Buell's new Super Cruiser won't arrive until 2025, but that hasn't put off punters. In six months, Buell has taken the equivalent of nearly £100 million ($120 million) in pre-orders, despite the long wait before deliveries, and the lack of solid information available about the bike.
Buell CEO Bill Melvin is understandably delighted by the news. “Americans love style, muscle, and performance. The Super Cruiser breaks the mold for all three, and the response shows that Buell simply nailed it. This is utterly unheard of for an American V-twin,” he said.
Buell announced earlier this year that it was developing the new motorcycle in partnership with Roland Sands Design. The American manufacturer is expanding on the 1190 platform it previously expanded at the Daytona Bike Week last year with a new cruiser motorcycle.
Buell’s 1190 platform now includes five motorcycles. The Buell Hammerhead 1190 covers the supersports segment, the 1190 SX takes the hyper naked sector; Baja Dune Racer ensures Buell’s presence in the off-road scene, and the touring category is handled by the Supertouring.
While the Hammerhead and 1190 SX are available for purchase now, the Baja Dune Racer and Supertouring will not be available until 2025 (although you can pre-order now), even though they were announced at the 2022 Daytona Bike Week.
Buell’s February announcement regarded the new Buell Super Cruiser. As suggested by the name, it's a cruiser-style motorcycle taking advantage of the performance of Buell’s 1190cc V-twin that powers the rest of its 1190 range. Like the Supertouring and Baja Dune Racer, the Super Cruiser is scheduled for a 2025 launch, marking that out as a particularly busy year in Buell’s schedule.
Specifics on the Super Cruiser are still not available, including the price, although we do know what it looks like thanks to some official images from Buell which also confirm the bike is designed in conjunction with Roland Sands Design.
We can also assume some information about the bikes specifications thanks to its use of a familiar engine: the ET-V2. This produces 185bhp and 102lb ft of torque - figures which would certainly mark the Buell Super Cruiser out from its competition in the power cruiser segment.
That's if we make the assumption that the state of tune the ET-V2 has in the 1190 SX and Hammerhead will be the same as it has in the upcoming Super Cruiser. The power could certainly be reduced, but even a loss of 20bhp from the peak would keep it around the Ducati Diavel V4’s 168bhp.
It'll presumably be a while until we find out much more about the Buell Super Cruiser, but it is an interesting prospect.