Listen, I've made a lot of poor financial decisions in my life. Please see nearly every single one of the vehicles I've ever bought. Or my penchant for spending so much money on hobbies I no longer even do.
But when it comes to business, I have a knack for seeing the forest for the trees. A certain shrewdness which overtakes my willingness to burn cash. The latest of which is seeing Ducati's decision to not make any small displacement bikes for the bone-headed reasoning it absolutely is.
The news comes from Ducati's own chief executive's comments, with CEO Claudio Domenicali stating emphatically that the brand wouldn't go into small displacement bikes during World Ducati Week at Misano. "Ducati will not make a small motorcycle," he said, adding, "Ducati is a brand to be aspired to, there is a certain prestige that is attached to the brand."
And while he's not wrong in that Ducati has prestige to maintain, holy shit, folks, alienating a sect of the population that you could sell to and then keep within the Ducati family is beyond stupid. More than that, it flies in the face of other premium brands' success in making something that expands its lineup.
Chief among them being one of Ducati's own partners; Porsche.
Back in the late '90s, while Porsche's luster wasn't what it is today, it still had a reputation to uphold. The sportscar maker, however, decided that it was going to enter one of the hottest markets of the time; SUVs.
Eschewing tradition, Porsche introduced the Cayenne and, though everyone at the time of launch complained about how "Porsche lost its way," and how "The Cayenne would doom the brand," not only did it not kill the company from Stuttgart, but the Cayenne and subsequent Macan, Taycan, and Panamera helped ensure that the company had a future for generations to come. And all these models also helped Porsche fund insane projects like the Carrera GT, the 918 Spyder, and all of its racing models.
These vehicles have allowed Porsche to build the wildest sports and hypercars around. And it didn't lose the Porsche identity. There are still rear-engined 911s. People still lust after Porsches. It still has its prestige. But Porsche is now making money hand over foot. So Domneicali's statements are just not based on reality.
They also miss the mark of where the industry is headed.
These small displacement motorcycles are—if you'll allow me to continue my Porsche analogy and history lesson—today's SUVs. Triumph is killing the game with small bikes, and CFMoto is nipping at its heels with that brand's offerings, too. But you now have a host of these motorcycles from nearly every brand. These small bikes aren't just getting new people into motorcycling either, as more folks are going for smaller motorcycles as they get older, as well as for those who are looking for less expensive options to continue riding.
Not everyone wants or can afford a $50,000 Panigale V4.
What's also surprising about the CEO's comments is even within Ducati's ecosystem, it sells a ton of smaller displacement motorcycles compared to its heavyweights. According to a release late last year, while the Borgo Panigale brand sold 6,600 Multistrada V4s around the world in the first half of the year, it sold nearly 8,000 Scrambler and Monsters. It's simple math, as more people can afford to buy a lower-priced motorcycle compared to something that costs two arms and a leg.
And as an aside, Ducati just introduced a dirt bike. Like a legit dirt bike, and it's rumored that it'll debut a road-legal enduro version sometime in the next year. Both of which seemingly fly in the face of everything that Ducati has become in recent decades. So again, I have no idea how Domenicali has arrived at this decision to eschew small displacement bikes.
To me, I think there's plenty of room for the brand to make something sub 600cc. A light, nimble, inexpensive Ducati that could help folks enter the brand and stay there as they level up their riding.
But what do I know?
