Saturday, 31 May 2014

New post!

It's been so long since I've had anything even vaguely interesting to say that I haven't been able to post anything. However, I really wanted to ride the new 1200 Monster and get a feel for what it really is - a replacement for the S4Rs?

Before the main event, I've got a couple of updates about some of the other bikes.

Hypermotard

I'll try and get some new pictures this weekend and update this post, but the bike continues to be largely perfect. The clutch is getting better - less grabby when it's cold. I started slipping it to wear it in and it's much less prone to stalling. Maybe I'm just getting better at controlling it, maybe the weather is warmer, maybe it's bedding in.

The front brakes are still excellent, but they're groaning a little. I'm going to get my buddy to find me some SBS race pads for it when he's back from the TT.

Not so important, but I'm very impressed with the fuel consumption. It averages around 55mpg, mixed filtering through traffic and some, er, quicker riding, officer.

'Good' 749R

Marco's bike continues to be perfect. Apart from the tank. I put the tank on the Nannelli Imola winning bike and had issues starting and consistent misfires around the track. The tank might have fuel pressure issues, so that went away at the end of March to be checked.

'Bad' 749R

The Imola bike went away in November last year, was briefly back with me for a day at Brands before being sent back with the misfire not resolved. It subsequently broke something on the dyno and is now in the queue to be looked at. I will be able to run that bike at some time... Persistence is a virtue apparently.

Monster S4Rs

...had mice in the air box. WTH. And cold starting issues. The bikes with this ECU have a cold start map. The ECU takes temperature readings from the motor and determines when it needs the cold start function. On mine, the loom had water ingress, which may have affected the reading. It's been dried and cleaned and is starting perfectly now.


The bike has now done over 17,000 miles with no dramas. Apart from the tank swelling - thanks to  Ethanol in fuel... it's only suffering from seven years of dirt and British 'summers'. It needs some real love over next winter. I have a plan!

996RS AMA

This bike was raced by Steve Rapp in 2001, but it was originally built by Corse for the 2000 season. Vance and Hines raced the bike and have confirmed that Troy Bayliss would have ridden it for the start of that season. If memory serves me right, Foggy had an off in that year and Bayliss went back to WSB to replace him. Very interesting news.

If the weather holds for the next Ducati track day, I might try to get it out for a few laps.




So , the main event...


1200 Monster vs S4Rs

When production of the Testastretta S4R and Rs ceased, Ducati announced that the water-cooled Monster was over for ever. In England at least, demand for air-cooled Monsters was always high, with a number of owners convinced that the water-cooled bike was not a real Monster.

For me, I always loved the Monster. The bike seemed to be purpose made for customisation and owners made each production bike absolutely unique. My love affair with the Monster really started with the S4Rs - I had to have one. Not just any S4Rs, but a white and red one. The bike takes a Monster frame and a 999S motor (with steel con-rods instead of ti) and produces something that puts out close to 140bhp at the wheel. The S4Rs polarised opinion among owners: some saying that they never understood the bike, others saying that if they could only have one Ducati, this would be it. I've had my S4Rs for seven years and 17,000 miles now and I couldn't imagine wanting to change it. Until the 1200 was announced.

There had been speculation and rumours that the 1200 motor used in the Multistrada and Diavel would find it's way into a Monster at some point, with some insiders saying that Ducati wanted to get back to the raw, aggressive nature of the S4Rs. When the bike was announced at the back end of last year, a little part of me was concerned that the new bike would be so compelling that I would want to make the change.


I've been meaning to get around to having a spin on one for a while, so when I needed some work doing on the S4Rs, I thought it would be good to ride the bikes back to back. Fortunately, ProTwins were happy to let me out on their demo bike, a 'base' 1200 with 64 miles on it. I did promise to keep it below 7,000 and I think I did.

The bike comes with the usual three riding modes: Urban, Touring and Sport. Each has it's own dash layout with a day and a night mode (black or white background). The suspension on this bike was exactly as it left the factory - I did ask, as Rob sets the suspension on most of my bikes and I was very impressed by it. More on that later.

First impressions of the bike is that it is relatively low. This is the first Ducati that allows the rider to change the seat height without buying a new seat. Coming off the Hypermotard, this is a blessing! You sit forward and very upright, with a short 'reach' to the wide bars. The position isn't as extreme as  the Hypermotard, but it's radically different to the S4Rs, which stretches the rider over it's length, encouraging a lower, more streamlined position on the bike.

My legs felt maybe a little compressed - not so stretched out as on the older bike. The 1200 uses fixed  position pegs, like the Muti and Hyper, whereas the S4Rs can be fitted with rear sets, like the race bikes.

So, click into gear, bring some throttle in and off we go. Excellent - a proper (wet, but) hydraulic clutch. No surprise, it's the Mutli engine! As you would expect, it operated faultlessly. Perfect.

