Buell to Close :(

Its ulgy out there and Buell has been axed the video on the website from Erik is really quite sad.  

ZeitgeistXiii:
Its ulgy out there and Buell has been axed the video on the website from Erik is really quite sad.

Yup. We just posted the press release, it's our top story.
http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/newsandupdates/122_0910_buell_motorcycle_company_out_of_business/index.html

I saw Erik Buell's video, he does sound very sad, I feel for those who will no longer have a job because of this. =(  

It is a sad sad thing, but not totally unexpected in todays current enviroment.

Mr. Buell IS a great contributor to motorcycling and there is no doubt in my mind that he will continue to be.  
Steve

Ride for one - Ride for all

It's a sad day.  If I had my druthers it would be the other way around with Harley closing its doors and cutting Buell loose to do its thing with Erik at the helm.  With the new Rotax engine they could have been a contender.  
Ride!

Harley's rationale doesn't really make sense. I'm not sure how much growth HD can really expect to generate from HD's only.

Other than the recently introduced XR1200 Harley competes in 2 market segments: cruisers and touring. Significant growth in those markets is unlikely, and Harley is unlikely to see major market share gains. So sales growth would be driven by more expensive products, not a great recipe for success right now.

Without Buell where is Harley going to expand? Are they going to take another stab at importing an entry level bike to rebrand as Harley ala Aermacci in the 60's and early 70's? Will they offer an 883 based cruiser to attract the entry level crowd?

I don't know that many buyers cross shopped Buell against the CBR1100, ZX-14 or Hyabusa. But at least it gave Harley a player in the Suberbike game. Frankly I would rather have seen Buell work on developing a replacement for the Blast than the XB12. The 600's are Japanese maker's bread and butter, not the superbikes.

Buell could have been an American BMW, it's a shame that it will not get the chance to get there.  

I actually liked Buells.  They looked cool.  Didn't HD buy MV?

That would be two sport bike companies, alot for a combine factory.  

OK  I'm just kidding- the combine factory makes a couple nice bikes.

Joe  

It makes me feel really sad that all we really can look forward to now is restyled, warmed over, overpriced, 700lb chrome boat anchors. Motorcycle "stylists" must be cheaper to employ than motorcyle engineers. If you want a nice american cruiser from a forward thinking company buy a Victory. I prefer it when a product stands on its own tangible merits and not just it's name.