Misplaced Pages

#219780

54-554: Erik Buell founded Erik Buell Racing in November 2009 following the shutdown of his previous company, Buell Motorcycle Company , by parent company/majority stakeholder Harley-Davidson . Erik Buell Racing's first efforts were directed toward production of complete, race-only motorcycles and parts based on the Buell 1125R production model, under license from Harley-Davidson, to support privateer racers . On July 1, 2013, Hero MotoCorp ,

108-479: A 49.2% stake in Erik Buell Racing LLC, for $ 25 million. The remaining stake is held by founding chairman and chief executive Erik Buell. It was announced in 2019 that Buell has partnered with French financiers via an Indiegogo campaign to form an Electric Vehicle company called "Fuell". This new company will offer an electric bicycle called the "Flluid" and motorcycle called the "Fllow". The Fllow

162-450: A 51% interest. Harley-Davidson bought all of Buell Motorcycle in 2003, and distributed Buell motorcycles through select Harley-Davidson dealerships. Erik Buell remained responsible for the engineering and design. Buell led the company to create some of the most innovative, usable sport bikes under the XB series of Buell Motorcycles. Using inventions like a twin spar hollow aluminum frame to house

216-475: A bike which is built in just enough numbers to satisfy the production rule. (Typically 5,000 units sold worldwide). That bike, the Honda Interceptor VF750F was a huge departure from the air-cooled, four valve per cylinder CB-750F launched in 1979. It featured a square tube steel perimeter frame which wrapped around the outside of the engine, rather than the older hidden round-tube frames. It

270-427: A buyer experienced in motorcycle manufacture to re-establish the business. Liquid Asset Partners has kept the company assets intact and indicates they will continue to do so until a buyer or major investor can be found. Motorcycle production resumed on March 1, 2016 and the first new motorcycle, a limited edition "Stars and Stripes" themed 1190RX rolled off the assembly line on March 17, 2016. EBR's website indicates that

324-475: A complete surprise to him. The September 2011 issue of Motorcyclist magazine named Erik Buell the 2011 Motorcyclist Of The Year. AMA Superbike Championship AMA Superbike Championship is an American motorcycle racing series that has been run every year beginning in 1976. For most of its existence it has been considered the premier motorcycle road racing series in the United States. It

378-416: A few 21st century sportbikes. Buell's design incorporated the engine as a fully stressed member of the frame. Capping the engineering firsts in this design was Buell's use of a horizontally mounted suspension located beneath the engine utilizing a shock that operated in reverse of the conventional compression-rebound design. Fifty RR1000 models were produced during 1987-1988 before the supply of XR1000 engines

432-407: A group of long-time Buell employees and supporters worked in secret to reassemble this bike using as many original pieces as they could find, hand crafting any missing pieces to bring it as close as possible to its 1983 racing condition. A new Buell 850 cc engine out of a D-sports racing car was used as the powerplant. The rebuilt bike was given to Erik Buell at the 1998 Race of Champions event, as

486-538: A motorcycle manufacturer based in India, acquired 49.2% stake in the company for $ 25 million. The two companies announced that EBR will distribute Hero motorcycles and scooters in North America starting in the summer of 2014. On April 15, 2015, Erik Buell Racing filed for receivership , with a reported $ 20 million of liabilities, and ceased all operations including closing down their website. On August 7, 2015, it

540-459: A new motorcycle road racing series taking advantage of the newest large displacement production road-going motorcycles of up to 1000cc's that were increasingly popular with American riders. The series was initially called "Superbike Production" and was initially modeled on a regional series that had been run in California in the previous years. Up until this the most prestigious racing series in

594-556: A podium finish at the 1983 Road America Battle of the Twins National, so he had confidence in this engine's potential in the sport market. Around this powerhouse, he designed a stiff, extremely light chassis that incorporated the unconventional rubber-mounting system known as " the Uniplanar " that became a patented engineering trademark of Buell sport bikes. The wrap-around fairing design had lower aerodynamic drag than

SECTION 10

#1732793890220

648-541: A racing shop near Bergamo . EBR became the first American OEM to earn Superbike World Championship points when Larry Pegram, entered as wild card, finished 14th in Race 2 at the Laguna Seca round. For the 2015 season , Team Hero EBR race squad entered two riders, American Larry Pegram and Italian Niccolò Canepa , who competed in four events achieving some finishes, before the team folded due to financial failure of

