Volkswagen Group’s powersports subsidiary Ducati North America grew U.S. sales by 1.3% year over year in 2017, likely spurred — in part — by the OEM’s new lease-like offering.
Last March, Ducati Financial Services introduced a finance product called Ducati Premier Financing that lowers monthly payments by an average of $80, and allows consumers to essentially lease a Ducati motorcycle, according to its website. At the end of the term, owners have the option to sell the motorcycle privately, trade for a newer model, or pay it off. There are no wear-and-tear or mileage restrictions, and consumers can opt for a shorter trading cycle if they would like to trade-in for a newer model.
That finance program likely helped boost the OEM’s U.S. sales to 8,898 units and global sales to 55,871 in 2017.
