Hello ladies and gents. Im steve and im from Derbyshire. I dont support Derby County so i'll nip that in the bud straight away! Ive had a humble road to where i am now in my biking life. Ive had loads of smaller 'learning bikes' and made the jump up to a 600 screamer about 2 years ago. I got a 2007 ZX6 from the place i did my full test and loved every second of it until I realised (very quickly) that i was made from soft tissue and I might come a cropper. So I did a mini conversion and stuck it on the track and absolutely loved it. Donington became my second home for a year or so causing many a grumble from the lady friend but i was in no mood for listening! My first trackday was my first high side and i ended up in QMC with a suspected fractured ankle but it was just heavily sprained. I remember my first words to the marshall who came to my aid were "hows my bike"? Anyway.....I got rid of the kwak and have been itching to get another bike ever since but due to the turndown I, as a humble plasterer, couldnt afford anything. Now things are picking up again I seem to have developed this yearning for a middle weight sports bike to look at every morning to put a smile on my face before work and there is nothing prettier in my eyes than that classic 748 look and shape. 2 years ago I wouldnt have touched one with a barge pole as I was only interested in twisting my right hand and going as fast as possible around Donington on a rocket bike but now im after that feeling I imagine you only get from owning a Ducati. The noise, the look and the feeling of being in a bit of a select group. Finding one worth buying for the money I can spend seems to be a bit tricky though! I have a budget of £4000. Id ideally like something post 1999 and ideally id like a 748r. I know absolutely nothing about Ducatis other than what ive learned in the past 3 weeks so any and all of your help, advice and guidance will be greatly appreciated. Thanks for reading. Steve.
Welcome to the forum. The world is full of fabulous motorcycles, don't be so nervous of them! Buy what you want. If you don't get on with it you can always sell it and buy something else.
Hello figaro. Im not nervous of any of them its just that I cant afford most of them and if they break I cant fix them! Im nervous of the dreaded money pit!
Ducatis, especially older ones, cost a fair bit to service unless you can do it yourself. It's only fair you should know that. But other than that there's not a single reason why you can't buy a Ducati and expect it to do exactly what it should be doing, and that's go fast, handle well and look great. They're a lot tougher than some people would have you believe. If you want one, go for it.
Get the latest bike you can afford, dukes got more reliable over the years. 749 are cheaper and better than 748.
youre not the first person to say that to me and its something ive really thought about. However....I LOVE the shape and general look of everything up to the 749/999 but I personally really dislike the look those models have. I could potentially get an 848 with a little bit of finance but im concerned they may have lost a little of the original Ducati-ness. I do really love the 848/1098 and 1198 and im sure theyre so much more reliable and in line with the Jap bikes but the initial outlay is something i really have to think about. Can anyone tell me the best models, reliability wise and electronically wise, of the 748 and cousins? I guess 2000 onwards are the best. Id like to have something worth owning if you know what i mean.
Hello mate, welcome in. Firstly, I had a 2007 zx6r, absolutely mental bike, really was!! I sold my 2002 748 for it. Tbh mate, my 748 was around £500-600 per year to service, and that's a big jump from the Kawasaki costs. I personally would look at an early 848. I have to say that there is nothing wrong with the later 748/996 but u need to budget for a quality service every year. On the 848 more of the parts are mileage based rather than time and they are easier to work on so reduces the costs slightly. PS... The 848 has lost none of the character of the originals, honestly it hasn't.
Welcome Steve, another Steve here from Derbyshire and a humble joiner. Nothing wrong with the 748 if you can do basic maintenance yourself, unfortunately one of the main items of concer ( rockers ) cannot easily be checked before purchase, annual oil and filters and two year belt service is easily done by a competent home mechanic, leaving the rocker checks to a good Ducati agent, I only trust my bike with Neil at Corner Speed Mansfield. There are many others to choose from.Steve
I know what youre saying re: 2007 zx6r. Really quick bike. I took it to Germany a couple of times cos i wanted to know what it was like to ride a bit quicker without worrying about the speed difference in traffic on our M-WAY's and the police etc and i was very surprised how quick it actually went and how stable it felt at high speeds. I had my speedo reading 169mph on a decent few miles of Autobahn and it didnt feel iffy in the slightest. Around Donington it was easy to get in front of litre bikes cos of the corner speed you could carry and it was still quicker than a lot of CBR 1000's down the start/finish straight. Regarding the 848's......I'm sure they havent lost any character but im also not sure they have been around enough to evoke the same feelings that their older cousins can bring out when you spot one. I have heard about the servicing costs and have also read about some fairly common problems regarding flaking chrome in the oil and dodgy wiring etc. I think I feel like I almost have to own a slightly older Duc and run those risks before I jump a generation and jump on the safer option. Does this make sense or am i talking drivel???
