I very much doubt there would be a new model on the production line yet unless it was for imminent release. Since there have been no spy shots in the press, i think its very unlikely anything is imminent. I think the big news next year will be a revised water cooled Monster based on the 821cc engine. There is no way that engine would have been designed and made just for the Hyper range.
Actually, this happens quite often! The bike is built on the production line (because Ducati only have one of them!) to check for things like time-to-build, build complexity, training, and so on. They will be checking to see where the build process can be improved to reduce the time it takes to build a bike, and also to ensure that things are done in the right order to ensure access to everything - no use in bolting something on to find it covers the bolt holes for the next thing to bolt on! Time saved here means more bikes built and increased profits, as well as less mechanical issues later on. They will also be photographing the process for the workshop manuals, as these all need to be supplied when the bike is launched, as well as doing promotional shots for magazines, press material, etc. All of this stuff needs to be done, checked, scrutinised, edited, done again, etc before the bike is released. There's a lot more to building a bike than bolts a few bits together!
And if the new bike wasn't planned for 2014 release they would have carried on making 848's for another year. Why all the doubters?
I don't think we're doubters, but there are quite a few reasons why they wouldn't build a smaller CC SuperQuadro engine and we're speculating on which direction Ducati may go in. Production runs can stop without a replacement - SuperSport, ST, (old) MultiStrada... all of those stopped production without being immediately replaced with a newer model. Some people are hinting that there's a Scrambler in the works, and Ducati recently trademarked the Scrambler name (just like they did Diavel, Panigale, SuperQuadro and a few others before they were officially announced) but again I think if that was coming in November (which is only 4 months away!) we would have seen spy shots by now.
Could they be stopping the 848 production simply because they need the production line capacity for a more profitable bike range, leaving the Pani as the only superbike?
Quite possibly. Why add another model when the super bike you have seems to be selling pretty damn well, race wins or not.
They have 3 production lines! We saw two, Monsters (+ another model) were being built to my right, 848's, Streetfighters & Diavels I think to my left. We then went round the corner with the screened off Panigale line to the left & the test cell on the right. Please remember that bikes have no bodywork apart from tanks. The suspension made the Panigale stand out to me
The new bike could be already being road tested, stick some panigale bodywork on and nobody would bat an eyelid
You have to also think of the opportunity cost of not making one. 916 gave us a 748 999 gave us a 749 1098 gave us an 848 In all cases, it must have been deemed that marketing a smaller bike that cost almost the same to build at a lower price point increased overall profit, because the sales weren't all cannibalisation. The same must hold true for a smaller 1199. There is no reason to suppose that the game has changed. I would be willing to be on an 899. And yes, if it is substantially the same bike with a smaller engine, you could be riding it around testing it in Panigale bodywork (which the finished item will no doubt have) and no one would be any the wiser. You don't have to have a grey thing with duct tape all over it. So lack of spyshots are hardly conclusive of anything. I bet it's announced for the Milan show.
November. A bunch of us go on the trade days when its quieter. Costs about £60 for the day including flights....
smaller baby bike jeez.... thatll only be 17cc off of the original super bike...........hardly a smaller version....make it a 600cc L4 thats a baby bike!...and they say that twins still work.......
no they won't...it wont exist1 For it to be any good it needs cc and its too close to the super bike in cc for viability. Make a 600 and compete with the rest of them, move with the times...
