| Author | Message | ||
     Mark_In_Ireland |
Quote:-Hell , if I want reliable and fast, I'll get a Honda. Whats wrong with me wanting that from my S1??? I usually own old vehicles, both cars and bikes and when I buy I have an idea that I will have to keep on top of them to ensure reliability, but I certainly didn't read anything about having to get my hands dirty when I bought my new S1 in 98. The sales brochure certainly didn't mention all of the problems I was going to have..if it had I'd have run a mile!! But, saying that, I still have it, spending thousands to try and turn it into the bike it should have been when I wheeled it out of the shop all those years ago. Interesting fact:-My 1976,850 Norton is more reliable than my Buell..... | ||
| Rocketman |
See Snail (or should that be Sea Snail hehe), it matters not a shit about a poll when Capt Pete speaks  To make this 'poll' interesting give this a thought. It's easy to slag the Buell off when you've had a rough experience or two, hell even I do it, but look at the evocative niceties what some of the folks say who've had those rough experiences. Ok, it might take some luck for those of us that stayed the course, maybe not, but when someone can pen the words 'Sure, I’m buried in the thing, but I don’t lose a dime until the day I sell it. And every time I fire it up, I will be reminded that I didn’t give up; I saw it through to the end, ' doesn't that tell us something about a Buell like no other motorcycle could be described ? I wonder why. Maybe it's a kinda magic ?? Rocket | ||
| Dynarider |
You guys that love Buell for the "experience" have bought into the Harley lifestyle where its not about the bikes at all. You can have the biggest pile around but so long as you can hang with your "cool" fellow Buell..aka..harley buddies than all of the bikes troubles will be forgiven. I met a lot of great folks thru Buell & my X1, just because I want to get rid of it asap does not mean that I have to stop riding or talking with them. that smacks of an elitist attitude. | ||
| Aaron |
My idea of elitist would be someone who goes around putting others down for the reasons they like a particular bike or how few miles they've put on them. Know anyone like that? | ||
| Mikej |
I went ahead and started a couple of new threads on the quick board, simple answers, no dialog, let's see how it goes: bike poll dealership poll | ||
| Buelliedan |
Dyna, You completely missed the point of the "Buell experience". It's not about the lifestyle at all, it's about the friends we have made through Buelling. Many folks never touched a wrench before owning a Buell, but now through with help from other Buellers they have confidence in working on their own stuff. Yea, when they break you get pissed but if you fix it yourself there is a great feeling of satisfaction when you first start it back up. This board and the others has allowed me to meet so many great people, many who let me stay at their houses this summer. I'm sorry you have a bitter taste in your mouth regarding Buells but like Chop I wouldn't want to give my Buell experiences back for twice the money I have spent(and that is about $50,000) in these past 3 years. | ||
| Snail |
Blake, I may have admin. privs. but I still lack the talent to prepare a poll. I'll bet Vik could. Rocket, you Druid. I'm not trying to champion anything other than an honest attempt to define an intangible. Keep it simple, are you satisfied with your BIKE? Gotta run, will check the quick board threads prepared by Mike later this evening. Paul | ||
| Ncbueller |
Dustykat: Just interested in which bar you installed? Thanks Ride Safe | ||
| Sharkus |
OK...I was waiting to chime in here but can someone answer why Buell can't spend just a bit of money and get a Tech person from Honda to come in and fix all the problems. Please don't tell me Harley can't make an engine to hold up like one of the Jap sport bikes. No doubt tougher having that great V-twin thump but let's face it...we're not putting these things in orbit. This isn't rocket science....or is it? Hey, get a rocket scientist. hahahahahahahahahahaha Do Harley's have these same problems?? This is their engine beefed up as it may be. If I start having problems like I read on this site I will not trade or sale my '99 X1...I'm gonna take it out back and shoot it. | ||
| Court |
My apologies to the extent necessary, it appears my original question, which for the record was: The next question becomes, given finite resources, "are corporate dollars better spent touting the reliability of the NEW Buells or trying to re-assimilate formerly disaffected owners?" The bike polls will be interesting, I suspect the dealer poll more so. I hope, again, to hear comments on "if Buell had $10 should they spend it recapturing unhappy "tube framers" or luring XB prospects? By the way, it's a question you can answer quite simply and doesn't require anyone be the brunt of a personal insult, that's distasteful and impolite. Court | ||
| V2rumble |
