2002 Buell S3T
I bought this bike from a craptastic dealer in New Hampshire in the fall of 2009 with about 11,000 miles on it, two weeks after Harley-Davsidon shut Buell down. There were a number of emails back and forth to confirm the condition of the bike and a deal was struck. I took a day off from work and my buddy Angelo drove up with me the 250 miles from home to pick it up and ride it home.
The next morning, the first thing I did was give into my excitement and go stare at it in the garage where I promptly found out I had been duped.
Despite their confirmations to the contrary, the saddlebags had cracks (which I repaired with fiberglass), the front isolator was torn (which was replaced), the front mount had a broken bolt in the head (also replaced) and the rear tire was of the wrong size and had rubbed through the plastic inner fender. I wasn't happy, but the bike was mine and they sent some cash my way to take care of some of the repairs.
The bike was largely problem free after that. The speedo sensor was replaced in the late summer of 2010. In the fall of 2011, I noticed the front head mount had broken a bolt again and upon taking it apart realized that the mount itself was bent and likely the cause for the issues. I ended up just going for a complete top end rebuild. Parts were all bought from American Sport Bike and the heads were sent down to Cycle-Rama in Florida to have the threads repaired, heads cleaned up and a quick valve job. I sold it shortly after to a Buell collector with 22,170 miles on it.
The next morning, the first thing I did was give into my excitement and go stare at it in the garage where I promptly found out I had been duped.
Despite their confirmations to the contrary, the saddlebags had cracks (which I repaired with fiberglass), the front isolator was torn (which was replaced), the front mount had a broken bolt in the head (also replaced) and the rear tire was of the wrong size and had rubbed through the plastic inner fender. I wasn't happy, but the bike was mine and they sent some cash my way to take care of some of the repairs.
The bike was largely problem free after that. The speedo sensor was replaced in the late summer of 2010. In the fall of 2011, I noticed the front head mount had broken a bolt again and upon taking it apart realized that the mount itself was bent and likely the cause for the issues. I ended up just going for a complete top end rebuild. Parts were all bought from American Sport Bike and the heads were sent down to Cycle-Rama in Florida to have the threads repaired, heads cleaned up and a quick valve job. I sold it shortly after to a Buell collector with 22,170 miles on it.
Modifications and Improvements
The bike was not quite stock - here's what had been changed:
- Full factory race exhaust (header and muffler) with Buell Race ECM
- "Gutted" airbox (high flow but keeps the stock breadbox)
- Billet front motor mount
- Custom catch can and breather set-up
- Polished PM wheels (factory option)
- Zero Gravity tall windshield (for cooler weather)
- Heated grips
- Hard-wired Garmin Zumo 550 GPS mount
- Custom fabricated rear luggage rack for Givi top cases (currently have a 45 liter case)
- Fiberglass-reinfored saddlebags with additional mounting point to prevent stress cracks
- 55w HID bi-xenon headlight
- "Crusty's" o-ring throttle lock
- Bronze oil pump drive gear upgrade
- .030" head gaskets (slightly raises compression)
- Custom-wired accessory socket to turn off with ignition