After weeks of rumors, VM’s Audi division said it agreed to buy Italian motorcycle maker Ducati, adding a 12th brand to the German auto maker’s portfolio of passenger cars, trucks and ultra-luxury vehicles.
The 20-member supervisory board of Europe’s largest car maker approved the purchase on Wednesday, Audi said in a statement. It did not disclose details of the deal, though sources told Reuters on April 17 that Audi agreed to buy Ducati for about 860 million euros ($1.13 billion).
Ducati, which has won 13 rider’s Superbike World Championships since 1988, will extend Audi’s long-standing rivalry with Bayerische Motoren Werke to superbikes.
Audi outsold Daimler’s Mercedes-Benz last year and has vowed to surpass BMW for the top spot in luxury car sales this decade.
The company said it aimed to complete the purchase of Ducati as quickly as possible once it has received approval by the relevant regulators.
BEsides taking on BMW when comes to bikes, why would they do this. Do they want to put Ducati Desmodromic Valves in auto?
