Willie G. Davidson
| William G. Davidson | |
|---|---|
| Occupation | Motorcycle designer |
| Known for | Chief styling officer for Harley-Davidson |
William G. Davidson, usually referred to as "Willie G.", is the senior vice president & chief styling officer of Harley-Davidson Motor Company.[1] He is also the head of Harley-Davidson's Willie G. Davidson Product Development Center in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin.[2] While being generally responsible for approving Harley-Davidson motorcycle designs, he has also personally designed several motorcycles for Harley-Davidson, including the Super Glide and the Low Rider, which pioneered the factory custom motorcycle and created an intermediate line of motorcycles between their large touring models and their smaller Sportsters.[3][4]
[edit] Early life
Willie G. Davidson is the son of former Harley-Davidson president William H. Davidson and the grandson of Harley-Davidson co-founder William A. Davidson. Consequently, he grew up around Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Davidson graduated from the University of Wisconsin and went on to study at the Art Center College of Design in Pasadena, California. While in California, he became aware of bike customization.
Before working for Harley-Davidson, Davidson worked for the design department of Ford Motor Company.[5]
[edit] At Harley-Davidson
Davidson joined the design department of Harley-Davidson in 1963. In 1969 he was promoted to Vice President of Styling.[5] His designs during the 1970s included the 1971 FX Super Glide, the 1977 FXS Low Rider, and the 1977 XLCR Sportster-based cafe racer.[6]
Willie was one of the Harley-Davidson executives who joined Vaughn Beals in buying Harley-Davidson from parent company American Machine and Foundry in 1981.[5]
[edit] References
- ^ bizjournals: Willie G. Davidson Executive Profile
- ^ Bandit Interviews Willie G.
- ^ AMA's Motorcycle Hall of Fame Museum - 1971 Harley-Davidson Super Glide
- ^ Mitchel, D. "Harley-Davidson Chronicle - An American Original" p. 234 Publications International Limited, 1997 ISBN 0-7853-2514-X
- ^ a b c AMA's Motorcycle Hall of Fame - William G. Davidson
- ^ Popular Mechanics: Hot For Harleys: An American Icon, page 4
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