Gilera Logo – Gilera is a company Italian manufacturer of motorcycles, established in Arcore in 1909 by Giuseppe Gilera. In 1969 it was bought by the Piaggio Group, which currently has six Italian brands ( Aprilia, Gilera, Moto Guzzi, Piaggio, Vespa and Laverda) and Spanish (Derby), being the fourth largest motorcycle manufacturer in the world.
In 1935 Gilera acquired rights to the Rondine four-cylinder engine, which was the basis for their racing machines for nearly four decades. Based on that engine developed a range of engines four times from 100cc to 500cc.
After World War II , Gilera dominated the world motorcycle championship, winning the 500cc class six times in eight years. Facing a reduction in sales due to the growing popularity of automobiles, Gilera gentlemanly agreement reached with the other Italian motorcycle manufacturers to withdraw from the competition after the 1957 season as a cost cutting measure. In 1992 Gilera returned to the races. Today Piaggio continues to produce motorcycles and small displacement motorcycles under the brand Gilera.