Forget the wisecracks about making a silk purse out of a Hog’s ear; this is the fastest Harley-engined motorcycle IOL has reviewed. It’s big and it’s brash and it pulls through the mid-range like no other American motorcycle; it’s mechanically noisy and hugely vibratious but it oozes character and after a while it grows on you.
Erik Buell started off in his garage in 1983, building sports bikes around the Harley-Davidson XR1000 flat-track racing motor. When those ran out he switched to the more plentiful 1203cc Sportster engine.
Milwaukee regarded him as a maverick, which was a bit unfair considering that Bill Harley and the Davidson brothers started off in a garden shed in 1903.
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In 1993 the Motor Company bought control of Buell Motorcycles while retaining Erik’s services as chief technical officer.
Buells have moved towards the streetfighter genre. Since then Buells have moved towards the streetfighter genre in which their towering mid-range torque and quick responses serve them well, as does their in-your-face styling. Typical of this series is the X1W White Lightning, the subject of this review.
The X1W’s motivation comes from a modified Sportster engine. The crankshaft has been lightened to improve response (and reduce engine weight!) while the cylinder head, dubbed the Thunderstorm head by Mr Buell, has been reshaped with larger valves and gas-flowed ports and its compression ratio has gone up to 10:1.
A special camshaft increases lift and duration of valve opening. Induction is by means of the Saab-developed fuel-injection system that serves so well on the 88-cubic inch ’Glides, with an interesting tweak: the huge air box uses resonance within the intakes gases to pressurise the inlet port just as the valve is opening, forcing extra mixture into the cylinder.
It’s called the Helmholtz principle and it works like a two-stroke expansion box - only in reverse.
A special camshaft increases lift and duration of valve opening.
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