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Are Ducati A Bit Stingy?

Discussion in 'Ducati General Discussion' started by Bob T, Feb 12, 2018.

  1. It was always known as bmw parking when I was a lad.
     
  2. I had my Pani delivered and was advised by Ducati Wolverhampton that it had a small amount of fuel in it, I drove exactly 1mile down the road towards the nearest petrol station where it promptly ran out, suffice to say I was not best pleased!
     
  3. That’s a pisstake
     
    • Agree Agree x 6
  4. Especially as I had to leave the bike parked in someone’s drive (no one home) just off a main road with no pavement and had to walk home on grass verge and in part on a busy main road!
     
  5. Bought an smax a couple of years ago (titanium x sport) so not a cheap one (22k) and it had vapour in the tank....
     
  6. As someone else said a tankful of fuel doesn’t really matter in the grand scheme of things, far more important is not paying the full list price!, does anyone know what margin Ducati dealers have?, it’s got to be quite a lot given that on average they only sell a few hundred units each a year, I know they also make on servicing etc but did anyone ever find out how much their bike actually cost the dealer?.
     
  7. My friend bought a new Desmo from them and never had a single good word to say about them.

    They sold his 1098S for him on sale or return at the same time. As he hadn't used it for a couple of years (it had something ridiculous, like 600 miles on it), he told them to give it a service and change the belts. When they sold it, they sent him the money, less about £1,500 and claimed that they changed a load of stuff and did "work", but never thought to ask him if he wanted this done. :rolleyes: I think if they had been closer, the owner would have been getting a visit. :punch:
     
  8. Nope, that was Ducati Wolves :rolleyes: now MV :thinkingface:
     
  9. I believe that the profit margin on new bikes is 5%-10%. I don't think that car dealers make much more either.

    Compare that to musical instruments/equipment where the profit margin is 10%-30% or clothing where the margin is 100%-300%. If you've ever wondered how furniture shops can have permanent 50% off sales and offer 4 years interest free credit it's because their profit margins are similar to clothing retailers. That sofa that has been discounted from £1000 to £500 may actually have a cost price of as little as £250.

    I'm not at all surprised that a UK bike dealer doesn't sell a bike with a full tank of fuel. Especially if you managed to haggle a bit of a discount on the bike.

    There is probably a simple reason why a French dealer can give away a full tank of fuel. They almost certainly have lower overheads than a UK dealer.

    Having been into a couple of French Ducati dealerships I'd also say that their customer service is not a patch on UK dealers like Snells, Moto Rapido and Pro Twins. That may be because they're not having to chase sales as hard in order to keep their business afloat.
     
  10. In the overall transaction, when a there is a trade in bike (or car) the margins are typically much higher than 5 - 10 percent. The finance commission payable to the dealer is also a significant way for them to make money, and obviously all the add on extras - how much more are the mag wheels on a V4? With the price of servicing, its almost worth their while selling bikes at cost to ramp up the garage work!

    No doubt there are some that exceptional dealers that are worth every penny. Advice I've received from Neil at Cornerspeed has been incredible and will certainly mean all work done on my bike in the future will be done there. Others which i have spoken with have been clueless.

    I am not critical nor complaining, but I don't worry about the dealerships before I go to sleep at night. I think they could all afford to stick a tenner in the tank before any bike leaves the forecourt, and it would likely bring them some benefits.
     
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  11. I absolutely agree that a trade-in gives the dealer a bigger margin and that there are other ways for them to make money than just selling new bikes.

    Selling bikes at cost price does happen. When I bought a new Kawasaki ZRX1200R in 2002 the dealer sold it to me at cost price. They even advertised it at that price. I asked a local dealer to match the price because I'd have preferred not to travel 100 miles to get the bike. My local dealer refused to match the price because it was cost price. The dealer selling the bike was selling bikes so cheaply because they had agreed with the manufacturer to sell a certain number of Kawasakis that year and to do so they had to sell the cheaply. The benefit to them came from Kawasaki when the dealer met the ambitious sales target.
     
  12. You are totally right. A scenario could be: (these numbers are example only)
    The dealers sign up to buying 20 Monsters before June 1st. On receipt of the 20th Monster order, the price of all the Monsters sold is then reduced by 10%. Therefore selling the 20th at cost -or less- will nett the dealer 19 x 10% as they have fulfilled their agreed target.. This is the reason why pre registered bikes and cars are often advertised. These are the balance of the sales target that the dealer buys and registers to secure the additional commision/ discounted rate.

    This type of promotion can be useful to all sides of the deal.
     
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  13. i know its not bikes but.. we pay to have extra fuel put into the trucks that get delivered on transporters to us (truck dealership.)
    Now i am not saying that the transporter drivers are liberating fuel but we have had several that have not made it off the transporter before they have cut out.
     
  14. To illustrate a point I know of a major car dealership in Yorkshire that has an annual turnover of £75m - what do you reckon their net profit is on sales of £75m?

    Ps. I've been told by industry sources that they are one of the most profitable in the country.
     
  15. Nope.
     
  16. I'll put you out of your misery............£279,000. That's it. And that includes all servicing, parts sales etc and the retro rebates etc that a a major manufacturer offers to shift "units".

    And like I say I was told by someone fairly high up in the industry (national brand manager for a major European manufacturer) that they are one of the few doing well.
     
  17. I was close!

    They have some creative accountancy going on there though :thinkingface:
     
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