2001 Buell reviews

I bought my 2001 Blast (yellow) used in Sept. 2001 and when I asked the salesman about using it commuting, he said the top speed was prohibitive to use as a commuter unless it was upgraded to V&H pipes and rejetted, which I did. I got to ride it for a week before the upgrade, and WOW! it definitely made a difference. This bike can track through the turns with little effort and can turn on a dime. After riding a 20year old Yamaha the first mistake I made was over-compensating in a turn. This bike handles so intuitively it lets the rider really enjoy the ride. It vibrates a little, but what do you expect from a thumper. Planning on upgrading to its big brother the M2 soon. Show less

I recently got my bike back from the shop and decided to go for a ride with some friends.About 50 miles from home it began backfiring and surging. It is once more headed back to the shop. At this rate I'm going to have to get visitation rights to see my bike. I only hope that the problems are all fixed before the warranty is up. Show less

Found a brand new '97 Thunderbolt S3-T at the local Buell dealership for less than 10 grand in June of this year. A discount of nearly $2500 over the MSRP in '97 and only two miles on the bike made for a really attractive deal. Buells seemed to be the only thing coming out of Wisconsin that you could actually find a "deal" on at the time. It doesn't have the Thunderstorm heads or fuel injection but still makes around 85 ft-lbs or torque and 90h.p., enough to suit my needs. The only immediate problem was with the saddle bag latches which would stick closed leaving stuff inside. The dealer replaced the faulty latches with latches from a newer bike on the floor, which were re-designs, and these have worked flawlessly since. I have put nearly 9000 mi. on the bike since June and in that time the only other problem was the muffler mounts got vibrated into pieces. I put an aftermarket Supertrapp muffler on and it's main mount broke in less than 500 mi., the Buell IS a Milwaukee vibrator after all. I redesigned a cable type mount which allows the muffler to find it's natural state and everthing seems to be holding up well now. The Supertrapp also added a big boost to throttle response in the mid-range which should equal a few more ft-lbs of torque. My main riding is along the Blue Ridge and other mountain ranges here in western NC. The Buell just eats up the curvy hilly roads, roaring up through mountain gaps like they were little hills. This bike is very well suited for mountain riding with plenty of pulling power from the 1203c.c. engine. I weigh 200+ and even with the bags full of gear the bike still pulls hard in fourth gear at 70+mph up these mountains. I'm not a racer so I'm not going to brag about scraping anything or relate an anecdote about blowing past anybody on the track. Let's just say the bikes handling gives me great confidence when the roadsigns start looking like reptile snapshots. I don't believe I've ever worn tires on a street bike so evenly before. My "chicken strip" was 3/8" on the Buell but on my older hawgs the tire would sometimes look square when it was replaced. All in all, I feel like I have a great ride and that Buell will stand behind me if necessary. I can't recall the number of times I've found myself grinning from ear to ear after tackling some back road or cresting the eastern divide. If you like taking long rides on some very curvey roads, the Thunderbolt will make an excellent choice. Show less