702-684: A six-piston front brake caliper . Later that year, Buell introduced a single-seat version of the RS1200 model, dubbed the RSS1200. It won approval of the industry press for its lean, clean lines. Combined production of RSS and RS models totaled 325 through 1993. In 1987, Devin Battley smuggled Erik Buell onto a cruise ship for the Harley-Davidson annual dealer's meeting. Battley told Harley-Davidson then-CEO, Vaughn Beals , that Buell could give

756-475: A water-cooled 750 cc Square Four two-stroke engine. (The Barton was featured prominently in the 1980 motion picture "Silver Dream Racer".) The bike was poorly manufactured and was constructed from cheap materials. The engine was plagued with issues. Buell felt that with his engineering background, he could improve the engine. As parts failed he re-engineered them to increase reliability, and in many cases saw performance gains with his modifications. The chassis

810-547: A young age. In his teens, Buell began motorcycling. His first motorcycle was an Italian Parilla 90cc moped . He later attended the University of Pittsburgh . Buell raced motocross before becoming interested in road racing in his early 20s. He became a part-time road racer on a Ducati in the AMA 'Superbike' class and a Yamaha TZ750 in 'Formula One', despite the aging race program at Yamaha. During this period, Buell

864-510: Is sanctioned by the AMA American Motorcyclist Association since its inception, and the promotion of the series has been licensed to several organizations over the years. Since 2015 the series has been run and promoted by MotoAmerica , who also manage several other AMA professional road racing championships, including the popular 600cc Supersport class. The AMA Superbike Championship was created in 1976 as

918-560: Is touted to have an urban ride range up to 150 miles, fast charge time under 30 minutes, and the acceleration of a superbike with a curb weight of only 400 lbs. Fuell filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy on October 16th, 2024. In 2002, Buell was inducted into the AMA Motorcycle Hall of Fame . The very first (prototype) RW750 eventually found its fate as pieces in Erik's barn workshop, as is common for development machines. In 1998,

972-600: The EBR 1190RS , a sport motorcycle with a 1,190 cc (72.6 cu in) 72° V-twin engine delivering 175 hp (130 kW). Released as a 2012 model, only 100 are to be made. On 16 October 2013, Erik Buell Racing officially unveiled their first production motorcycle, the EBR 1190RX. Like the previous 1190RS, the 1190RX is a sport motorcycle with 1,190 cc (72.6 cu in) 72° V-twin engine , but delivering 185 hp (138 kW) and 101.6 lb-ft (peak) of torque. On Wednesday, June 11, 2014, at

1026-537: The 1000cc four cylinder bikes producing up to 150 horsepower were able to achieve were overwhelming the stock frames, suspension and tires of the era. Thus for 1983 the AMA, working with the top teams, decided to reduce the maximum capacity of the Superbike class to 750cc. Honda, which had been competing in the series on their CB 750F was ready with a new bike in 1983, initially planned as a "homologation special" that is,

1080-446: The 1190RS. EBR riders achieved several podium finishes. Riders have included Geoff May, Danny Eslick, Cory West, Larry Pegram , Mike Baldwin, Travis Peartree and Aaron Yates. EBR entered the 2014 Superbike World Championship season fielding two 1190RX for Geoff May and Aaron Yates. The American company signed a partnership with Italian team QB Racing, managed by Giulio Bardi and Claudio Quintarelli, who provided logistical support and

1134-452: The 500 cc-dominated Formula One class (the Barton engine was designed prior to 1978 and was grandfathered into this class by AMA rules). He found some success at the local club levels despite the grossly overpowered, unrefined engine. In 1982, Barton closed, and Buell was given the option to purchase the entire stock of spare engines and parts, drawings, and the rights to produce and sell

SECTION 20

#1732793890220

1188-489: The Buell 1125R and 1125CR(2009) producing 146 bhp. On October 15, 2009, amid the economic crisis , Harley-Davidson announced that production of Buell motorcycles would cease on October 30, 2009. In November 2009, after being dropped by Harley-Davidson, Buell launched Erik Buell Racing . The firm produced and supported race-only versions of the Buell 1125R . His most recent creations, unrestricted by Harley-Davidson, were

