Audi Is Said to Be Ready to Buy Ducati FRANKFURT- Audi, the luxury car unit of Volkswagen, plans to enter the motorcycle business by acquiring Ducati, an Italian maker of high-end two-wheelers, a person briefed on the transaction said Tuesday. The purchase of Ducati will likely be announced late Wednesday German time after the supervisory boards of Audi and Volkswagen approve the deal, said the person, who could not be named because the transaction had not yet closed. Audi declined to comment. The person briefed on the transaction confirmed reports by Reuters and others that Volkswagen will pay about 860 million euros ($1.12 billion) to Investindustrial, Ducati's main shareholder. The deal, widely reported in the German press and by wire services, immediately drew criticism because there is little obvious overlap between Volkswagen and Ducati or opportunities to save costs. BMW, Audi's main rival, has long sold motorcycles, which may be one motivation for the purchase. Volkswagen has 10 car and truck brands, not counting Porsche, the carmaker it is in the process of acquiring. They include Bentley limousines and exotic Bugatti sports cars that sell for more than $1 million. Audi's separate management board also has responsibility for Lamborghini, the Italian maker of super cars that also belongs to the Volkswagen group. Volkswagen, the largest carmaker in Europe, shares parts and development costs among the brands but keeps them rigorously separate in the eyes of consumers. The strategy has helped Volkswagen to avoid some of the overcapacity problems that have hurt other European carmakers, but it is not clear how Ducati would fit in. Ducati, based in Bologna, is known for stylish, high-performance machines that can sell for as much as 25,000 euros, or much more than many models of Volkswagen. As such, Ducati could add some cachet to the Volkswagen stable, and the company has expertise in lightweight construction and small but high-powered engines that could be useful to the parent company. Based on Volkswagen practice so far, Ducati would maintain its own dealer network, and it is unlikely that Audi dealers would start selling motorcycles.