I'm finally coming out of lurk mode, thanks to comments made on SacBORG concerning the call for satisfied/unsatisfied Buell owners... To best clarify my attitude about owning a Buell, I'll reference comments made by Vik and Snail several days ago: ---------------------------------------------- Vik: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 - 01:13 pm . It saddens me when I look at all the people who went from cult-like followers to haters... ---------------------------------------------- Then, ---------------------------------------------- Snail: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 - 02:18 pm ...'hater' is a pretty strong term. I would prefer 'disillusioned', and I think theres more 'disillusioned than 'haters', but of course thats just arguing degree of unhappiness. I bought my S-3 for a sport touring bike. It simply failed to perform that function. I will not likely buy another Buell, but I intend to keep the one I have. The bottom line is Buell has lost me as a customer(except for parts) ---------------------------------------------- And then, ---------------------------------------------- Vik: Tuesday, October 08, 2002 - 03:34 pm . Yes, "hater" was too strong of a term. I have seen many people go from fantical enthusast to not willing to buy another Buell. ---------------------------------------------- I'll echo these sentiments. Several years ago, I too, bragged to my riding buddies that I *would* own a Buell some day...well I have for 1.5 years now, and am sorry I bought this motorcycle. Can't really put into words why I'm dissatisfied, since I haven't yet experienced any catastrophic failures in 11.3Kmiles: Bad battery caused bike to die in heavy traffic during morning commute, rocker box gaskets, sidestand switch, wankin' excuse for a fuel injection system... Have no complaints about my dealers: HD/Buell of Baltimore, HD of Maryland. The bike just doesn't measure up to my expectations for the kind of motorcycle I want. I have no confidence in it's reliability, and don't think it has the quality and cohesive design of my previous bikes, '92 BMW K75S, '96 Honda VFR. | ||
| Mikej |
$10 is not sufficient to lure nor recapture new or old customers, at least on a one-by-one basis.  What would it cost to trade in all unsatisfied tube framer bikes on a new XB format bike? How about 80% of original retail base MSRP to all those with documentable proof of being rideless for 60-90 days in any one year due to any non-crash problem where the crash was not caused by mechanical failure or oil spewage. It would move XB's, bring back unhappy customers, and those customers who don't come back would have cost more to bring back anyway. Of course you'd have to factor in the cost of the XB, which at $10G would prevent many from taking advantage of even that tradein program. Just a 10 cent thought on a 10 dollar question. | ||
| Timmy2shoes |
>>I hope, again, to hear comments on "if Buell >>had $10 should they spend it recapturing >>unhappy "tube framers" or luring XB prospects? If they played their cards right, that $10 would do both. XB prospects want performance and reliability... so do the disenchanted tubers.. and that, my friends, is the crux of the biscuit. | ||
| Ara |
Some XB prospects want a bit more fuel capacity, too. | ||
| Mikej |
Probably more than just a "bit more" capacity. I thought one of the guys on the Slimey Crud Run was going to run out of gas at any moment. | ||
| Loki |
split it! 65% for the new and 35% to recapture some of the old, they won't get them all back. | ||
| Brianh |
Blake and I opposites? I'd venture a guess that the only thing we truly disagree on are Buells. But I bet if he keeps at it long enough, he'll come over to my line of thinking. Heh. >You know, I bet all the ex-Buell owners must feel 'gutted' when they see a Buell they like, that runs well. Rocket, you could not be further from the truth. My reaction is to chuckle in my helmet. I give the owner credit for keeping after the bike and admiring the persistence he/she must exhibit. But when it's all said and done, I have NO regrets about getting rid of my S3. And truth be told, I haven't seen a Buell yet that I couldn't pass with my Kwaker. I'll give you guys Battletrax though. You'll kick my butt there. But that's about it. I don't think it's fair to ask "Would you buy another Buell?" The answer for me is YES. But only if they put an engine in the thing. I think Erik builds great handling machines. The XB is the weirdest handling thing I've ever ridden. I could get used to it. But without a powerplant the whole thing is moot. Again I have to point to the KTM LC88 motor. That new Duke looks to be an awesome machine in the spirit of the S1. So if Buell would build something like that, I'd get interested again. No way would I purchase a Buell now. They celebrate the XB's first recall this week. Fantastic. | ||
| Blake |
So you could pass DaveS at MAM? Me at OHR? Richard Nallin at the drag strip?  | ||
| Dynarider |
Aaron, I am far from elitist. I dont care if you put any miles on your bike. Just dont come around & puff up your chest & proudly claim how your 5 yr old bike has 2000 miles & you have had no problems. Thats because you dont ride it...thats my point. And I havent knocked anyone for what they ride. If you want to ride a Buell, be my guest, if you wanna ride a 50cc moped to Sturgis, knock yourself out, more power to ya. Just because I have a personal beef with Buell does not mean I "hate" anyone who rides one. Thats ridiculous. But if I wanna slam the bike & bitch about it, I will. I paid my $$$ & that gives me the right to complain. | ||
| Blake |
Oh yeah... Eric Wood at Loudon? Mike Cicotto at Laguna Seca? Henrik at VIR? Peter and Jilles at Croix? | ||
| Eeeeek |
Excellent point! I suspect that the same qualities that would win new customers to Buell would bring back a lot of the tube framers. Not all as some are too far gone; however, many could be won back. Vik | ||
| Justjoe |
