Volkswagen Group Africa (VWGA) has started retail sales of Ducatis in South Africa after recently taking over the importation of the premium Italian motorcycle brand.
Ducati was globally acquired by Volkswagen’s Audi division in 2012 and in January VWGA took over the brand’s local operations, aiming to double sales and expand the dealer network.
Ducati becomes the fourth brand, including VW, VW Commercial and Audi, managed by VWGA locally.
Two Ducati dealers are operational — in Centurion and in Cape Town — with a flagship Johannesburg facility to launch in October and additional sites to be opened by 2026 in Umhlanga, the Eastern Cape and the Free State.
Ducati SA national manager Tertius Cronje said the Bologna-based brand’s full range of machines will be offered in South Africa including road, dirt and dual-purpose bikes. The sales target for the remainder of 2025 is 170 units with the aim of boosting this to between 600 and 800 annual units within the next few years. At its peak, the previous importer sold just more than 300 units per year.
VW will improve the availability of parts and after-sales support will include roadside assistance for every new bike sold and a dedicated customer call centre. Ducati Finance will offer payment plans for the full Ducati range which is best known for its Panigale superbikes but spans a wide spectrum of two-wheeled segments with the Desert X, Diavel, Hypermotard, Monster, Desmo 450 MX, Multistrada, Streetfighter and Scrambler.
“Ducatisti” will be able to buy a range of accessories and apparel and a new Ducati SA website with a model configurator will be launched in early September.
The iconic Italian brand will have an exhibit at this weekend’s Festival of Motoring at Kyalami.
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