Interesting Article : is Piaggio killing Aprilia ?!

[arveno]

https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/analysis-piaggio-killing-aprilia-micheal-uhlarik

[Tusayan]

It is an interesting article in that it explains clearly what has been obvious about Piaggio since at least the 1970s: Piaggio is a scooter company with no understanding of how to manage the value of the companies it has since then bought and destroyed in serial fashion.  Every intiative by Piaggio in the end settles down to the same end, killing important companies and selling scooters. 

Aprilia actually did a pretty gold job with Moto Guzzi prior to the Piaggio takeover.  They left Guzzi intact as a company (unlike Piaggio), developed a range new models (unlike Piaggio) and got the company going reasonable well.  I think if Piaggio had never come into the picture Guzzi would have trimmed the less inspired models, learned a bit about Guzzi as time went on, kept what worked and carried on.  As it is, Aprilia is dying, Guzzi as a company  no longer exists except in having maintained the factory and Piaggio (as always) is building and selling scooters with somebody else's name on them.

[Bonaventure]

Stop you're scaring me 

[lucian]

Interesting that Bmw contracted with Aprilia for designs. Also noted was that Moto Guzzi is now growing.    Interesting article ,thank's for sharing.

[JeffOlson]

A bit of a downer, that article. The sky is falling, and we don’t know what to do.

Moto Guzzi should be okay. At least they know how to produce in low numbers.

[Sasquatch Jim]

 Bean counters, Fuggem.

[Tusayan]

Interesting that Bmw contracted with Aprilia for designs. Also noted was that Moto Guzzi is now growing.    Interesting article ,thank's for sharing.

Aprilia designed and built the original F650 and designed the F800, which is a why they both had Rotax engines - like all Aprila 'big' bikes before Piaggio took over. 

Guzzi sales have been 'increasing' for a decade or so.  Actually they go up for a while, then come back down, and production over the longer term has remained relatively unchanged.

[MadMike]

Aprilia should cease and and their cutting edge models should be re branded as Guzzis. Guzzi has a much richer racing history than Aprilia will ever have. The 1921 start date has a lot to do with this. Singles, Twins, and even V-8's, Guzzi has produced them all. No need for Guzzi to be pigeon holed as a sideways V twin only brand cause a bunch of traditionalists will cry foul over the horror of polycylindrical arrangements.

Just my 2 cents worth. Add it to a dollar and it still wont get ya a cup of coffee.

[Tusayan]

Not a bad idea.  At this late stage possibly the right idea.

[ITSec]

An interesting article, and in part fueled by the writer's passion more than complete fact.

As an example, he states "the few high quality motorcycles left are based on the obsolete Shiver platform. Piaggio hasn't even bothered to restyle them, only adding small component upgrades and new stickers." I'm not sure that's true - the Shiver and Dorsoduro have been given a heavily revised engine, now at 900cc and making nearly 100 HP. That seems more than 'new stickers' to me.

Regardless, he does offer some potent observations about Piaggio's history of management - particularly of brand management. Badge engineering has its hazards - ask General Motors. Too much subcontracting also has its limitations, leaving a company dependent on vendors who have their own agendas and other customers and priorities than you. Rotax, owned by Bombardier Recreational Products, offers their engines to the world, but BRP needs for Ski-Doo, Can-Am, and the watercraft will always get priority.

It's always darkest before it turns absolutely pitch black. But then again, the sun also rises. 

[Arizona Wayne]

I don't know much  about Aprilia as far as their sales volume, but do own 1 of their maxi-scooters and if they are doing so bad in sales how can they be competing 2 bikes in Moto GP ?  I will say my `04 Scarabeo 500GT scooter is like no other in design and I really like it.  I had to laugh when the author referred to Moto Guzzis as a boutique brand. 

So I have 2 Piaggio MP3s, 1 Aprilia scooter, and 3 Moto Guzzis.  Guess you could say I like what Piaggio sells.


Every year Cycle World mag. picks it's 10 Best Bikes of the Year and this year it picked as its Best Standard the Aprilia Tuono V4 1100 RR.   

