Buell Shutdown Follow Up

After the stunning news this morning that Harley-Davidson was ceasing production of Buell motorcycles I did some calling around to get reaction from some people who have been associated with Buell for a long time. Of course everyone was bewildered by the news.

Al Lighton of American Sport Bike in Vista, California is one of the foremost marketers of Buell aftermarket and OEM  parts in the country. He got the news this morning about the closure. Originally he knew that there would be a shutdown that was scheduled to last till the end of the year, then word came down about the closing. He said that in the short term his business will definitely take a huge hit. But he hopes that once the dust settles and as things play out his market will see a rebound. Afterall the bikes aren’t simply going to go away. People will still be riding them and there will be a need replacement parts. Al hopes that a “white knight” who will come along to resurrect the brand like the mythical Phoenix. He said “a lot of people have worked too hard to get Buell this far to just let it die.”

Another long time Buell aficionado is Bill Bomberger of New Castle Harley-Davidson/Buell. Bill was one of the first people I ever saw riding a Buell way back when they first came out. Over the years he became a dealer and for many years had his own Buell race team. He too was caught off guard when he got the call from Buell today. “It seems unreal that just two months ago they were the toast of the town after Danny Estrick clinched the AMA Daytona Superbike Championship, now they’re done”. Bill said he plans to continue to sell the remaining new and used Buells until the inventory runs out. His shop will also continue to stock parts and service bikes in the future.

Amazingly both men brought this point up. Just because production has ceased doesn’t mean the end of Buell. They both mentioned at how many old BSAs are still running around. You can’t buy a new one but you can still get parts.

Photos by New Castle H-D and Bryan Carter