So, I booked myself a test ride on the 1199 with sycamore uppingham. Turns out it was the S version with termi's and electronically adjustable suspension. Result! Sitting on the bike, it felt quite firm. The reach to the bars was comfortable, more so than my 848. I don't think it's because the seat to bar distance is any less, but because the tank is less angled so is easier to stretch over it. Starting it up gave me a massive grin.... Noise I liike! The modes seemed relatively intuitive to use and change, not "Apple iPhone/pad" intuitive, but easy to work.. I left in SPORT mode first off. Reach to floor was ok on tip toes (I'm 5ft2") and side stand was much easier to kick up than on the 848. Rode off with the obligatory blipping of the throttle... Cars moved out of the way ;-) The power is absolutely blinding, not S thou arm wrenching type power, more usable and not as intimidating. Snap on the throttle mid corner inspired confidence, after an initial flurry of amber lights on the dash, it just digs in and goes. Switch to RACE mode on the move is easy. Feels noticeably more RAW. Opening it up and the noise and feeling is so intoxicating that it made those hairs on the back of my neck stand on end and an "I GOT TO GET ME ONE OF THESE" feeling. Handling is ducatiesque. Firm, compliant, planted and stable. Brakes had great feel and progressive. Brembo mc and calipers must help. A truly fantastic bike which I'm contemplating buying, but can't quite justify a £20k track bike as that's really the only places I ride these days...bags of character, stunning looks and that noise from the termi's! Just not sure they would pass noise testing on most tracks! Bad bits- a really and I mean really hot bum from the exhaust even with heat shield. Was verging on painful! Fuel consumption was not great. I had to refill the bike after the ride. Did about 20 miles and it cost me £4. So I think that's about 30mpg. Comparing customer service to BMW (I test rode the S thou recently too) and its not a patch on BMW..not essential stuff as such, but a cuppa tea on arrival and the attitude of the salesman far more welcoming than the Duke dealer. I was cross questioned a bit at Duke dealer.... As if he was thinking "you SURE you want to ride the Pan luv? Shouldn't you be requesting a ride on this lovely Monster.....?" then asked questions like....What do you currently ride, is it a sports bike? You do realise this is a pretty powerful bike? Quite lumpy?" Plus, I've never been on a test ride, car or bike, where they make you fill it back up after??? Anyway, upshot is.....I LOVE the bike and want one.... Can I afford it? If I sell a kidney then yes.... Is it sensible to buy it as my track going bike? Probably not. Especially as it truly looks like it wouldnt survive a low speed drop let alone a crash... The shock and all the gizmos on the side don't look very crash proof at all! HTH
Very good. My lasting impressions were of comfort compared to the 848 and heat, as in hot right thigh, on what was a cool day; I can't imagine what it would be like in an Italian city in August. And one other thing, it didn't intimidate in the slightest, which pleasantly surprised me.
Great write up but not all Ducati dealers are the same, shop around, my dealer is awesome and I really can't fault them on anything.
They asked me to fill up a Multi a few weeks ago when I took it out for a test ride.Oops I accidentally on purpose forgot:tongue:
Having been Crew Chief to one of the Moto Rapido Panigales I can confirm they do crash VERY well.....the shock has never been touched, and the cast alloy subframe, which I thought would snap every time it was dropped has so far withstood 9 crashes at BSB level.....but make sure you have crash bungs, the bodywork is expensive, though track replacements are already available...Steve Heneghan does them.....
Sycamore are my local dealer. Always been sound with me I took the Multistrada out 4 times 3 of which were after I'd ordered one! Maybe depends on who you see. As an aside why the issue about refilling the tank. I always thought it was a courtesy to the next rider. Anyway £4 ain't gonna break the bank. Nice write up and may spur me on to test the Pan myself! (just for curiosity's sake ya know!)
Be interesting to know how many women have one, you could be the first! Nice read though. Shame about the dealer being bit of a twat, should of wheelied off and stoppied coming back in, chucked him the keys and said `mher, not bad. Dont call me, I`ll call you` that would shut him up. Cant really say anything bad about Seastar, got plenty of brew but did have to fill it up like all bikes Iv tested. Even the S1000
It's not the money or the courtesy to the next rider bit, but I see it all as part of the cost of selling the bike... Like the wages of the salesmen or advertising or washing it...they'll be asking me to wash it after the test ride next?!......Test driven lots of cars and other makes of bikes including the S thou and just seemed strange that only Ducati require you to fill it back up.
It smacks of the attitude "you're just here to have some fun at our expense" rather than the attitude "we'd like to sell you this motorcycle and x amount of testers will buy it". I think it's woeful. It's the cost of doing business. It's not like you're hiring it or something. Suppose this Mac shop I seem to work in decided to charge for answering any customer questions? We'd have the till open all day, until such time as we lost our entire clientele. Helping people with their software ignorance is part of our job, whether we like it or not.
