Ducati (ex) owners?

[Ulvetanna_imp]

You will be riding the bike wherever it needs to be ridden, it will feel natural after you get used to it. If you have never owned a Ducati maybe you should give it a try, but if you don't really have a lot of cash to spend on maintenance and need a reliable machine it is perhaps not the most effective choice out there. If it makes little to no power below 3000 RPM you won't be riding it in that range anyway.
103 pages of problems? Wow.

thats common sence

but many ducatistas do not have common sense, they call it passion

A Japanese engineer sees a bike and wants to get the most reliability out of it.
It still seems to me a Ducati engineer sees a bike and wants to achieve the coolest, loudest, fastest and prettiest bike on the block, and reliability is not a first priority.

That said, are the costs of maintenance of a Duc still that high?
When I look at the maintenance intervals, its pretty good:
http://www.ducatinortheurope.be/nl/bikes...ch_spec.do

Maintenance service intervals = 15.000km
Valve clearance check = 30.000km

Thats as good or better than our beloved reliable Honda's

Whats the catch?...
If, and I cannot emphasis this enough, but if I would get a 2nd bike, that second bike would be more a occasional long distance/travel/holiday/weekend bike, certainly not a daily commute bike.

So I'm not worried about break downs due to intens daily commutes
Break downs from occasional use is bad enough, but even a Duc should do for that I hope

Actually, I live close to my work so I do not use my CB for that, I got my 50cc Ruckus for that

For everything else I use the CB.

But I do feel the eager to travel across Europe, but for some specific reasons I do not want to use my CB for that.
Although purely technically its more than up for the job.

The CB is a perfect city bike for me, and the perfect day out bike.
I could even use that for a weekend I guess.

But to do longer international travels, I miss the practicality of descent wind protection, hard spacious luggage, a bigger tank with good mileage (the Multi's have good stats in that matter it seems) and I a little bit more bite would not hurt
It has all sorts of gizmo's that can come handy on such travels: cruise control, better seat (?), and that sky hook suspension should be something of a marvel...
Plus, the Multi combines all that in a relatively light package.
And I like the look of the Multi, by far the best looking AVD-Touring-Sport touring of them all.
The K1600GT is maybe on par in the looks department, but I am not gonna start about that Beemer...

Only big issue the Multi has is its reputation, being a Ducati.
But if I had the money and place right now, I'd take the risk


+ a 2nd bike give me the chance to dump all the practicallity mods on my CB and transform it in a true naked, something like these, wich are my reference CB's in terms of looks

thats common sence

but many ducatistas do not have common sense, they call it passion

It still seems to me a Ducati engineer sees a bike and wants to achieve the coolest, loudest, fastest and prettiest bike on the block, and reliability is not a first priority. To each his own, but the Ducati motorcycle is a conversation-starter and attention-getter of the highest order. They are designed and marketed based firstly on style and then the engineering is bent (not forged) around that goal.

I have known a lot of riders of all kinds, and the ones who consistently choose Ducati are mostly the social butterflies, the ones who arrive very early at the roadhouse, going through pot after acrid pot of coffee clutched in styrofoam cups, bantering for hours on end before finally leaving for the day's (usually short) ride.

The marque instantly generates talk on a wide variety of tacks, from old-world craftsmanship, to art over science, to racing history, and general sex appeal. Harleys do the same thing.

Ducati clings to steel frames and large V-twin engines, just as Harley does.

You will be riding the bike wherever it needs to be ridden, it will feel natural after you get used to it. If you have never owned a Ducati maybe you should give it a try, but if you don't really have a lot of cash to spend on maintenance and need a reliable machine it is perhaps not the most effective choice out there. If it makes little to no power below 3000 RPM you won't be riding it in that range anyway.
103 pages of problems? Wow.

thats common sence

but many ducatistas do not have common sense, they call it passion

A Japanese engineer sees a bike and wants to get the most reliability out of it.
It still seems to me a Ducati engineer sees a bike and wants to achieve the coolest, loudest, fastest and prettiest bike on the block, and reliability is not a first priority.

That said, are the costs of maintenance of a Duc still that high?
When I look at the maintenance intervals, its pretty good:
http://www.ducatinortheurope.be/nl/bikes...ch_spec.do

Maintenance service intervals = 15.000km
Valve clearance check = 30.000km

Thats as good or better than our beloved reliable Honda's

Whats the catch?...
If, and I cannot emphasis this enough, but if I would get a 2nd bike, that second bike would be more a occasional long distance/travel/holiday/weekend bike, certainly not a daily commute bike.

So I'm not worried about break downs due to intens daily commutes
Break downs from occasional use is bad enough, but even a Duc should do for that I hope

Actually, I live close to my work so I do not use my CB for that, I got my 50cc Ruckus for that

For everything else I use the CB.

But I do feel the eager to travel across Europe, but for some specific reasons I do not want to use my CB for that.
Although purely technically its more than up for the job.

The CB is a perfect city bike for me, and the perfect day out bike.
I could even use that for a weekend I guess.

