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Madav8tr
| | Posted on Thursday, August 14, 2008 - 10:21 pm: | 
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"call it the Destroyer Escort. Now if they do that maybe MOCO can throw this poor boy one for the idea"
Your not the same guy that came up with the name for the new Vrod are ya? Imagine how that's going to sound at the local hangout. "Hey bill, still enjoying riding your 'Rod Muscle'?" Or "Hey Joe, was thinkin about asking ya if I could ride your Rod muscle one day". Hahahahahahahahaha  |
Dentguy
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 12:02 am: |
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. . . I've, many times, compared it in the written word with the sound that came from stomping on the accelerator of a 389 cubic inch GRO with 3-2bbl carbs. . . I know . . I'm showing my age.
What is a GRO? Did you mean GTO or are you really showing your age. 
Sorry Court, I couldn't resist. |
Oddball
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 01:41 am: |
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No, I didn't come up with that ridiculous name. I won't even call that bike that. Only VRSCF.
"The Muscle" Willie was drunk when he approved that name. Had to be. Might as well have named it Sue.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M89c3hWx3RQ
I still think Destroyer Escort is a tough name. Might be a hit with USN personnel. |
Samcol
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 01:53 am: |
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Glad to see some shots of the CR. I want one. It's different and it's a Buell  |
Trojan
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 04:26 am: |
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My bet is it will be hailed as "The Best Sportster Ever"... and sales will be abysmal.
Not if European sales are any indication it won't. Over here the XR is sold out and demand is far outstripping supply. The good thing is that it is attracting plenty of buyers that would not normally consider a Harley (or a Buell), and who have traded sports bikes, big naked bikes (CB1300, XJR1200 etc) and even other Harleys too.
The biggest mistake is trying to link the bike to the XR750, which it clearly isn't . H-D should concentrate on promoting the bike as a new, and very competent, stand alone road biased model rather than trying to entice buyers with visions of faded flat track glory.
By the way, the XR in my garage has exceeded all my expectations of it, and is a lot of fun even at sensible speeds For 99% of people that ride at 'normal' speeds it is a great bike, and unlike the majority of sportsbikes (1125 included) you don't have to push to 9/10's for it to make sense.
If you think the XR hasn't gopt sporting pretensions take a look here http://bbqseries.com/las-motos.php
This is the Spanish one make race series that looks like huge fun! They race in a day and night phase too.
Mods are limited to chassis (suspension, wheels) and a few body panels for race use such as the seat and belly pan, and racing is very close. Teams are all dealer supported (Fat chance of that happening here in the UK).
They are also running an 1125R series as well, but this is less well supported with far fewer entries. |
Xl1200r
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 08:53 am: |
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Not if European sales are any indication it won't.
The proplem is time and time again, the europeans prove that they have better taste in bikes than the Americans do.
I would bet that the XR will exist in the U.S. in fairly limited quantities only because it will still be selling well in the EU.
Think about it - That exhaust makes it impossible to mount forward controls. |
Electraglider_1997
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:08 am: |
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Trojan,
Just how well is it selling? I'm looking forward to its US debut whenever that might be. No one has mentioned this but the 07' and later Sportsters have auto TPS and Timing just like the Buells do. Put a auto primary tensioner on it like the big twins and it would be close to maintenance free. Oil changes and tire inflation. Now there's a big marketing advantage IMHO. Let Buell come out with that primary chain auto tensioning device and I'll be the first to plop down the cash. The beauty of auto tensioning the primary chain is that it takes the "clunk" out of the shifting, no more chain tightening, and acts like a compensator to smooth out the jerk of the engine to transmission. Harley big twin engines have them and they sell the tensioner to retrofit older bikes and it's a bargain at 100 bucks. I've used the Hayden one on my 97' for about 40,000 miles and it has worked flawlessly and makes a big shifting difference.
I'd like to convert my wife's 07' XL1200R to 7/8" handlebars with Buell controls. Anybody know of a kit for that? She has small hands and those Harley turn signal controls are difficult for her, especially the right side. It would make the Sportster so much nicer. Hard for her not to goose the throttle while reaching for the turn button with the way it is in stock form. Considering that Harley is trying to appeal to women riders it is a shame that they have failed to realize what a design flaw this is, and a safety issue as well. Notice that the Europeans get the Buell style turn signal controls on the left with the new XR1200 Sportster. If they revert to 1" handlebars and Harley turn signal controls for the US XR1200 you can be sure that it will not help sales on that bike one iota. Maybe the XR1200 will help Harley phase over to more user friendly turn signal controls. I've always disliked reaching with my right thumb to signal on the glide and the sportster. I know it is a Harley thing, but the other way is safer, more ergonomic, and just plain better. Can you imagine how ridiculous it would be if you had a different turn signal lever on either side of the steering wheel of your car?
(Message edited by electraglider_1997 on August 15, 2008) |
Josh_
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:25 am: |
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Man, I loved the "left thumb left signal, right thumb right signal" not to mention the auto-turn off turn signals on my Sportys and of course the 91 RS.
I'm sure someone makes a 7/8" handlebar kit for Sportsters, have you tired sportster.org or some of the other Sporty forums? |
Rfischer
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:26 am: |
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"Faded flat-track glory"..??? 
Harley OWNS flat-track racing here. Despite concerted efforts by Suzuki & Aprilia recently, and Triumph/BSA 'back in the day'. |
Trojan
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:29 am: |
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Notice that the Europeans get the Buell style turn signal controls on the left with the new XR1200 Sportster.