Geez Blake give it a rest. Cecil is talking bikes, not riders. Given EQUAL RIDERS, Cecil's ZX-12 will walk away from any stock Buell (or modified with the usual race kit, we're not talking bored out motors) unless the track is extremely tight (i.e. a Battletrax course). JustJoe | ||
| Brianh |
So you could pass DaveS at MAM? Me at OHR? Richard Nallin at the drag strip? Oh yeah... Eric Wood at Loudon? Mike Cicotto at Laguna Seca? Henrik at VIR? Peter and Jilles at Croix? I'm no professional racer, but I'd venture to guess that my ZX12 would do pretty well at VIR. I'd also be willing to bet that Richard Nallin would put up a much better ET on my ZX12 than on his worked Buell. And Blake, yes I'd pass you at OHR. But all of that is moot considering that I am 99% certain that I'll be the proud owner of a 1999 race prepped SV650 within the next 5 days. First I plan on taking Henrik apart at Pocono next season, then maybe I'll persuade you and your Buell to the Northeast for a little embarrassment too. After that, I'd like to get a CCS license and race with the OLD GUYS in whatever class you can run a stock displacement SV in. | ||
| Madduck |
court, I think Buell should be putting their money into getting to the next phase. Volume sales to new customers. When the number of people going into dealerships to buy Buells reaches some sort of criticality threshold all of these other issues go away. Harley dealers understand retail, if its selling they will want a peice of the action and will be happy to satisfy customers. You want to see rejection, try to get a current harley dealer to work on an iron head, 4 speed sportster. those big fancy stores are there for one reason, they move product. The question for Buell is can they generate enough volume to justify the floor space they occupy. The Blast probably, 9r not at a harley store, 9s pretty good shot i think i would buy one. If I were spending that dollar I would be putting out accesories like crazy to change the bike to suit each indivual customer, Harley marketing 101. | ||
| Lsr_Bbs |
Now Court, I expected better of you! This is pure bullshit manipulation of statistics. Your sampling the members of Badweb and comparing that to the entire population of buell owners. I would hazard a guess that less than 5% of buell owners are represented by this board. ...yes, I'm late on this, but I only skim posts every few days. Neil Garretson - And I'm sure you know what side of the fence I fall into... | ||
| Court |
Neil: Frankly, I owe you guys my apologies for intentionally "stirring the pot". As somewhat of a student of mathematics, I am well aware that the supposition was unsound. It did, however, validate the point I set out to make. Buell is better off steering by looking over the bow, than the stern. Lost owners are LOST. I bear none of them any ill will and count many of them as close friends. My personal "bad moment" in Buell related defections was Nigel Beardsworth in Australia. I felt a very personal sense of failure as the repeated attempts to remedy his bike failed miserably. Buell, my gut sense tells me, is going to acheive things we, the current and former owners, have all hoped for in terms of quality.....make that CONSISTENT quality. Independent numbers will tell the tale as soon as time and quantities provide a statisically sound sample size. The engine? Your all wanting me, who put $8K into Barney's motor to say I don't want more engine?. I do and I suspect we'll see it. If any motorcycle company in the world had done what Buell did with the XB chassis it would be heralded as unprecedented engineering. They did things knowing folks swore could not be done. Damn 25 year old engineers didn't know it couldn't be done. The engine?...they continue to scream. Dave Gess showed the hand. Once quality initiatives are validated and an appropriate (i.e. is has to be able to support variants to cross the Buell-Sportster line to "pencil out" the business case amortization) level of resources exist, I'd bet on it. Watch a great juggler....part of the science is to NOT have all the balls in the air simultanesouly. Anyone here want to pony up $10K for a "tad better, but a bit iffy" motored Buell? It's going to take competitive power AND consistent quality. Again, I apologize for the barroom brawl. Hey, I was just askin'. The UPSIDE is that it's good to see all the old names again. Now everyone back to their corners Court | ||
| Mikej |
I took a pic of an S3 this last weekend, I'll scan it in over the next few days. Nothing special except the text printed on it. That's all I'll say for now. | ||
| Aaron |
Dyna, you seem to have a real problem with reading comprehension. Where did I say "hate"? Where did I say anyone was knocking people for the kind of bike they ride? For that matter, where did I mention you? All I said was that anyone who would go around knocking other people for the reason they like a particular bike or the number of miles on it strikes me as being elitist. A person like that is just being a snob. Do you disagree with that statement? | ||
| Josh |
>Geez Blake give it a rest. Cecil is talking bikes, not riders No, Cecil said >And truth be told, I haven't seen a Buell yet that I couldn't pass with my Kwaker. He didn't specified stock bike to stock bike, identical riders, open track, no rain, cool day, fresh tires, 93 oct Ammoco, etc etc. He said he hadn't seen a Buell he couldn't pass. ('Course he also didn't specify if the Buell was parked  ). Blake simply listed some bikes Cecil hasn't seen. I'm thinkin' Cecil hasn't seen the RR either. | ||
| Buellman |
Blake We can setup polls on the main page at our place.. let me know if you need to. Brad G Sport Twin |
