Talkback: Official: Audi buys Ducati

“We must use the opportunities offered by globalization for Audi – and that’s exactly what we’re doing"... a quote from Peter Mosch, Chairman of the General Works Council of AUDI AG.

Welcome to the era of the 'Super Brand' and 'GLOBALISATION', folks.

Does it worry you?

It sure worries me... and it should worry us all!

Forgive me for saying this, but...

What Germany, under Adolf Hitler in WW2, narrowly failed to do, the likes of powerful German industrialists are NOW doing across Europe: Bentley, Rolls-Royce, MINI, our electricity-generating industry etc (and that's just here in Britain). Add to that Lamborghini, Bugatti, SEAT, Skoda and now Ducati... and god only knows what else we don't know about... do I make my point?

And what do we do in response?

Well, other than further strengthening Germany's already healthy balance of payments situation (by buying into the 'dream' with an lifestyle makeover instantly available just by driving a VW or Audi 'company' car) whilst the rest of Europe slowly sinks into financial oblivion, nothing really!

The whole purchase has more than a hint of rose-tinted specs about it in all honesty: all talk is that Audi have bought Ducati. It hasn't... Audi is just the puppet. The real owner and master puppeteer will be/is Volkswagen AG.

It's no secret that VW chairman, Ferdinand Piech, has long-wanted to acquire one - just another shiny little trinket for the boardroom display cabinet on the company's long march towards world domination!

I guess it must have really niggled him that rivals, BMW, down the autobahn, had just what he didn't have... a motorcycle 'brand'!

Putting the issues of globalisation and Germany's industrial domination in Europe the difference between VW and BMW is that both tranches of BMW have grown from virtually nothing over a long period of time.

VW's approach: "We want it NOW", instant gratification, if you like.

Focused rant over...

As for me, I'll stick with my French-designed, Italian-assembled, Japanese-owned Yamaha XT660Z Tenere and drive around in my French-owned/manufactured/built Renault estate.

Sounds like you like French things.

In this instance, yes.

And your point is...?

I suspect you have no grasp of the deep-rooted implications of these buy-outs: cast a look beyond the immediate headline. Do any of us really want to live in a country that has had its national assets bought out by foreign companies?
Think of the asset-stripping that has occurred just here in the UK for example, and which countries now own a growing number of them: China, Germany, India etc.
So, whether it is Italy (Ducati, in this instance) or the UK (Rolls-Royce, Bentley, MINI, Land Rover, Jaguar etc!!!) if the sell-offs continue, my friend, you had better top up your language skills... and learn Mandarin, German or Indian... because they will be our masters!
Get it!

I didnt really have a point. What's yours? What would happen if England was buying up stuff? The bloody Poms bought our biggest beer company. I tell you, Im going to learn English if this keeps up.

Andrew - A very rich powerful european company has bought a bike maunufacturer when the EU is trying to introduce ridiculous bike legisaltion. I think the timing is brilliant if VAG flex their considerable political muscle to protect biking in europe.

Bring it on... (I'm sure VAG aren't Nazi's)

If you look at the picture. It is quite interesting.
Ducati CEO Audi Suits
Beeming smile No smiling
Big red tie Small slightly dull coloured ties
Blue suit Grey
No glasses Glasses
Holding arms No contact
“Ducati stands for extraordinary engineering artistry, passion, precision, performance and the sheer joy of living”
Audi stands for forward with technology.
Fiat should have bought them. Red will be banned from the colour range. The v2 will be dropped because BMW use fours for their bikes. A GS competitior will emerge. And the steel trellis will be dropped because it is inefficient!!!!! maybe....

Perhaps globalisation brings us closer. BAE is one of the worlds biggest defence contractors and to the US military. It is also in EADS. Rolls Royce works and supplies companies all over the world. it has relationships with Snecma and Pratt and Whitney. Barclays bought the remnants of Lehmann Brothers. Westland is now part of Eurocopter, etc.
My concern is that Germany tend to be fanatical about anything. They remove emotion from anything they do. Winning is always the goal. The EMU was founded on the idea that all economies were like Germany's. Clearly not but they have again paid the significant price for that mistake. The Germans bought Chysler and Rover and messed them up completely.
The only concern I have is the current and previous government's lack of interest in making products.