[72westie]

Just got a e-mail from a old customer who worked for Buell. Harley just shut them down as a cost saving measure.



The Company will discontinue production of Buell motorcycles. Remaining inventories of Buell motorcycles, accessories and apparel, while they last, will continue to be sold through authorized dealerships. Warranty coverage will continue as normal for Buell motorcycles and the Company will provide replacement parts and service through dealerships.

The decision will result in a reduction over time of about 80 hourly production positions and about 100 salaried positions at Buell. Employment will end for a majority of Buell employees Dec. 18, 2009.

Harley-Davidson, Inc. expects to incur approximately $125 million in one-time costs related to the discontinuation of the Buell product line. The Company expects to incur approximately $115 million of that amount this year

[Chasfield]

That is bad news. You would have thought that the brand gave HD sufficient market diversity to at least keep production going, albeit on some highly rationalised basis.

[Vince]

     Go to www.buell.com for the story.

[The Garbone]

Damn,  I was thinking of getting a Ulysses XBT eventually.  Guess that idea is now toast.

Merry Xmas to those employees,  thats the same day the company I work for is putting this quarters layoffs on the street also...  I escaped this round....     Sucks all over.

[ace.cafe]

They are also selling off MV Agusta, which they just only bought a year ago.

It'll be interesting to see who buys MV.

[scoTTy]

buMMer on both counts 

[Kevin Mahoney]

What surprised me was that Harley just flat out closed Buell and is selling MV. Wonder why they didn't try to sell Buell.

[birdmove]

   Dam!! I got a temperary layoff from the HD/Buell dealership I work at (six weeks with a firm return to work date-I hope), and look what happens. I am a big fan of Buell motorcycles and Erik Buell in particular (except for his recent treatment of the Blast!!). For those that haven't ridden a Firebolt, you missed out on a great handling motorcycle.Lightnings too.

   Jon

[REA Member 131]

Definitely a sad day. I was in shock for hours after I heard the news.

Buell has been a money pit for Harley since the start. When I worked as a service manager at a Harley dealership in Texas, we carried Buells. Unfortunately, we sold very few (maybe two in a year... including the one I purchased). The store owner finally decided to stop carrying Buells completely.

Little niggling problems have shadowed Buell from the start. They still have large numbers of recalls (even on models that have been in production for many years). The Buell club (B.R.A.G.) was a dismal failure, as was the magazine (FUELL). They tried rather unsuccessfully to make a name for themselves in racing. When they finally did (Danny Eslick won the Daytona Sportbike series on a Buell this year), it was very controversial. Buell never had much in the way of aftermarket accessories or merchandising. The Blast model was an embarrassment; and it only got worse when Buell had an ad campaign featuring him crushing a Blast into a tiny metal cube. And of course, Harley dealerships really had no idea how to promote Buells. They just don't know how to sell to sportbikers. Another issue is that Buell somehow managed to make some powerful enemies in the powersports media. One that springs to mind is the SuperBikePlanet.com website. They regularly made it known that they hated Buells.

So when you combine all these challenges, you get a snowball affect of the sportbike community deciding Buells are crap. That's what happened. A part of me is amazed that Harley kept Buell for as long as it did.

Kevin, to answer your question about why Harley didn't consider selling Buell.... I'll bet that it has to do with the fact that all the air-cooled models are still running on engines made by Harley. So, Harley is probably not interested in continuing production of those engines (which have evolved beyond the 1200cc Sportster engines that they were based upon). The two 1125 models use Rotax engines.

Don't get me wrong. I really enjoyed the four Buells I had. I'd keep my current XB12R if money were no object. But, I have been planning to eBay it for a few weeks now. I wonder if people will see it as a collector's item or as something that will be hard to get parts and warranty support for? I guess I'll find out when the auction ends.

[rideOn]

a 26 year run with awards and nhra and superbike championships is terrific. buell should proud. he went longer on his own than with h-d. maybe he should have stayed on his own. sorry for the folks this affects....sucks. fyi, honda in florence, sc is going to hire 120 people in it's atv plant.

