Harley and Ducati, sittin' in a tree, K-I-S-S-I-N-G

[kaisen]

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/209fe0b8-18a6-11dc-a961-000b5df10621,dwp_uuid=e8477cc4-c820-11db-b0dc-000b5df10621.html

Ducati Motor Holding, the listed Italian motorcycle manufacturer, would consider a merger with US-based Harley-Davidson “anytime”, said Enrico D’Onofrio, CFO.

A merger with Harley-Davidson would be “totally complementary”, he said, responding to speculation in the market that the two firms had been in talks. And while he declined to comment on the speculation, he did say that the two companies are similar in that they create recreational bikes that consumers fantasize about. “People want to buy a dream.” Harley-Davidson has an older consumer profile, with an average age of 55, while Ducati owners are about 35, on average. Half of all Ducati owners in the US also own a Harley, D’Onofrio added.



Anyone want a SuperMonsterFatboyMotard?

[911teo]

Interesting... If I bought a bike it would either be a Fatboy or a 998.

I know they are totally different but for me (the non expert driver) it would be just a form of expressing my personality.

[on2wheels52]

That would be an interesting mix at the showroom/parts counter.
re "Half of all Ducati owners in the US also own a Harley", assuming those #'s are correct, I wonder how many other makes those Ducati owners have?
And I'd really like to know what percentage of Harley owners also own a Ducati.
Jim

[kaisen]

Originally posted by on2wheels52
And I'd really like to know what percentage of Harley owners also own a Ducati.

I've always thought that a Ducati owner is a motorcycle enthusiast, and may own several marques. Whereas a Harley owner is a Harley enthusiast, into the Harley lifestyle, and probably doesn't own another brand. If so, it's doubtfully a sport bike .. if it is, it's a Buell.

[dd74]

I wonder if Harley will drop Buell if it goes with Ducati. Buell builds a pretty cool bike, though I can't put them in the same league with Ducati.

[911boost]

I own a Harley, and if I had the extra $$ I'd but a Ducati.

[5axis]

Makes me even more happy to be a Aprilia owner X2

Race track tarmac testers for a lawn dart rider
RSVR1000
RS250 cup

[island_dude]

Is this a joke? Ducati and Harley part of the same company? I can't think of two more separate demographics. Seriously. The superbike crowd and that cruiser market just don't mix. Its not April 1, or otherwise I would think that it was a prank.

Strange indeed.

[grudk]

"Half of all Ducati owners in the US also own a Harley"

I read somewhere that the 'average' US Ducati owner has three bikes (3.5 actually), so I'm not surprised by that.

I have a Duc Sport 1000, but wouldn't mind a Harley -- different rides for different occasions. Certainly both are iconic

[Noah930]

Guys on Ducati boards are going a bit ape-***** about this rumor. Lots of "gonna be the first in line to sell..." banter. I'm also a bit surprised by the statement that half of all Duc owners also have a HD in the stable. I certainly don't. But I went for a leisurely ride with some Harley guys last weekend. And they pointed out that when they were younger, they rode sporty bikes, too. However, as they get older, it gets harder to ride sportbikes comfortably. And if you want to keep on riding, a Harley is a lot more comfortable than the latest racer-replica. Of course, this came from a guy who actually rides his bike the 1900 miles to and from Sturgis every other year.

[Isabo]

My husband and daughter both own Ducatis and Harleys, they have some others as well.

[thrown_hammer]

Originally posted by kaisen

Anyone want a SuperMonsterFatboyMotard?

LOL!

I would like a Hyper-boy-mo-fat-tard.

Say goodbye to Buell…

[Jeff Higgins]

Another Harley owner chiming in that would buy a Ducati in a heartbeat. I'm not surprised in the least that there is a lot of cross over between the two.

[stomachmonkey]

Around my neck of the woods Ducs were the ONLY other marquee that you could pull into the local biker hangout with and not get hassled.

The Harley guys at this place were mostly "affiliated" with clubs, not your weekend warrior badass posers.

There was just something about the Ducatis' that they found respectable.

[tsinger873]

Harley's and Ducati's are two totally different demographics but it may be an interesting merger because of it. Harley wouldn't want to merge with another cruiser/tourer builder that would compete for the same target. Ducati may want to merge due to the huge marketing possibility Harley has through their dealerships. I would expect Harley to have at least 20 times as many dealers set up already.

[HardDrive]

Gotta wonder what the folks at Buell think of all this?

[Jeff Higgins]

Originally posted by stomachmonkey
Around my neck of the woods Ducs were the ONLY other marquee that you could pull into the local biker hangout with and not get hassled.

The Harley guys at this place were mostly "affiliated" with clubs, not your weekend warrior badass posers.

There was just something about the Ducatis' that they found respectable.

In a nutshell, they are not Japanese. The animosity towards Japanese brands runs very deep in biker culture, to the point where I don't think it will ever go away. They were succesful enough to kill the British bike industy, and they got all but one American manufacturer.

Years ago we all rode together. Harleys, Trumpets, Nortons, Beezers, Beemers, and on and on. Even the "club" members were seen on Trumpets and Nortons, among others. No one cared back then when you rode. Until the Japanese bikes started showing up. Then everyone else banded together against them in an all-out effort to exclude them and keep the traditional brands alive. It didn't work.

For a long time, H-D stood alone as the only survivor, at least in any numbers. There were still the Beemers, Guzzis, and the odd Duc, but they were always in the minority. H-D reigned supreme as the old school survivor, at least here in the U.S., and everyone rallied around them and saw them as the only survivor.

Now that some of the old brands are coming back en force, or have re-established themselves, a lot of us old "graybeard" bikers have fond memories resurfacing. A lot of us rode them. A lot of us had buddies that rode them. These makes are all a part of something special that we recognize. They all have their own personalities, unlike the cookie-cutter Japanese copies of all of them. There is an affinity there that the Japanese brands will never crack... They are too late to the party (even 40-some-odd-years on). They will never be a part of that family. Ducati is, and always has been.

[GDSOB]

Originally posted by stomachmonkey
Around my neck of the woods Ducs were the ONLY other marquee that you could pull into the local biker hangout with and not get hassled.

The Harley guys at this place were mostly "affiliated" with clubs, not your weekend warrior badass posers.

There was just something about the Ducatis' that they found respectable.

I'd bet Triumph would get props also...

[1967 R50/2]

I've met enough Ducati riders who don't know what a "desmo head" is. They just ride the bike because it looks cool...and of course, taht is the exact reason a lot of H-D riders buy.

In the grand scheme, for most people both H-Ds and Ducatis (motorcycles in general, and Porsches too) are just high priced toys. Why not have them in the same toy box?

[on2wheels52]

R50/2, around here Ducati riders are not statistically significant enough for me to know if what you said is true.
Say it ain't so Joe
Jim