| Author | Message | ||
     Fundy |
Long story short wife said when I turned 40 I could get my bike. So bday coming in early spring of 2005 I set out to look at the Buells at the local HD dealership. I was approached by one the the techs (all the salesman were busy with the 20k plus customers) we began talking about the XB 12R and he stated that the Buell line of bikes maybe coming to an end. Say it is not so! Is this guy just shooting off at the mouth. Thank you for your time, Fundy | ||
| 420at145mph |
really wouldnt suprise me with all the little issues and its defintely a niche type bike but then again according to "fuell" sales were way up in 2003 so its hard to say it really wouldnt suprise me if they did go the way of the dodo tho | ||
| Prof_stack |
I doubt if Buell won't happen in 2005. The only thing I see is for it to get "folded in" to the Harley lineup as their true sport-bike. But with the XLH Sportsters getting an update this year, that seems less likely. But you have to admit that having a Harley label on the XB frame would most likely increase resale value.  | ||
| Charlieboy6649 |
I highly doubt you'll see Buell go to the wayside. Not with the R&D that went into the XB's and their popularity. A company (Harley) doesn't put fourth that kind of investment and give it just one year to prove its self... I would hope not. | ||
| M1combat |
I don't want an H-D label on my frame... There's a few on the engine EXACTLY where it should be. The frames are made in Italy and not by H-D. I have to say... Buell being "folded in" or faded out is about the most unlikely piece of news I've heard. Who knows for the future but Buell seems to be doing very well ATM. That's about like rolling Nissan into Ford... Not gunna happen any time soon if you ask me | ||
| Turnagain |
a lot of first time posters here of late. Welcome and .... no wait, wrong board.  Sure he wasn't talking about his dealership? | ||
| Fundy |
Thanks for all the input! And no I do not think it is the dealership. To many PhD's where I live! | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
Buell wont be going away anytime in the near future. As far as 2003 sales being way up that is as Court would say "inaccurate information". Sales have also taken a dive for some reason since the release of the 12. Initially they were up & I would have figured the 12 would greatly improve the sales, but it hasnt. maybe its simply the •••• poor marketing by the dealerships combined with a rather poor economy in a lot of areas. | ||
| Elvis |
Buell V-Twin Shipments: 2000 - 5043 2001 - 6436 2002 - 6887 2003 - 8784 Everyone can make their own determination regarding how big that improvement is, but those are the numbers, and it's clear what direction they're going. | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
Go by total Buell sales volume. Also post up the numbers for 2004 year to date. | ||
| Elvis |
Blast shipments: 2000 - 5416 2001 - 3489 2002 - 4056 2003 - 1190 The drop in blast shipments was attributed to a "supplier issue" and is the only reason Buell shipments weren't at record levels for 2003. | ||
| Boulderbiker |
Correction... That tech just "wishes" Buell was going away, like many of his narrow-minded and short-sighted Hardley Tech brethren. Harley's all about money, and quite good at it and they didn't buy Buell to throw away a bunch of money and time, as Charlie put it. Besides, even if HD did close the doors on the Buell mark, do you think that after all that Erik has gone through in making this dream happen so far, that something like that would stop him from making bikes? I think not. | ||
| R1DynaSquid |
The drop in blast shipments was attributed to a "supplier issue" and is the only reason Buell shipments weren't at record levels for 2003. Minor correction on that. The V-twin models are being produced on 2 fully manned production lines while the Blast was moved over to a small 2 person line at the rear of the building. Demand for the Blast has dropped steadily since its introduction & at the current time the market is flooded with a huge inventory of cheap used Blasts. "Supplier issue" can be the "official" word but doesnt mean its 100% factual. Also, Jose has posted in the past the sales figures for 2004 as well as the qtr by qtr sales comparing 2004 to 2003. look em up. | ||
| Anonymous |
2004 is by far the best Buell sales year ever, and no, we are not about to go away! God, what kind of ••••••• at a dealership would say something like that. The jerks like him working in the dealerships are the only reason our sales aren't up even more. The quality on the new bikes is fantastic...the warranty issues are way less than many other more famous brands. | ||
| Buckinfubba |
anon glad you said it before I could... fundy...you will learn very many dealership employees have there respective brains stowed away so far up the middle of their collective sphincter muscles that they believe honda is going to fade away... hitler youth have nothing on hd dealer employees!!!! and yes I know way too much. Buell ain't going away | ||
| Whosyodaddy |
According to Torqer's post in this thread http://www.badweatherbikers.com/buell/messages/32777/59797.html?1086115911, dealers are already putting in orders for '05 models. On a side note, the low sales figures for the Blast don't surprise me. It's a blast to ride (no pun intended) but WAY overpriced for a starter bike. (At least IMHO.) WYD edited by Whosyodaddy on June 06, 2004 | ||
| Davegess |
