SportClassic's Part in Record Ducati Sales

[DUCeditor]

Ducati's news release dealing with their record sales in 2007 include the following:

"The top sellers in 2007 were the new 1098 Superbike, the Monster family, and the nostalgic Sport Classic line."

If that continues to be true I expect we have no reason to fear the line being dropped due to the company's supposed shift in marketing focus.

-don

[Sport1000]

Originally Posted by DUCeditor

Ducati's news release dealing with their record sales in 2007 include the following:

"The top sellers in 2007 were the new 1098 Superbike, the Monster family, and the nostalgic Sport Classic line."

If that continues to be true I expect we have no reason to fear the line being dropped due to the company's supposed shift in marketing focus.

-don

A while back, I read an interview of the president of DNA who said that the Sport Classic line had the highest profit margins in the Ducati line up.

Unfortunately, the "price point" suspension and tires of the stock Sport 1000 nearly resulted in me and my bike "being dropped." It would be nice if Ducati would upgrade the Sport Classic line with more than just color schemes and cosmetics.

[geospencer]

Originally Posted by DUCeditor

Ducati's news release dealing with their record sales in 2007 include the following:

"The top sellers in 2007 were the new 1098 Superbike, the Monster family, and the nostalgic Sport Classic line."

If that continues to be true I expect we have no reason to fear the line being dropped due to the company's supposed shift in marketing focus.

-don

Very interesting, don. Thanks for posting.

[DUCeditor]

Originally Posted by Sport1000

It would be nice if Ducati would upgrade the Sport Classic line with more than just color schemes and cosmetics.

I agree. The PS has quality componants that do the bike justice. The GT and the Sport should have something if not equal, than just a notch or two lower. Marzocchi or Showa pieces with fork preload and damping adjustments could IMO do quite nicely.

-don

[Jeff_Quan]

Originally Posted by DUCeditor

I agree. The PS has quality componants that do the bike justice. The GT and the Sport should have something if not equal, than just a notch or two lower. Marzocchi or Showa pieces with fork preload and damping adjustments could IMO do quite nicely.

-don

+1 Tubeless wheels would have been nice too.

[phactory]

Unfortunately with all of those goodies added to the SC line they wouldn't have been such a great deal and most likely wouldn't have sold in the numbers they did. Classic Catch 22...

Phil

[DUCeditor]

Originally Posted by phactory

Unfortunately with all of those goodies added to the SC line they wouldn't have been such a great deal and most likely wouldn't have sold in the numbers they did. Classic Catch 22...

Phil

I believe the SC's relatively high price reflects more their expected limited sales potential than the cost of their hardware. If one compares the technology and hardware in the new 848 with the SCs this becomes obvious.

Too, I think most of us would have willingly forked out an additional $500 to have the adjustable, modifiable, cartridge forks these bikes deserve.

For all that I'm glad Ducati was willing to produce them even as they are. The company at the time was hurting and it was a risky project. That the profits from the bike helped Ducati is a nice thing. But more important to selfish ol' me is that in making the GT1000 Ducati gave me exactly the type of bike I'd been yearning for.

-don

[Sport1000]

Originally Posted by phactory

Unfortunately with all of those goodies added to the SC line they wouldn't have been such a great deal and most likely wouldn't have sold in the numbers they did. Classic Catch 22...

Phil

The '06 Super Sport 1000 DS came with fully adjustable Showa forks, an Ohlins shock and a full fairing -- and as I recall listed for $500.00 to $1,000.00 less than a '06 Sport.

It may come down to demographics. Ducati probably thinks that the SC line appeals to older, more affluent riders chasing nostalgic styling who aren't going to ride aggressively, which is a bunch of bull. Hey, I may be getting older, but I'm still extremely immature!

Now that the shortcomings of the stock Sport and GT suspensions have become apparent, you'd think they'd at least put adjustable Showa forks on them, if nothing else than to keep their customers' skin intact and buying more Ducatis.

[phactory]

Don,

True, but Ducati knows that they are going to sell so many more 848's than all of the SC combined. It all comes down to the numbers. And I wonder what Ducati really means when they say that the SC line helped to contribute to their record Sales year. Do they mean that they really sold a lot of bikes or that they sold more than they anticipated? I would bet that it is the latter.

Phil

Originally Posted by DUCeditor

I believe the SC's relatively high price reflects more their expected limited sales potential than the cost of their hardware. If one compares the technology and hardware in the new 848 with the SCs this becomes obvious.

Too, I think most of us would have willingly forked out an additional $500 to have the adjustable, modifiable, cartridge forks these bikes deserve.

For all that I'm glad Ducati was willing to produce them even as they are. The company at the time was hurting and it was a risky project. That the profits from the bike helped Ducati is a nice thing. But more important to selfish ol' me is that in making the GT1000 Ducati gave me exactly the type of bike I'd been yearning for.

-don

[papawheelie]

Would anyone else like to see the sport classic line dropped? I would. I have mine and would like to see the line go away. Even more unique.