International Dealer News IDN 143 June/July 2018 | Page 11

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Honda European unit sales
+7.8 percent for 2017/18
Honda has announced that
Group motorcycle unit sales for
its financial year ended March
31, 2018 (its fourth quarter and
full year 2017/2018) were
17.661 m units worldwide for
an operating margin of 9.9
percent, and that it expects to
sell 19.554 m units this year at a
13.1 percent operating margin,
with unit sales exceeding 20 m
units in 2019.
Honda says the growth is due
mainly to sales [and capacity]
growth in India, Vietnam and
Thailand. Honda Group unit
sales include those of Honda
and its subsidiaries and
affiliates; on a consolidated
basis, motorcycle unit sales
were 11.237 m units for
2017/18 and are expected to be
12.954 m this year.
Indian sales set a new record at
5.775 m units, which was +22.2
percent over 2016/17. Total
worldwide fourth quarter Group
unit sales were 4.747 m, which
was +11.7 percent. On a
consolidated basis, fourth
quarter European unit sales
were 61,000 units; 234,000 for
the financial year (+7.8
percent). In North America
fourth quarter consolidated
sales were 81,000 units and
313,000 units for the full year
(+6.5 percent).
25 years of Monsters
Ducati is celebrating the 25th
anniversary of its now legendary and
still popular ‘Monster’, arguably the
start-point of the modern ‘Naked Style’
motorcycle concept and a landmark for
any model series.
The first production ‘Monster’ left the
factory in Borgo Panigale, Bologna, in
1993 after making its debut at IFMA,
the then ‘Cologne Show’ that was
ultimately replaced by INTERMOT in
1992. Designed by Miguel Angel
Galluzzi, and initially touted as a
“muscle bike”, “Il Mostro” (as it is
known in Italian) is widely regarded as
the bike that saved Ducati, accounting
for around half of annual production by
2005.
In contemporary terms, 2014 saw
Ducati introduce the Monster 1200
and 1200 S, with a water-cooled four
valve 135/145 hp 1198 Testastretta 11
engine to replace the Monster 1100
Evo. For 2016 the monster family
included the 1200 R - a more track-
oriented version that was claimed at
the time to be the most powerful
Monster ever with 160 hp (120 kW)
and a claimed 97 ft lb (132 Nm) of
torque and +15 hp more than the
Monster 1200 S - the same Testastretta
11° DS, 90-degree V-twin used in the
Multistrada and Diavel.
The Monster 797 was unveiled in 2016
at EICMA and launched in India last
year. This entry-level Monster is
powered by an 803 cc Testastretta
twin-cylinder, air-cooled engine that
makes 73.9 hp (55.1 kW) and 69 Nm
(51 ft lb). The engine is mated to a 6-
speed gearbox.
Ducati says that “since its presentation
to the public and the press in 1992, this
iconic Ducati model has brought a
radical change to the world of
motorcycles, creating a brand-new
sector, the naked sports bikes, and
generating one of the most devoted
communities of enthusiasts”.
It's an important anniversary for
Ducati. An original Monster 900
MY1993 is on display at the new
Ducati Museum (as seen here), and a
programme of activities and initiatives
that will reach a crescendo at this year’s
biennial 2018 World Ducati Week, the
world's largest Ducati rally, held on 20,
21 and 22 July 2018 at the Marco
Simoncelli Misano World Circuit in
Misano Adriatico.
JUNE/JULY 2018
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