Retail News CRM

Tag: Ducati

  • Ducati CEO Hints At Panigale V4 Streetfighter

    Ducati CEO Hints At Panigale V4 Streetfighter

    Is Ducati planning to introduce a naked version of the Panigale V4 superbike? That’s the question that’s been doing the rounds for some time now, especially after a custom-built naked Ducati Panigale V4 was unveiled by Italian design house Officine GP. That custom naked, called the V4 Penta, isn’t an official Ducati creation, but now Ducati Motor Holding’s CEO Claudio Domenicali himself has hinted that a production naked version of the Panigale V4 may indeed be in the works. Domenicali didn’t exactly spell out that a naked V4 is under production, but his cryptic remarks in an interview have led to speculation that a naked version of the Panigale V4 may indeed be in the making.

    In an interview with Swiss website Acid Moto, the Ducati CEO talked about future plans of the company, including plans of an electric model from Ducati. But Domenicali revealed little and denied reports that a supersport V4 was in the works. When asked about the possibility of a streetfighter-style model based on the Panigale V4 engine, instead of replying to the question, Domenicali replied with another question.

    “Do you think Ducati should produce such a bike?” he asked. When the interviewers replied in the affirmative, and said “yes” to that question, which led Domenicali to conclude that “It will therefore be made as soon as possible!” Now, this doesn’t necessarily confirm whether Ducati has plans to make the V4 streetfighter, or if it’s already under production. But his comments certainly are interesting, more so because just around a month ago, a custom stripped down V4 was unveiled by Officine GP. The V4 Penta as it’s called, was not a Ducati commissioned build, but it certainly gives Ducati the chance to gauge market reaction, and it seems a naked V4 could see production sooner than later.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

  • Italian Motorcycle Makers Tease Indonesian Enthusiasts With New Models

    Italian Motorcycle Makers Tease Indonesian Enthusiasts With New Models

    Italian motorcycle manufacturers are hoping the release of new or updated models would be enough to reinvigorate interest among Indonesian enthusiasts and boost sales, which have been subdued in the past few years amid a weakening currency and slowing economic growth in Southeast Asia’s biggest economy.

    From household names such as Ducati, Piaggio and Vespa, to niche brands like Motto Guzzi and Italjet, displayed their latest models at the International Motorcycle and Accessories Exhibition in Milan last week. Thousands of visitors from across the globe, including a dozen importers from Indonesia, attended the world’s most famous exhibition dedicated to two-wheelers.

    Ducati featured the Panigale V4R, its latest road-legal competition bike, along with its new Hypermotard 950 and Diavel 1260. The company also introduced updated versions of its Scrambler and Multistrada ranges.

    Moto Guzzi showed off its new adventure bike, the V85 TT, while Vespa introduced updates to its GTS and Primavera ranges, while also launching a new electric scooter, the Elettrica.

    The new models have invoked confidence among importers looking at expanding the luxury motorcycle market in Indonesia after years of slowing demand.

    “We are ready to bring the new Ducati motorcycles to Indonesia, including the three new ones,” said Faby Tsui, marketing director of Garansindo Euro Sports, the sole authorized distributor of Ducati in Indonesia.

    Next year, the company plans to add three Ducati stores from just one currently in Jakarta. “We are looking at opening another shop in Jakarta, one in Surabaya and one in Bali,” Faby said.

    Italjet Moto, a small motorcycle manufacturer based in Castel San Pietro Terme in Bologna, aired a similar sentiment. The company has just revived its iconic Dragster scooter with a new sporty design unique to its class.

    “We would like to enter the Indonesian market. It’s an exciting market, which I believe has many scooter enthusiasts. Indonesia will be the first country outside Europe for us to market the Dragster,” Italjet Moto managing director Massimo Tartarini said.

    The company has also laid out a long-term plan for Indonesia, viewing it as a production base in the Asia-Pacific region.

    “We will start production in April or May next year. For the first year, we want to produce it in Italy. For the second year, we want to start manufacturing it in Indonesia for the Asia-Pacific market,” Tartarini said.

    However, some importers were less optimistic, pointing out that demand for luxury motorcycles has yet to return to what it used to be several years ago, when the Indonesian economy still enjoyed a windfall from a commodity boom and a strong currency.

    Indonesia’s imports of motorcycles, spare parts and accessories from Italy only amounted to $1.3 million last year, half what it was in 2012, according to data compiled by UN Comtrade, the commodity trade section of the United Nations’ statistics division.