Ducati - a cable operated wet clutch. A good idea? Really?


The throttle is 'ride by wire'', like everything else that Ducati produces now. It seemed heavier than the Hyper and less likely to be affected by bumps in the road. Another Hyper owner I know agreed  that every ripple seems to drive the bike forward. Whether this is due to the more aggressive suspension on the Hyper or whether the throttle is lighter on that bike is something for the engineers to discuss. No problems with this bike tho.

The 1200 motor in the Monster has been mapped for torque. Producing 'only' 130bhp, the motor is the same as the 1200 Multi, producing 150. But the power is available everywhere. Since the bike had so few miles on it, I didn't want to try opening the throttle in any gear at any revs to see how it performed - that's not fair on the bike and the people who will own this bike during it's lifetime, but it did feel very comfortable at any speed in almost any gear. As you would expect, it felt a little 'heavy' below 3,000, but not unrideable, by any means.

So, back to the test ride. The suspension was incredible for a base model. I was working my brain to find a way to describe it and I could only come up with 'flying carpet'. It's soooo smooth Well damped and comfortable. A revelation. This is due in some part to the mass centralisation first rolled out by Honda and since adopted by other manufacturers, Ducati included. Even the battery has been moved from the top of the bike to just behind the motor. It's that black box under the shock.


This also increases stability, making the bike more stable at low speeds. But it's not slow to turn: it likes a little push on the opposite bar, but when you do, it drops right into the turn with no fuss. And the stability helps it stay there too. It's not upset by poor road surfaces.

At low speeds, the bike is as easy to ride as a big scooter. At high speeds, it's a Ducati - fast, responsive. And the noise - did I mention the noise? No? Ok, it's incredible! Ducati have paid some attention to the sound it's exhausts make. I understand that they now tune the sound of exhausts, like the car manufacturers do. At tick over, it's really quiet, not at all what you want from a sexy Italian beast. Your neighbours might appreciate their children not being woken when you return from an evening ride in the country, but it's too quiet. Not at all like the barking, booming, bonkers termis on the S4Rs. But out on the road, the bike picks up and transforms it into something that sounds like a Ferrari at high speed - it's perfect! It rasps and wails, barks and even pops a little on overrun.

Brakes - really excellent. This model - the 1200 - uses the same brakes that are fitted to the Hypermotard and I think the Multi. They're ok as they are, but the way the bike make use of them is really impressive. Ducati changed the ABS systems on their bikes in 2013. Whereas the previous generation reduced brake pressure at the calliper to accommodate slippery conditions, these newer systems are less invasive. When I borrowed a 1200 Multi for a couple of months last year, my only real concern was the way that the ABS coped with, say steel manhole covers. You'd be braking into a junction maybe, bracing yourself against the deceleration forces, when all of a sudden, the bike would release the brakes and your body would fly backwards, only for the brakes to be reapplied and you'd fly forwards again. Not optimum.

Added to the new ABS system, the mass centralisation aids braking performance by keeping the rear of the bike down. Rob at PT was telling me how they tested the 1200 against the air-cooled 1100 Monster. Experienced riders could brake almost as quickly on the older bike, but the rear wheel would be dancing in the air - great fun, and yes, officer, I was in complete control of my vehicle as I came to a halt, honest...

The 1200 brakes more 'flat', with the rear wheel on, or very near the ground. Because of this, the 1200S, which has Panigale callipers and 330mm rotors, is now the fastest stopping production bike. I tried the brakes on my test, braking for a pedestrian crossing. From a high speed, the bike slowed very quickly and with little fuss. I didn't need to put much effort into the lever to scrub off significant speed and the bike didn't feel upset in any way. Very impressive.

We didn't do acceleration yet - yeah, very good! It's got a stonking great motor in it that's tuned for torque - of course it accelerates!

I couldn't do high speed, due to the law. You know, speed limits. And what seemed like most of Sussex constabulary being on the same road at the same time as me. But wind blast was less pronounced compared to the S4Rs.

Which brings me to the biggest difference between the bikes. I was on the 1200 for about 80 miles. I was riding with the traffic, or around it, cruising and scratching. I did country, town, single and dual carriageway. I got back to PT as relaxed as if I'd just been to the shops to get ice cream. 80 miles on the S4Rs is a different experience. Apart from having to re-fuel, you'd be exhausted, eyes out on stalks, senses raw and eardrums bleeding from the noise. The older bike cannot be ridden slowly without slipping the clutch - the motor doesn't work below 3,000 and the gears seem higher than the newer bike. You develop a six-pack on the older bike from the aggressive acceleration and braking. The newer bike is like a new 2014 911 compared to a 1990's 993. Both largely the same, one undeniably superior in many respects.

But which one?





I've got some vids of the two bikes. First attempt has been a disaster- give me a couple of days and I'll get a few frames together!











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