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At the time we were testing the Buell S1 Lightning, Buell was bought by Harley-Davidson, so we suppose it'll now be called a Harley-Davidson Buell now. Clearly H-D have seen the growth in Buell and the different market that the bikes attract as being a useful diversification for the factory. For us, it's the first time we've tested a Harley-based machine (not the first we've ridden, mind) but as you'll know from the rest of the magazine, we're not exactly cruiser- orientated, so the Buell S1 is probably the most attractive of the "American iron" available. Based on the Harley Sportster 1200 evolution engine, the S1 is a short wheelbase bike with Buell's unique suspension system (utilising WP components) and obviously aimed at the Ducati monster market - stylish urban cruiser with a performance edge. This year Buell are offering the S1 and a performance upgraded White Lightning (which we'll test soon) at very competitive prices. There's a great deal of prejudice about H-D and Buell in the UK. H-D are either fashion accessories or Hell's Angels' bikes, and Buell are just ugly - it's that airbox isn't it? However if you've previously dismissed Harleys for being poser bikes or berated Buell for their ugliness then please read on - we've learned the error of our ways, and we'd encourage anyone to take a test ride and disagree with us... Two faces
The optional "Molten orange" paint job, with candy blue frame and wheels, is dazzling. The pictures just don't do it justice. The Tango of bikes. Undountedly eye-catching, it caused one or two differences of opinion, but we reckon if you're going to have a Lightning, then why not have a blinding paint job too - it's superb. The quality of the paint is excellent, and it certainly turns heads both on the move and parked up. View the bike from the left, and it's a pretty thing. The styling is half flat-track, half Triumph Hurricane, and the satin finish on the V-twin engine suits the paint and other trimmings (such as the smart aluminium fuel cap) very well indeed. The stubby tail and overall dimensions make the bike look small and purposeful, yet it is surprisingly tall overall. The tiny seat looks a little low on comfort (surprisingly it isn't), and while the rear mudguard looks unusual it's not obtrusive. Walk round to the right-hand side and the other face shows - the ugly one! Everyone we know has remarked negatively (both before and after the test) about the airbox and exhaust pipe, and despite what we now know about the bike's performance we can't deny that the S1 possesses probably the ugliest two components in motorcycling in these two. The massive plastic carbuncle may well be functional in giving some air space for the engine's induction, but there's no getting away from the fact that it looks more like a sandwich box than a motorcycle part. Similarly the exhausts wind around the engine and then disappear underneath the bike to terminate in a steel object which looks like a car collector box rather than an intrinsic part of the design - it's covered in ugly blobs of weld and presumably is painted matt black to try and hide it... Firing up the Buell was a typically Harley experience; from the time you spent looking for the ignition switch (it's under the tank between the cylinders, which admittedly keeps the clocks looking clean) to the industrial car- sounding clunk of the starter motor engaging. The "small" (according to Harley) engine rumbled into life and vibrated like nothing else at low revs. Clocks shook, the rear mudguard shook, you could feel the vibes through the handlebars and when you laid your gloves on the bike they slid off! Obviously set very lean, it took a fair while on the choke to get settled and respond readily to throttle. But then rev the engine, even at a standstill, and the Buell's isolating engine mounts showed their worth - above 3,000 rpm the engine smoothed out beautifully. Clonked into gear and the bike leapt forward on the clutch easily at low revs - but the low speed vibes were intrusive, and the bike just urged you to rev it, rather than change up early and enjoy the bottom end tug as you might expect. Of course things are all relative - the red line is at 7,000, with a yellow at 6,000, so it's not very long before you're changing up again anyway! And the Harley gearbox didn't like to be hurried either - hit the pedal flippantly and it either wouldn't change or would lurch with a crash into the next gear or neutral with equal likelihood. But being firm and precise, changing was completely reliable and trouble-free. The 1200 is as sweet as you like when accelerating hard - things only slow down above 110 mph. It's also great as a cruising engine; throttling back at around 85mph the engine was silky smooth, even-revving and would actually make a great tourer (other ergonomics make a bit of a difference though). Tucking right in and finding a long stretch of road won't get the speedo reading above around 130, which is probably around 120 in real money. Talking of ergonomics, for the Ed (5 foot 10 in his wifes stockings), the riding position was as near perfect as you could get for a "standard" bike. The reach to the bars was just enough to lean you comfortably forward into the wind without stretching, while the footrests were positioned high and far enough back to spread the weight between feet and saddle evenly. And despite the size, the tiny seat never caused any complaints even after a couple of 200-mile days; it's quite high, but because it's narrow it was easy to place your feet on the ground at a standstill. The engine sounds great to the rider, but unfortunately the exhaust is not only a styling disaster but also gives the bike a most emasculated "flapping" note. The closest we could come is the sort of sound we used to get when we pegged playing cards in the wheels of our push bikes as kids! Still, at least there's a performance version available... Hit the bends