Nope, if your going to get a 748, the old ones generally 'seem' to be better for the rocker flake issue, but much worse for wiring. The 2002 'seems' to be worse for rocker flaking and lower mileage bikes can be worse because they are sat 'dry' of oil for long periods, however there are exceptions!! I didn't have rocker issues with mine, it had done 9k miles (this was in 2008) and I got it serviced every year and changed the oil each winter. The 2001 onwards bikes seem to be better built and of course the 3 phase generator wiring on the later bikes seems much better. 996's don't seem to have an issue with rockers. Maybe less revs and less aggressive cam profile (I couldn't say for sure) but worth looking at if u want a 'grunty' engine. I have to say though I went ZXR400-748-ZX6R and found it tricky to adjust to the twin so you will need to stick at it. More recently I have had a daytona 675 and now 848 and I love it, to me it's the last of the iconic shape Ducati's and it still stirs me just like the 916 did when I first saw the bike racing when I was 13. I rode a 748 recently, a lot of stuff rattles on them compared to the 848 so I guess that's an element of the 'character' but if your mechanically nervous then u will be covering the clutch A LOT.
It seems like a proverbial nightmare! 1 minute im sure i want to get a 748 and start at the bottom and go through some of the pain that Duc riders endure then my common sense takes over and says that i might have to spend the monetary difference of getting an 848 in the first service alone with any number of problems i might face. I am certainly as mechanically minded as a Silicone Valley housewife so everything would have to be done through a dealer/independent mechanic so the costs could be a very big slap on the back in to the Ducati family. Im guessing that mileage doesnt really count as much against newer breeds as much as the older generation? Eg..15,000 miles on a well looked after 748 with FSH isnt as 'good' as 15,000 miles on an 848 due to better parts/components?? Feck me its a difficult choice....
Tbh I would rather buy a 15k 748 that's been perfectly looked after than a 5k one that's got questionable history or a chavy owner. The 848 DEFINITELY has a better and more reliable engine, the wet clutch alone should be much lower maintenance and is much quieter. My feeling is that the prices of the 748's are now starting to go up, where as the non 'Evo' 848 prices are down a bit so the differential is artificially reduced. Before buying my 848 I looked at 748's but I needed £4500 for a tidy one and wasn't much choice, I'm seeing 848's for £5750 now and to me it's a no brainer!!!
im currently trawling ebay and bike trader as we speak searching 848's. There are some decent bikes on there for reasonable money. They are also gorgeous in red. They have to be one of the best looking bikes ever made. They make the Jap bikes look a little tacky IMHO. Its weird that just a year ago I wouldnt have considered a 2002 R6 and would have snapped up an 07 in minutes if id have had the dough but now that nasty, aggresive insect look just doesnt do it for me. I have seen a couple of really good 02 R6's on ebay and was sorely tempted just cos theyre all but bullet proof but its just not the scene im after. Im not looking for a bike I can just jump on and ride about on anymore. Im after a biking experience I think and Im constantly drawn to ducati. Ive looked at all the italian bikes and even MV dont really do it for me as i see them as rev it and go fast bikes where as i can actually imagine myself riding for the pure enjoyment of being on a ducati which will inevitably save me money and maybe something even more important than that!!
Yep, u should find a dealer and go and have a go on one. It had been a while since I had ridden one and I stepped off my Daytona and remember thinking 'oh my god this thing is a vibrating tractor' until I got it over. 4500rpm and it just comes alive. Ducati's are simply bikes that as soon as u get them into their performance window they are better than almost anything out there so for me the rewards are much greater. I have owned 2010 Daytona 675, 2009 CBR600, 2008 ZX6R and Ducati 748 so feel qualified to say that, all of which I have done trackdays on (apart from the 848 yet!)
i may just do that this weekend. 848 or 2007 1098 would be a real nice bike to have in my lock up for a sunny days outing. Any idea of the pillion experience on either of these bikes? my missus said she may come out for the occasional outing so i do have to almost bear that in mind......