    The Indonesian economy has yet to return to the growth levels of above 6 percent it used to see between 2010 and 2012. The rupiah now trades at 16,700 to the euro, having depreciated more than 36 percent from the 2012 level, according to Bank Indonesia.

    Meanwhile, Indonesia’s efforts to root out corruption have effectively curbed the practice among officials of collecting luxury motorcycles over the past few years.

    “I used to see government officials in store bringing all cash in backpacks to buy luxury motorcycles. Today it’s not the case anymore,” one motorbike importer said.

    Other importers pointed to the government’s recent decision to raise import taxes on luxury motorcycles and accessories as part of the country’s broader efforts to curb a widening current-account deficit.

    Many view the move was ineffective to achieve the goal, considering the relatively small size of the luxury motorcycle market in Indonesia. Italian motorcycles and accessories, for example, only accounted for a tiny part of Indonesia’s $535 million imports of bikes and accessories last year, mainly from China, Thailand and Vietnam.

    “We hope the tax will only be temporary and that conditions would return to normal soon,” Faby said.

    Lees ook:

  • 2019 Ducati Panigale V4 R Spotted

    2019 Ducati Panigale V4 R Spotted

    The Ducati Panigale V4 R is the downsized, 1,000 cc version of the Ducati Panigale V4, and will be Ducati’s weapon of choice in superbike racing for some time now. The current Panigale V4’s 1,194 cc engine overshoots the displacement limit for the World Superbike Championship (WSBK) for four-cylinder models, so an engine meeting the WSBK homologation requirements was imminent. Latest spy shots show exactly such an example of the V4 R undergoing test runs at an undisclosed location. The bike seen in the spy pictures appear to be the race-spec variant of the new model, although Ducati will certainly introduce a road-legal model of the V4 R as well.

    The spy shots reveal that the V4 R has a different fairing design than the Panigale V4, with a pair of gill-like openings on the side (quite like the BMW S 1000 RR). The fairing also has a number of mounting points that may be used for adding winglets which are now allowed for WSBK racing. Also seen is a dry clutch on the test bike, although this clutch could only be available on the race-spec bike, rather than the street bike. The test bike also sports lightweight magnesium-forged Marchesini wheels, and what seem to be Brembo brakes. The spy shots also reveal a reworked exhaust system which seems to be more compact than the stock exhaust system on the current Panigale V4.

    So far, there’s no indication when the V4 R will be launched and what its pricing will be. The production-spec model of the Ducati Panigale V4 R is expected to be unveiled at the EICMA show in Milan next month, followed by the model’s launch in Europe. We expect Ducati India to introduce the road version of the V4 R in India sometime next year.

  • VW sale of Ducati, Renk units lacks board support

    VW sale of Ducati, Renk units lacks board support

    Volkswagen’s planned sale of motorcycle brand Ducati and transmissions maker Renk has currently no majority backing on the carmaker’s supervisory board, with opponents to asset sales feeling invigorated by the group’s strong results.

    Europe’s largest automaker has tasked banks to evaluate options for Ducati and Renk including divesting the two divisions as it aims to streamline operations to help fund a post-dieselgate strategic overhaul.

    Volkswagen has been reviewing its portfolio of assets and brands since announcing in June 2016 a multi-billion-euro shift to electric cars and new mobility services as part of its so-called Strategy 2025.

    Five bidders have been shortlisted to buy Ducati, including Italy’s Benetton family, with offers received valuing the brand at 1.3 billion-1.5 billion euros ($1.76 billion), a source said on Saturday.

    But VW’s labour leaders, occupying half the seats on the 20-member supervisory board which decides on asset sales, resist a sale of Ducati and Renk without compelling financial reasons.

    “The employee representatives on Volkswagen’s supervisory board will neither approve a sale of Ducati, nor one of Renk or MAN Diesel & Turbo,” a spokesman for VW group’s works council told Reuters late on Saturday.

    “Everyone who can read the VW half-year results should know: We don’t need money and our subsidiaries are not up for grabs by bargain hunters.”

    Six-month operating profit at VW group jumped 19 percent to 8.9 billion euros, the carmaker said on Thursday, as cost cuts and R&D improvements at the core namesake brand earned VW a respite from the billions of euros in costs for fines, vehicle refits and compensation related to its dieselgate scandal.

    One source at VW said that given strong union opposition, VW is now reviewing the plan to sell Ducati as it doesn’t want to risk working with labour on implementing a hard-fought turnaround plan for the VW brand, seen as crucial by investors.