1242-473: The EBR 1190RS, the 1190RX and the 1190SX. The 1190 models were powered by the similar water cooled, 72 degree V-twin that powered the Buell 1125. The engines were re-engineered with a displacement of 1190cc, with a substantial power boost to 185 hp and 102 ft-lbs. of torque. During July 2013 the Wall Street Journal reported Hero MotoCorp , a maker of high-end street motorcycles bought

1296-731: The FIM MotoGP and World Superbike Championships). KRAVE organized multiple championship road racing series for the AMA, which are collectively known as the MotoAmerica Road Racing Series beginning in 2015. MotoAmerica chose to align the multiple racing classes closely with those used by FIM, which simplifies the work that manufacturers must do to compete in both series. The most successful riders included Doug Chandler , Scott Russell , Ben Spies , Miguel Duhamel and Mat Mladin , who holds several series records including seven championships. Five non-Americans won

1350-607: The Japanese bikes produced more horsepower, the European bikes tended to have superior handling. The inaugural series in 1976 was won by rider Reg Pridmore on a BMW R90S owned by Team Butler and Smith. European machines won every race in 1976 and the first half of the 1977 series, but after two seasons of work the Team Racecrafters Kawasaki KZ 1000, again piloted by Reg Pridmore, won the first race for

1404-473: The Japanese. With the advent later that year of the better handling Suzuki GS 1000, the less powerful twin-cylinder European bike's race domination was over. As the series gained more and more attention in America the factories took note, and in 1980 Honda entered the series with a factory team and brought a top rider from their stable, Freddie Spencer, to compete on their behalf. Up until this point Honda and

1458-554: The RS1200 model, a two-seat version of the RR1200 marketed to riders who demanded both world-class performance and desired passenger capacity. 105 of these models were produced through 1990. In 1991, Buell incorporated a five-speed transmission mated to the 1203 cc engine. Buell responded to Harley's revised engine mounting points by further improving an already innovative design: the RS chassis. Stainless steel braided brake lines and

1512-515: The TZ series) and the competing Hondas were selling for around $ 30,000. Buell offered his RW750s under the 'Buell Motor Company' marque for $ 15,900 to press accolades. The American Machinist's Union Racing Team bought, tested and raced the first publicly sold RW750 ('RW750 number 2'), and gave it glowing marks. In the Spring of 1985 the AMA announced that the Superbike class would supplant Formula One as

1566-536: The United States was the AMA Grand National Series which required competition in five different formats 1/4 mile, 1/2 mile, 1 mile and TT courses, which were all run on dirt ovals, and pavement racing. Europe, under the guidance of the FIM, or Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme , had a much more developed motorcycle road racing world championship, but it didn't include any American venues in

1620-421: The company a performance image with no risk to Harley. They set up a table for Buell to speak with dealers; by the end of the cruise he had deposits and orders for 25 motorcycles. Attendees such as Bill Bartels, Don Tilley, Devin Battley and Frank Ulicki later become some of Buells most successful dealers. In the 1990s, Buell reformed his house as the ' Buell Motorcycle Company ' in which Harley-Davidson invested

1674-401: The company is establishing a new dealer network to sell the newly produced motorcycles. The first focus of Erik Buell Racing, the 1190RR was an upgraded and restyled version of the Buell 1125R . Used for professional racing in several race classes, the bike has been a part of several race and championship placings. In June 2011, Erik Buell Racing officially announced their first street model,

Erik Buell Racing - Misplaced Pages Continue

1728-524: The engine. Buell did so, but the shipment was delayed, and he missed the opportunity to make use of this new equipment and knowledge for the 1983 racing season. This delayed the development of the engine. With the stunted development, Buell's inquiry with his employer to gain engineering and financial support was declined due to reliability problems with the Barton engine. Buell then quit his job at Harley-Davidson to devote more time to racing. By late 1984, Yamaha TZs were scarce (Yamaha had ceased production of

