996 996s Or 998 Biposto?

I would take the 998 if i was you.

Henk!!!

 

998!!!

 

Might be worth saving the extra for a nice 998s.Id also opt for the 916sps /996sps over the 996s bikes.

I guess a lot comes down to personal preference as the desmoquattro and testastretta bikes offer a different engine character.

 

998 over the 996s. Better still, a 998s. Even more agricultural grunt for your bucks!

 

Ducati used to sell a kit in their DP catalogue to tune the 998 to 998S spec and it consisted of the cams and a 50mm exhaust. So uprating a 998 to S spec is quite straightforward.

 

Mine had it from new

 

I agree as above. But if you're after those looks with more power, a 748 with 1x98 motor seems to work out best bang for your buck. I could easily have a desmosedici for what my tuned 996 costs and it'll never have the stomp of a good 1098.

 

Id just go and test ride a 996,998 and 1098.See which one floats your boat.If you really like the 1098 as above if you have to have the older looks.

I prefer the 916sps over my previous 996bp or the 998 I test rode due to the different power delivery and character of the motor.I guess this is also why the 748R etc bikes are also very popular compared to the higher power superbikes.

This is why I think you need to test ride bikes in general to get a good idea.On paper my 916sps is around 998s power figures.But on riding them you will find the motors very different in character.

 

+1, basically.

 

My thinking is if going for a 998 why bother with the mucher higher price S model if all you need is a set of cams and 50mm system.Ok you don't get the ohlins( or full ohlins bostrom, bayliss and R) but many prefer to upgrade showa via k-tech or kais etc.Or is there much more to the S model for the money

At the time I seem to remember ducati banding around the idea the 998S is the old 996R without the carbon fairings.Is this the same old bullshit they punted out ie the 996S is the old 916/996sps which if you check the specs it is not.If memory serves me right the 998S got the deep sump motor but what about the rest of the 996R internals.

Also if going down the route 1037sps suggested you could also consider the 848 evo lump.One of the ducati guys I spoke to recently test rode a 996sps after always wanting to try one.He said he was disappointed as he had been riding 848 bikes before it :Jawdrop:.I guess things really have moved on.

 

Its easy to forget that the 916 family of bikes is now over 20 years old in terms of design.

I still think they are lovely things to ride but they will feel as though they are from an older generation when compared to 1098 bikes on.

 

02 998s has deep sump sand cast galsi 7 alloy cases, pankl titanium conrods, hotter cams
ohlins rear, P4 4 pad calipers . 50mm headers and pipes
not sure the 2004 998s FE had all these

 

Here's the spec of both bikes to compare. The stock 998 had an Ohlins rear shock as standard.

The 998S does have different bodywork as it has a 5 piece fairing set which included a carbonfibre bellypan as opposed to 3 for the stock 998.

998 Ducati 998

998S Ducati 998 S

 

Are you sure you've got the number of pieces to the fairing per model right Red? Did they ever change the configuration?

I've got a deep-sumped 2002 998s with a carbon fairing, but the fairing is in two parts - each side of the fairing is the whole side - one single carbon casting - it's not split with rivets like the pics on your post's attachments. I think on my old 998 (not the s) each side of the fairing came in two parts - an upper and a lower, plus the belly pan.

 

Im sure only the 998R of 02 bikes had carbon one piece side fairings as standard.So maybe aftermarket ones fitted to the above 02 998s bike.Ive fitted the same style one piece casoli moto carbon fairings to my 916sps with a carbon bellypan.

 

That would a 998R fairing or a replica carbon or race fairing. See below for the extract from the 998S parts manual, the sides and bellypan can be clearly seen in this 02 model year catalogue listing. The stock 998 came with a 2 part fairing and no bellypan.

 

american 998s had carbon fairings i think to make up for the fact they didn't get the deep sump 996r engine due to emissions regs

 

The US Bostrom replica had one piece panels also but the 998S FE US edition had split panels.

 

So I think we've established some bikes have one piece fairings, some have 2. My pals 4000mile 748SPS has red lowers painted yellow! Doubt this would've come from the factory but the rest is fine and he loves the bike so who cares.