Hi All Since my 749s I gone through a few Jap bikes and I am on the hunt for a change, a cruiser. Whats the general consensus here about the Diavel, Gen 1?
i had an early diavel carbon back shortly after they originally came out. great fun and surprisingly capable; surprised a lot of folks on a track day at Snetterton. test ride one, you will enjoy it
My girlfriend has had her gen 1 Diavel base model for 9 years in September. Been toured on, tracked and every day ridden. Cleanliness of the rear suspension linkage is essential, she is on her third rose joint and spend some time with the suspension. The Sachs forks and rear shock are very basic, she has put new springs in the forks (a thread on here) and I bought her an Ohlins rear shock. She loves it. Andy
Base with Sachs suspension and S which may or may not have had Ohlins forks, I can’t remember. Mostly colour schemes and the Diavel Strada that came with touring, semi rigid panniers. There was a limited edition AMG and IIRC, a Chrome but all bolt ons, no performance enhancements. You can get a Termignoni performance exhaust but nothing like an R. Not totally sure of the differences between the gen 1 and gen 2 but I think it was more to do with harmonising the X Diavel and the Diavel. The latest 1260 is supposed to be better but I’m not convinced it’s worth the money to change. Andy
All sounds good for the jump back in to Ducati ownership. Are servicing cost still stupid? Is home servicing an option with normal tools? My 749s was well fussy regarding tuning and exhaust changes. It ran like a bag o shite before I had CJS remap and rolling road it (fookin amazing btw, highly recommended).
15000 mile/5 year service is megabucks and not something I would do myself. Girlfriend has just had her 2nd Desmo service which changed 14 of the 16 valve shims which has made a huge difference to the performance. Routine oil and filter changes £250 but easy DIY. Never seen anyone post that they have done a bespoke remap, IMO, the bike would be unhandleable, it’s already mental in Sport mode. Takes a brave man or woman to push the Diavel with it’s long wheelbase and lazy steering. Andy
Im getting ready to pull the trigger on this I reckon. I read a fair bit more now about the Diavel and apart from the lack of a fuel gauge (??? is that right?) I cant find many bad reviews. The Desmo services sounds like a pain in the ar$e but that loads cheaper than my 749s as the service intervals are a lot longer, like a LOT longer! So.... The Hayabusa is up for sale and the proceeds will go toward a newer machine. Ive looked at service costs Tyre costs Common faults I'll find one with FSH Possibly dealer network (unless one comes up here) I can do consumables myself here at home. What do you do about the service light if doing oil changes at home?
If you can afford it, get a Gen 2, model year 2015 onwards, there were a few Gen 2 registered Sept / Oct 2014. Better engine, a few horror stories of Gen 1 cranks failing. Gen 2 has the better LED hedlight, twin spark engine, black bars, black mirrors and few other tweaks, including a fuel gauge. Nice to haves if you can get one with : Ohlins rear shock - stock is harsh and will kick you up the arse after a couple of hours of riding Full termi system - need this to sound right Belts are due at 5 years, good to have those already done if possible, saves a bill Valve check is a big bill, but only due at 18,000 mile on Gen 2, not age related, just mileage. If you never hit 18,000 mile, you don't need it doing. I took my Gen 2 Carbon red to the Ducati day at Donington last year, and surprised quite a few other bikes ... and myself. Try one, you will not regret it. They do things that a "sit up and beg cruiser" should not do.
My first Ducati always had japs and to be fair the duc is a beast compared to anything else I’ve owned. Can tour Sunday spins commute or even track them if that’s what your into. I’ve put the shad luggage on mine along with the backrest not everyone’s cup of tea but I don’t care
Just buy one , you won’t regret it . I loved my Carbon Red Gen1 ... fitted Andreani Cartridges, Nitron rear shock and it handled beautifully. Had to cut 1/2 inch out of the headers as I kept grounding out on right handers . They’re very capable for what they are .. which isn’t a cruiser I even put a QS on it and a custom tune Rode it to the dolomites twice too .. was as comfortable as a naked machine could be and it also replaced a Gen1 ‘busa ... thinking of getting another when I have room
Im looking forward to it. The Busa is up for 3700 so that maybe a bit steep for a quick sale but I am on it. Ive phoned around, Rapido and Luigi, and servicing isnt as bad as I though, the intervals are WAY WAY less than my 749s I thought maybe the odd sized tyres would be well expensive, not the case. I thought there may be some reliability issues, there are not. Cant wait to have a red Ducati at home again
