BUELL 1125CR (2008-on) Review

Bike is so easy and joy to ride. Engine power delivery is great. You can cruse or you can drive fast easy. I am big rider and it is comfortable. BUT when engine shut down and blocked wheel, all the good staf fail in water.

Very well balanced overpowered street machine, but not for the turn key rider who wants to spend more time riding than wrenching. This is an engineer/mechanic enthusiasts bike - and will require some modifications and work to ensure reliability and durability.

The motor! What a motor! I've owned quite a few R1's, and had the opportunity to pick one of these up recently for a song. From the get-go, the motor impressed me. It has impressive torque, and Rotax have managed to give it oodles of power from anywhere you want. The handling initially didn't impress me, but once I got used to the geometry, wow, this thing is chuckable. It is a proper streetfighter. It will change direction and punch through gaps and rip out of corners like an ape on meth. The suspension required some adjustment (back off the compression a little on both the shock and forks, dial in a little rebound on the forks) but once that was done, the grip level was fantastic.

This Crazy Pony!!!! It become better with time :-) Got 12000km on my now and it runns strng

How did they get 11.28 quarter mile? This bike will easily do in the 10's stock. This is a really fun bike. The motor is great. Winds up fast and has good power and torque everywhere. The transmission is liquid smooth. It doesn't have the top end of a Ducati or I4, but it has plenty of power. The engine response is very linear. Handling is razor edged. There's a good amount of motor feedback, but it's not enough to be offensive. This bike has way more character than your run of the mill sport bike. The finish of the bike is top shelf. The prices, especially used, are bargain basement compared to other v-twin sport bikes. Mine has been rock solid dependable so far. The biggest drawback is parts availability. I had very high expectations purchasing this bike and it has exceeded all of them.

People like "treetrunk," who have an axe to grind and probably very little actual motorcycle experience or riding skill love to bad-mouth the Buell 1125CR. But experienced, skilled motorcycle journalists have raved about it with quotes like: "...the 1125CR is a complete package whose faults are few and far between. The 1125CR is finally an example of a well-made American motorcycle that can finally compete with the best coming out of England, Italy, or even Japan." "...I was amazed at how well the 1125CR performed. Solid power starts just off idle and continues all the way to the 10,500rpm redline. The fuel injection is very well sorted. The brakes are outstanding. The suspension settings worked well for me in all conditions, and with the optional handlebars the 1125CR is one of the top do-it-all bikes available right now. When asked by a friend about any negative comments, I thought for a few moments and came up empty handed. This bike is that good." Of course, treetrunk probably "reviewed" it without ever actually riding it.

Don't be fooled by the low prices, or the haven't got a clue about sportsbike fatties on UKBEG, this is a seriously underpowered and extremely ugly bike, that has the durability of a prawn sandwich. Will be worth nothing in 2 weeks.

I spent an afternoon on a Buell fun day at Castle Combe and tried this back-to-back with the 1125R. I went out on the track on a 1125CR after the 1125R and found it actually more of a hooligan bike than anything I've ever ridden in my LIFE! This thing is crazy fun. As with the R the controls are a bit clunky and it takes more getting used to than I had time to do, but the only real stand out problem was the disparity between the back and front brakes. Front was very sharp - great on the track, but a pain anywhere else. The rear brake did nothing meaning that slow speed stuff was a pain. Despite it's being eminently chuckable I would not feel happy with one in town as it just doesn't like low speed stuff. I don't think this is a twin thing as the SV650, the naked one especially, is a dream in traffic going slowly. However, it was great to ride. I loved the setup, it was comfortable and forgiving and gave me loads of confidence. The engine pulled like I was attached to a giant elastic band. I could happily spend more time getting used to that magic lump! If I was in the market for a bruising street fighter bike I'd definitely put this on my list of potentials. It's only the rear brake, HORRIFIC depreciation and iffy feedback on build quality that really hold this back. I was very smitten, I have to say, and I hope they do well.