Volkswagen’s new man at the top is looking to shake the auto giant’s assets up. Newly appointed CEO Herbert Diess made that point clear in his first news conference as the head honcho of the world’s second-largest automaker. While he didn’t dive into the specifics, Diess confirmed that the company will be reviewing every brand it owns. If it comes down to it, the German automaker will be open to selling some of its assets in an effort to streamline its portfolio by only keeping its strongest brands.

For those who aren’t aware, a rundown of Volkswagen’s brands includes Audi, Porsche, Bentley, Skoda, SEAT, Lamborghini, Bugatti, Ducati, Scania, MAN, VW Commercial Vehicles, and the core Volkswagen brand. Off the top, we can immediately rule out Audi, Porsche, Bentley, Lamborghini, Bugatti, and the Volkswagen brand as possible brands that could be sold. Not only are they the strongest brands of the lot, but they’re also the most visible all over the world. In some respects, we can include SEAT, Skoda, and the VW Commercial Vehicles in that list. They’ve become cash cows in their own right. Scania and MAN are commercial brands that also hold some appeal for VW. That leaves Ducati, the Italian motorcycle brand that’s known for offering some of the most extreme motorcycles in the business today.

It also happens to be a brand that was rumored as recently as last year to be on the verge of getting sold for $1.8 billion. Nothing came out of it, but past reports revealed that Volkswagen’s workforce representatives, which has equal billing on the VW board with corporate management, shot down any attempt at selling Ducati. A representative from VW was even quoted by Reuters, saying that “the employee representatives on Volkswagen’s supervisory board will neither approve a sale of Ducati, nor one of Renk or MAN Diesel & Turbo.”

But that was then. Now that Volkswagen is effectively under new leadership, all those previous scenarios are back on the table, including the possibility that Ducati gets sold. It won't be surprising if the Italian brand finds its name in the news again.

That said, there are still plenty of possibilities as far as what direction Diess wants to take Volkswagen. There’s going to be some difficult decisions to be made, and a lot of people will be looking to see which of these brands are deemed expendable. We’re not going to say it’s Ducati off the bat, but if given a choice, it’s probably the likeliest one to go.

References

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Read our full review on the 2018 Ducati 939 SuperSport.