Urry's even more confused after riding the 1125R
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CONFUSED. That's how I feel after riding Buell's water-cooled 1125R. I've giving it a serious going-over on both road and track and I admit it has left me in a total quandry.
Just to clear things up let me explain why, but first a bit of history. Buell launched the 1125 last year at Laguna Seca. The test rider who went on our behalf was one of many who complained about the bike. It had issues. The fuel-injection, handling and various other bits were, to put it bluntly, awful. Buell said it was a pre-launch evaluation of the bike, went away and corrected the issues over winter and now, they say, the bike is ready hence its second launch. Which is where I come in.
So this is the first time I have ridden the bike. Now, I don’t understand really what Buell is trying to accomplish with this machine. They claim it is aimed at street riders, which is all very well and good, but the V-twin vibrates like hell at tick-over and also high revs, meaning the mirrors are all but decorations and it’s uncomfortable to ride at high revs. The actual motor has a lovely flat torque curve, which is great, but feels crude to ride, and not dissimilar to the RSV-R.
The gearbox is positive, but sounds and feels horrible to use. Then there is the handling, which is really good, as long as you have the bike set up correctly. Buell claim the bike’s suspension is tailored to your specific weight, but mine kept wanting to sit up in corners until I changed the fork settings. When I did this it handled well, but on Buell's setting it handled like the proverbial cement barrow.
Then there is the looks, which I think is ‘interesting.’ Buell had the chance to make something really special, start a fresh with the water-cooled V-twin and instead it has made a bike that, again, will only really appeal to Buell enthusiasts. If they had gone a totally different route and created something mad it could have opened up a whole new range of potential customers, as it is they didn’t.
So, to re-cap. The engine's powerful but vibrates too much (despite the three balancer shafts), the handling's quirky unless the suspension's precisely set up and it looks, well, rather odd. Owners of the XB12R will probably love the bike, but there are better V-twins out there at a similar price.
