So Long, Buell!

The last Buell produced rolling off the assembly line...

Though it may sound a bit like an obituary, the sad reality (for some) is that the Buell brand came to an end. American manufacturer Harley-Davidson revealed that the final Buell rolled off the assembly line, marking for a total of 136,923 motorcycles built in the company’s 26 years of existence. The motorcycle in question was a Buell Lightning XB12Scg model.

Buell Motorcycle Company was founded by former Harley-Davidson engineer Erik Buell, and the first model to be produced was dubbed RW750, a bike that was designed for competing in the AMA Formula 1 motorcycle road championship, but the competition was soon canceled.

The company first partnered with Harley-Davidson in 1993, and became a wholly-owned subsidiary of Harley by 2003. A landmark was reached on November 17, 2006, when Buell announced that it had produced and shipped its 100,000th motorcycle.

At the end of October 2009, Harley-Davidson was revealing its third quarter financial results, which showed that sales dropped 21.3 percent year-on-year and the net income is down 84.1 percent. Therefore, the renown American motorcycle manufacturer decided to give up on Buell, sell MV Agusta and switch the focus on their own brand.

Walworth County officials said they are considering a deal which would see Erik Buell continue manufacturing motorcycles in the area, JS Online reported. If Erik Buell, who is chairman and chief technical officer of Buell Motorcycle, would agree to this deal, then the Walworth County group will go on with further steps, including trying to talk with Harley and seeking potential investors.

However, it seems that all the efforts made to save the Buell brand didn’t pay off. Buell motorcycles will continue to be sold through existing dealers until inventory is depleted.