Harley E Bike

[Big Dave]

So it had nothing to do with noises around using Polaris engines in the latest models of Buell? Unsubstantiated rumour was that there was a bit of a falling out over that and and a couple of other ego related issues.

Yeah - they were BRP - Bombardier / Rotax engines. Polaris is Victory/Indian.

Either way - I would imagine that importing engines would cause some friction under the prevailing circumstances back then. But that's only idle speculation.

I do know that the plug pulling certainly blind-sided everyone at Buell. They were only weeks away from pushing the go button on a new factory.

[HenryDorsetCase]

The (fairly) definitive word on the why's and wherefores of the Buell demise was published in Cycle World in 2010 or 2011: at least from Erik's perspective: it was a fairly friendly piece, not surprisingly since the writer was Steve Anderson who had worked at Buell (as well as being editor of Cycle magazine at one point).

Buell needed money for development, viewed the motor they were forced into using as a boat anchor, had put money into the Rotax motor and it went OK but were fettered by H-D from doing what they wanted (no full fairings on the supersoprt bike FFS). They had a thing called the Barracuda project which is basically what they ran with when HD closed them down.

I can see why H-D did it too: at the time their share price was something like $7 (I should have sold the house - its now back at like $70) and their finance arm was losing money. Buell is not part of the core business. Fine, shut it down.

They also closed a couple of plants in the motherland and started buying more stuff offshore IIRC.

All sane and sensible stuff. Nothing wrong with H-D the company doing what it does. Some of the owners are a bit of an issue though. But of course they are not who the management are responsible to.

http://www.cycleworld.com/2010/04/15...l-motorcycles/

http://www.nasdaq.com/symbol/hog


Latest CW has a heads up test between the new EBR1190RX and a Ducati Panigale. EBR is as quick but not as polished. Same money.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Yeah - they were BRP - Bombardier / Rotax engines. Polaris is Victory/Indian.

Either way - I would imagine that importing engines would cause some friction under the prevailing circumstances back then. But that's only idle speculation.

I do know that the plug pulling certainly blind-sided everyone at Buell. They were only weeks away from pushing the go button on a new factory.

Erik's done OK with Hero, though.

[MVnut]

The World is not yet ready for E power transport.......and some folk would miss the noise (potato potato potato) .....not me though

[Big Dave]

HDC - you'd be interested - this is the 'History' document from the EBR street fighter Press release.

Erik Buell Racing - Fiercely Independent
The man behind the quintessential American motorcycle company, Erik Buell Racing, is known for being relentless in designing and building performance motorcycles, and having a die hard ambition to see victory at the pinnacle of superbike racing with one of his own creations.
The year that EBR came to be was 2009, but Erik was designing motorcycles long before that. In fact, you could say he was dreaming up bike designs the day he started racing them in his late teens.
After finishing high school he studied an engineering degree at night, raced weekends and worked as a motorcycle mechanic during the day. Motorcycles were his passion and he carved a career in the industry so that by the age of 32 he had already designed his first race bike.

Erik first began to hone his design skills working for Harley Davidson in 1979, straight out of Uni- versity. The indelible experience of being part of the design process for radical concepts and main- stream series was the connection he needed to transcend further in his own projects.
By 1982 he had already developed a keen interest to make something out of his racing career, with an acquired redesigned Barton bike he could call his own, the RW750. The confidence to fulfill his dream of building his own motorcycle for racing continued and he formed the Buell Motor Com- pany in 1984 with a public release of the RW750 to his racing peers acclaim.
It was a year later that a shift in race formula classification put his RW750 out of racing contention and perhaps nearly out of business. This did not deter him and Erik pushed on to release the RR1100 in 1987 to the sports bike market, which in turn started the flow of subsequent superbike models through the 90’s using newly sourced Harley Davidson engines.
Harley Davidson took more of interest in their old friend and invested in the Buell Motor Company in the 1990s and eventually bought it outright in 2003, with Erik remaining in charge of engineer- ing and design. Now Buell motorcycles were being sold in Harley Davidson dealership showrooms across the USA.
Whilst Erik was excelling in bringing new innovations to his motorcycles, America’s economic woes increased during the GFC period. The uncertainty of the market brought further strain on Harley Davidson and Buell operations were ceased near the end of 2009.
For Buell fans across the world this was a devastating blow.Yet for Erik it turned out to be a posi- tive pivotal time as he had been wanting to move away from the corporate vision and get back to his own. Fortunately he had already been working with a new engine supplier Rotax in the same year and so he immediately had the foundation to start up new operations. In November in the same year he re-opened the former Buell plant doors in Wisconsin, under the new name Erik Buell Racing.

