Ducati is to bikes, what Ferrari is to cars. Premium, flashy, impressive. We haven’t ridden any but from what we have heard, they can walk the talk. Onward to the news of the day, and that is Ducati is officially entering the Indian market.
We know, what you are thinking, “But they launched way back in 2008”. Right and wrong. You see way back when the new century was only 8 years old, they had indeed entered the Indian market. But they had done so through a tie-up with an importer Shreyans. These are the same guys who work as official imports for brands like Ferrari, Maserati and until very recently Porsche.
So you would think they were in good hands, Yes? No, seems like the red monsters have decided to go the Audi way and set up their own private network in the subcontinent.
Ducati plans to work with the support of Audi, letting go of its earlier dealers Precision Motors (the face of the afore mentioned Shreyans), and open its direct dealerships in India. Precision motors however will keep on supporting the bikes, accessories and services as such until they are ready to take over it for themselves. The transition period is supposed to last somewhere till the middle of 2014.
Bow down to the Ducati Super Bike
Since Ducati is entering into a new partnership with Audi, it will be interesting to see, if they would try to make use of the Audi facility in Aurangabad to assemble their bikes. Currently Ducati, like so many brands before it, imports them custom made, but the Audi facility, could provide Ducati a price advantage and a reduction in infrastructure setup.
Ducati Monster
It is also unclear how far the partnership of Audi and Ducati goes. Will they set up individual showrooms, or will they try to sell Ducati from Audi dealeship. The latter arrangement will again give Ducati a huge cut on both price and time for infrastructure. And after all the person who goes to buy and Audi, is surely the target market for a Ducati.
Why now Ducati?
We at Riderzone think its because they are not happy with the progress that they have made in India. They have been here since 2008, and you rarely see a Ducati bike on the streets. Harley Davidson boasts the sale of 4000 bikes, Ducati haven’t released any numbers but we are pretty sure they are less than those of Harley. Now with the advent of Triumph and even Indian Motorcycles, Ducati risks losing ground if they delay their power-play into the sub-continent. Agreed, that India has next to nothing when it comes to ‘Premium Bikes’ offering NOW, but in the near future Triumph and Harley are really going to be vying for that spot. Hell even Royal Enfield is positioning themselves as the Mercedes of India.
Ducati HyperMotard
The 2 current main showroom marked in their official website are both in Mumbai, the location and address of which you can find is on this interactive map. Currently Ducati offers 4 Bikes in India, with various variants:
- Ducati Monster (Rs. 8-9 Laks)
- Ducati Multistrada (Rs. 18-20 Lakhs)
- Ducati Diavel (Rs. 17-26 Lakhs)
- Ducati SuperBike (Rs. 12-13 Lakhs)
All the 4 models have various variants, and hence the spread in price. You can check out each bike in detail from Ducati official Indian Website.
Ducati MultiStrada
Do you think Ducati can make it big, or even hold its own against Triumph, Harley and Indian Motorcycles. What do you make of Duacti, are they super-powered beasts, or are they over-priced mules. What do you make of the Premium Bike section in India, is it feasible, does it even exist. Tell us what you think and more in the comments.