One For The Books - 1998 Ducati 748L Neiman Marcus Limited Edition

This entry has been published on February 16, 2023 and links to eBay may have been updated to point to similar bikes of interest.

It is somewhat amusing that one of the most limited of Limited Editions from Ducati is a doppelganger for the same model posted only a few weeks ago here on RSBFS – but as is often noted, rare bikes are a feast or famine affair. And thus, straight from the Neiman Marcus catalog I offer you yet another Ducati 748L in ultra-rare silver, featuring based model 748 bi-posto seating and mechanicals and only the inclusion of a carbon front fender and number plaque on the headstock to discern it from other lower spec 748 models. By numbers this is rare. By performance, this is just another 748.

1998 Ducati 748 Neiman Marcus LE for sale on eBay

From the seller:
This 1998 Ducati 748L is #24 of 100 sold exclusively thru the Neiman Marcus Catalog in 1998. Known as the Neiman Marcus custom edition this is a 748cc, 3.5L DOHC and liquid cooled. It has a dry clutch that produced the iconic and radical Ducati sound with a chain drive and 6 speed manual transmission.

This bike is fresh out of the Ducati Newport Beach service center where it just had all the fluids refreshed, the chain serviced, a new battery, and new rear brake pads installed. This bike is road ready just needs registration. I primarily keep the bike registered as non-op as it only goes on short routine rides close to home.

More from the seller:
The only known mechanical defect is the fuel level sensor doesn’t work properly. It has been this way since I purchased the bike and was not worth fixing in my opinion. I simply covered the the light with electrical tape (pictured) and top off with fresh premium fuel every 100 miles or so.

This is an older bike and is by no means perfect. This bike gets lots of love but still has a few scratches (pictured) on the right side and the left mirror. No warranty expressed or implied. Bike comes AS-IS with original owners manual and both original Ducati keys.

By behavior and usage, it is difficult to determine if the rare N.M. Christmas catalog edition of the Ducati 748 is actually a collectable. Most of this variant that we have seen have both higher miles on the clocks along with the requisite bumps, scratches and mishaps. Yet this configuration was only offered via the Neiman Marcus catalog, and limited to only 100 pieces total. I’d like to think that at least a few of them were absconded away into museums and collections, but if so only one zero mileage example has surfaced on my watch (you can search for all of the Neiman Marcus RSBFS posts here) .

Bidding for this California-based bike is up to just over $4,500 at time of writing, with reserve still in place. Those are fairly low dollars for a pretty rare model, even if it is showing some signs of usage. On the plus side, the bike appears to be unmodified, with no cut fenders or other unnecessary farkles added on. Interest appears to be moderate on this one, with the auction scheduled to end before the weekend is over. Check out all of the details here, and Good Luck!!