899 r???

No pictures or anything but I was BSing with some of the guys at the dealer and the word on the street is that a 899 R is coming and should be a pretty awesome machine. Just thought I'd throw it out there and see if anyone else had heard anything.

An 899 with Ohlins and leds and better rubber, and a full termi would be sweet.


Except for that price tag of an 1199

Ya the rumor was pretty much all the magnesium and ohlins with supercorsa rubber, makes me wonder a price point though, if they do that it'll cost right around the base or S 1199, that's a tough sell to me, unless it is just an animal

Interesting. Based on what Jarel has experienced thus far with his 899 race bike, it seems promising. The latest trend with Ducati is giving the top models a power boost as evidenced by the 1199R (not claimed but in reality it's stronger) and Monster 1200S. If they boost the 899 output by another 10-15 hp and put on very good suspension and wheels and "value" price it at $5,000 more, then it would be a no brainer if performance and track riding is your thing.

Based on what SBK is doing, the next 1199 series will cost 30k and up to 40 plus for the R version. The 899R will be. A steal for a local track guy/canyon rider.

I mean the 1199R ties itself up in knots on roads and I still haven't met the owner of one that can stretch its limits, (I'm included in that group) on the track, so imagine the next gen 1199 series and I'm starting to think that Ducati may actually have a long term strategy that no one is seen.

I wait with baited breath for the 899R

I already have an 899R, sans the engine of a "r" and as of yet I don't see the point in Ducati making one. My 749R was an awesome bike, but what made it awesome was that the standard 749 was weak in the engine department, and the chassis was not well-suited to the track. The R model addressed all of that, the 749R engine was strong and with the adjustable triples and flat-rate rear link and full Ohlins it handed like a dream. Now carry that over to the 899 and what do you really need? The engine is already REALLY strong, and the chassis is setup very well for handling. So you put Ohlins on it, you put the lightweight engine covers and stator and slipper clutch from the 1199 on it, what else? I already did that to mine, and I'm still probably at or under the cost of what an 899R will have to cost from the factory. I guess I'm still not seeing the need for an "official" 899R model at $19,995 or whatever. And I certainly wouldn't claim that I'm the end-all-be-all-know-it-all as far as Ducati's future direction is concerned, but I'm not exactly out of the loop either, and I have heard NOTHING from anyone at Ducati about even a hint at a forthcoming 899R model at this point. I say build your own if you want one!

When the 899 first came out and people started saying that they wanted an S/R version, I said it wouldn't happen because every "junior" R version only existed as a homologation special for a racing series. Of course there is no domestic/world major racing series the 899 is legal in. Same thing with the 848 and no S ever existed until the end of the series when the 848 Evo Corse came out to keep sales going before the 899 debuted.

However, the bike market is a different place than when the 748/749 existed. I wouldn't put it past Ducati to take advantage of their loyal "core" market of sportbike enthusiast and introduce an up-market 899 for the incremental revenue. The 1199 SL has already gotten most of the PR it will generate so a new up-market 899 would make sense to spur sales mid-life.

All just speculation of course but as a product line strategy it is reasonable.

JeffD said:

When the 899 first came out and people started saying that they wanted an S/R version, I said it wouldn't happen because every "junior" R version only existed as a homologation special for a racing series. Of course there is no domestic/world major racing series the 899 is legal in. Same thing with the 848 and no S ever existed until the end of the series when the 848 Evo Corse came out to keep sales going before the 899 debuted.

However, the bike market is a different place than when the 748/749 existed. I wouldn't put it past Ducati to take advantage of their loyal "core" market of sportbike enthusiast and introduce an up-market 899 for the incremental revenue. The 1199 SL has already gotten most of the PR it will generate so a new up-market 899 would make sense to spur sales mid-life.

All just speculation of course but as a product line strategy it is reasonable.

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I agree, marketing is probably the only reason it would happen. On thing I will DISAGREE with strongly is the 1199 SL has gotten most of the PR it will generate! That things has only scratched the surface of the PR it is going to generate for Ducati, just wait until the magazine guys get ahold of one and start writing reviews of it. The general motorcycling public doesn't even know it exists yet. This is the lightest and most powerful sport bike ever produced by a HUGE margin, it's setting the new benchmark for performance so high that there will only be ONE fastest bike in the world, no debate required. Which I think was the point of it, re-establishing Ducati as THE performance brand in the motorcycling public's mind.

jarelj said:

I agree, marketing is probably the only reason it would happen. On thing I will DISAGREE with strongly is the 1199 SL has gotten most of the PR it will generate! That things has only scratched the surface of the PR it is going to generate for Ducati, just wait until the magazine guys get ahold of one and start writing reviews of it. The general motorcycling public doesn't even know it exists yet. This is the lightest and most powerful sport bike ever produced by a HUGE margin, it's setting the new benchmark for performance so high that there will only be ONE fastest bike in the world, no debate required. Which I think was the point of it, re-establishing Ducati as THE performance brand in the motorcycling public's mind.

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Good point, as usual. Even more motivation then for the company to capitalize on such branding with more products that tap into that ne plus ultra performance positioning, such as an 899R - at less than 1/3rd the price of an SL.

Pragmatic (cheap) folks like me will follow your route though. I'll wait for a used one to show up and then mod the suspension and wheels to my tastes and likely leave the motor stock for max reliability.

I agree with all that you guys have said, to me personally what I would love to see is a 899 R, with ohlins, all the magnesium the 1199's have for weight savings, the brembo M50's, bore it out to 999cc, give it the TFT display and have around 160hp and that could be a legit bike. Hell I would probably splurge for one.

Personally I would rather see a homologation special model under 848cc that could be used as a platform for club racing, Nationals and what the hell World Superstock! Let's demand a 799R! I will commit to 2 right now..........just don't tell my GF!

The only way I can see Ducati doing this is by offering a "s" or "sp" model of that bike I don't think Ducati will use the "r"" status for a bike that only need a set of ohlins,forged wheels, and different paint.

Akillya said:

Personally I would rather see a homologation special model under 848cc that could be used as a platform for club racing, Nationals and what the hell World Superstock! Let's demand a 799R! I will commit to 2 right now..........just don't tell my GF!

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I'll commit to 2 more, so now we have an order for FOUR bikes, now that HAVE to build it!

Akillya said:

Personally I would rather see a homologation special model under 848cc that could be used as a platform for club racing, Nationals and what the hell World Superstock! Let's demand a 799R! I will commit to 2 right now..........just don't tell my GF!

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Plus a billion! I was super bummed about the capacity the 899 ended up being as I wanted it specifically for racing.

I will get Desmo Veloce on sleeves and piston kits so we can try one out!

jarelj said:

I'll commit to 2 more, so now we have an order for FOUR bikes, now that HAVE to build it!

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Sort of a special edition forum group buy

It should carry the "SP" name IMO. The "R" just means flagship "Superbike" to me.

I get that the Ducati's are more fun when you get the upscale version, but this seems odd to me. The 899 engine really isn't that much happier on the street than the 1199, is it?

Buliwyf said:

It should carry the "SP" name IMO. The "R" just means flagship "Superbike" to me.

I get that the Ducati's are more fun when you get the upscale version, but this seems odd to me. The 899 engine really isn't that much happier on the street than the 1199, is it?

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Stock 1199 vs stock 899, yeah, the 899 is that much more friendly.

If you've had good fueling work done on the 1199 the gap is a lot smaller. The smaller bike is definitely more approachable though.