Fundy, Buell ain/t goin' away. I would go away, as far away from that dealer as possible. If that is the attitude there than you will have trouble getting parts, they will blame it on Buell, and the service techs will not be able to fix the bike correctly for reasonable money. Buell is not going away for many reasons, HD has invested a ton of money in the XB and it is doing very well. It is perhaps the most reliable bike currently on the market. It is making big inroads in Europe, an area that HD finds important but has a tough time selling Harley's there. Erik has many, many allies among the movers and shakers at Harley. This group is growing not shrinking. And last and perhaps most important, Erik is a stubborn cuss, he will build bikes come hell or high water. Dave | ||
| Mikej |
"Sure he wasn't talking about his dealership?" That's probably the case. A shop north of me with a little burgerDiner grafted onto the end of it apparently dropped the Buell line (based on what one of their salesdudes told me several months ago). I have'nt been in there since to confirm it. Without knowing where fundy was at, the relative PhD ratio is potentially irrelevant. Besides, once you've been to a few Buell centered events you'll soon realize that Buells cross over many demographic delineators. I wonder if fundy will return. | ||
| Redb1ker |
A number of dealers are dropping the Buell. The one I bought my brand new 2003 xb9 at is one of the few and they actually have a Buell tech. I LOVE my Buell. I was going to call her Never. I was an avid anti-sport bike, until I rode the xb12r. I took the xb9, because the 12 was to damned scarey. I wonder what a blast engine in a Sportster frame would do for "The Motor Company". | ||
| Glitch |
A number of dealers are dropping the Buell. Buell has the best year ever and dealers are scared of success? I don't get it, I just don't get it. I wonder if Buell gets really successful, and they start selling themselves, if HD lets the guys that dropped 'em get back on board. | ||
| Redb1ker |
I wonder what it would take to get just a Buell dealership. I wonder if that is exclusively HD. | ||
| 420at145mph |
this has been gone over before check the knowledge vault | ||
| Glitch |
Red, it would take opening a HD dealership. | ||
| Rockbiter1 |
Shreveport Harley (and their Bossier City store) are dropping Buell this year, according to current scuttlebutt (from store employees) | ||
| Redb1ker |
I went to Mile High in east Denver and the sales manager there told me that they dropped the line because they got an inquiry a month usually not to purchase. Just curious. I see that Maverick Cycles of Cheyenne has dropped the line, too. Thunder Mountain of Ft. Collins USED to be a BIG Buell dealer, they also USED to run the Riders Edge program. I guess that was a disaster, too. Seems kind of silly to put a grandmother who never rode a motorcycle before on a motorcycle that does 50 mph in second gear and teach her to ride. No fun 'till someone looses an eye. | ||
| Blublak |
Let's see.. according to one of the sales slugs at Whitts HARLEY DAVIDSON/buell they can't sell them, so they are dropping them. Thinking I'd still like to try and get a sling bag.. could never make it to the dealer before they closed.. I called and asked about a demo bike ride.. The guy that I talked too said they were sold out and won't have any more until next years model. Go figure.. Later, | ||
| Southernmarine |
"can't sell them" It's not that they can't sell the bike. It's because they're not making the effort to sell them (and I mean that for any dealership that gives up on Buells). "ANYTHING" can be sold, you just have to find a way to sell it. | ||
| Nxtr |
Barnetts, HD in El Paso had the sling bag offer so I asked to try out a 12S, they brought it out and the bike wouldnt start, dead battery. The salesman then told me I would be better off getting a sportster since Buells build quality was not up to HD's par, thats is why Buell had to offer a 2 year warranty vs. HD 1 year. I shook my head in disbelief "what an as**ole". I waited for them to get another 12S and took off on a test ride. Upon return I refused the have a seat at my desk to talk #'s and asked for the bag. He went to the back and came out stating he was sorry they were all out, it seems they had given all 800 away. I said I was shocked you mean their were that many people in here to test ride the sub par Buell, No response. I simply stated well hey thanks for the test ride and when I do buy the 12S it wont be from your dealership. and especially from you. Have a nice day. What does this have to do with the 05's? It is not the mother company HD that will kill Buell, its the I dont care about Buell dealerships, since they cannot find away to mark up the price and sell you $2500 in chrome and leather since they only stock like 10 buell items. Enuff said. V/R, Nick | ||
| Raraf |
Nxtr, go to the Las Cruces store. Lorna, she is cool. They won't feed you crap. When I called the El Paso store for my 03 XB9S they wanted 7999 with 1200 dollars in SHIPPING...I LIVE IN DENVER! I called Las Cruces. 8049 out the door. Even faxed me the invoice. I drove down and picked that baby up! | ||
| Tucsonxb9s |
If you were a commission-based salesperson or dealership, which would you rather sell...an XB with not a lot of mark up and usually already discounted or a Softtail with a larger mark up, sold without a discount, and dealer installed accessories that have been also marked up? Also think of the after the sale accessories the boutiques are making with the chrome thingys and leather doo dads that every Harley owner must have compared to what little there is for Buellers. It's not really too suprising to me. Think of the extra floor space that can be used for chrome HD baby rattles! It's all about the  |