But to do longer international travels, I miss the practicality of descent wind protection, hard spacious luggage, a bigger tank with good mileage (the Multi's have good stats in that matter it seems) and I a little bit more bite would not hurt
It has all sorts of gizmo's that can come handy on such travels: cruise control, better seat (?), and that sky hook suspension should be something of a marvel...
Plus, the Multi combines all that in a relatively light package.
And I like the look of the Multi, by far the best looking AVD-Touring-Sport touring of them all.
The K1600GT is maybe on par in the looks department, but I am not gonna start about that Beemer...

Only big issue the Multi has is its reputation, being a Ducati.
But if I had the money and place right now, I'd take the risk


+ a 2nd bike give me the chance to dump all the practicallity mods on my CB and transform it in a true naked, something like these, wich are my reference CB's in terms of looks

Not so...the Japanese became performance-oriented in the late 1960s, and set out to build the fastest, most advanced and reliable bike in the world, which was the 750 Four. In the 1970s the CR750 Honda racebikes proved this very well. The Japanese produced all kinds of engine configurations, such as a six-cylinder 250cc racing engine that just has to be heard to be believed.

They didn't care about tradition, but, even so, carried forth a design philosophy in practice during WWII: make it as light and lethal as possible. The A6M Zero was a great fighter plane, very maneuverable, fast, with substantial range and excellent firepower. I interviewed Steve Hinton about that plane, and he called it a "pilot's aircraft", very easy to fly, and very fun to fly.

Unfortunately they did not have self-sealing tanks or armor and were later called "Zippos" because they caught fire and exploded instantly after a few tracers went into the wings and lit them up.

Motorcycles don't need armor or armament, so the light weight and performance goals were compatible with the mission.

But performance and reliability are goals that can be reached without compromise if the design is not restricted to tradition or style. That's why the Japanese motorcycles both win world championships and are known for their durability.

You will be riding the bike wherever it needs to be ridden, it will feel natural after you get used to it. If you have never owned a Ducati maybe you should give it a try, but if you don't really have a lot of cash to spend on maintenance and need a reliable machine it is perhaps not the most effective choice out there. If it makes little to no power below 3000 RPM you won't be riding it in that range anyway.
103 pages of problems? Wow.

thats common sence

but many ducatistas do not have common sense, they call it passion

A Japanese engineer sees a bike and wants to get the most reliability out of it.
It still seems to me a Ducati engineer sees a bike and wants to achieve the coolest, loudest, fastest and prettiest bike on the block, and reliability is not a first priority.

That said, are the costs of maintenance of a Duc still that high?
When I look at the maintenance intervals, its pretty good:
http://www.ducatinortheurope.be/nl/bikes...ch_spec.do

Maintenance service intervals = 15.000km
Valve clearance check = 30.000km

Thats as good or better than our beloved reliable Honda's

Whats the catch?...
If, and I cannot emphasis this enough, but if I would get a 2nd bike, that second bike would be more a occasional long distance/travel/holiday/weekend bike, certainly not a daily commute bike.

So I'm not worried about break downs due to intens daily commutes
Break downs from occasional use is bad enough, but even a Duc should do for that I hope

Actually, I live close to my work so I do not use my CB for that, I got my 50cc Ruckus for that

For everything else I use the CB.

But I do feel the eager to travel across Europe, but for some specific reasons I do not want to use my CB for that.
Although purely technically its more than up for the job.

The CB is a perfect city bike for me, and the perfect day out bike.
I could even use that for a weekend I guess.

But to do longer international travels, I miss the practicality of descent wind protection, hard spacious luggage, a bigger tank with good mileage (the Multi's have good stats in that matter it seems) and I a little bit more bite would not hurt
It has all sorts of gizmo's that can come handy on such travels: cruise control, better seat (?), and that sky hook suspension should be something of a marvel...
Plus, the Multi combines all that in a relatively light package.
And I like the look of the Multi, by far the best looking AVD-Touring-Sport touring of them all.
The K1600GT is maybe on par in the looks department, but I am not gonna start about that Beemer...

Only big issue the Multi has is its reputation, being a Ducati.
But if I had the money and place right now, I'd take the risk


+ a 2nd bike give me the chance to dump all the practicallity mods on my CB and transform it in a true naked, something like these, wich are my reference CB's in terms of looks

Generally the shop labor rates and flat rates seem to be higher in my area for the privilege of owning Ducati, but you should check around to see about yours.

The CB1100 is also an anomaly; as we've seen from polls and other threads, the 8000 mile valve inspection interval is probably not necessary, and those who did have valves out of spec were barely off the numbers. I did my own earlier this year and the top end looked perfect, all valves in spec.

Liquid-cooled Japanese bikes go much further between major services; Yamaha's top ends commonly call for an inspection interval of about 26,000 miles. The electrics, electronics, and rubber tend to be much more durable and reliable on the Japanese motorcycles. Vibration, moisture, and ozone seem to affect European bikes more than Asian examples.

Just a few things to keep in mind; your Ducati is going to demand more of you as an owner. Some owners give that happily, others become disappointed. Personality dictates the outlook and result, not engineering.