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Harley-Davidson kills off Buell, will sell stake in MV Agusta [w/VIDEO]

Filed under: Hirings/Firings/Layoffs, Videos, Earnings/Financials, Motorcycle
Erik Buell announces demise of his motorcycle brand - watch video after the jump


Harley-Davidson has just announced its third-quarter results, and things aren't quite as bad as they could have been... but we'll get to that in a moment. The big bombshell is that the Buell brand is being discontinued and the American motorcycle manufacturer will sell off its share in MV Agusta.

Head on over past the jump to watch a video of an obviously emotional Erik Buell breaking the news that his namesake brand has been axed. Buell explains that HD will continue to honor the full factory warranty on his motorcycles and thanks his dealership body and loyal customers for their support over 20 years of producing offbeat American sportbikes. Roughly 180 jobs will be lost within the Buell organization and HD will also immediately begin the work of selling its recently-acquired stake in MV Agusta.

So, back to Harley's third-quarter performance. Revenue from motorcycle sales came to $803.3 million, down 22.1% compared to the the third quarter of 2008. A total of 54,236 Harley-Davidson motorcycles were shipped worldwide, down 27.4 percent. Another $300 or so million was made off apparel and merchandise sales. Full details (and the aforementioned video) can be found in the ridiculously long press release after the break.

Goodbye Buell, we'll miss you.

[Source: Harley-Davidson]Continue reading Harley-Davidson kills off Buell, will sell stake in MV Agusta [w/VIDEO]Harley-Davidson kills off Buell, will sell stake in MV Agusta [w/VIDEO] originally appeared on Autoblog on Thu, 15 Oct 2009 12:28:00 EST.  Please see our terms for use of feeds.Permalink | Email this | Comments

http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/15/harley-davidson-drops-buell-will-sell-stake-in-mv-agusta/