    Though Ducati is owned by VW’s luxury brand Audi, the VW group’s supervisory board has to approve a possible sale. Audi declined comment.

    The billionaire Porsche and Piech families, controlling 52 percent of voting shares in VW and holding four supervisory board seats, do not support selling Ducati or Renk, two other sources at VW group said.

    A spokesman for Porsche SE, the family’s holding company, declined comment.

    With 20 percent of voting rights in VW, Lower Saxony, where the carmaker employs more than 100,000 staff at six plants, can veto decisions such as factory closures.

    Holding two board seats, Lower Saxony traditionally teams up with VW’s worker representatives for the sake of protecting jobs and projects. A spokeswoman declined comment when asked whether the state government would back a sale of Ducati or other assets.

    “The management board has not even asked the supervisory board of Volkswagen, where such sales have to be ratified, for its approval,” the works council spokesman said. “Therefore we advise all supposedly interested parties: Save your time to check any books. A sale will not happen.”

    The five bidders shortlisted to buy Ducati will be given access to the company’s books after the summer, the first source said.

    With most of Audi’s executives away for a three-week summer break, a decision on whether management will stick to the planned sale will not be taken until September or October, a source close to Audi said. Audi declined comment.

    VW finance chief Frank Witter, speaking on Thursday’s earnings call, declined any comment on “speculation” surrounding VW’s asset sales plans.

  • Harley-Davidson enters race to buy Italian rival Ducati

    Harley-Davidson enters race to buy Italian rival Ducati

    U.S. motorcycle maker Harley-Davidson is lining up a takeover bid for Italian rival Ducati, potentially bringing together two of the most famous names in motorcycling in a deal that could be worth up to 1.5 billion euros ($1.67 billion), sources told Reuters.

    Indian motorcycle maker Bajaj Auto and several buyout funds are also preparing bids for Ducati, which is being put up for sale by German carmaker Volkswagen.

    A deal with Harley-Davidson would bring together the maker of touring bikes like the Electra Glide that are symbolic of America with a leading European maker whose high-performance bikes have a distinguished racing heritage.

    Milwaukee-based Harley-Davidson has hired Goldman Sachs to work on the deal, one source familiar with the matter said, adding tentative bids were expected in July.

    Volkswagen, whose Audi division controls Ducati – maker of the iconic Monster motorbike – is working with investment boutique Evercore on the sale which will help it fund a strategic overhaul following its emissions scandal.

    Based in the northern Italian city of Bologna, Ducati was on the wish list of private equity funds KKK, Bain Capital and Permira, which are all working on the deal, said the sources who declined to be identified as the process is private.

    Ducati was launched in 1926 as a maker of vacuum tubes and radio components and its Bologna factory remained open in World War Two despite being the target of several bombings.

    Ducati racers have won the Superbike world championship 14 times, with Carl Fogarty and Troy Bayliss its most successful riders.

    Harley-Davidson, which commands about half the U.S. big-bike market, was founded in Milwaukee, Wisconsin at the start of the last century and was one of two major American motorcycle manufacturers to survive the great depression.

    Demand for Harley’s motorcycles continues to be slow as its loyal baby boomer demographic ages and rivals such as the Indian brand bike maker Polaris Industries Inc (PII.N) and Japan’s Honda Motor offer discounts.

    Volkswagen’s powerful labor unions, which control half the seats on the carmaker’s 20-strong supervisory board, repeated their opposition to selling the Italian motorcycle maker.

    “Ducati is a jewel, the sale of which is not supported by the labor representatives on Volkswagen’s supervisory board,” a spokesman for VW group’s works council said in an email.

    “Harley-Davidson is miles behind Ducati in technology terms,” he added.

    BIDDING FIELD

    Evercore has sent out information packages to a number of potential suitors including Ducati’s previous owner Investindustrial, sources with knowledge of the matter said.

    Investindustrial bought a stake in Ducati before the financial crisis, subsequently taking control of the business before selling it to Audi in 2012.

    It is now looking to compete with heavyweight private equity firms and large industry players to regain control.

    Volkswagen, Audi, Harley-Davidson, KKR and Bain Capital declined to comment. Bajaj, Investindustrial and Permira were not immediately available.

    Volkswagen, Europe’s largest carmaker, is seeking to move beyond an emissions-cheating scandal that has tarnished its image and left it facing billions of euros in fines and settlements.

