Ducati plots return to India courtesy Audi

Italian superbike maker Ducati has endured a roller-coaster ride in India, having entered the big-bike market early in 2008, but making the mistake of choosing an errant distributor, Precision Motors, as its partner.

Poor and unethical business practices from the Indian partner, along with the Bologna-based company taking a long time to step in, address and rectify the situation, saddled Ducati with a legacy of troubled Indian customers, apart from damaging the premium Italian firm's reputation.

Ducati’s India sales have remained at a standstill for over a year now, while the firm continued work to get its Indian arm in order and make good with a second innings in the country. This time around, Ducati is coming completely on its own steam, with a new-found backing from Audi, its new owner.

Ducati is now nearly ready to enter India again – its service technicians are ready and trained by the factory, and all its operations will be directly managed by the parent company. Two dealerships will be operational in the beginning –

the first at the massive Gurgaon premises and the second, in the financial capital of Mumbai.

While a date isn’t confirmed yet, Ducati aims to commence sales from around March or April 2015, and will come back to India with virtually its entire range, barring the Streetfighter. It’s acknowledged that Ducati’s present superbikes rank among the best in the world.

Test riders from Autocar India, Autocar Professional’s sister magazine, have put to test Ducati’s diverse model line-up and came away impressed by the famous Monster range of naked-bikes, the supersports 1199 and 899 Panigale, the powerful and muscular Diavel cruiser and, the multi-purpose adventure bike, the Multistrada 1200. The Multistrada 1200 was among the first motorcycles to offer useful riding modes to tailor it to different riding conditions. There’s also the Hyperstrada range apart from the just-launched Scrambler, a practical superbike, which should make a really attractive proposition for prospective Ducati buyers here.

Ducati's India comeback comes at a good time, coinciding with its Scrambler launch worldwide. Although the Scrambler might not reach the two new Indian showrooms as soon as operations commence, you can safely expect to see it here within the first half of 2015. The good news here will be the attractive price tag of around an estimated Rs 7 lakh, thanks to healthy trade agreements between India and Thailand. For India, Ducati will import the bikes from Thailand. The Multistrada 1200 is expected to come to the Indian market only next year. 

For existing Ducati owners in India, the Italian company will make service and spares support available from the factory in India. This will only improve as Ducati sets up and grows its dealership network across India.