Buell shut down by Harley Davidson

So Harley's board of directors has decided to shut down Buell Motorcycle Company, which it bought from Erik Buell in 1998. What does everyone think about this?  

kento1:
So Harley's board of directors has decided to shut down Buell Motorcycle Company, which it bought from Erik Buell in 1998. What does everyone think about this?

I read on a Buell forum that the factory will be closed from Nov 2nd and Jan. 4th

Will they reopen the factory, or is it closed down for good?  

It is shut down for good. The official press release from Harley can be read here

Harley-Davidson is also looking to sell off MV Agusta, which it just acquired late in '08.  

I get that Harley has to trim the fat due to the economy, however, now the Harley-Davidson brand is more about cruisers. A bit one-dimensional, Buell did give them a sense of depth in my opinion. But, they didn't produce many race-worthy bikes until recently correct?

Maybe they'll come back, it's happened before. Look at what happened to Indian Motorcycles, they shut their doors in '03 and just recently came back with a new lineup. Just a thought...  

Not to keep sounding a negative note, but the Indian motorcycles "rebirth" was more due to a court battle over the naming rights.

Like him or hate him, Erik Buell did things his own way in building his company, which has to be respected; watching his video announcement is pretty depressing. Unfortunately, as you state, H-D is very one-dimensional, and while that has allowed them to ride a wave of baby boomer belief in coolness factor that many are finding out they really couldn't afford (buried deep in Harley's third quarter financial statement is the fact that their "Financial Services" loan department went from posting a profit of $35.6 million in the same quarter last year to a loss of $31.5 million this year), that policy is why they now find themselves in somewhat dire financial straights, requiring them to sell off assets.  

Never cared for them but hate to see any motorcycle company close it's doors.  
There are worse things than death cowardice is one of them.

tclause:
There are worse things than death cowardice is one of them.

Truer words were never spoken in this case.

Just as unbelievable is the unloading of MV Agusta after just purchasing the company a little over a year ago. Needless to say, any company that looks to join H-D in the future will be looking at this scenario and thinking twice.  

^  

HD borrowed short to lend long - and got caught when its short term lenders refused to "roll over" the short term loans that HD had assumed would be paid off, after a roll over or two, by their retail buyers on 4 year + contracts.  Short term lenders wanted their money back, not caring to risk the question of whether HD's retail borrowers would actually pay.  

Having owned three Buells prior to my R6, I feel that I am qualified to comment on Buells discontinuation.  These are great motorcycles.  They are torquey, they handle pretty good, and sound awesome.  But, there must be no mistake, they possess quite a bit of H/D DNA, and as such, require you to own a complete set of tools.  For as much as I rode my Buells, I had to work on them almost as much.  There's nothing wrong with that, per se, because you become intimately familiar with it, but it does become tiring.  But that point aside, these bikes are a hoot to ride.  I always got stares and comments (mostly positive) about them, and it was nice having something that not many people did.  I sincerely hope that Mr. Buell will pull a hat trick and rise back up in spite of all of this.  Harley Davidson deserves whatever shunning and boycotting from this that they get.  Sometimes being "old school" can hurt you...  

It looked like the hd brand might have eventually built a bike i might have purchased in the Buell line. Now they are looking like there is no chance for that to happen. A company that has been in business for over 100 years and builds bikes that are over a litter in displacement that have poor handling qualities and very little power.

I have owned Hondas, Yamahas, Suzukis, and Moto Guzzi brands and believe I will stay with Honda.  

I drove a Buell only once - at test ride at a HD dealership. I found the bike to be both powerful,"torquey", and a lot of fun to drive. I ended up buying an L-twin Ducati, but I still really liked the Buell.
Harley Davidson may not be looking at the big picture and are only considering quarterly profits. The Buell motorcyle line brought people into their dealerships who may not have been looking for a traditional Harley. Maybe they did not by a Buell, but may have bought accessories or a used bike from another manufacturer in the showroom. The Buell line also showcased the fact that Harley Davidson had the capability of building more than just cruisers and baggers. Sometimes following a dream is far more rewarding in the end, rather than quiting just to keep a group of investors happy.  
Ride Proud, Ride Safe, Have Fun

I agree that HD has been riding the wave of baby boomers belief in coolness for some time now. It's hard not to wonder what is going to happen when those baby boomers start trading in their hogs for walkers. When this does happen, Harley Davidson will be in a lot of trouble being a one-dimensional company.