One of the most obvious improvements over the original Sportster shows at the first junction - the Buell has brakes! Well a very, very good front brake, in fact - powerful, smooth, with good initial bite and easily capable of hauling the bike down quickly without fuss. In fact it's the sort of brake that makes you realise that your own bike's are knackered (Deputy Ed claimed his Africa Twin's had given up completely when he switched back!). When we picked the bike up the suspension was set very soft at the rear, which failed to give any kind of ride at all - over smooth roads it bounced, while on even slightly rougher roads it bottomed out. Fortunately all was resolved in a most civilised way - the Buell Web site has the bike's manual on-line, including how to adjust the suspension! Other manufacturers get your acts together... The suspension runs parallel to the exhaust, underneath the engine (and frame) and is compressed directly by a crank on the swinging arm. Adjustment for rebound damping is made by a knob close to the front mount of the shock (and the exhaust pipe - ouch) while compression is a large collar at the other end. Preload is adjusted by screwing nuts up or down on two threaded rods which run either side of the spring. Twiddling of several spanners in various directions eventually got the preload up to a better level (3/4 inch sag) and things instantly improved. After that we went up two notches from standard on fork compression damping, and three on rear compression, and the bike was transformed - a "Harley" that has brakes and handles too - surely not! The Buell does handle - plenty good enough for most people, and certainly good enough to encourage regular knee-down country bends and roundabouts (and scare a few sports bike riders into the bargain). Once the suspension was sorted the bike was fine on smooth sweeping bends too. The only fly in the ointment was a slight harshness at the rear that we just couldn't seem to dial out; just a lack of compliance that meant that the occasional jarring came through to the rider, and over short sharp bumps you could get pitched up out the saddle. Nevertheless it didn't take much effort or nerve to ride right to the edge of the Dunlop Sportmaxes (which aren't the grippiest of tyres) even on fairly cold days. Despite very fast steering reponse there was no hint of a weave at high speed either; in fact the only thing preventing extended ton-plus touring was the wind pressure on your neck (and the speed limits of course, officer!). However the bike had a tendency to stand up mid-corner when you hit the brakes, and while we could minimise the effect by tuning the forks, the only way to get rid of something like that is a change of geometry! Maybe the Buell's just reminding you it's not a GSX-R... Lifestyle is good
Obviously the Ducati Monster/Urban Streetfighter image has a lot to do with the S1's concept, yet the bike proved to be much more than just a styling exercise. Fuel economy, for instance, was amazing - no matter what we did to it we couldn't get it to use more than 50 mpg - ever! Perhaps continuous thrashing round a track might drop this, but running at almost a constant ton for 50 miles couldn't! Judging the range was a little tricky, because it wasn't until we handed the bike back that we realised from our fill-up figures that the bike was running onto reserve with another 5 litres still in the tank at least - maybe more - but reserve was hit typically at 115 miles, so a safe 150 should be easily attainable. Similarly the belt rear drive was completely unremarkable - quiet, clean, maintenance free; after all you don't want to mess up your designer jeans with nasty oily chains, do you? Carrying a pillion would be a neat trick as it stands - the footrests are there, but unless both you and your other half are smaller than John Kocinski (and are VERY good friends) you can forget it so far as the seat is concerned. But then Buell have thought of that too; an optional larger seat section is available which is a bit less cute, but a whole lot more practical. If the Buell was bought purely as an urban prowler it would be wasted. In fact we were rather surprised at how poorly it performed in the " urban cycle". Those low speed vibes really got to you after crawling through traffic for an hour - they even made your teeth rattle. While the bike steered quickly, the wide frame rails at the headstock restrict the lock (the only lockstops are rubber pads on the frame members) and made manouvering at walking pace a pain. It took around 10 minutes of traffic jam idling to make the engine all hot and bothered too - many times it would cough and splutter and spit back at you, and once or twice died completely. Get the bike on the open road again and it soon got back into it's stride though - keep the revs above 3,000 (around 70 in top) and you are in the sweet zone. Conclusion
We warned you at the beginning of the test that the S1 would change a few preconceptions - it certainly changed ours. In fact the bike got more miles under its belt than many others have in the past during the two-week test period, and it was universally enjoyed. Good bits - the smooth engine at higher revs, the paint, the front brake, fuel economy, the idiot lights, belt drive, the left side of the bike. Bad bits - low speed vibration, airbox, exhaust, low speed carburation. During the time we had it only two niggles caused problems - the rear mudguard stay broke on one side allowing the mudguard too wobble a bit more than usual, and the footrest rubbers rotated on the pegs, which sounds really trivial but becomes immensely annoying very quickly indeed! As an only bike, the Buell could certainly commute, tour and go out on a Sunday blast; and very enjoyably too. But it's in its element on those sunny Sundays whilst blasting along smooth A roads at around 80 or 90 mph - everything just falls into place, and some serious mile-eating becomes very easy to do. Buell have already addressed most of the "bad bits" mentioned above with a bike called the White Lightning. It has a smaller, carbon fibre airbox (more like a Harley), a prettier and louder exhaust, billet alloy footrests and a tuned engine (and pearl paint, etc..). It's only around 900 quid more than a standard Lightning and we're waiting for Buell to run in the test bike before we get back on to them - can't wait! Engine:Air-cooled, 4-stroke, 45 degree V-Twin, 2-valve OHV
Bore x Stroke:88.9 x 96.5mm
Displacement:1203cc
Compression ratio:10:1
Carbs:Single Keihin CV
Max. Power:86bhp @ 6000rpm
Max. Torque:79 ft. lbs. @5400rpm
Ignition:CDI
Starter:Electric
Transmission:Five-speed
Final Drive:Kevlar® belt
Wheelbase: 1,410mm
Seat Height:749mm
Ground Clearance:132mm
Fuel Capacity:15.14 litres
Wheels:3-spoke cast Tyres: Front - 120/70 ZRl7
Rear - 170/60 ZR17
Suspension:
Front - WP 4054
Rear - WP damper with adjustable preload, ompression and rebound damping
Brakes:
Front - 340mm disc with six-piston caliper
Rear - 230mm disc with single-piston caliper
Dry Weight:193kg
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