Seen for the first time at Daytona, the Super Touring 1190 seems to be approaching production but we will have to wait a couple more years. And yet, looking closely, it seems like you already know it…
March 2, 2023
Few American engineers have been able to warm our hearts of sensitive enthusiasts as much Erik Buell. After the now distant 2009 mother Harley-Davidson had stopped the production of motorcycles with her brand, for years we have continued to wait for his return maybe under the effigy EBR (Erik Buell Racing). In the meantime, however, things have gone a little differently. EBR repossessed the Buell brand and refounded Buell Motorcycle. Leading the company, however, is Bill Melvin. The founder Erik Buell, on the other hand, has not been on the board of directors for some time and is dedicated to the development of his electric two-wheeler projects with his new company called – with a certain appreciable irony – Fuell.
Returning instead to Buell Motorcycle, we know that from 2021 production has been established in Michigan (previously it was in Wisconsin) and that it has even announced the arrival of ten models starting from 2024. The first to be presented were the super sports Hammerhead 1190 and the naked variant 1190 SX. then it was the turn of the incredible enduro Baja Dune Racer and a few days ago instead the news of the cruiser created in collaboration with Roland Sands Design and called Super Cruiser 1190. As can be seen from the acronyms, they are all based on the same mechanics, i.e. the 72° V-twin derived from the 1125 Rotax which in the past had equipped the very last Buells of the HD period. For him we speak of the beauty of 185 CV at over 10,000 rpm e 138 Nm a 8.000 giri. Considerable horsepower and torque, but what they do not have to deal with the Euro 5 legislation at the moment.
Tra Ulysses e 1125R
On the same mechanics would also be born the Super Touring announced exactly one year ago at the Daytona Bike Week and which also in terms of style, while retaining a certain originality, brings back memories of another Buell from the past, i.e. the XB12X Ulysses. Do you remember her?
At the time it was not the most popular model of the American brand (although like many others today it knows a renewed historical interest), but it was talked about a lot also because expectations were high and we were at the beginning of the fashion for road maxi enduros. The Ulysses, however, was equipped with the air-cooled twin-cylinder Harley and did not yet take advantage of the latest generation platform, i.e. the one based on the liquid-cooled Rotax 1125 engine and the new frame.
Returning to the present, the Super Touring would seem to be close to production and from a technical point of view it seems much closer to the 1125 series than to the XB12X series. In addition to the engine and the typical frame with internal tank, we find in the images other details of the Buell tradition such as the front brake with perimeter disc. We would be curious to know how an ABS system can be applied to this type of solution. For the rest, the Super Touring displays the equipment of a great traveler with a decidedly protective windshield, a comfortable saddle for two and a pair of aluminum suitcases in full adventure style.
What to expect?
We’re pretty sure Buell Motorcycle will bring a more refined version of the Super Touring that we saw last year to the next Daytona Bike Week and maybe we’ll even get some more information about it. The rumors about its production, however, at the moment speak no more than 2023 or even 2024 but even 2025 presumably due to supply problems. Expected a price of about $22,000 for the Super Touring and those interested can already book one through the site with just $50 deposit. The amount, we read, will be returned if the bike does not go into production… As if to say that at this moment a lot of uncertainty remains in the Buell house. There is not even news of a possible export to the old continent.
