Hero MotoCorp has entered into a partnership with Erik Buell Racing with the intention of going racing. Hero will sponsor two teams in the AMA Pro Racing National Guard Superbikes Championship.
As a part of the partnership, Hero will receive technology inputs and design cues for their future models from EBR. Hero is also looking at bringing to India some of Buell’s high-end bikes.
It looks like India is getting to be an extremely hot motorcycle market. Hmm, … “design cues for future models,” it will be interesting to see what Hero begins building in India.
Link: Overdrive
Link: Erik Buell Racing
Link: Hero MotoCorp
Tin Man 2 says
Will any American investers step up and buy into EBR ?? It seems we have a World Class Superbike and nobody cares. If Erik can get a mid price ADV bike to market I’d buy it just to support the cause. The Bankers don’t want to back Buell and HD is short sighted, Is there some way to build a MoCo with Grass Root money??
Fred M. says
With a company motto of “Fiercely Independent,” I don’t believe that Erik Buell Racing is looking for any company to own part of EBR, especially after his experience with Harley.
Sponsorship of a race team in return for engineering and styling (along with the usual publicity associated with such a venture), fits the independent nature of EBR rather nicely.
AlwaysOnTwo says
At first blush all I saw was a sponsorship agreement for EBR to provide the racing hardware under the HERO banner Well, even that couldn’t hurt. But after reading at the links and doing some surfing on HERO, I think there’s a bit more, or at least in the serious stages of negotiation.
EB certainly learned a lot from getting badly stung by HD, and this initial racing partnership may well be his way of having a little cake while the dinner is in the oven. Unless there’s a financial angel that would invest heavily and simultaneously take only royalties from net profits and leave the driving to Eric, raising capital in this manner is about the only play other than going public with a penny stock…and that breeds a whole different kinda worm that can seriously detract from designing and building motorcycles for a small guy.
And his input and tech expertise being fed to HERO? Hey, HD already took the best of his ideas and locked them up under a contract so there’s not much to loose by using the u-patented and unprotected “ideas” and developing legal second gen versions with HERO. This time with eyes wide open.
A really nice touch for us weekend warriors is that we’ll get to see the 1090RS in heads up action in a matter of days at Daytona. I’d already scheduled this one and bought the gate last year, so this is just a tasty bonus.
JeCo says
I heart you EBR.. Get all the money you can so hopefully in the near future we can see a sub 17k street legal bike from you. I prefer mine naked.
Corey says
I’m looking to move up from the SV650 and if EBR can bring a street bike to the market in a couple years I’ll have my money set aside. Good for Erik and lets hope this brings in the funding he needs to get things going.
akaaccount says
Me too on both the SV and EBR
Cowpieapex says
I don’t want to let the cat out of the bag, but at the same time Erik was being “badly stung” by HD they also produced a huge number of incredible machines that are now selling at absurdly low prices. True they are not robustly supported by the dealer network but my toolbox is sufficient to reduce one to its components and in the worst case a custom fabricated or machined part will stand in. If you look closely at the tube frame models you can see that was how it was done initially.
I’m all for supporting EBR and their remarkable machines but for you and I these superbikes are only waiting to be saved from a Redneck Engineering conversion or some worse fate. At less than you can get for your used SV you can acquire a machine in good condition and through time develop more than just a consumers relationship with a machine that has more original engineering, soul and performance than machines costing two or three times as much. No they are not BMW/Honda reliable but when I’ve dispatched a major mountain range in a days ride I cant imagine a better way to integrate the elements of design, heritage and riding experience.
akaaccount says
Where are Buells selling at absurdly low prices? They all seemed to jump $1000 when the doors were closed. There are a lot of 1125’s for about $6k (too much bike for me) and occasionally a tube frame bike or XB for $4-5K. No, Blasts don’t count. If you’ve got one for sell for less than that let me know.
I don’t think the SV of all bikes represents a “consumer” relationship at all. The stock suspension and brakes are crap, so for me it was a bike I could buy for 2K and build it into a Monster beater with Ebay parts that survived brief lives with squids.
Cowpieapex says
The particular bag where I find all my cats is Northern Cal. Two weeks ago I watched a pristine XB9R clear Craigslist at $2500 asking. Monthly I see good Lightnings and Thunderbolts listed in the region for 3 to 4 K$. A lightning which was sold last May for $1600,as I was informed by the mechanics at the local HD dealership, was out shreading again after tires, pads and oil.
