Gilera was founded in Italy in 1909, by Giuseppe Gilera.
Gilera`s first bike was a 317cc overhead-valve engine which had a belt drive.
In 1935 Gilera acquired rights to the Rondine four-cylinder engine. This formed the basis for Gileras racing machines nearly forty years. From the mid-thirties Gilera developed a range of four-stroke engine machines.
The engines ranged from 100 to 500cc. The most famous of which was the 1939 Saturno.
After World War II, Gilera dominated Grand Prix motorcycle racing, winning the 500cc road racing world championship 6 times in 8 years
The Piaggio Group bought Gilera in 1969.
Then in 1993, Piaggio closed the Gilera factory at Arcore.
However, they still make motorcycles and scooters using the Gilera badge.
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