Ulysses XB12X Adventure Sportbike

[Joyseeker]

but this is my problem.

this is what the belt drive looks like on a normal buell.

and here it is on the ulysses

so is it well guarded enough? the saleman said 'well you're not going to do enduro with this bike as the muffler under the engine.'

there is only one power socket next to the speedo..... that is what will bug you if you have to plung a heated vest there. there is another socket to rechange the battery..... ohh so the owners are not going to be using it for long periods.

5000mls service intervals and another grand to buy all the luggage.

i like the tyres.... apparantly specials from dunlop who have now asked to market them independantly. if you bin it the pegs go so the facy rubber on the tank saves nothing but paint.

but i like sitting on it. a well balance bike. comfy and reputed to have the best of cornering. but way too pricy spec for spec with the 12gs.

 

[Cheesy Mike]

Reviews of the Buell in the [USA] magazines that I have read have been good - even thought the R1200GS comes out better. The belt now has a lifetime service for the bike rather than 20K that the previous belts had. One of the magazines talked about a demo they gave the journos which involved firing ballbearings into the belt and cogs whilst running without causing any significant damage.

Restricted turning circle apart, the Buell is definitely on my must test-ride list.

Mike

 

[ELIMINATOR]

Looks good to me, my only qualms after having ridden my mates old 1200 Buel is the vibration at idle. Violent as a description does not do it justice.
Must book a test ride. As for reliability, can't be worse than BM can it? or the quality of finish?
.

 

[philpaw2003]

Rode it.... and really rate it

I test rode one of these puppies last week in wolverhampton. I can honestly say that its an absolute blast! Having just sold my 1150adv i was looking for possible replacements. Now dont get me wrong imho i dont thing that as a package it beats the GS's BUT as a first attempt its bloody ace!
OK. Plus pointsin no particular order)

1) I think it looks fantastic.
2) That engine is an absolute hoot.
3) The front brake is brilliant.*
4) It really does handle... Loads of ground clearence.
5) Loads of underseat storage.
6) Two aux' sockets. One on the dash, one under the seat at the rear.
7) Initial purchase price.

Now the minus points.

1) Cost of options. EG: the stage one tune is nearly £700.00! If you want a
full set of luggage... £1000.00 please.
2) The front brake. Be very careful at first as its VERY, VERY good.*
3) Servicing costs. Every 5k. minor: £175.00 Major: £250.00.
4) Risiduals ( probably spelt very wrong i know LOL) I really do think that in
12 months you could be looking at losing mabey 40%. I want to be wrong
on this point, but looking at the used prices of other buells?
5) And finally....... overall quality of finish. The plastics look as tho they have
been crafted using recycled dustbins... really nasty.

As i said at the start. As a first time attempt its ace. Given a bit more time and attention to detail i feel that Buell could have taken the title. As it is i think that it will just be a huge success.

Philpaw

 

[che]

I rode one. Looks good in the flesh, especially in black.

Adding to the last post - more good points:

Pillion seat - most comfortable ever, according to my girlfriend (experience of 9 bikes, latest being 1200GS)

Torque - absurd amounts. Too much almost. Addictive.

Height and visibility.

Handling.

Bad points:

Height - too tall for me. I'm 5'10, with a 32" inside leg, could only get tips of toes onto ground.

Wind/weather protection - not enough at speeds over 70mph. So not an issue, right?

Torque - means it is much happier on good surfaces than poor, unless you are a riding god or off-road master. I'm neither.

Try one, it's tremendous fun.

Thank you Warrs, by the way.

 

[Warthog]

It certainly looks different: something I've always liked about Buells. And I've always heard that they have a h-i-yooge grin factor.

But, and I may be wrong, for some sort of adventure bike, the tank doesn't look partcularly big and the name Buell always brings back memories of reader/rider write ups and surveys where this marque always seemed to do very badly on the reliability league table: Is there any point in a 5000m service interval if it breaks down every 2500?

Still, I may be wrong and I'm not talking from personal experience, so...

 

[Schtum]

But, and I may be wrong, for some sort of adventure bike, the tank doesn't look partcularly big

The "tank" isn't a tank. The fuel is contained in the main spars of the frame. Buell quote 16.7 litres which is about a gallon too little by my reckoning.

As for the comments about torque, Buell claim 84 lbs-ft at 6,000 rpm. BMW claim the same 84 lbs-ft at 5,500 rpm. However, as ever, it's the area under the curve which counts.

 

[Warthog]

The "tank" isn't a tank. The fuel is contained in the main spars of the frame.QUOTE]


Ah... That would definitely explain it then.

Is it just airbox then, or some extra storage?

 

[roddy]

The Xb series Buells use the frame to hold fuel,
the swing arm for the engine oil,
gearbox oil is seperate,
and where the tank would normally be is the airbox,

it's quite clever and unique stuff, you wouldn't see the jap bikes coming out with something like that sort of engineering solution.

I had a wee look at the ulysses at West coast today, I must admit I'm impressed, though I do have a older Buell (an M2) which is an awesome bit of fun so my opinion might be a bit biased.

 

[blackburnlee]

Mmmm... Looks interesting. What other colours do they do? The black doesn't seem to do too much for it's visuals.

 

[Twotter]

I was in Sycamores on Saturday (completing the Bike 440 route) and had a look at the Ulysses. It does look good but was way too tall for me. They quoted services at minor £250 & major £400. They didn't have prices for the accessories but with those rebadged Hepco & Becker boxes at £1k elsewhere how much will the Garmin Quest come too ?

 

[Noddy]

I took one out for a test run Sat from Black Bear in Newmarket. Great fun Bit odd to start with, felt like I was sitting on the top deck !
Know what you all mean about the front brake be gentle with it.

Bloody good fun but I have my doubts about anything other than very easy off roading, the heat from the engine will melt you and a lack of steering lock might mean lots of three point turns

 

[Fitzy]

Yes i test rode one on Saturday and quite enjoyed it. However although it felt faster than the 1200GS it was nowhere near as well planted and the front end is very light so i reckon you could easily stack it when pressing hard. I also had to do one emergency stop and whereas the BMW would have just stopped without trying too hard,the Buell almost skidded and nearly overran the space available.Basically a good fun bike but not as practical,comfortable or dependable as the GS. Oh and the fan is bl**dy noisy too.