Can we get a new manufacturer for 16" tires???

[duke900]

Same with me, i want to keep my paso with 16 whells.

[Skins]

If we try to make a list, I believe we run the risk of collecting only a small number of replies, which would not look good. I don't think we'd get more than a couple of dozen replies, and even that would take some time.

Instead, I think Jon Slocum, representing the Ducati owners of New York, and Mike, representing Ducatipaso.org, should join in with the German effort to persuade Avon to come to the party. I believe the US and Germany were the biggest individual markets for the Paso, and I believe we can honestly give an assurance that there are at least three hundred Pasos still on the roads.

Instead, I think Jon Slocum, representing the Ducati owners of New York, and Mike, representing Ducatipaso.org, should join in with the German effort to persuade Avon to come to the party. I believe the US and Germany were the biggest individual markets for the Paso, and I believe we can honestly give an assurance that there are at least three hundred Pasos still on the roads.

All I need is the Info for the folks to speak with and I will make the call. I can represent the NY owners as well as the Paso owners.

Banner, have you had any contact with Jon Slocum about this?

[Finnpaso]

Is Jon now in Spain in Ducati club presidents meeting? Or, did i missed something, cause there was some fotos from that meeting? Or was him John at all???

[Banner65]

No until now, there´s no contact gfrom the US representatives. Sorry.
Currently I´m very busy at my work and do not have so much time for reading private mails or posting here. But I promise to keep in close contact to this Cooper activities.

There are only two guys mailing their personal tire needs with one set each - no more.
Perhaps it will be the bes to set up a new item...

cheers, Banner

[Skins]

Jon Slocum is in Spain at present with all the other Ducati Owners Club presidents. But I think he is the man to work with on this matter, Banner, and help you negotiate with Avon/Cooper. I think you two negotiating with Avon/cooper will be better than making a list. Hopefully yourself and Jon Slocum will be in contact sometime soon.

[Finnpaso]

Thanks Skins ! I am in that "Avon / Cooper" deal with my whole heart...

[jcslocum]

I am in Spain and have brought this problem up to Ducati. They are very busy with "new" issues but have prominsed to look into it. If we do the leg work with Cooper and make the contacts, then maybe they can call them too and apply some pressure. Please send me the contact details from Cooper and I will work on it from my end.


Regards from Espana!!

[Banner65]

Hey Jon,

I´m in contact with Ducati Germany. They are involved in this topic deeply.
If you want, you can also contact that german representative.
Here´s the phone no.: +49-(0)2236-391 222

Besides I contacted also the tire manufacturer "Heidenau" but the rejected the development and production of the tires due to R&D capacity and costs as well as the "missing market". Perhaps we acan also convince them by the ammount of needed tire sets??

Thanks for your support on this hard item.

Keeps the Paso´s riding!

Bernd

[paso750]

I had a discussion with MAXXIS tires about a year a go, but also being an asian manufacturer they were not interested. Actually strange as this is a niche market granting monopoly for this tire size.

G.

[persempre907]

Actually strange as this is a niche market granting monopoly for this tire size.

G.

It's right, but I don't know if it can be considered a relevant market , even if niche, from a big factory.
Ciao

[paso750]

it`s not, not for a big company. If a big company has ways to realize such a project on an economic way they may consider it otherwise such a niche may be more interesting for smaller manufacturers therefore longer time ago I had talked to different ones. The advantage of niches or being a single supplier normally is that you can compensate your costs by charging pharmacy prices. But volumes of only a few thousand units a year (if at all) are really low.

[mike]

it`s not, not for a big company. If a big company has ways to realize such a project on an economic way they may consider it otherwise such a niche may be more interesting for smaller manufacturers therefore longer time ago I had talked to different ones. The advantage of niches or being a single supplier normally is that you can compensate your costs by charging pharmacy prices. But volumes of only a few thousand units a year (if at all) are really low.

this is the reason that michelin stopped producing the tires in the first place
i pleaded with them via email and on the telephone, but to no avail
it makes business sense to stop producing tires that sell in the low hundreds annually
i contacted coker tire, a manufacturer that reproduces tires for vintage and specialty vehicles [they reproduce Michelin XWX for 70s ferraris, etc] and they had no interest either

jon, if you need my voice too, please let me know, but I want to make sure we don't create a false hope here as this era of Ducati motorcycles is unfortunately not one that the current Ducati cares to remember nor cares much about

[persempre907]

it`s not, not for a big company. If a big company has ways to realize such a project on an economic way they may consider it otherwise such a niche may be more interesting for smaller manufacturers therefore longer time ago I had talked to different ones. The advantage of niches or being a single supplier normally is that you can compensate your costs by charging pharmacy prices. But volumes of only a few thousand units a year (if at all) are really low.

this is the reason that michelin stopped producing the tires in the first place
i pleaded with them via email and on the telephone, but to no avail
it makes business sense to stop producing tires that sell in the low hundreds annually
i contacted coker tire, a manufacturer that reproduces tires for vintage and specialty vehicles [they reproduce Michelin XWX for 70s ferraris, etc] and they had no interest either

jon, if you need my voice too, please let me know, but I want to make sure we don't create a false hope here as this era of Ducati motorcycles is unfortunately not one that the current Ducati cares to remember nor cares much about

This is the problem.
If Michelin, who has tecnology and is ready to built them doesn't have anymore interest, I guess a new producer, who has to start from a "white sheet" would have too high costs for a such low production.

[paso750]

I wonder if Michelin scrapped the moulds.

[mike]

I wonder if Michelin scrapped the moulds.

I asked this and could not get an answer. If the tooling could be acquired by, say, coker, then production might be able to move forward. Coker may not be equipped to make radial motorcycle tires, hence their lack of interest.