If you feel I cast aspersions on the SV please forgive me, but I can tell you from experience that few bikes produced in the last 20 years will demand or reward owner investment on a level that an early Buell will. The later tank frame bikes though more refined still feature an air cooled “agriculture pump” for power. All I can say about the 1125s out there is it looks like a fairly direct path from those bikes to the $40,00 1190. I expect that the care you visited on your SV to craft your monster beater would make an 1125 into a Panigale pounder. Yes too much for me too!
akaaccount says
Wow yeah it’s rare to even see a Buell in Southwest Va, most people don’t even know what they are. Any Craigs posting for a Buell goes like “RARE HARLEY RACE BIKE!!!!!111111!!! $12,000 THOUSADN DOLLERS”
I think I’ll find my Buell one of these days, it’s just a matter of being patient. As a side note, my enthusiasm for EBR isn’t necessarily born out of my desire to buy a bike from them, I just like seeing an American innovator kicking butt on the race circuits.
fxrocket says
Great new…
doubtful says
I am still waiting to see an American Born Motorcycle that can dance with a Japanese Liter-bike. Not just in handling but also overall performance.
Fred M. says
Handling is what matters in a sport bike. It’s why the 385 pound curb weight Buell 1190RS is a better bike than the Japanese bikes. I’d much rather have a usable power band and superb handling than a porker with lots of motor (think ZX-10R).
akaaccount says
They’ll have to get away from twins for that to happen. Keep in mind that the first Buell was a square 4… the only reason EBR is using a twin is that it’s all Harley would let them develop. If things go well, I think we’ll see EBR move toward more competitive engines
AlwaysOnTwo says
Uh, so you don’t think the EBT 1090RS or the Duc 1199 is “competitive” or are you making a distinction between a V twin and an L twin, or what? Is your bias only to max Hp at max rpm? Why hell, that’s as dogma-stink-thinking as max torque at min revs going potato potato is the only way to make a hiway bike.
akaaccount says
That’s not what I meant, the point is that to do what the Japanese companies do as cheaply as they do there will have to be other options and I hope there are. I ride a small L twin and I’ll take it over a 15k RPM supersport any day.
AlwaysOnTwo says
Having more options (as in made by a major OEM, more than just another V-Twin, and at an affordable price relative to all aspects of performance instead of the image of an image of log lost glory) would be great. But the real difference in US vs Asian bike making starts with the archaic mindset and corporate process, is held back by the intractable costs associated with labor unions and government mandated health care and retirement requirements which straps down any chance of affordable tooling costs which lengthens or kills capital recapture, and the lack of government support for manufacturing to compete with Asian companies that have such competitive gains (Honda Suzi Kaw). And to top it off, we, the dumb public, have allowed (by default) one company to have a major percentage of market share with not so much as meager competition (Victory, et al).
So it ain’t gonna happen under one banner without a quantum change, a change that won’t ever happen unless Ford, GM or Chrysler get into the motorcycle biz. Ergo, here in the US, our choices will be guaranteed to be between “boutique” builders like Motus with pet models akin to HD’s pet V-Twin. And most likely, as history demonstrates, those choices will rise on the demand of of initial wow factor, quickly plateau as buyers demand (like you AND me) that the product be cost competitive with Asian machinery, and then buy something else not made in the USA.
We have simply let our lifestyle and political philosophy of moving every worker into the middle class price us out of the competitive (as in against the world, not ourselves) market for innovation and domination in everything from bikes to electronics and even medical supplies. About all we produce on a cost effective basis is beef and chicken.
We have the best of everything to chose from, and it is all made by someone else, somewhere else. It’s a world economy and nationalism has died in philosophy and in practice. I suggest everyone not look at it as us vs them, or American Iron vs Asian Aluminum, but all as one massive toy store.
Damn that was strong coffee!
Peace. Out.
peter kviesis says
All of our brain power and resources in the U.S. goes to making weapons. There was an interesting comparison quite a while ago between the Walkman and the B2 Bomber. Both appeared at the same time and both required much engineering and government support. There’s not much return to the average joe when all monies go to weapons instead of consumer goods.
Cowpieapex says
Fox News Much?
leston says
Motus KMV4 may be there one day
akaaccount says
GO GO GO
I bought a T shirt and Erik’s album to support the cause, can’t wait to see what comes in time
Sick Cylinder says
How does the Buell qualify to race in what I thought was a championship for modified road bikes? Do they have to homologate / build a minimum number of copies? Sorry that is off topic, but this site attracts a lot of experts.
Glad to hear about this linkup – especially if it brings more good and interesting bikes to market or to the tracks.
jar says
Bah
EBR = Engineering resource for a big company.
Rule #1 The Core gets, what the Core wants.
Question is, is EBR Core to a massive Indian conglomerate? Doubt it…..feels like the old days of Subaru with “handling by Lotus” to me.
Might work better than before, but I doubt it.
Outfits of the size and stature of Hero can do what they please when they please, and EBR doesn’t bring enough in name recognition (brand) or (arguably) in talent to influence or be in the Core – at least no more so than any other engineering firm Hero could hire. Same reason it wouldn’t have worked with BRP – they have Can-Am (brand) and really don’t need EBR, they just need to set sites and resources (what, some 200 engineering types?) toward whatever motor driven variant they would want to create.
Nope, this one smells like a decent move for EB himself, less so for those of EBR with hopes of building and selling motorcycles at any real (self sustaining) volume.
BobG says
Selling out?