[LowRyter]

I'd like a little more info regarding some of the statements here. He cites that Aprila makes 10% of the bikes after acquisition but how much of the loss is due to consolidation of scooter market with Paigio?  I wouldn't expect that both scooter brands would survive at least at the same volume as before. 

Also, Aprilia was doing it's share of outsourcing pre-merger; the original Tuono / Falco / Mille sportbike had a Rotax engine that was predecessor to the Buell engine. 

There is a big hole in the sport touring market for both Guzzi and Aprilia.  Same is true for advertizing.  I can't comment about racing since I don't know there budget and business plan.  I will say that since the Tuono / RSV4, Cal 14 and V9 there hasn't been a lot of new stuff and they've not expanded the dealer net.  Unlike Triumph, Ducati and BMW that have been expanding and releasing new models. 

[Devildog]

While Piaggio have kept their lineup almost unchanged (we did get the V9),
Ducati has had success with the Scrambler line and the new
SuperSport, the SS looking like a pretty competent  bike, but
I am still hoping for a V9 LeMans....

[analog kid]

Thanks for that link. I enjoy reading Ulariks column in Cycle Canada (used to be monthly, now more sporadic). I might not have always agreed, but he's always intelligent and thought provoking.

Aprilia should cease and and their cutting edge models should be re branded as Guzzis. Guzzi has a much richer racing history than Aprilia will ever have. The 1921 start date has a lot to do with this. Singles, Twins, and even V-8's, Guzzi has produced them all.

Wittner aside, Guzzis racing heritage ended in 1957. Only the old cranks on this board remember any of that. Aprillias racing wins are more recent and more relevant to current buyers.

[pyoungbl]

The article makes sense to me.  In the US Aprilia was virtually unknown 20 years ago.  Their dealer network made Guzzi look good.  Although the bikes were pretty spectacular to ride sales must have been less impressive because you almost never saw one on the road.  In the intervening years I saw my local Ducati shop carry Aprilia but they probably sold 50 Ducks for every Aprilia. 

In the past couple years we have speculated that Piaggio was going to use Aprilia as the performance brand and relegate Guzzi to cruiser only.  If this article says anything it's that Piaggio has lost that option due to neglect.  It won't take much effort to bring some performance back to Guzzi.  Offer a Griso replacement.  Bring on a new Norge.  Cap it off with a new and smaller Stelvio.  Yes, I'm a hopeless optimist. 

Peter Y.

[jas67]

I am still hoping for a V9 LeMans....

I'd like that too, but, I think that you'll have to build your own.

V7III + V9 motor, just add the right fairing + clip-ons + rear sets.

[Arizona Wayne]

A new Le Mans isn't going to happen because if you want a real sport bike Piaggio has Aprilia RSV4s for you. 

[jlburgess]

Aprilia wouldn't have a Moto GP program if Piaggio was trying to kill them off.  They just scored big points at Montegi.

[Tusayan]

Aprilia wouldn't have a Moto GP program if Piaggio was trying to kill them off.  They just scored big points at Montegi.

Piaggio isn't clueless because they try to be clueless, and I don't think they're trying to kill off Aprila but Aprilia sales results speak for themselves, as the article describes.

I think the best course might be to kill the Aprilia brand, regroup Guzzi and Aprilia products under one banner, everything called a Guzzi, use the now-aging V4 for a touring bike (not a BMW copy), put the V9 engine in the V7 and sell those, see if they can evolve the cruiser into something that sells, and then produce one v-twin sport bike and update it every couple of years.  Give up racing for a while.  Then finally having done all that, sell the whole conglomerate to somebody more competent in the motorcycle business than themselves.  The main reason Piaggio bought Aprilia in the first place was to kill Vespa's competition...  They've done that pretty comprehensively, now move on!

[Arizona Wayne]

The main reason Piaggio bought Aprilia in the first place was to kill Vespa's competition...  They've done that pretty comprehensively, now move on!
[/quote]


Far as I know Vespa is part of Piaggio and is still profitable, so why would they want to kill Vespa?

[pete roper]

READ the sentence!

[oldbike54]

READ the sentence!

