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Ive been keeping an eye on this for a bit now: http://www.worldcarfans.com/11204174348 ... 11-billion

Is anybody else intrigued by this? Lambo and Ducati under the stewardship of the 4Rings; pretty cool IMO

could be good

they have done wonders with lambo

Always loved the noise of the ducatis!

Yup, with the network of Audi dealerships I can imagine a corner given to Ducati for their machines & products. Not sure if they appeal to the same sort of buyer- maybe better aligned with Lambo?

Would be great if Ducati can input towards Audi designs too. The latest Audi models need more edge to their aesthetics.

Interesting move .. I expect to see a Ducati engined small (probably VW maybe Audi) car some time in the future

IT's all about shifting unit I'm affraid to say. VAG are looking to become the biggest manufacture by volume, there is a stratigic alignment going on with this latest move. Sadly is could mean the end of Ducati as a brand name.

The only benefit I want to see of VAG's influence over Ducatti is that they give Rossi and Hayden a decent bike to race because the current one is crap.

P_G wrote:The only benefit I want to see of VAG's influence over Ducatti is that they give Rossi and Hayden a decent bike to race because the current one is crap.

Just a little more time Graeme and it will be up there, Haydon is not the best now days so if he can finish 6th then Rossi will be fighting in the top group. ( although he was 28 secs behind George ) The new front tyre released will suit the GP12 and come into play in full in Portugal.

I dont think this will change the brand of Ducati as they have too much race heritage to give up, it will however put much needed cash in to race development.

VW have been talking about a bike launch for the last cpl of years now and this acquisition makes perfect sense.
i cant see the VAG group absorbing Ducati and re-badging as they are way to iconic a manufacturer to put to bed, but as a way to instantly get the manufacturing tech and dealer network it makes perfect sense.

i spoke with a senior VW development bod in Spain last year, and he kinda let slip that they already have a mid displacement 4cyl but were struggling with gearbox design and had used the bmw s1000r as a benchmark for frame and electronic trickery (i own a cpl of s1000r's which is how the conversation came about)

so it seems that the ducati deal is a step in this direction, fingers crossed something comes of it.