I'm afraid we don't  The Euro Xr1200 has the usual rather ridiculous clunky Harley 1" bars and controls, with the indicator switches on each bar. I would have preferred 7/8" bars and Buell controls as well, as the choice of aftermarket bars is much wider. I think the only way of converting is to do it yourself, as there doesn't seem to be a kit around that will provide all you need. I particularly want to change to a radial master cylinder, but again the choice for 1" bars is a little thin.
Maybe later... |
Ebear
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:31 am: |
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Call me odd, but I really like the Boattail look of that Sportster!!! Black fork tubes,"Bulbous" covers and all. This is not a "Parts bin bike....since when are those covers,tailpiece ,exhaust or tubes in any parts bin????????maybe the front forks but thats it.
Now that view of the CR makes the scoops look HUGE..and Bizarre...I like THAT TOO!!!
We don't buy Buells 'cause they look like all the others...now DO WE?? |
Electraglider_1997
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:31 am: |
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Shiite! |
Electraglider_1997
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:43 am: |
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Court,
Went back an read the first 30 posts. Why are you getting down on the XR1200? You didn't write the parts bin special comment but the TT should have been the PBS. I certainly would agree that everyone has their particular tastes in bikes. Anyway, I may be wrong here but show me a BadWeb link where you have ever said a disparaging word about a Buell. Seriously.
I've said it before, I love the looks of that CR. That thing looks alive. |
Court
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:49 am: |
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I love Sportsters, had 5 at the same time including the XLCR and XR-1000.
I just think the pipes on this thing make it hideously ugly. In addition, in my eyes, at $10,000 it's a "cosmetics" bike.
It's cute and I think it will sell well. I won't be buying one. |
Doerman
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 10:51 am: |
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From the spanish article Trojan pointed to:
presidente y jefe técnico, Erik Buell,
Sounds sooo cool ... Much better than President and CTO |
Court
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 11:28 am: |
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>>>>but the TT should have been the PBS.
Close, but the classic "Parts Bin Special" ws the Buell S1WL White Lightning.
The TT actually brought entirely new suspension and although it was sourced from existing parts, say like the Porsche Cayman is from the Boxster, it was a really good bike that took the concerted efforts of HD marketing to send into a nose dive.
The "fuzz" had begun to leave the S-1 when someone got smart and said "paint the entire damn thing white. . .wheels, frame, bodywork. . . everything".
The motor was given the latest greatest, the parts got painted and for something on the order of $39 Buell has a screamin' "new" model. . . . a TRUE "parts bin special".
Me? . . I'm too old fashioned. If I were to buy a Sportster (not entirely out of the question) I'd go with the bottom of the line, bare bones 883 . . . but even that is a $6,500 I'd wager.
(Message edited by court on August 15, 2008) |
Bikertrash05
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 11:45 am: |
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IMHO, the best Sportster ever was the 1200S. Solid mount, carb, under 500lbs.
 |
Xl1200r
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 11:58 am: |
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IMHO, the best Sportster ever was the 1200S. Solid mount, carb, under 500lbs.
Eh... I really liked these until the 2004 models came out. The base 1200 made more power than the 1200S, the brakes were better, and the chassis was stiffer.
The 1200S was right at 500lbs dry. The suspension was "better", but still not really "good".
The best sportster ever would be anything in the XLCH, kick start only, magneto ignition era. The drum brakes weren't much worse than the discs you get now, they made about the same power from the factory, weighed less, and had loads more character. I'm partial to my '64.
(Message edited by xl1200r on August 15, 2008) |
Xnoahx
| | Posted on Friday, August 15, 2008 - 01:13 pm: |
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If you dont like the pipes, you can change em! I personally think the Storz Performance pipes would look great on this bike.
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Ponti1
| | Posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008 - 01:21 am: |
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The base 1200 made more power than the 1200S, the brakes were better, and the chassis was stiffer.
I thought the "S" had dual plugs and either hotter cams or a little better head work for more power? Also, wasn't the "S" the only model to feature dual front discs? Can't speak for the chassis... |
Court
| | Posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008 - 10:30 am: |
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Those Storz pipes would completely change the looks and appeal of the XR1200. |
Ezblast
| | Posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008 - 05:26 pm: |
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True - looks nice and classic - in a sporty way.
EZ |
Xl1200r
| | Posted on Saturday, August 16, 2008 - 06:25 pm: |
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I thought the "S" had dual plugs and either hotter cams or a little better head work for more power? Also, wasn't the "S" the only model to feature dual front discs? Can't speak for the chassis...
The 1200S had dual plugs to cover up for a poorly designed combustion chamber with shrouded valves, if IIRC. This was the case still in 2003. In 2004, the base 1200 (with Buell heads at this point) made better power with a single plug design. The "base" 1200 in 2004 (1200R) also had dual discs. Other years, the 883R also came with dual discs. |
Bikertrash05
| | Posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008 - 03:13 am: |
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Yeah, but that "better power" was consumed by the extra 50 pounds for the rubber mounted engine. |
Xl1200r
| | Posted on Sunday, August 17, 2008 - 09:36 am: |
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True, but it was a better handling chassis.
Don't get me wrong, I like the solid-mount bikes, but for an everyday ride, it would be a rubber bike no question. |
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