Wot's the Ducati difference?

[Forest]

Some of these imports have barely been used - I looked at one in Invercargill with 526km on it. They are purchased by Japanese owners who go for a few spins with mates to show off their Italian stallions, then park them in their living rooms. Sort of high-end sculpture chick magnet.

As always, caveat emptor.

I've seen a couple of used import Ducatis from Japan that had speedo clusters which had been replaced "under warranty"

[mikeey01]

Excellent stuff so far and great comments too, sorry if I hi jacked the thread early on with some of my pro Ducati comments.

JMenonic, Lemans, Winston001 nice comments and write up on the ST too guys

[JMemonic]

As always, caveat emptor.

I've seen a couple of used import Ducatis from Japan that had speedo clusters which had been replaced "under warranty"

On the ST series its not the speedo cluster but the computer that provides the data from what I can tell, mine is ex Japan 7500Km on the clock and I think it was genuine, big problem with them is they have sat and not been used, which they need to be, the belts are screwed up from sitting in one position all the time.

[piston broke]

sorta off topic,but,

the ducati difference-

the sight

the sound

the handling

[Rob Taylor]

Nah, but the early VFR 750's had seriously fuggin wonderful engines. Would I be a blasphemer if I said I'd drop the vfr750 motor into the Ducati frame in a heartbeat?

Bloody worse than a blasphemer,Lucky they dont burn people at the stake anymoreSell your Ducati.You dont deserve it

[Rob Taylor]

Had an 86 vfr750f, now ride a duc M900, and im sorry but both bikes are in a leauge of their own, really cant compare them, v4 vs v2, italian vs jap etc
Ducati is what it is, love em or hate em...no middle ground

Well bloody said bro

[scracha]

Bloody worse than a blasphemer,Lucky they dont burn people at the stake anymoreSell your Ducati.You dont deserve it

I worked for it like a nigger bro so I deserve it. Aint complaining about the looks, handling or brakes but the engine is pretty "average" as far as I'm concerned. Gawd knows how "average" the standard 748's must be.

[pritch]

Ducati admit they can't compete with the Japanese on performance, price, or with some, on quality. Doesn't leave a lot.

When looking at the performance figures for another thread recently it was apparent that the small Monster is 30 hp down on the 600 Hornet. That struck me as a massive disparity. Than I noticed that the 1100 Monster only makes similar power to the Hornet not much more than half its size.

I guess when a manufacturer is faced with such a huge discrepancy they have to invoke intangibles - eg "passion".

It was interesting to note also that you don't have to read far through Triumph's online catalogue to find the "p" word...

Notwithstanding all that I'd still like A Ducati but it probably won't happen.
A Triumph might be a possibility though.

[batboy]

Ducati admit they can't compete with the Japanese on performance, price, or with some, on quality. Doesn't leave a lot.

When looking at the performance figures for another thread recently it was apparent that the small Monster is 30 hp down on the 600 Hornet. That struck me as a massive disparity. Than I noticed that the 1100 Monster only makes similar power to the Hornet not much more than half its size.

I guess when a manufacturer is faced with such a huge discrepancy they have to invoke intangibles - eg "passion".

It was interesting to note also that you don't have to read far through Triumph's online catalogue to find the "p" word...

Notwithstanding all that I'd still like A Ducati but it probably won't happen.
A Triumph might be a possibility though.

ah yes but still new ducati's are constanly ranking higher in most new bike test in various bike pron mags, 1098=win, hypermotard=win etc.
but i do agree they market the "passion" very well and try keep the bikes "exclusive" to a point ie not mass produced.
A guy i spoke to once (he is on this forum but dont know who he is) said if he there was a race from christchurch to akaroa with money at the end he would not be on his R1, he would ride his 996, dukes still handle hands down

[laRIKin]

To me and I'm not have a dig at anyone.

It is all about the passion and the enjoyment of riding a bike.
HP and bling does not come in to it.

If I found a scooter I like and enjoyed to ride with a passion I would buy it.

I rode old Guzzi's (and still do) for years and trust me it is not about power, the brakes or handling or the bling.
It is all about passion and enjoyment.

I was going to buy an older Ducati a few years a go.
They wanted top, top dollar and it did have extras on it, so I let it go as I thought it was just to dear.

I'm still kicking my self and and get pissed off when I see this guy riding and enjoying the bike I should have bought.

[Dooly]

My 04 Duc 1000 SuperSport DS is slow compared to a Jappa equivalent 1000 and even a gixxer600 or similar. Very apparant at a trackday when they pass me on the straights.
But mine has a Ohlins rear setup factory and Brembos all round and handles like a dream on the road.
I've seen the end of the speedo on it which is 260, but who knows what that is, and with the lower gearing I've done now, its dropped a bit more top end, but accelerates hard.
Can keep up with the above mentioned bikes in real world conditions on the road no probs.
Cept for the straights again.............damn!!

[imdying]

ah yes but still new ducati's are constanly ranking higher in most new bike test in various bike pron mags, 1098=win

Win? Win!? For nearly twice the money, they better be total fuckin annihilation, not just a mere win. Sadly, they're not.

Someone mentioned they're either love or hate, no inbetween... afraid not, easy to be apathetic towards them... they're just metal and plastic like any other bike.

[johan]

[SNIP]
... said if he there was a race from christchurch to akaroa with money at the end he would not be on his R1, he would ride his 996, dukes still handle hands down

It's interesting to note that the Ducatis we see being raced on TV have very different geometry from what we buy for the street. The swingarm's length, the tripleclamp's offset, rear height etc are changed quite drastically.

From my experience, the 996 is not easy to turn in stock configuration. It's quite stable mid corner but to get there you would have to wrestle it down. But with some simple tweaks you can transform the bike to a very agile corner weapon.

Changing the rear to a 180/55 can also be an eye opener.

The single sided swingarm bikes are far from easy to setup. As you change the gearing and the chain tension, you change the rear height and the wheelbase. So you compensate with the height adjustment rod, and now you have changed the suspension linkage.

But they are still very good fun a rewarding to ride!

[pritch]

ah yes but still new ducati's are constanly ranking higher in most new bike test in various bike pron mags, 1098=win,

Not the ones I read, the RC8 won hands down.
Oh, and the runner up was the Aprilia.
848 & 1098 followed but I can't remember the order.

[Winston001]

I worked for it like a nigger bro so I deserve it. Aint complaining about the looks, handling or brakes but the engine is pretty "average" as far as I'm concerned. Gawd knows how "average" the standard 748's must be.

Mmmm. Your bike produces 106hp and runs through a quarter mile in 11.5 seconds. Nothing wrong with that. I'm guessing you have tweaked it but just as a reminder, the 748 is a high performance motor and only really comes on song at 7000 revs. Your playground is above that. It's not a street bike.

Smaller front cog (or larger rear cog) will help performance, as well as raising the rear with the height adjustment rod. Lighter wheels would help and carbon exhausts shave even more weight.

However I think the 748R is a lovely bike straight out of the factory.

http://www.motorcyclespecs.co.za/mod...ucati_748r.htm