The 2010 Buell Blast

[Greenman]

A whole new concept.

http://www.buell.com/en_us/bikes/blast/

 

[ballmode]

? must be a marketing ploy to reveal the final design later

 

[JulesMaximus]

360lbs? That is surprisingly heavy for an entry level single cylinder bike of such small displacement. Guess Buell got sick of playing second fiddle to the Kawasaki Ninja 250...which pretty much owns that market.

 

[Greenman]

The point of that page and the videos showing Blasts being crushed is that they aren't going to make it anymore. Buell decided that it's not a good enough bike to bear the Buell name.

 

[43st]

Originally posted by: Greenman
The point of that page and the videos showing Blasts being crushed is that they aren't going to make it anymore. Buell decided that it's not a good enough bike to bear the Buell name.

Wow.. not often does one see a company disparage itself like this. Just imagine what they think of the customers that actually purchase their products. Yeesh..

 

[Greenman]

Originally posted by: 43st

Originally posted by: Greenman
The point of that page and the videos showing Blasts being crushed is that they aren't going to make it anymore. Buell decided that it's not a good enough bike to bear the Buell name.

Wow.. not often does one see a company disparage itself like this. Just imagine what they think of the customers that actually purchase their products. Yeesh..

Watch the video on the site. Buell himself explains that the Blast is a good bike, but it's an entry level machine and they have decided that Buell is high performance only.

 

[ballmode]

so no more buell blast?

 

[Greenman]

Originally posted by: ballmode
so no more buell blast?

No more Buell Blast.

 

[JulesMaximus]

They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

 

[JJ650]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

I think they pretty much are killing the entry lvl line. I didn't get anything else out of that vid.

 

[Greenman]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

Incorrect on both points. Buell doesn't want to build entry level bikes anymore, they don't fit in the high performance market segment Buell wants to be in.
As for the bike being "crap", that's an opinion not shared by many. Most people find the Blast to be a solid, reliable bike.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Originally posted by: Greenman

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

Incorrect on both points. Buell doesn't want to build entry level bikes anymore, they don't fit in the high performance market segment Buell wants to be in.
As for the bike being "crap", that's an opinion not shared by many. Most people find the Blast to be a solid, reliable bike.

I didn't watch the videos, you are correct, they appear to be killing it off completely. I just assumed that they were scrapping the old to make a new entry level bike. My bad.

 

[Greenman]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus

Originally posted by: Greenman

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

Incorrect on both points. Buell doesn't want to build entry level bikes anymore, they don't fit in the high performance market segment Buell wants to be in.
As for the bike being "crap", that's an opinion not shared by many. Most people find the Blast to be a solid, reliable bike.

I didn't watch the videos, you are correct, they appear to be killing it off completely. I just assumed that they were scrapping the old to make a new entry level bike. My bad.

Which is pretty strange when you think about it. Is Buell doing so well that they can simply dump a model that seems to be selling? I wonder if they were losing market share to the import bikes and decided to kill it and focus on the higher end bikes, I assume that's where the money is.

 

[MiataNC]

Originally posted by: JulesMaximus
They're admitting it is crap...which everyone already knows.

Start over with a clean slate and make a quality entry level bike. It's not as though they are killing a product line, they are just reinventing it.

The blast is a delight to ride and beat on. There is a lot of aftermarket support, and people who own and enjoy them mod the hell out of them (think SV650 for the thumper crowd). The most compelling reason to buy a Blast was the fact that Harley/Buell would credit you back the full purchase price when a owner traded up to something bigger after learning ro ride on the Blast.

The Blast was one of the few entry level bikes left on the market. Sadly American egos demand something bigger, because form trumps function. From the 60s-80s 125/250/350/400/etc bikes could be found in every makers line-up, and they could hang (acceleration, and top speed) with any car/truck on the road at legal speeds. We would have more riders and fewer accidents, if more people could see past the "bigger is better" mentality.

I am saddened to see the Blast go away. I am still looking to pick up a cheap clean used one locally to make a track/commuter out of.

 

[Plugers]

I have a 2001 Blast and enjoy it very much. It has a great amount of torque, good for driving around town.

I guess I don't feel the need to race everyone in site, although I'm thinking of picking up a Firebolt next.

 

[Corn]

The thing I could never get past regarding the Blast was the fact that it sounds like a lawn mower.

 

[Zenmervolt]

Originally posted by: MiataNC
The Blast was one of the few entry level bikes left on the market. Sadly American egos demand something bigger, because form trumps function. From the 60s-80s 125/250/350/400/etc bikes could be found in every makers line-up, and they could hang (acceleration, and top speed) with any car/truck on the road at legal speeds. We would have more riders and fewer accidents, if more people could see past the "bigger is better" mentality.

I quite agree. Way back in the day a 750 was a "big" bike, even for standards or cruisers, now it's a middleweight at best. Time was that almost everyone started out on a bike that was somewhere between 250 and 350ccs or the occasional 450, but the 500cc and larger bikes were serious speedsters.

It's a shame that we're losing very solid entry-level bikes; it doesn't do anyone any good to have nearly everyone starting out on 600cc bikes.

ZV