Paul Smart Replica - the investment you can enjoy while it appreciates

Ducati’s announcement a few weeks ago that the 2006 Paul Smart 1000LE’s entire production run of 2000 units had been made and there would be no more produced, made it clear that the value of each and every one of those machines would continue to appreciate forever more. The Ducati V-twin race heritage is without peer, with 241 World Superbike Championship wins - more than all the other manufacturers combined. But two wins stand above them all – Mike Hailwood’s comeback win at the Isle of Man on June 2, 1978 and the very first V-twin race start, on April 23, 1972 when Paul Smart led a Ducati 1-2 in the Imola 200. The race bike spawned the Ducati 750SS and now three decades later, the VERY limited edition Paul Smart Replica. At US$18,000, it offers a gilt-edged investment that’s faster than the original race bike.

The original Imola 1-2 is the stuff of legend and in researching this article, we came across an article written by Smart himself recollecting the lead-up and the race day on One Wheel Drive – it’s well worth a read.

Now the moral of this story is that not every motorcycle appreciates in value, but every now and again, there’s one that does, and this one bears all the signs of being a very good long term investment that doesn’t require being locked in a bank vault while it does its appreciating.

In 2001, Ducati commemorated Hailwood’s win with a limited edition model designated the MH900e and the prices for which those models change hands now attest to the inevitabilities of the laws of supply and demand when just 2000 motorcycles (the Hailwood Replica was produced in identical quantities) must supply the entire world.

Now the PS1000LE is hitting showroom floors around the world, at there are still a few available at US$17,995 in US, in the UK at UKP9,499, and in Australia at AU$23,995. Other national Ducati distributors may have one or two bikes available and our advice is to grab 'em if you can.

The story so far

Ducati released its first V-twin, the 750GT, in 1971 and followed it shortly afterwards with the tuned 750 Sport, an unfaired roadster with bright yellow paintwork. Paul Smart's victory in the 1972 Imola 200 inspired the Bologna firm to build a street-legal replica called the 750SS with desmodromic valve operation like the racer bike. In 1975 the engine was enlarged to 864cc to produce the 900SS, whose maximum of 79bhp and generous mid-range torque gave great acceleration and a top speed of over 130mph (209kph).

The 1974 Super Sport 750 is clearly the crown jewel of any classic motorcycle collection. Often referred to as the original Superbike, it was the first Ducati to combine all the performance of Smart’s race bike with a new elegant and trend setting design.

The bike boasted beautifully styled components like the “round case” Bevel Drive twin engine, equipped for the first time with Engineer Fabio Taglioni’s Desmodromic valve actuation system. The development of the Ducati Desmodromic system started in the late 50’s and continues to evolve to this day. Every street and racing engine Ducati produces still utilizes the Desmodtromic system.

...continued