Over the past three years, Harley-Davidson has seen a massive amount of growth in the European markets, and to aid that growth, HD purchased popular Italian motorcycle company MV Agusta in early August, 2008. This new branch of the HD empire will help the company increase its foreign market sales, and while the popularity of the Harley has grown around the world, the distinctly Italian design of the MV Agusta bikes, such as the Brutale 1078RR.
The MV Agusta company stormed onto the scene following World War II, offering low price, small motorcycles as a low-buck vehicle option, but in the 1960s and 1970s, the demand for small displacement motorcycles declined. Over time, their focus became racing and performance rather than low cost and efficiency, and with that came the extinction of their smaller engine models, and in their place were larger, more powerful, and more excusive (low volume) bikes. This caused a decline in sales, and by the 1980s, the company stopped producing bikes. It would be some 17 years and the company's first buyout before they were start producing MV Agusta bikes again, but when they did, they did so with a bang. The new Agusta's were direct competition for some of the hottest sport bikes in Europe, and when they released their Brutale lineup, their intention was to introduce a sort of Ferrari of motorcycles....super high performance and super low production volume, making them among the most expensive motorcycles in the world. Even with that high price tag, the MV Agusta models have earned respect around the world; on both the street and the track.
This 108 million dollar acquisition gives HD not only a stronger foothold in the European market, but the variety of ultra high performance "Sport bikes" add a new element to the Harley-Davidson family, and this new division of the HD family will surely help to continue to spread the growth of the brand around the world.