Three Buell Owners Speak
Three Buells, two new 2003 XB9R's with about 2,000 miles each and one old style 2001 M2 Cyclone with 23,500 miles on it. The two XB9Rs have the complete Pro-Series race kits installed and the M2 Cyclone is jetted richer. One of the XB9Rs also has a programmable ignition module which after some tuning was able to show 95.1 rear wheel horsepower on the dyno.
All three of us ride in Phoenix Arizona, in the summer with temperatures up to 117°F so far and we ride hard with a broad mix of other types of bikes. Between the group we have owned a BMW, Ducati, Hondas and Kawasakis.
With that out of the way here are our experiences so far:
Reliability:
None of the bikes have ever left us walking ever, unlike my friends CBR600F4 that left him walking twice when the battery went. Nothing has gone wrong with either of the 2003 XB9Rs yet. The 2001 M2 Cyclones only problems have been oil leaks, see below.
Oil leaks:
The two new 2003 XB9Rs have never leaked a drop.
The older style 2001 M2 Cyclone has had continual oil leak problems since day one, from the base gaskets, rocker box gaskets, and from around the fish bowl intake where the oil return lines are located.
Cooling and Overheating:
Neither of the 2003 XB9Rs have ever had a problem even when caught in traffic jams even on a 117°F day. They just will not overheat. We were about ready to melt even wearing Phoenix jackets and pouring water on ourselves.
However, the older 2001 M2 Cyclone if caught in a traffic jam tends to ping when accelerating strongly after idling through a couple of red lights when the temp is over 100°F. Poring in enough octane booster cures this. This M2 Cyclone has survived two summers in Phoenix with no other problems.
Looks and Comments:
If this is what you want, then this is what you will get, we have never, ever , and I mean never been stopped, talked to, stared at, followed and commented on so much in our lives. What kind of bike is that? What size is it? Where can you get it? Is it made in Italy? They always think its smaller then it is and made somewhere else.
Money:
Hows 40 to 45 miles per gallon sound? The XB9Rs continually will get you 45 even riding like Satan himself, and the M2 will get 40 to 41. All three will get you 50+ if driven slowly.
Dont forget insurance, man Ill tell you the crooks wanted $3,100 a year to insure me on a GSX-R for full coverage (100/300), my price for full coverage on any of the Buells, about $700 a year.
Sport Riding:
In Town:
This is why we bought the bikes, right? When riding in and round town the Pro-Series modified XB9Rs have no problems holding their own with friends on 600cc Japanese sport bikes running from light to light etc. The M2 Cyclone will be left behind some in long straights.
Acceleration:
The Pro-Series modified XB9Rs are very very close to the new Honda 2003 CBR600RR especially the one with the programmable ignition module. With that one its a dead heat or whoever comes off the line first. In all fairness our XB9R rider is a very very light 135 pounds and the Honda rider is 195 pounds so that may have some to do with, still its a very close race.
The M2 Cyclone isnt too far off the mark until you hit 2nd gear at around 50 mph and then more so as speed climbs.
My friend Jim who owns a Kawasaki ZX-12R will simply walk all over us at any speed.
Canyon and Twisty Roads:
May the best rider win. Here its a lot less clear, and this is not said near enough in any of the magazine articles. The real tight twisty road seems to belong to who ever is the best rider and the craziest rider with the biggest balls. Jim on his big Kaw is simply crazy, passing around blind corners while laying down long dark strips, cutting between cars like no tomorrow. You simply cant catch him unless you are crazy. The Buells are very different both from each other XB9R vs M2 and the Honda CBR600 in the corners. We found all of them the Kaw included to be comfortable to double the posted corner speeds, I.E. 45 mph corner at 90+. So to say one will out handle the other you would have to be better riders then us and just a little bit crazy or go to a race track.
Top Speed:
The XB9Rs with the programmable ignition module will pull quickly to 148 MPH indicated and thats it tail wind or not. The other XB9R has a top speed of 142 indicated. The M2 Cyclone pulls pretty hard to 110 indicated and will eventually pull to 124 MPH though I had it to 128 MPH with a tail wind once. If you are after top speed then you shouldnt be looking here, try the Kawasaki ZX-12R or a Suzuki GSX-1300R Hayabusa.
Brakes:
No problems, all three will do easy stoppies and no sign of fading.
Shifting:
The new XB9Rs are much better then the M2. Still no match for the Jap bikes, but, you get used to it.