1782-621: The famed Indianapolis Motor Speedway in Indianapolis, Indiana, Erik Buell Racing officially unveiled their next production motorcycle, the EBR 1190SX. The 1190SX is a streetfighter version of the 1190RX. On November 18, 2016, EBR announced for Spring of 2017, the Black Lightning a blacked-out version of the 1190 platform. Key changes included: different gearing, bike lowered 2 inches, a lower seat height, lower foot pegs, higher bars, and an optional comfort seat. Another street model

1836-477: The few venues where FIM style Formula 1 500cc machines raced in the United States, but by 1988 the speeds the machines were reaching on the high-banked tracks were simply too high for safety given the tire technology of the time. In 1985 the race format moved from GP bikes to Superbikes, and it became part of the AMA Superbikes series. This increased the visibility of Superbikes even further, and cemented in

1890-427: The fuel and create chassis rigidity, a hollow swing arm to house the oil, and an underslung exhaust pipe, he was able to keep the center of gravity low for optimum handling. He used the 45° V-twin Harley-Davidson, re-worked to produce 30% more horsepower than the standard HD Sportster engine. For the 2008 model year, Buell introduced a water cooled, 1125cc, 72 degree V-twin engine developed in cooperation with Rotax for

1944-463: The inaugural 750cc Superbike championship, but Honda went on to win the next five years in a row of series championships with the Interceptor. As the popularity of the series grew the long established Daytona 200 motorcycle race, which had begun on a course constructed on the beach in 1935, and had moved to the asphalt auto-racing track in 1961, switched to Superbikes. The race had been one of

1998-658: The main EBR business. Erik Buell Erik F. Buell (born April 2, 1950, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania ) is the founder, former chairman and chief operations officer of the Buell Motorcycle Company , which eventually merged with Harley-Davidson Corp. Buell is a pioneer of modern race motorcycle technology. Buell is also the founder of Erik Buell Racing . Buell was raised on a farm in Gibsonia, Pennsylvania , and learned to maintain machinery at

2052-484: The mainstream stuff. I can't talk about what was coming, but I will say some of it is much different than anybody would have expected. Stuff that is 18 months away from full-volume production that people would go "Holy s—t! EBR did that?!" It was all much higher volume and lower price." Erik Buell Racing has competed in the AMA Superbike Championship since 2011, initially using the 1190RR and then

2106-553: The minds of many Americans that the Superbikes were now the de facto premier motorcycle racers, eclipsing the FIM 500cc series, with their unavailable two-stroke racing machines. In late 2002 AMA Pro Racing, the promoter in charge of the AMA Superbike Championship at the time decided to open up the series to 1000cc production bikes. Their plan called for allowing near-stock 1000cc machines to compete against

2160-517: The other Japanese manufacturers were more focused on the International Grand Prix and in particular its premier 500cc Series, which was run on purpose built 500cc racing motorcycles. By 1980 the 500cc class was completely dominated by two-stroke machines, which at the same time had been phased out for road use in many countries. The American Superbike Series was suddenly more relevant and appealing to manufacturers. The speeds that

2214-524: The premier road racing class for the 1986 racing season, and the Formula One class would be discontinued, leaving Buell with no market for his creation. Despite this setback, Buell forged ahead and designed his first entry into the sportbike market, the RR1000. Using his connections at Harley-Davidson, he acquired a sizeable cache of unused XR1000 racing engines, the powerplant of a model he had ridden to

Erik Buell Racing - Misplaced Pages Continue

2268-510: The series popular with fans, racers and after several seasons motorcycle manufacturers took a direct interest and began sponsoring teams and riders. At the inception of the series there was stiff competition between the more experienced teams racing European twin cylinder bikes, which included the BMW R90S, Ducati and MotoGuzzi motorcycles and the teams racing the more powerful Japanese inline fours from Kawasaki, Suzuki, Honda and Yamaha. While

2322-495: The series. In 1986, the AMA recognized the changing nature of motorcycle racing by making the Grand National Championship into a dirt-track-only series; road-racing rounds were branched off into a separate championship which was named the AMA Superbike Championship. The fact that the rules were set up to compete using the same large displacement production bikes that people saw in the showrooms quickly made

2376-474: The then-current state of the art 750cc Superbikes that were the incumbent series competition machines. In addition, they would be allowed to increase their capacity to 800cc. The complicated rules allowed "claiming" of the 1000cc stock machines, a technique where competitors can buy the winning machine from the owner for a set amount of money, and intended to keep modifications down in near-stock racing classes. Ultimately this complicated mix of machines and rules

