, faster and fit better. The firs time I saw one I was like, a sport bike with a hoped up Harley Motor! I have to have one! Unless maby if you own a Buell with the hp Rotex motor. I had a S3 Thunderbolt and it was a fun bike at the time after I took locktite to every single bolt or nut on the bike.

It even had fiberglass saddlebags making for plenty of fun in the North Ga mountains. Like David I too am proud owner of the x1 lighting limited red racing of in fact. I have a X1 sitting in storage. Sadly it is very broken. This was my first bike and I loved this thing. With the rev limiter removed I lost my license twice on this thing. I would do it again in a heartbeat. I have a s1 lighting and I love it. I have put miles on it nonstop. I plan to attend the stergges rally this year.

I am I have had a 98 S3T for 15 years and ride it regularly. Front fork seals, WP, gave up at 70k km and were hard to find in Aussie. I had some starting issues after it sat for months while the rear wheel was being fixed but the two identical starter and ignition relays just needed a spray.

I have had a few fibreglass cracks that I fixed myself and the exhaust needed some welding and re-mounting at about 70k km. The fairing is good in my wet tropical location, it goes like a rocket well a hp rocket with heaps of torque in the middle and a wonderful sound. Why not? What was out there? About 18 months ago, my pal Ivan emailed that he bought an XB9S, bringing back memories of how much I enjoyed riding theses bikes. Erik Buell intended them as true all-around streetbikes—comfortable, great handling, light and fun to ride.

Suddenly, we had a story on our hands. What have you heard about the XB series? Introduced in , the bikes use an exotic, made-in-Italy frame that puts fuel in the frame spars and oil in the swingarm. The motor was a first for Buell—purpose-built for the brand, it uses architecture similar to the Sportster mills used before, but with new cases and just about everything else.

The cc version makes about 75 horsies at the wheel, add for the manly-man cc XB Wheelbase is a tidy 52 inches and the bikes weigh in around pounds with the 3. Spare parts are not just available, through Harley-Davidson dealers, they also tend to be much cheaper than Japanese or European brands. My memories of testing these bikes when I was a big-shot motojournalist are rosy — probably because I was riding brand-new, carefully prepped machines.

Judging from the loyalty of Buell owners, the last generation of the , bikes produced by Buell are solid, reliable rides that will probably outlast most of their owners. So what are they like to ride?

For a motorcycle in that price range, excellent. Even the revvier but softer XB9 mill has more power available right off idle — hell, at rpm — than anything short of an electric motor. Comfort is also remarkable for this kind of bike; relaxed seating position, comfy seat and smooth running for a degree V-Twin.

The bottom end of the rev range is so burly you start to think about how incredible it would be if the powerband went on to 10, rpm or more. Instead, it peaks at around 7, and is bouncing off the limiter around 8, Low-end torque is great, but sometimes you just need that top-end hit, maybe to break the law with a little more style, or when you want to relax a bit at a trackday and not be a hazard in the B group. And finally — brakes. At best, the hula-hoop disk and huge caliper work almost as well as a conventional setup, but at the cost of slower steering and interference with trail-braking fun.

Even worse, the system seems to need more attention than a regular one, and all three bikes I rode needed love, performing with a weak initial bite and requiring much more squeeze to slow down.

So would I buy one? The Buell lacks power, and the brakes are goofy, but what bike is perfect? If you want one, consult your motorcycle-sales professional or Craigslist if you think a Buell might be right for you. I grew up riding mostly Suzuki and Honda, I currently own three Kawasakis and in over 35 years of riding have owned just one Yamaha.

Imagine my pleasure when Gabe invited me along on his Buell fact-finding mission. I was to shoot, ride and provide opinions of the XB series — which are quite affordable on the used market. Eric Buell was said to have modeled the chassis geometry for his original bike after the TZ, a successful track-only roadracing bike. This is possibly an urban legend, but believable.

Chess, the owner of the XB9S, said I made it look like a pit bike. So, being taller, I had to fold up my legs pretty severely to get my feet on the high pegs. Bottom line: would I buy it? The true stars of the show are the chassis and the brakes. Heck, the seat is even comfortable enough for long rides if you can figure out how to fit luggage. Get right down to it, each of us has a different way to get from here to there: walk, ride a bicycle, take a bus, hitchhike, even — choke, gasp — drive a car, as a last resort, if all else fails.

We ride. Not any motorcycle. We who have been riding for a while and who have sampled a few different motorcycles come down to this: which should it be? Then: what should our next one be? Last: can we afford it? In short, Erik Buell gets it. He has given us special gifts with his machines.

And they are there, economically, for the taking. Machines with character, class and style, machines that we would live for and live with and love. Machines with soul. Erik Buell lives in the pantheon of the great, original designers. Every time I ride a Buell, I sense that soul-moving effect.

You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2. Both comments and pings are currently closed. Despite improvements made during the XB series, the bikes are IMO still much more problematic than other makes.

And everything you like about your Streetie will cause you to get bored with the Buell pretty fast. They are better in most ways to the older versions. Buy an CR and raise the handle bars. Hands down. Before you buy a Buell, ride a Honda Superhawk. More bang for the buck and a better level of finish.

I wish I had never sold my XB9S! This comment is for all those who always have problem prone motorcycles.. Later that same year during the heart of the winter, the temp was in the teens with snow on the ground and he asked me to listen to a sound his bike was making.

So out in his garage, starting his stone cold Honda.. I like your comment… reminds me of certain people I know that always have problems with their machines too. If times got tough and I was forced to sell my bikes the XB9R would be the last to go. It stops well enough to put me over the bars and probably saved me from serious injury. It also trail brakes into corners very nicely.

Having owned a steel-framed Buell for seveal years, I would agree that they are great all-around machines. Not so much a sportbike as a sporty standard.

You will regret giving up the Triumph. I own an 09 Ulysses. Bought it right after the shut down. I enjoy wrenching on my own bike so its not a big deal for me. Have just done fluid changes and replaced the belt for piece of mind and to use the old one for a spare.

Have put trouble free miles on it. I have a Uly that I love. But it eats voltage regulators like popcorn. Gets more garage time than street time. You just reminded me what I love about my Kawi ZS. Without mods it gets 47mpg measured , has a 4. I admit that part of the reason is the front-end conversion the bike has now. The problems with the Buells are understood issues and most have them at the same mileage.