Harley Kills Buell

[Maxwedge]

Harley Davidson just announced that they would kill off Bueel and Sell thier shares in MV...
From
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/10/15/harley-davidson...

[cymtriks]

Why?
They seemed to be doing just fine and have some great loking products that stand out from the crowd.
Are they going to be rebadged as Harley's?
Is there some political or personal reason for this?

[aeropilot]

cymtriks said:

Why?
They seemed to be doing just fine and have some great loking products that stand out from the crowd.
Are they going to be rebadged as Harley's?
Is there some political or personal reason for this?

Harley D are in a bit of a financial pickle, 84% drop in profits - something has to give to survive.

[Maxwedge]

wow 84%, Where are you getting that number?
Reading over the link I posted they only state
"For 2009 compared to 2008 through nine months, retail sales of Harley-Davidson motorcycles decreased 22.9 percent worldwide, 25.5 percent in the U.S. and 16.5 percent in international markets. Industry-wide U.S. retail heavyweight motorcycle sales declined 38.7 percent year to date in 2009, compared to 2008." officially....

[isetta 300]

Utter Madness, Buell made some crazy bikes - the lightning had a front disc the same size as the rim

[B Oeuf]

Harley missed a trick and seem still not get it. They've been overtaken by custom bike and engine manufacturers who can offer a multitude of power and styling options, this could be a real rough patch for HD and dumping Buell and their share of MV just the start

[cymtriks]

Maxwedge said:

wow 84%, Where are you getting that number?
Reading over the link I posted they only state
"For 2009 compared to 2008 through nine months, retail sales of Harley-Davidson motorcycles decreased 22.9 percent worldwide, 25.5 percent in the U.S. and 16.5 percent in international markets. Industry-wide U.S. retail heavyweight motorcycle sales declined 38.7 percent year to date in 2009, compared to 2008." officially....

There is no link between number of sales and the final profit.

i.e. if they have to sell 73 truck loads to break even and normal profits come from a further 27 truck loads then losing 23 truck loads of sales is an 84% drop.

However, as it is still profitable at this point and as the Buell name must be worth a keeping going it is a bit surprising that they've suddenly decided to drop it.

[Maxwedge]

That may be true but it still doesnt show where the "84% drop in profits" comes from...out ones buttocks maybe?

[B16JUS]

isetta 300 said:

Utter Madness, Buell made some crazy bikes - the lightning had a front disc the same size as the rim

i remember that, isnt the frame the fuel tank and what should be the fuel tank a clear airbox >

[aeropilot]

Maxwedge said:

That may be true but it still doesnt show where the "84% drop in profits" comes from...out ones buttocks maybe?

I was going to post the links but I can't be arsed now.........

[olimeads]

We have a load at college, I personly don't like them, but the look well pit together.

[rah1888]

http://www.marketwatch.com/story/harley-davidson-n...

NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Harley-Davidson Inc. /quotes/comstock/13*!hog/quotes/nls/hog (HOG 25.00, -0.01, -0.04%) said Thursday its third-quarter net income dropped 84% to $26.48 million, or 11 cents a share, from $166.54 million, or 71 cents a share in the year-ago period. The Milwaukee-based motorcycle manufacturer was expected to earn 23 cents a share, according to a survey by FactSet Research. Harley's latest quarter included a one-time fixed-asset impairment charge of $14.2 million related to Buell and a goodwill impairment charge of $18.9 million related to MV Agusta. Looking ahead, the company will discontinue production of Buell motorcycles, resulting in the loss of 180 jobs over time. It'll book one-time charges of $215 million to $245 million in 2009 and 2010, about $55 million ahead of its July projections. The company expects to ship 35,000 to 40,000 motorcycles in the fourth quarter.