| Harley-Davidson
William S. Harley, Arthur Davidson & Walter Davidson started working together drawing up their plans in 1901, and founded the Harley-Davidson Motor Company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin in 1903. Harley-Davidson is the eldest company in contiguous operations as a motorcycle manufacturer in the world. It is the last of the great American motorcycle companies which existed in the early 1900's. The company emphasizes powerful heavyweight (over 61 ci / 750 cc) bikes with a smooth powerband designed for cruising on the highway. The classic Harley-Davidson engines are two-cylinder, V-twin engines with the pistons mounted in a 45° "V" which are both connected to the crankshaft using a single pin, giving "Harleys" the distinctive exhaust sound they are known for. The modern Revolution engine is a high performance designed and developed with Porsche is a liquid cooled 69 cubic inch (1,131 cc) 60 degree V-twin. Harley-Davidson has a world-wide presence and in 1960 it tried to compete with smaller low priced Japanese manufacturers by buying 50% stock in Italian motorcycle manufacturer Aermacchi allowing it to offer smaller bikes rebranded as Harley-Davidsons. AMF purchased Harley-Davidson in 1969 which actually created havoc in the company as it retooled and streamlined quality out of the product until a small contigency of management and employees were able to purchase the company from the parent conglomerate in 1981. This group saved the company by listening to employees and addressing manufacturing quality issues which had previously plagued the brand. Harley-Davidson has since grown with a strong and loyal customer following. It has invested heavily in Buell American Motorcycles, which are powered by H-D v-twin engines, but utilize radically new frame technology which offers superior handling technology in a large motorcyle. Buell is now a subsidiary of Harley-Davidson.
http://www.H-D.com
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