    A successful deal for Ducati, which last year reported revenues of 593 million euros, would show Volkswagen boss Matthias Mueller is serious about reversing his predecessor’s quest for size.

    Volkswagen said last June it would review its portfolio of assets and brands, rekindling speculation among analysts that “non-core” businesses could be put up for sale.

    Volkswagen hopes to raise between 1.4 billion and 1.5 billion euros from the sale of Ducati, valuing it at 14-15 times its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) of about 100 million euros, the sources said.

    The German car maker wants a valuation that reflects trading multiples of similar trophy assets in the automotive industry, such as Italian car maker Ferrari (RACE.MI) which trades at almost 30 times its forward earnings.

    Yet it may need to compromise on price as some of the bidders would struggle to pay as much as 1.5 billion euros for Ducati, several sources said.

    Price expectations have already proved challenging for some industry players who recently decided against bidding.

    Indian motorcycle firm Hero Moto and its rival TVS Motor initially expressed interest in Ducati but were put off by its price tag and decided to walk away, the sources said.

    German car marker BMW and Japanese motorcycle makers Honda and Suzuki have also decided against bidding for Ducati, sources close to the companies told Reuters.

    A BMW spokesman confirmed the German firm was not interested in Ducati, while Hero and TVS were not immediately available for comment.

    Another source close to Volkswagen said the sale of Ducati might not be finalised before the annual EICMA motorcycle show in Milan in mid-November as Volkswagen wanted to find the right buyer and the sales process might take time.

  • Ducati eyes gold in Indonesia’s big bike market

    Ducati eyes gold in Indonesia’s big bike market

    With the opening of its flagship store in Jakarta, Italian-based luxurious motorcycle manufacturer Ducati expects it will be able to tap into Indonesia’s growing big motorcycle market.

    The store, located in an elite area of Kemang, South Jakarta, opened up for the public on Monday and will serve as Ducati’s complete dealership, one-stop service, spare parts provider and certified used-bike re-seller in Indonesia.

    Garansindo Euro Sports, the new sole distributor of the Italian motorcycles, has allocated at least Rp 80 billion ( US$6 million ) in investment to finance the store and other sales supporting facilities including after-sale services.

    The store has started selling Ducati’s products such as the Monster 795, the Hypermotard, Multistrada, as well as Scrambler Ducati bikes like the Icon, Classic and Urban Enduro.

    The motorcycles carry an off-the-road price tag of between Rp 199 million and Rp 899 million. The Ducati Monster 1100, for example, sells for Rp 345 million, excluding taxes and other levies.

    Garansindo’s managing director Dhani Yahya said the 3,000 square-meter store was Ducati’s largest dealership in the world after the company’s distribution outlet in New Delhi, India.

    “This ambitious investment is expected to expand our market, which was previously considered inaccessible for our potential buyers and customers,” he said on Monday.

    Ducati’s service workshop is part of the flagship store and is able to handle up to 16 bikes per day. The workshop provides original Ducati spare parts imported directly from its plant in Thailand.

    Despite the country’s weak motorcycle sales, which continue to face pressures due to the country’s economic slowdown, Ducati is optimistic about the Indonesian market, given the country’s growing middle class.

    Dhani said that the market response toward Ducati motorbikes was positive so far as seen from the 2016 Indonesian International Motorshow, held in Jakarta last month. During the two-week exhibition, Garansindo managed to sell 52 Ducati motorbikes, a number Dhani said was a sizable one for premium bike sales.

    “The high number of purchased bikes last month proved that we can still generate large enthusiasm in this country,” he said.

    The opening of the flagship store is Garansindo’s first Ducati dealership after the distributor took over from PT Supermoto Indonesia last January. Dulcati’s sales declined last year and its old dealerships in Jakarta stopped operating after Supermoto Indonesia failed to maintain the business.

    To reverse Ducati’s mediocre sales history in Indonesia, Garansindo plans to open at least 12 branches across the archipelago by 2019.

    “Of course at present we will focus on developing this Kemang flagship store, but by 2019 we expect to add 12 more dealerships in places like Jakarta, Surabaya, Bandung and Bali,” Garansindo president director Mohammed El Abdullah said.

    One of Ducati’s customers, Firman Saladdin, said he expected better aftersales services after the dealership opening.

    “As a loyal customer, I want Ducati to improve its services and add more exclusive spare parts,” the Jakarta-based business consultant said.

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook:

    Lees ook: