Another motorbike.....Ducati.... am I mad

[Munkul]

I keep thinking of buying one of the F800GS Adventures, but I like my old XT. Certainly not the fastest, could do with being a bit faster on the motorways and keep thinking of making a bigger tank, but is relaxing and enjoyable to ride in winter and summer. I can do all my maintenance, don't need to buy valve shims just an oil filter every second change, a spark plug every now and then, and an air filter is an even rarer purchase.

I rented an f750gs on holiday a few years back and i absolutely loved it. Nothing bad to say about it at all.

Currently i have probably the most sensible bike ever made, a honda NC750X. 70+mpg, built in storage, comfortable... Just a shame the engine is dull as ditchwater it's really, really boring.

I'd have another XSR700 or MT07, the engine and chassis are great fun, the engine in particular is to my mind one of the finest parallel twins ever built.

 

[Rannsachair]

My Ducati owner ship was short both times…….Ss750 mid 90s bought new…..minor fault after minor fault, so got rid.
As I aged I had a hankering for another one. Bought a 748 but I was the wrong size and shape for it. Only had it about 3 months. Sold it on and made a 100 quid proft. Personally speaking I don't think product matches the price.

Think the forum has talked me out of the Ducati, probably for the best.

 

[stuvy]

Had a 748 and loved every mile on it
Never had an issue, and wish I’d kept it for the looks alone

had a 1000 mulitstrada when mine was in for mot I’d happily have that as a commuter

The 1200 suffers with snapped crankshafts

My best mate commuted on his 749r for two years and rode from central London to castle Combe did his race license and rode back in one day never had a single issue

Sold it for the same money two years later and regrets it to this day

 

[Screwdriver]

Best bike I ever owned bar none.

It was a bit of a hooligan though so you’d need a spare tame machine for regular A to B stuff.

 

[zeppelin builder]

I always quite liked the big heavy K series beemers, I had an R1100S for a while. the Honda Pan European or Yamaha FJR also appealed, though am not so keen on the weight now.

later air cooled ducatis 2v are very reliable
and timing belts and shimming would be incredibly easy for yourself
shims rarely need done and the later type of rocker makes it a doodle
remove spacer clip and slde rocker to the side , wet clutches dont rattle
check frames for cracking ive welded a few
loved the bevel ones but dodgy gearboxes and expensive roller big end


other cheaper alternatives
honda v twin
suzuki tl 1000
suzuki sv 650
moto guzzi grizo

 

[addjunkie]

Had a 748 and loved every mile on it
Never had an issue, and wish I’d kept it for the looks alone

Thats whyI bought it, on looks alone….bit like the ex wife……….loved the bike just my body didnt like it.

 

[Greeves246]

OK, declaration of interest. For the last eight years or so of my working life I worked for a Ducati Store, the first in the UK and now owns five I think . I’ve ridden, albeit only seven miles after doing a PDI, hundreds from 748/916, 996, 998, 1098, Monsters, Supersport, MH900,to Multistradas and Desmosedicis and seen inside lots.
Reliability is fine when maintained, seen Multis with high mileage touring all over Europe with never a missed beat and bikes come in for first service with rusty chains and tyres that haven’t had tyre pressures checked from the day they were collected, calipers seized from being power washed to death etc. No knowledge of current bikes as I retired ten years ago but I will enquire about the 950 Multi soon.
Some problems stem from owners leaving them all winter untouched and then revving them from cold with no mechanical sympathy whatsoever! , second or third owners not having services done or skimping on oil quality, champagne lifestyle with lemonade wallets. Any way back to the F1.

 

[Edward Teach]

I am not a fan of Ducati,
That's that out of the way,
Have you thought of the BMW S1000 XR

 

[Rannsachair]

later air cooled ducatis 2v are very reliable
and timing belts and shimming would be incredibly easy for yourself
shims rarely need done and the later type of rocker makes it a doodle
remove spacer clip and slde rocker to the side , wet clutches dont rattle
check frames for cracking ive welded a few
loved the bevel ones but dodgy gearboxes and expensive roller big end


other cheaper alternatives
honda v twin
suzuki tl 1000
suzuki sv 650
moto guzzi grizo

I have heard ST2's can be pretty reliable, the first multistrada's are just too ugly.

Always liked Guzzi;s too, though some horror stories on waiting for parts.

 

[Rannsachair]

OK, declaration of interest. For the last eight years or so of my working life I worked for a Ducati Store, the first in the UK and now owns five I think . I’ve ridden, albeit only seven miles after doing a PDI, hundreds from 748/916, 996, 998, 1098, Monsters, Supersport, MH900,to Multistradas and Desmosedicis and seen inside lots.
Reliability is fine when maintained, seen Multis with high mileage touring all over Europe with never a missed beat and bikes come in for first service with rusty chains and tyres that haven’t had tyre pressures checked from the day they were collected, calipers seized from being power washed to death etc. No knowledge of current bikes as I retired ten years ago but I will enquire about the 950 Multi soon.
Some problems stem from owners leaving them all winter untouched and then revving them from cold with no mechanical sympathy whatsoever! , second or third owners not having services done or skimping on oil quality, champagne lifestyle with lemonade wallets. Any way back to the F1.

I probably pamper my bikes, no pressure washing I have a friend who had a 1200 Multi from new, was a very expensive experience such that he said it would be his last Ducati.

 

[Rannsachair]

I am not a fan of Ducati,
That's that out of the way,
Have you thought of the BMW S1000 XR

The wife's uncle runs one, on his second, he loves it, I prefer twins.

 

[Hog-Rider]

I think there are many nice Bikes all with stories of this and that just go with what you like.. I Have a older Softail Harley mainly for 2 reasons. I cant bend my legs properly on normal bikes and the second reason is they are easy to work on. With no water in the engine as well also means one less problem. So Just get what you want.

 

[Screwdriver]

The only "problem" I had with the 990R above was that it ran out of speed on the open road. Topped out at around 140 iirc which while isn't exactly slow, was a bit of a shame. So I bought a one of these.

RC8 which I assumed would have a similar engine response and all I had to do was streetfighter it. I picked it up hilariously cheap...

But it was the complete antithesis of the lovely 990R. Where the 990 would pick up quickly and rev out, this thing was all about throttle position. Sounds silly but while you could ride the 990 on a whiff of throttle and let it rev out, the RC8 just got faster the more throttle you gave it. It made power everywhere and LOTS of it. It was still pulling like a train at 160+, seriously fast machine but horrible in traffic...

Where is the middle ground? Well for me, it's not a Ducati. Never rode a single one I liked. Very heavy on the wrist, stable but ponderous handling and a lumpy engine that sounds wrong when you rev it. 916 looks nice though. I think even at the time they were being snapped up by collectors who thought they'd be on a winner twenty years from then. Here we are twenty years later and there are so many minty examples, they never did make their money...

 

[lchris21]

Had a couple of Ducati's both 748's. One lunched itself about 200 miles after a major service by a Ducati main dealer.........crank pulley sheared off at 8000rpm . I put it down to the over tightening of the belts, never ever took my bike back to a main dealer after that. After 9 months too-ing and frow-ing luckily they honoured the out of date warranty (2months) and rebuilt the motor. The repair bill came in at £5.5k
My mate has an all singing and dancing Panigale.....been nothing but trouble, but he loves it, and still has it! Something about owning a Ducati, its a bit like a lottery every time you put the key in....will it.....errmm, wont it
I bought another 748, about 5 years later and still have it. Its as reliable as any other bike I have. As someone has mentioned, its only the horror stories you hear about. Its value is going up faster than my ISA so I might pull it out of the garage one day and see if my clutch forearm muscles will allow me to ride the thing before I decide to sell it or not.

 

[Cato]

I think if I did have a hankering for a Ducati I'd be looking for one going cheap with a knackered engine. Stick a TL1000 engine in it and you have a better engine than Ducati, and better handling than Suzuki. Ideal combination IMHO.

 

[Rannsachair]

I bought this at 6 months old ex demo from BMW, think it was I wanted a Ducati 916 but went for the sensible option:

I do still look at R1200S's think they look great, just prefer a more sitting up riding position.
The R1100SS was replaced with:

The KTM was more reliable than the BMW, though more labour intensive to maintain. Though thinking back both bikes always got me home. Must be a sign of getting old, but for me about 100hp is more than enough for me, I never ride at over 100 mph as do not want to lose my license.

 

[stuvy]

OK, declaration of interest. For the last eight years or so of my working life I worked for a Ducati Store, the first in the UK and now owns five I think . I’ve ridden, albeit only seven miles after doing a PDI, hundreds from 748/916, 996, 998, 1098, Monsters, Supersport, MH900,to Multistradas and Desmosedicis and seen inside lots.
Reliability is fine when maintained, seen Multis with high mileage touring all over Europe with never a missed beat and bikes come in for first service with rusty chains and tyres that haven’t had tyre pressures checked from the day they were collected, calipers seized from being power washed to death etc. No knowledge of current bikes as I retired ten years ago but I will enquire about the 950 Multi soon.
Some problems stem from owners leaving them all winter untouched and then revving them from cold with no mechanical sympathy whatsoever! , second or third owners not having services done or skimping on oil quality, champagne lifestyle with lemonade wallets. Any way back to the F1.

You see that so often at car and bike meets/shows so serious idiots

I have heard ST2's can be pretty reliable, the first multistrada's are just too ugly.

Always liked Guzzi;s too, though some horror stories on waiting for parts.

Moto guzzis have always been a bike Iv liked but not sure I’d want one

 

[Morrisman]

A lot of people are put off with the weight of the bigger bikes, but its the seat height that makes the difference. My Rt has the low seat option and I manage ok, 5 ft 8 and 29" inside leg (short ar$e). Was in the car park at Aberfoyle a while back,loads of guys watchin me when I reversed between two bollards and done a 3 point turn, with the boss on the back..... I think they were placing bets that I would topple Doing a 3 point turn on a hill is another story

I dropped my Beemer in a lay-by in Andorra a couple of years ago. Forgot the lay-by was on a steep hill, so my downhill foot couldn't reach the floor.... I had to shout to a guy in a car nearby to help stand it up, as it was loaded very top heavy, and had fallen downhill and I simply could not get it up on the gravel.




I altered my packing system remarkably after that trip. Far better handling now.



If I bought another bike it would probably a slightly more modern version of this same bike, maybe a GS, if the seats not too high for my stumpy little legs.

 

[Morrisman]

...Got a 1200gs 2009 now
It’s funny but I don’t think of it as a bike. Dry single plate clutch, car alternator and a powerband like a DI transit not to mention the weird bmw indicator switches
I do like it though!

Mine has the wierd indicator switches, push to turn on, but a separate button to cancel. Several times I've beeped my horn at cars by pressing the 'cancel button' on the wrong side. It's probably my most favourite ever bike, and I've done 45,000 miles in the five years I've had it.

 

[Greeves246]

I have heard ST2's can be pretty reliable, the first multistrada's are just too ugly.

Always liked Guzzi;s too, though some horror stories on waiting for parts.

One of the technicians from back then still has an ST2, wouldn't part with it for the world. Salesman had an ST, went to Scotland mosy weekends off, eventually left to live at Glenancross near Mallaig.