2430-603: Was a lost cause, and Buell designed his own chassis. The engine often failed before completing a race. Buell first raced a prototype of his bike, using the mostly stock Barton engine, in the summer of 1982 at the AMA National on the Pocono Speedway . He dubbed it the RW750 (RW standing for Road Warrior). During testing at Talladega, AL , the RW750 was clocked at a top speed of 178 mph (286 km/h). He raced in

2484-415: Was a water cooled V4 with four valves per-cylinder. Originally Honda had planned only to make enough to meet the requirement for production racing, but the bike was extremely popular, even at the price which was higher than the older CB-750, and it went into full production. Honda was unsuccessful in winning the championship with the new bike in 1983, as Wayne Rainey riding on Team Muzzy Kawasaki GPz 750 won

2538-576: Was announced that Bruce Belfer, an engineer from New Jersey with a background in metal fabrication, had agreed to purchase Buell's manufacturing assets for $ 2.25 million, while Hero MotoCorp. of India paid $ 2.8 million for Buell's consulting business. Belfer stated his intention to work with company founder Erik Buell to re-establish the business as soon as possible, including a manufacturing base in East Troy where Buell previously employed 130 people producing high-end motorcycles. The deal failed as Belfer

2592-452: Was blocked by the judge, to allow more time for any potential new buyers to prepare their submissions, re-scheduling the hearing for early January 2016. In January 2016, the remnants of Erik Buell Racing were sold to Liquid Asset Partners for just over $ 2 million, with the proceeds going to creditors (including Mito Tech and Porsche Design Group ) and to former employees for unpaid wages. Liquid Asset Partners stated an intention to try to find

2646-432: Was depleted. Buell saw the newly-developed 1203 cc Harley-Davidson Evolution engine being used in their 'Sportster' model line as solid base platform to further tune the performance and handling qualities of his bikes. The RR1200 model was introduced during 1988 with a redesigned chassis to incorporate a modified version of this different engine design. Through 1989, 65 were produced for sale. In 1989, Buell introduced

2700-445: Was employed as a motorcycle mechanic during the day and engineering student taking night classes at the University of Pittsburgh . After receiving his degree in engineering in 1979, Buell took a job at Harley-Davidson after he went to Milwaukee, WI to obtain an interview and "beat my way in the door," as Buell put it. While at Harley-Davidson, he was involved with concept motorcycles , Porsche -designed "Nova" V-four program, and

2754-707: Was hinted on the Erik Buell Racing Website and mentioned in several articles. This model is signified by only two letters, AX. According to early magazine articles, this would have been an adventure version, based on the same platform as the 1190RX and 1190SX. A later article stated that the AX would not be based on the 1190, but would be a completely new motorcycle. In an interview with the editor of Cycle World magazine shortly after EBR entered receivership in April 2015, Erik Buell stated: "We've been working on

SECTION 50

#1732793890220

2808-606: Was not liked by many of the competitors. In 2006 Ducati withdrew factory support from AMA Superbike racing, and in 2008 Honda followed suit. From 2009 to 2014, the Daytona Motorsports Group was the organizer under supervision of the AMA. The AMA, not pleased with motorcycle counts and participation in their events, stripped the DMG organization of the sanction and awarded it to a new organization led by Wayne Rainey , KRAVE, with assistance from Dorna (which organises

2862-618: Was responsible for stability and refinements to the chassis design of the FXR series of cruisers, noted for their rubber-mounted engines. Buell used his racing experience to personally test Harley-Davidsons beyond normal riding limits, and implemented an electronic chassis testing regimen at H-D that greatly improved their handling. Buell learned of the small, privately held general-purpose engine maker Barton (based in Great Britain ) in 1981. He bought their limited production racer, powered by

2916-441: Was unable to secure financing for the $ 2.25 million purchase price, and the official receiver filed to re-sell the assets in a new round of bidding, so the remnants of Erik Buell Racing returned to auction on December 10, 2015. The auction had no bidders, and a move where the court-appointed receiver sought to sell the assets by accepting a pre-emptive offer from a private liquidation-company specializing in breaking-up company remnants

#219780