The Legacy, Erik Buell - the man and the machines! Part 1 of 3
Wisconsin, United States
ESR Editor's note: You may have heard Buell Motorcycles is back, but not under Erik Buell's leadership. In February 2021, Erik Buell set the record straight in his letter to Michael Gougis at Roadracing World Publishing Inc. (you can find a link to the story at the bottom of the page). Erik Buell recently got personal with the team at © Moto Kulture Magazine in this first of a three-part interview. Read more and subscribe at www.motokulture.ca
In this article, we take a look at Erik Buell’s legacy. His name lives on in the form of the newly-founded company Buell Motorcycles.
Buell Motorcycles is back under a new ownership 1190RX 2021
The Buell Motorcycles website currently showcases four models. The 1190RX Hammerhead, the 1190 Super Touring, the 1190SX and the 1190HCR. The 1190RX and 1190SX are both instantly recognizable to anyone who has ever seen the motorcycles produced by Erik Buell Racing - the previous incarnation of the company when Erik himself was still in charge. But just to be clear, Erik Buell is not involved in this iteration of Buell Motorcycles.
Perhaps the most significant model in the planned line-up is the 1190 Super Touring adventure bike. Even though this bike won't be on the market until 2023, it's premature announcement was provided just a few days before Harley-Davidson unveiled its Pan America adventure-touring motorcycle. Coincidence? We think not!
With the American Motorcycle manufacturers not exactly known for their leading-edge levels of innovation, it seems that Buell Motorcycles want to try to redress that global stigma.
With the new models, much has been carried over from the previous Buells. This includes the aluminum frames that carry fuel inside them, the perimeter front brake rotor and the liquid cooled, 72-degree V-twin engines. Buell Motorcycles is quick to point out that there’s a lot more to come from the company, not just 185 bhp street bikes.
It’s intended that there will be four different engines in production, including a small off road motorcycle. This will make it the most diverse lineup of Buell-branded bikes in the company's history.
Buell 1190RX 2021
History
It was Bill Melvin’s family that purchased the assets of EBR (Erik Buell Racing) in 2016. Initially, they focused on selling parts but they also produced a very small number of motorcycles for sale.
The new company moved to Grand Rapids, Michigan, and they now have a 120,000- square-foot facility for production. The Buell brand was acquired in 2020.
It’s worth mentioning that Buell has a loyal global following. They intend to grow and become a competitive sports-bike company - focused on both road and adventure bikes.
The bikes will be targeting the high-end of the market and will doubtless have a price to match. However, there are plans to address the more affordable end of the market too.
Buell are a standalone brand. They feel that they can fulfill a segment of the market that the other American companies don’t.
Buell 1190 Super Touring
Buell & the Adventure Market
It’s interesting to see that Buell are focusing on the adventure market. This is not at all surprising though as this is one of the fastest-growing segments of motorcycling. Even Harley-Davidson, with no track record to speak of, have found the allure of this genre simply irresistible. They have entered the market with their all-new Pan- America to take advantage of the opportunity.
Black Mamba 2021 Buell 1190SX
Bill Melvin is so confident in the abilities of his company that he believes he can go head-to-head with the new Ducati Multistrada V4. That is, indeed, a bold statement to make and some would even dismiss the prospect. However, Melvin does go on to qualify his statement by positioning the Buell as more of a ‘riders bike.’ He’s really implying that this bike is for the advanced riders. Far more so than for beginners and intermediates.
We wonder what the market leaders would have to say about that!
Industry-leading, heavy-weight adventure bikes - such as the BMW R1250GS, KTM 1290 Super, Adventure, Triumph Tiger 900, and the Ducati Multistrada V4 - are all incredibly sophisticated and loaded with tech. For advanced riders this tech can be personalized (or disabled all together) so Melvin’s statement may seem a touch fool-hardy or even naive. But then again, the Yamaha Ténéré is a ‘back to basics’ bike, and it’s absence of tech has not prevented it from selling well to hardened off road enthusiasts.
Ultimately, the success of the Buell 1190 Super Touring lies in the hands of the buying public_,_ and their reaction to it. Bearing in mind that the bike is not expected until 2023, there’ll be a lot of future technology that Buell’s competition will have introduced by then.
At the end of the day, you have to admire Buell’s ambitious outlook. The more companies that dream big, the better the motorcycle market will be. We will be keeping a careful watch on Buell as they shake up the market a bit.
In part 2 we take at look at Erik Buell’s latest venture in the world of Electric Bikes.
Special contribution to EatSleepRIDE by © Moto Kulture Magazine 2021 www.motokulture.ca
ESR Editor's note: In February 2021, reacting to online reports and comments from around the world, Erik Buell sent an e-mail setting the record straight about what he's doing. Erik Buell set the record straight in his letter to Michael Gougis at Roadracing World Publishing Inc.
