Buell All Done

[caddydaddy]

Now I REALLY don't like Harley-Davidson!

Let them just keep pumpin' out antique V-Twinkies for the sheeple.

[TheIglu]

They finally put a good motor into an already good frame and now this.

Fuck you Harley. This just cements the notion that HD can't compete at all in terms of technology.

I hope HD goes out of business. It would be better for the motorcycling community as a whole to get that crap off the road.

(YES I HAVE RIDDEN A HD, DOWNRIGHT DANGEROUS IMO)

[markbvt]

I've never been terribly interested in buying a Buell, but I've always had a lot of respect for what Erik Buell was trying to accomplish... and I wouldn't say no if someone wanted to give me a Ulysses.

I can't help but enjoy the irony here though -- Harley-Davidson funded Buell and bought MV Agusta because they know their traditional market is declining due to their customer base getting old and dying off. They knew they had to find ways of attracting younger buyers who aren't interested in the antiques Harley continues to build.

So the fact that they shuttered Buell and are selling MV Agusta now that times are a little tough is just ridiculous. Do they somehow think that the cruiser customer base is going to magically stop aging? Idiots.

--mark

[Sheppo]

The ONLY thing that has kept HD in business is all the other bullshit they sell, T-shirts, mugs, jewelry, jeans, etc, etc...

[Rambunctous]

Eboos? Your thoughts?

[KawiSmurf]

I hope eboos can chime in on this. Curious to hear what he has to say from the sales side of it (especially considering Buell played a big part in him changing shops).

Also curious to see what kind of deals are going to pop up now, if any.



Edit: Damn, 1 minute too slow!

[Pittenger5]

This is the guy making decisions at HD. Typical bean counter

http://nwhog.wordpress.com/2009/04/0...r-buff-as-ceo/

[bigred875]

that sucks...i always liked them but too small for me...

[ulyrider]

I love my Uly. I just passed 20K miles on it this month. As far as HD is concerned, this just means I'll never have to step into one of their shops again. I'm hopeful someone like Bombardier or Polaris might step in and pick up the brand.

[Rambunctous]

This is the guy making decisions at HD. Typical bean counter

http://nwhog.wordpress.com/2009/04/0...r-buff-as-ceo/

After he gets his tattoo and then some chaps he will be a real biker like us. I mean them.

[bump909]

That does suck.

Buell is dead. Long live Buell.

[KawiSmurf]

This is the guy making decisions at HD. Typical bean counter

http://nwhog.wordpress.com/2009/04/0...r-buff-as-ceo/

So you take a guy who knows basically nothing about motorcycles, and put him in charge of making all the important decisions for a company that relies heavily on history and knowledge of the brand. What could go wrong there?

I can't entirely blame Keith Wandell, he's just a guy that probably wanted a better paying job, Harley was a big name, so he took it. He just had no idea what he was getting into. You'd think somebody along the way would pull him aside and say "I don't know man, you're gonna piss a lot of people off that way."

The disconnect between business interests and customer interests has probably just killed Buell.

[obsolete]

I disagree, I think a good CEO can guide any company regardless of industry. It's all about vision and making proper strategic moves based on industry experts that you employ.

[scottieducati]

Sweet! Hopefully we can have a proper 600 racing class again.

[spicy]

http://www.buell.com/en_us/gear/acce...roductID=10046


should've made the full fairings OE on the 1125R... looks a lot better.

not that it would've saved them, but forging new paths often alienates would-be customers.

sucks to have one less sportbike manufacturer out there. hopefully erik buell is able to keep the zany shit coming with another investor. damn HD for proving the fact that they're shitheads^2...

[Mondo]

wow the full fairing looks pretty good

[Wanderer]

Wow. While I never clicked with the styling, the machines were certainly unique, and did well what they set out to do. I'm deeply saddened that we get to reduce the choice avalible to US motorcycle buyers by yet another brand.

I'd love to know the ins/outs of this decision. Was there much knowledge transfer/asset stripping during HD's ownership of MV Augusta?

At this point the only HD i'd consider owning is the XR1200 - and even that is a bit of an abberation by the Motor Company's standards.

[csmutty]

Where is eboos on this?

[Paul_E_D]

Well, they did announce that DMG is starting a HD class. No need for Buell anymore, We're racing sportsters...

[CMG241]

WOW. I was never a huge fan of the bikes, but man, that guy was pretty awesome. Trying all sorts of weird shit I could never understand. But damn, one less innovator in the marketplace. Hopefully he finds another investor to get things back up and running

Calling Rotax....

wish I never sold my X1.

[eboos]

I am floored. I came into work today on my day off to do some motor work, and my GM told me to go on to Buell's website. I don't know what to say. I have been frustrated with HD's handling of Buell for years, and I can't say I didn't see this coming, but I also thought they were starting on the right path. Sales in 2009 flat out sucked, but sales in 2008 were great. They did botch the launch of the 1125R on many levels, and I think that the initial press had killed the sales of this bike. Harley also fucked the company by focusing the Vrod motor into a cruiser powerplant and making it too bulky and heavy to be a sportbike motor. That was supposed to be Buell's first liquid cooled streetbike motor back in 1998.

I hope Erik Buell moves on to work with another manufacturer, but DOES NOT re-introduce the Buell Motorcycle Company. Every company that has failed and then reopened has been doomed to fail again (except maybe Triumph). With any luck, Erik Buell will get picked up by Polaris/Victory to build another line of American sportbikes.

I will still be racing my bike, but I will be more hesitant in investing any more money into it. This will probably result in my picking up a motard and not worrying so much about riding what I am selling.

[BMFR6]

DMG must be crushed.

Maybe they will talk to the MotoCzysz guys. let them run in the ama classes.

[brady]

Erik looks and sounds crushed in the video. He and "The Company" say he's staying with H-D, but I can't imagine he'll be able to stand it for long.

[KawiSmurf]

Erik looks and sounds crushed in the video.

I thought the same thing. Pretty hard not to notice, I guess. It's almost like they made him record the video 5 minutes after they told him the bad news.

It'd be great if some multi-billionaire freelance investor saw fit to toss some coin Erik's way, to get him to start over. Can we get an American version of Richard Branson?

[TheIglu]

Buell: The last American sportbike


I hope this backfires on HD so bad that they go under. I really do.