2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale Preview

[The_AirHawk]

Originally Posted by The Spaceman

"Panigale" huh?

It doesn't really roll off the tongue like "Ninja," does it?

"Panigale" is Italian for "Hooded Asian Assassin from the Dark"....

[Dennis Chung]

Originally Posted by schizuki

I'm not having an easy time finding the info, but Harley shipped a little over 50,000 bikes worldwide in the first quarter of 2010. Ducati sold about 3,500 bikes in North America in the first two quarters of that year. So it's hardly hundreds to one, much less thousands. I'd extrapolate it to maybe 10-to-1.

Can the good folks at MO shed some light here?

Ducati is mum on its worldwide unit sales figures but CEO Gabriele Del Torchio recently said Ducati's worldwide market share is up to 10.6% from just 4.8% over the past four years. He also says Italy accounts for about 20% of Ducati's total sales and the US has just passed that amount.

[The Spaceman]

Originally Posted by Dennis Chung

Ducati is mum on its worldwide unit sales figures but CEO Gabriele Del Torchio recently said Ducati's worldwide market share is up to 10.6% from just 4.8% over the past four years. He also says Italy accounts for about 20% of Ducati's total sales and the US has just passed that amount.

They more than DOUBLED worldwide sales in four years? Holy Lire, thassallotta meatballs!!

[sarnali2]

That's not 10.6 percent, it's 10 bikes and 6 sets of Termignoni's for a 998

[Dennis Chung]

Originally Posted by The Spaceman

They more than DOUBLED worldwide sales in four years? Holy Lire, thassallotta meatballs!!

Not double the sales, double the market share. Don't forget that a lot of other companies lost ground with the economy. Ducati has a bigger piece of the pie but the pie itself is smaller.

[Buzglyd]

Originally Posted by Dennis Chung

Ducati is mum on its worldwide unit sales figures but CEO Gabriele Del Torchio recently said Ducati's worldwide market share is up to 10.6% from just 4.8% over the past four years. He also says Italy accounts for about 20% of Ducati's total sales and the US has just passed that amount.

When anyone is mum on their sales figures it generally means "not very many."

H-D seems to be the only one that releases actual numbers.

[schizuki]

Originally Posted by Dennis Chung

Ducati is mum on its worldwide unit sales figures but CEO Gabriele Del Torchio recently said Ducati's worldwide market share is up to 10.6% from just 4.8% over the past four years. He also says Italy accounts for about 20% of Ducati's total sales and the US has just passed that amount.

OK, so that means if the Italian and North American sales were equal in the first half of 2010, and together they're 40% of worldwide sales, the total should have been roughly 17,500, or about 9,000 in the first quarter. So they sell about one Duck for every six Harleys. Hardly a niche manufacturer.

[mlynch001]

OK, So maybe NOT Niche, but very moderate volume considering the cost of R&D. R&D still appears to be a VERY large percentage of the cost for such a small volume manufacturer. My point was (and still is), where is the money coming from to produce a PROFIT to Pay for the massive costs of R&D of ONE VERY NICHE Model? If you use 80,000 units a year worldwide for Ducati and you only spend $100M Company wide for R&D, that is a $1250 per unit for R&D! Maybe the R&D cost is not as large a factor as I assumed? ? ? I Love the Ducati, Just thinking out loud.

[mlynch001]

Actually, after further consideration, I need to refine my statement. The very definition of a "niche market" has changed my mind.

This appears to be a fair definition: "A niche market is the subset of the market on which a specific product is focusing; therefore the market niche defines the specific product features aimed at satisfying specific market needs, as well as the price range, production quality and the demographics that is intended to impact."

So by definition H-D and Ducati are BOTH "niche market" companies. H-D, quite large and Ducati, not so large. On the other hand, HONDA, Yamaha, Suzuki/Kawasaki are competitors in the full spectrum of the Powersports industry.

As far as H_D and Ducati "gaining" market share in the USA and Europe, those who buy their products are persons who have much larger disposable incomes (they are generally well off), while those who buy, say a HONDA might not have the same disposable income. The pie is indeed shrinking, this benefits companies whose demographic is more affluent.

What I am saying is that Ducati APPEARS to Spend a LOT of time and effort (i.e "money") on R&D for a relatively small company. Is that fair or not?

[schizuki]

Originally Posted by mlynch001

What I am saying is that Ducati APPEARS to Spend a LOT of time and effort (i.e "money") on R&D for a relatively small company. Is that fair or not?

I would agree 100%. Especially when you factor in their racing program.