Tpoppa

I get that the 1125 pods put off more than a few people...out of curiousity what's not to like about the brakes? I always thought they worked well enough and they give a handling advantage.

The 08 (trouble free) stator was sourced by Rotax. Made in Croatia, I believe. The 09-10 part doesn't show a 'made in' country, 99% chance that means made in USA. An educated guess is that HD sourced it from the lowest bidder with VERY limited testing. It looks just like other HD sourced stators. Buell's or HD's fault? It's hard to know without inside info.

I expect this to be a small run of pricey hand built bikes. I'll be surpised if more than 100 are made for 2011. There are already handful of 1190RR's racing abroad (not legal in any US series). I just read that a 1190RR clinched the championship for the Euro Sound of Thunder Series. http://www.erikbuellracing.com/motorcycles/1190RR/

Many have argued that HD's lineup is stale. Same old products sprayed flat black, etc. They need an all new fresher model to generate some intereste among younger riders. Unfortunately, their options are limited. They tried this to a degree with the V Rod. In many ways the V Rod is the best bike in HD's lineup, but sales haven't been good. HD's failthful even went as far as "Honda Davidson" and "not a REAL Harley." Their customer base obviously doesn't like change. The XR1200 was another swing and a miss. To avoid pissing off existing customers, they could introduce a newer, sportier model under a new brand name (sounds familiar). The MV plan was an abortion. I don't have much HD love, but I am really curious to see their next move.

Yes. If revenue is down by X, and you cut costs by X+1. It looks like you're doing better. Honestly, if HD didn't do that their stock would have tanked (even more) and they'd have a bigger problem to deal with. The problem is slashing jobs is only a temporary boost to the bottom line, and can hurt your abilty to make $$ in the future.

No they didn't. See JRMiii's link.

Harley has a real problem on their hands. I'm not suggesting they'll go under, but I do see their market share shrinking dramatically. If your demographic is aging, and your appeal to young riders is limited, what do you do? Build a bike that appeals to younger riders with some REAL on road capability, and price it competively??? FUCK NO! You build a chromed out trike for geezers that are too old and weak to swing their leg over a Road King. Oh, and you better charge upwards of $27k for it. How many Social Security checks is that??? http://www.harley-davidson.com/en_US/Motorcycles/street-glide-trike.html#/gallery

Not exactly news, but an interesting read. http://money.cnn.com/2010/09/17/autos/harley_davidson_fall.fortune/index.htm?hpt=C2

I sold a gun years ago that turned up in a school in the hands of a young kid. I know this because a lawyer came to my door asking questions about it. I used common sense and took down the guys info, driver's license #, and had him sign a bill of sale. I showed it to the lawyer and that was the last I ever heard of it. I did nothing wrong, but I would have had to explain that in court if I didn't use a little common sense. YMMV

So...thats a 3rd degree Fucktard? Hard to argue with that.

I would't bother trying to fix the rear shock. You can find one that works on ebay for $25. For the brakes, change the fluid and bleed the lines. If that doesn't fix it you may need to replace bushings.

Silver lining?

I don't know your bike specifically, but running a bit rich can actually improve mpgs. Has your fueling been modified from stock?

Scuffs as in it was tipped over?

I'd rock it. Coming from an 883 it'll feel like a space ship

For starters this is the 2010 Z1000

You have been selected to pay the random driving tax. Other revenues are down, so police write more tickets...I mean keep the streets safer :rolleyes:

Many would disagree with that. Hanging in his office is a T-Shirt that says FUHD in big letters. BWB is basically one big Buell commercial. If you can filter through the BS, there is a lot of good Buell technical knowledge...by far more knowledge than at any dealer. Anyway, sucks your motor ate itself.

What failed on your motor? I would have little confidence in any of the local dealers installing a new motor. I've owned 20-25 bikes, most have been I4s. IMO, Buell (the company) didn't have enough resources ($$, time , people, etc) to test the 1125 as thoroughly as it should have been tested. Plus, HD wasn't exactly making life easy for them (see article above). Despite that, they pushed to get a competitive bike on the street. Out of the box, they have some teething issues. Most are simple quick warranty fixes, although I'm not happy with HD's method of addrerssing the charging system. I still think it's a cool, unique bike, with top notch handling. Dealer support pretty much sucks. Mine had charging issues that the dealer couldn't solve. I made enough of a stink about it that they flew someone from WI to fix it. I wouldn't worry too much about those in charge of a particular web forum. There are other forums that share your opinions about Blake, Court, etc.

Who's bashing I4s? The mod of BWB...Blake? Yep, pretty much an idiot.

I really want to ride a 2010 Z1k.

Not a carry gun, but I'll trade you an very accurate target revolver. A mint Taurus 94, 9 shot, 5". If not, bump. Sigmas are accurate and reliable, never understood the mixed reviews. Mine has been through thousands of rounds.

So, if HD wouldn't have pulled the rug out from under Buell (which had been growing faster than HD itself). We would have: An American produced 450cc dirtbike - design completed and tooling had been paid for. An American produced middleweight 3 cyl sportbike - design completed and tooling underway. An American produced 1190cc Buell Barracuda Superbike (without radiator pods) - design completed and tooling had been paid for. ...and a few hundred more American manufacturing jobs in Wisconson. Instead, if you want a sporty American bike you can pick up a 550lb, 85 hp, HD XR1200. Take your time, because they'll be sitting in the showroom for awhile.

fore-mentioned article: http://www.froggypwns.com/buellpdfs/Cycle%20World%20-%20May2010%20-%20Demise%20of%20Buell%20and%20Barracuda%202.pdf

I think that any one with any industry knowlegde could list the reasons why selling Buells in HD dealships was a poor fit. You can also make a case that HD divesting Buell could be a good decision. However, there is no business case that favors closing a brand (at a cost in the hundreds of millions) with buyers lined up, that doesn't directly compete with your other lines. It's been suggested by people with some inside knowledge that HD was concerned about potentially looking foolish if Buell were to have more success with HD out of the equation. Perhaps this is true. The May Cycle World is the most factual article I have seen.