First Ride: Buell Ulysses XB12T

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Spawned from the much-maligned Ulysses comes the latest entry to the adventure tourer world, Buell’s Ulysses XB12XT.

Despite a bit of a panning from the press Buell’s XB12X Ulysses has proved to be a hit in the showrooms. Last year it was the company’s best selling model, shifting 194 bikes in the UK. Okay, this isn’t a patch on the nearly 2,000 GS models BMW punted out but for Buell it’s very significant.

So, for 2008, Buell has decided to capitalise on this success by launching the XT, which is basically a Ulysses with no off-road pretence. Not that you would really want to take a Ulysses off road to start with.

Not much is changed but the XT gets road based Pirelli tyres (instead of sudo-knobblie ones on the Ulysses), shorter suspension and panniers and a top box as standard. What this means is that the wobble has been removed from the suspension, the touring ability has been improved and the stratospheric seat height reduced to a more normal altitude.

Now, I admit to not being a fan of the Ulysses, but the XT is a different matter. The changes to the suspension and tyres have transformed the bike into what is probably one of the best handling adventure bikes around. I was honestly surprised at what a capable machine it was on the twisty Spanish roads. With the rocking feeling removed from the suspension the XT fairly flies around corners and it reveals its excellent chassis. Remember, this bike is little more than a Firebolt with a few cosmetic tweaks and they handle fantastically. The XT has none of the slight bounce that Triumph’s Tiger has due to its longer suspension or the odd feeling from the GS’ larger front wheel, instead it feels solid, reassuring and bloody good.