  Too complicated 

 Dusty

[AZRider]

The article is sad but true.
It begs the question: with big-bike sales shrinking globally, who would invest in purchasing Aprilia (and maybe Guzzis as part of the deal)?

[Arizona Wayne]

READ the sentence!

I read the sentence, but it's my understanding the only difference between a Vespa 250 GTV? and a 250 MP3 is the chassis, not the drive train of the 2.

Who made Tusayan an expert on this discussion?

[Bonaventure]

The article makes sense to me.  In the US Aprilia was virtually unknown 20 years ago.  Their dealer network made Guzzi look good.  Although the bikes were pretty spectacular to ride sales must have been less impressive because you almost never saw one on the road.  In the intervening years I saw my local Ducati shop carry Aprilia but they probably sold 50 Ducks for every Aprilia. 

In the past couple years we have speculated that Piaggio was going to use Aprilia as the performance brand and relegate Guzzi to cruiser only.  If this article says anything it's that Piaggio has lost that option due to neglect.  It won't take much effort to bring some performance back to Guzzi.  Offer a Griso replacement.  Bring on a new Norge.  Cap it off with a new and smaller Stelvio.  Yes, I'm a hopeless optimist. 

Peter Y.

Ducati dealer I bought two Ducs from just picked up Aprilia as a line earlier this year.  Since they're same distance from me as the closest Moto Guzzi dealer I inquired if since Aprilia & Guzzi = Piaggio maybe could they routine service my new Stelvio?  Nope.  Which is a shame because their service operation is first class.  They also sell MV Agusta, KTM, Triumph, and Yamaha. 

[O]

It is hard to believe today, but back in 2001 Aprilia was Europe's largest motorcycle manufacturer pumping out 330,000 vehicles a year. Today it is a shell of it's former self, selling about 10% of that figure.

That's scary, but as someone already asked, how many of those sales were scooters vs. motos?

[Arizona Wayne]

That's scary, but as someone already asked, how many of those sales were scooters vs. motos?

As I recall, a few years ago in Europe you could get a small scooter w/o having a special driver's license for it and scooter sales were high.  Then some or all European countries required to get a new scooter you first had to have a special DL and over there it costs a lot more than here to do that.   This new requirement hit new scooter sales hard over there and that's when Aprilia sales took a nose dive. 

[bmp72]

Guzzi sales have been 'increasing' for a decade or so.  Actually they go up for a while, then come back down, and production over the longer term has remained relatively unchanged.

Guzzi has a loyal following, people who buy a new Guzzi every 10 year or so (this explains the 10 year cycle  )

[Arizona Wayne]

Guzzi has a loyal following, people who buy a new Guzzi every 10 year or so (this explains the 10 year cycle  )

Then there's Guzzistis like me...........been riding Moto Guzzis for over 30 years but have never bought 1 new.    In fact in 55 years of riding MCs/scooters of different brands I have only bought 5 new.    So I guess bmp72 is right except I didn't buy my 5 exactly 10 years apart.

[rocker59]

Aprilia actually did a pretty gold job with Moto Guzzi prior to the Piaggio takeover.  They left Guzzi intact as a company (unlike Piaggio), developed a range new models (unlike Piaggio) and got the company going reasonable well.  I think if Piaggio had never come into the picture Guzzi would have trimmed the less inspired models, learned a bit about Guzzi as time went on, kept what worked and carried on.  As it is, Aprilia is dying, Guzzi as a company  no longer exists except in having maintained the factory and Piaggio (as always) is building and selling scooters with somebody else's name on them.

Your premise is not correct.

Sales were in the shitter in 2003/2004 thanks to Aprilia's mismanagement of Guzzi.  The PI debacle with the California line being the most glaring example. Global sales were something like 2500 units. Guzzi was going to die without a bailout from the likes of Piaggio.

Piaggio brought 20M Euro and revitalized the Guzzi plant. Their money made it possible to actually produce the Griso and following CARC machines.

You can thank Piaggio for saving the small block lineup with the V7 and V9 models.  And, Piaggio brought us the Cal 14.

Oh, and production is back up around 10K.






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