| Author | Message | ||
     Newrider |
G'day Folks: I am based in Sydney, Australia. After about 12 years of not having ridden bikes, I will this year ride again ....hopefully . Also hopefully, my wife will also agree to ride and not just pillion. I am 5'8" (171cms) and my wife is 5'5" (162cms) so a major consideration would be seat height. One of the bikes I am seriously considering is the XB9SX City X. The other two bikes under consideration are the Ducati 620 Multistrada and Z6R. I know the Kawi is a different kettle of fish ....but it is in the pool.... I must add that our leaning is very strongly towards the CITY X. I would appreciate any help/advice from forum users re: the following: 1.How good is the City X for daily city commute - maybe some Syndeysiders can offer their experiences and insights. 2.Is it a bike suitable for a woman to ride? My wife has never ridden a bike before. Any advice from female BUELL riders would be very welcome and reassuring for my wife. 3. I have read that the Buell mirrors and pegs vibrate a lot. Does that make it very hard to use the mirrors in city riding? 4. I have also read that the clutch is very hard? How does that affect daily commute? Can a slipper clutch be fitted? Is it needed? 5. Are there any service/repair issues with the City X. On forums, some people have complained about the belt breaking etc. 6. I also plan to take my 8 year old pillion. Any insights re: children on the Buell would be appreciated 7. This may be one that Australian riders could help out with. Given the fact that there are only a few dealers Australia wide - (only 2 in Sydney) how is the service and dealer interaction (I have read in forums that UK Buell dealers seem to be a pain to deal with) Much appreciate your insights and advice. Hopefully, I will be able to report back on having bought a Buell. Thanks, WH | ||
| Mountainrider |
. 1.How good is the City X for daily city commute - maybe some Syndeysiders can offer their experiences and insights. The City-X would be a great commuter. It is agile and well balanced. The fuel injection is perfect. 2.Is it a bike suitable for a woman to ride? My wife has never ridden a bike before. Any advice from female BUELL riders would be very welcome and reassuring for my wife. By herself yes as a passenger no way. 3. I have read that the Buell mirrors and pegs vibrate a lot. Does that make it very hard to use the mirrors in city riding? Mine do not vibrate once you are riding. The engine is really smooth at speed. 4. I have also read that the clutch is very hard? How does that affect daily commute? Can a slipper clutch be fitted? Is it needed? Just if you are a sissy. To me the clutch is not very hard to use at all. Slipper clutch would be a waste of money unless you plan on racing. 5. Are there any service/repair issues with the City X. On forums, some people have complained about the belt breaking etc. The belts on the new bikes are great and should last the 20,000 miles. I have 5300 miles on mine and it gets plenty of abuse. 6. I also plan to take my 8 year old pillion. Any insights re: children on the Buell would be appreciated The seat is small but people do ride back there. 7. This may be one that Australian riders could help out with. Given the fact that there are only a few dealers Australia wide - (only 2 in Sydney) how is the service and dealer interaction (I have read in forums that UK Buell dealers seem to be a pain to deal with) Really the Buell will not require much service. No chain to mess with, no valve adjustments just not much to do to it. | ||
| Stou |
1.How good is the City X for daily city commute - maybe some Syndeysiders can offer their experiences and insights. I use my 9SX to go to work every day (not in the snow of course) and it's a really great bike for city riding. It's small and agile. I work in downtown Montreal and ride 30 km to go from my house in suburb to Montreal. The bike work very well on the highway or in the city. 2.Is it a bike suitable for a woman to ride? My wife has never ridden a bike before. Any advice from female BUELL riders would be very welcome and reassuring for my wife. The bike is very small and can be easy to learn from it. (I think) 3. I have read that the Buell mirrors and pegs vibrate a lot. Does that make it very hard to use the mirrors in city riding? It's a V-twin, that'S sure there's some vibrations, that's part of the fun!!! But once you are riding, you don't feel it. 4. I have also read that the clutch is very hard? How does that affect daily commute? Can a slipper clutch be fitted? Is it needed? The clutch is a bit harder than an hydraulic clutch like they have on japanesse bike but NOT VERY hard. You can try it on the showroom, you will see from yourself. 5. Are there any service/repair issues with the City X. On forums, some people have complained about the belt breaking etc. NOP, not a problem! 6. I also plan to take my 8 year old pillion. Any insights re: children on the Buell would be appreciated I always ride it alone on the bike, can't tell. 7. This may be one that Australian riders could help out with. Given the fact that there are only a few dealers Australia wide - (only 2 in Sydney) how is the service and dealer interaction (I have read in forums that UK Buell dealers seem to be a pain to deal with) Can't help here. | ||
| Jlnance |
Is it a bike suitable for a woman to ride? My wife has never ridden a bike before. Buell designed a bike for your wife's demographic, it's called a Buell Blast. At 5'5 she is tall enough to ride either bike. She may, however, find the Blast less intimidating than the CityX. I would encourage you to testride the Blast when you try out the CityX. | ||
| Reepicheep |
I use my CityX for a 50 mile commute any day it is above 32 degrees F and not more then a 30% chance of rain. It's great. It's tall, but easy to handle. You can get a low seat and swap it in about 60 seconds and buy a few more inches for a shorter rider. The mirrors work as good as any, but I replaced mine with bar end mirrors, which work better on any bike (IMHO). Vibration is not at all a problem, it is better then my old 600cc inline four. It will shake like crazy at idle, but smooth at speed. I think the 06 clutches are easier, the 05 is not bad anyway. You can upgrade the 05 to the 06 style for the cost of an hour or two of labor. The 9sx is a wonderful city bike, and a lot more interesting then an inline four. The power characteristic is much better tuned for commuting as well, enough power everywhere. You don't have to be tooling around at 11000 RPM looking like some sort of 16 year old idiot just to have half way decent power at the wheel. It works two up, though you have to choose between a 2nd rider and any cargo. I use the Buell tail bag and a backpack, the backpack rests on the tail bag (thanks for that tip Jose!) and the tailbag holds tools (for rescuing those broken down imports  ). | ||
| Cataract2 |
I'll post up my answers to your questions tomorrow. I am also a City X rider with 26,200 miles on the clock. |