[Cabo Cruz]

Give a listen to the sad farewell message by Erik Buell:

http://www.fasterandfaster.net/

[1Blackwolf1]

  Was never a great fan of Buell, just bad they lost out under the circumstances.  I believe a more tragic loss at this time is Saturn.  A well built, reliable American made car.  Made equally as good as anything Jap/German, and generlly a lot cheaper.

  Two more American brands wiped away, and that will soon become as remmebered as AMC.  Will.

 

[Chasfield]

No company that puts thunderin' v-twin motors in lightweight, agile frames can be all bad.

 

[1Blackwolf1]

  Never said they were bad, just was never a big fan.  Nothing bad meant by the statement.

[Chasfield]

I was generally musing rather than responding to your last reply - sorry to confuse. I can see that you feel for  the loss of the company, even though you might not have gone out and bought a Buell.

[rideOn]

  Was never a great fan of Buell, just bad they lost out under the circumstances.  I believe a more tragic loss at this time is Saturn.  A well built, reliable American made car.  Made equally as good as anything Jap/German, and generlly a lot cheaper.

  Two more American brands wiped away, and that will soon become as remmebered as AMC.  Will.

 

terrible thing with saturn. a government funded project to mimick the japanese auto makers. early projects were to drive japanese cars and dig into the processes. great autos overshadowed by greedy GM who bought losers like hummer. bad GM, shame on you

[ace.cafe]

The irony about Saturn is that Obama took over GM to ostensibly make smaller and more fuel-efficient cars, which is exactly what Saturn was doing for GM.

So, they closed them down.

Sorta makes a person wonder just what the real goals are, for what they are doing with GM?

Oh wait!
I just remembered that Saturn wasn't unionized,andwas located in a "right to work" state..
And the UAW got a big ownership and leadership position in the new Obama GM.
How about that?
I guess these things aren't so hard to figure out after all.

[PhilJ]

You have no way of knowing that, Ace. But I guess that was as good a place as any to slam the things that extreme conservatives don't like.

[1Blackwolf1]

The irony about Saturn is that Obama took over GM to ostensibly make smaller and more fuel-efficient cars, which is exactly what Saturn was doing for GM.

So, they closed them down.

Sorta makes a person wonder just what the real goals are, for what they are doing with GM?

Oh wait!
I just remembered that Saturn wasn't unionized,andwas located in a "right to work" state..
And the UAW got a big ownership and leadership position in the new Obama GM.
How about that?
I guess these things aren't so hard to figure out after all.

  I worked for a brake manufacturing company after I got out of the service years ago, and we pressed parts for Saturn.  The company sent a team down to Tennessee when they were having some problems with fit-up.

  A very well set-up operation, clean, orderly.  We were amazed, found out it wasn't our parts doing the dirty deed but a different suppliers brake drums being at minimum thickness doing the damage on adjustment problems.

  And when that commercial said anyone could stop the line they weren't kidding a problem caused shut-down while we were there.

  I get a kick out of GM saying they were operating in the red for years.  Admittedly I don't follow the markets like a blood hound, but as far as I remember I never remember them operating in other than the black.  Yes GM just wanted to whack Saturn in favor of retaining their largeSUV pig mobiles.

  After all you have to have at least 10 different SUV's as a corporation to fill that niche I guess.  But a well built, efficient brand never going to need that.  Shameful.  Will.

[ace.cafe]

You have no way of knowing that, Ace. But I guess that was as good a place as any to slam the things that extreme conservatives don't like.

I thought it was a fairly insightful and accurate assessment, myself.

[REpozer]

Tennessee also voted for McCain, humm the punishment continues.

[rideOn]

Oh wait!
I just remembered that Saturn wasn't unionized,andwas located in a "right to work" state..
And the UAW got a big ownership and leadership position in the new Obama GM.
How about that?

historically, unions are associated with fear, intimidation and mafia. oprah obama is in bed with these guys and different than the usual political puppet on a string, oprah 'o probably has a gun to his head (or his family does) because of the influence the union had getting him elected.

and before i'm accused of being far right, i voted for oprah 'o to be president. it's a long-term thing. mccain needed to stay in the senate where he has more influence and power. he can serve there longer than going thru the accelerated aging process of being prez. besides, mccain don't need any accelerated aging.

[REA Member 131]

Thread drift alert.