He was down on staff and a major investor, but he did not lack in determination. With what he had learnt building the Buell 1125R, he put together the purpose built racer 1190RR and then the strik- ing street going 1190RS, which was homologated and successfully raced at AMA, launching EBR’s name in the motorcycling world.
Great partnerships are a rarity, but for Erik Buell Racing or EBR, an opportunity for the perfect partnership came soon from the other side of the world. The Indian motorcycle giant HERO, re- cently listed as the largest two wheel manufacturer in the world, just went through a messy divorce with Honda and their CEO Pawan Munjal happened to catch up with Erik trackside at Daytona to talk bikes. HERO were looking for a new development partner, Erik was looking for a new investor, HERO wanted their bikes recognised on the world stage and Erik wanted his motorcycles raced on the worlds stage. It couldn’t be more simple.
Soon EBR and HERO embarked on a partnership that quickly saw the Wisconsin Buell factory once more filled with staff developing new race motorcycles. HERO revealed their new EBR engineered leap hybrid scooter and the 600cc Hastur, and EBR debuted in 2014 World Superbikes with team HERO on the 1190RX.
today EBR is taking orders for the 1190RX in different markets across the globe. Fortunately for us, one of those markets is Australia and New Zealand, due to Urban Moto Imports and EBR forging a strong relationship from the outset.
EBR now has a solid future and home, thriving on a partnership and a shared vision to build new exciting motorcycles for the world. For Erik it’s a new chapter in building an American superbike icon - the 1190RX.

And about the bike:


EBR 1190RX
The new EBR 1190RX is the latest incarnation of Erik Buell’s superbike dream, brimming with innovative technology, awe inspiring performance and a promise to make each ride on it as addictive as the last.
Erik Buell put in over 30 years of development, racing experience and know how to build this all American road going superbike, which has now started to race on the Superbike tracks across the globe in WBSK.
At its heart is the powerful 185Hp Et-V2 1190cc V-twin generating 137.8Nm peak torque between the optimal 5,500rpm - 8,500rpm rev range. Ingenious technology such as the Controlled Swirl Induction and Quarter Wave tuners has helped to extract class leading performance from the V-twin, as well as smashing stringent EPA emission standards and noise level restrictions.
Built on a true monocoque frame with the clever integral fuel tank has not only decreased the centre of gravity but also has allowed for greater room for the engines air intake box. The 1190RX agility is further improved with fully adjustable Showa big piston forks and Showa fully adjustable rear suspension, hubless wheels, monster 386mm perimeter disc matched with an eight-piston caliper and shod with Pirelli Diablo Rosso Corsa tyres. Keeping it all inline comes from EBR’s own selectable 21 settings traction control ECU, displayed through a colour lED dash.
The slick look of the 1190RX achieved through aerodynamic testing, and the aggressive lED headlight leading the way. Choices of colour is also intelligently delivered through impregnated plastics technology, making the slippery fairings both light and practical.
The 1190RX transcends its peers to hone better performance and agility through a core belief there is always a better way to do things. The EBR way.
AVAILABLE AS STANDARD:


Landing in Australia now! RRP $27,990 Rideaway

- TWO YEAR PREMIUM ROADSIDE ASSIST





Engine

EBR 1190RX specifications Power


Powering the EBR 1190RX is a watercooled 72° V-twin dohc eight-valve 1191cc engine, based on the 1126cc Helicon motor which made its debut in the Buell 1125R streetbike. It was originally developed by Rotax in Austria, which was commissioned by Buell to deliver
a step up in performance from the air-cooled Harley-built powerplants. EBR has acquired the rights to this engine, and has considerably upgraded its design, and entirely sources all the parts itself (Rotax now has nothing to do with the engine) to build the motors in-house at the former Buell motorcycle Company factory in East troy, Wisconsin.
Built in the USA
The 663 separate component parts comprising the 1190RX – 454 of them completely new, designed specifically for this very model - are delivered by EBR’s 157 suppliers in 13 different countries for assembly into the complete bike. The engine is entirely assembled in-house at EBR (the former Buell motorcycle Company factory in East troy, Wisconsin), making it in every way American-built, which is why the EBR 1190RX carries the American starts and stripes on its bodywork. making it as Buells slogan fiercely independent.
Showerhead injector
The EBR V-twin engine is rev-limited to 11,500rpm, and instead of an RBW digital throttle, there are cables running to the twin 61mm Dell’Orto throttle bodies breathing through a massive injection moulded airbox made possible by housing the fuel in the
frame (true monocoque frame). Each has
twin injectors - one showerhead-type is top- mounted directly above the velocity stack, and the other is located below the throttle butterfly. A system of asymmetrically timed inlet valves promote mixture turbulence is coupled with an idle air bleed package to deliver more complete combustion in pursuit of increased power, with the useful spinoff benefit of reduced emissions.
21-Stage Traction Control

The Synergec ECU carried by the 1190RX
has a minimum of electronic rider aids but incorporates 21-stage switchable traction control. EBR’s new dash is custom made
and is nothing short of breath taking, neat, compact, the colour dash is incorporates a
lap timer, full fault self-diagnostics and the usual trip functions. All upgrades on this spectacular machine can be carried out through the dash. EBR has eliminated all handle bar controls, giving an ergonomic feel with only three buttons mounted on the dash face. tC settings can only be changed with the bike at a standstill.

