We’ve seen several variations on Ducati’s Scrambler platform since it was introduced, including the Scrambler Desert Sled, the Scrambler Cafe Racer and the Scrambler Flat Track Pro. Now, there’s a new edition coming: the Scrambler Hashtag.
It might sound like an unfortunate name, but Ducati gave it that label because it’s very much a bike of the 21st century—it’s made to be sold online.
Online motorcycle sales aren’t exactly unheard of; for at least 10 years, many smaller players (particularly Chinese bike distributors) have offered Internet motorcycle sales, with California-based CSC the most prominent in recent history. But as far as we know, this is the first time one of the major OEMs has built a bike specifically aimed for online-only sales.
Presumably, these bikes won’t be available for online sales everywhere, due to restrictions by governments. But when the bike is unveiled on February 19, it will be extremely interesting to see what direction Ducati takes with the design, and what regions it’s initially available in. We live in an age where brick-and-mortar retail locations are constantly losing ground to Internet sales. This move could be the spearhead of a shift in motorcycle sales techniques, or could it end up proving what dealerships have been saying all along: When something goes wrong, it’s very important to have a local expert that’s able to help you out.
if its aimed towards the younger crowd, i’d love to see a variant of the sixty2 styled similar to the cafe racer model.
Ducati did this for the MH900E 16? years ago!