What could cause my range burner to be bright red and really hot when the dial is set to low?
IME, Most electric stoves rely on duty cycles to adjust the heat of a burner. They do not alter the "flow" of heat like a gas stove. The burner is either producing heat, or it is not. If you watch it long enough, I bet you could even time the patterns of the different temperature settings.

I would call the manufacturer and see if there are any known issues, defects or recalls. Otherwise, I'd chalk this up to it's normal mode of operation.