EBR claims a mind blowing 185 crankshaft bhp at 10,600rpm for the 1190RX and a hefty peak torque of 137.8Nm/101.6ft-lb – 6Nm more than Ducati’s Panigale R - at 8,200 rpm, and twin slimline radiators keeping 2 things cool. This output also comes via a composite stainless steel exhaust system with twin serial catalysts, incorporating a pair of quarter-wave reflection tuners aimed at extracting exhaust gas from the combustion chamber more quickly, so that the new charge going into the combustion is fuller and more complete.
Environmentally friendly
Erik Buell is proud of both the performance and how environmentally friendly his performance V-twin streetbike is. “The stock EBR engine is very good for emissions, which was one of my goals,” he states.
“We’re 2dB under the sound limit, and it only makes 25% of the emissions ceiling that the EPA requires”.
True Monocoque
This uprated engine is solidly mounted in an all-new monocoque frame manufactured from a welded-up array of four aluminium castings and four stampings. This is a true monocoque chassis design, unlike its closest competitor. The EBR’s frame contains 17.1l of fuel (including 3.0l reserve), which is carried within the twin frame spars wrapped around the motor to further Erik Buell’s goal of centralising mass, for improved handling. The unique frame design carries a fully adjustable 43mm Showa BPF fork delivering 120mm of wheel travel at
a steep 22.4o rake, with 96.5mm of trail, with a fully-adjustable Showa rear monoshock that’s offset to the right, whose cantilever action delivering 130mm of wheel travel is however devoid of any link.
Half-dry weight with oil/water but no fuel is 190kg, split 53/47% - or 202kg fully fuelled
That front wheel naturally carries another of Buell’s trademarks - the ventilated floating perimeter steel disc made by GSK, now upsized to a 386mm diameter (was 375mm on the 1125R), and gripped by a massive so-called ‘inside out’ Nissin eight-piston caliper, with a 220mm GSK steel disc at the rear matched to a Hayes monobloc two-piston caliper. The full- fairing bodywork, which not only makes the 1190RX look prettier than what some consider to be the aesthetically challenged 1125R, but
is also heaps more aerodynamic, was styled in-house at EBR.
All in all nobody can disagree that EBR has produced once a again a truly amazing and original masterpiece packed with features and stunning looks. Fiercely independent

[Big Dave]

Yep - 'tis electric.

http://motorbikewriter.com/electric-...dson-livewire/

[HenryDorsetCase]

Some might say this is the coolest Buell ever.

It really bugs me that the bloody stripes don't line up properly

[Urano]

this is the first HD i could actually like.

Playing cards mounted to the forks.

mh... this doesn't solve the problem of the missing vibrator...

[lakedaemonian]

first thing I thought of was:



Power, torque, styling seem to be blowing folks away.....I would think largely due to the effort coming from Harley, rather than BMW or the Jap 4 brands.

Price, battery capacity(estimated at a bit under 10kw) for a production version, and warranty are the only remaining questions I have.

If they can stuff 12.5-15kw worth of batteries into the frame, price it competitively, and back it with a solid warranty, I think it could really work.

-----

How are regos going to work for electrics?

[HenryDorsetCase]

a lot of my riding now is around town or to work and this could work really really well.

A question for the lawyers: How much is the registration? Its clearly not a moped but it does not fit the cubic centimetre capacity breaks in the current fascist regime that made you a moron - potential H-bomb.

??? I may ask Gerry Brownlee

[Swoop]

I do like the looks of that Livewire bike.
Presumably, the hd fans will probably hate it.

[Crasherfromwayback]

I do like the looks of that Livewire bike.
Presumably, the hd fans will probably hate it.

Only the old stuck in the mud types. But HD desperately need young blood into the brand.

[HenryDorsetCase]

Only the old stuck in the mud types. But HD desperately need young blood into the brand.

I really like what the company is doing/has done over the past few years post GFC.

I just wish their pricing was more realistic in UnZud.

[Crasherfromwayback]

I just wish their pricing was more realistic in UnZud.

It's getting better mate. We've got it better than the Aussies have!

[Shaun Harris]

It's getting better mate. We've got it better than the Aussies have!

Is there a lot of used grey import from the USA for Harleys man due to low cost of used units there?