Anniversario vs Panigale R

I just rode both bikes back to back today. The R is insanely good... at everything. Quickshift, comfort, pulls like a freight train, electronics, handling...EVERYTHING. I'm confident 99.9% of us would be faster around any circuit or canyon road on the R over the Desmo.

However the desmo is an event. The sound alone is insane. There is a specialness about the ride that is difficult to put to words.

While the R is probably the faster bike, I still can't get over how good the Desmo is. It's really, really good, especially for a bike 8 years old. And pulls just as hard up in the revs. I couldn't imagine riding this for the first time 8 years ago when it came out and comparing it to the competition at that time. Bravo Ducati!

I'm in the market for one of these bikes. I've owned a 900SS/SP and a 999 in the past, along with many ZX-7s, CBRs, and GSX-Rs. So far I've got $5000.00 saved up, and I'm hoping to have about $15,000.00 put together by next spring for a down payment. If you had the choice, and you could only own one of these bikes, which one would you choose? Because I certainly can't buy both (My Gen 5 Viper GTS is taking my extra $$$ for a few more years). There is a Desmo for sale in Oakville, Ont. at the Lotus dealership (which also sells Ducatis) for $40,000.00 It has 10800 km on it. The ad states that it was "recently serviced" at a Ducati dealership in 2015 (hahahah) with a new battery and spark plugs installed. I gotta say, if their idea of "recently" is over a year ago, I'm already leery. In addition to that, the good old "spark plugs and battery" routine sounds pretty bad. I've looked over the maintenance requirements for the bike, and there is a ton of items that should have been covered over the years/km. Are there particular things to look for with this bike? I absolutely love the Desmo, I even have a toy of one in my office. I'm just struggling with the fact that I can buy a brand new 2016 Panigale R for about $36,000.00 MSRP, with a full warranty etc. On the other hand, the Desmo is the dream................... thoughts????

i own a Pani R and even though it's probably better in every measurable category over the Desmo, if you told me I could have an 8 yro Desmo for $4k more than a brand new Pani R with a warranty, I'd give mine up in a heart beat.

i've never touched one, let alone ridden on one, so i honestly can't compare, but to be in that group of owners, with that prestige that there have only been 2 motogp replica bikes ever released for public purchase and the current one from Honda is over $100k, you'd bet I'd rather have the desmo over the pani R

timwu12 said:

i own a Pani R and even though it's probably better in every measurable category over the Desmo, if you told me I could have an 8 yro Desmo for $4k more than a brand new Pani R with a warranty, I'd give mine up in a heart beat.

i've never touched one, let alone ridden on one, so i honestly can't compare, but to be in that group of owners, with that prestige that there have only been 2 motogp replica bikes ever released for public purchase and the current one from Honda is over $100k, you'd bet I'd rather have the desmo over the pani R

Click to expand...

I know right? Arrrrrggggggggggggggg Applying logic to the purchase of any Ducati is the most illogical thing you can do...................

I think I probably looked at most of the desmo's that have come up in the last 6 months. I actually spoke to the guys at the Lotus dealer about 2 months ago when their bike first came in. I had a lot of questions. Sounds like it was a trade in. My advise is do your research. Some common issues with these bikes include 1) return springs (they have to split the engine to change these 16 springs); 2) gear shift springs (not sure what the deal is with Ducati and springs!); 3) piston replacement in the early builds; 4) regulators go out; 5) carbon build up. THis last issues is due to most buyers putting around town. The motor was built for the track and HATES being run at low RPMs.

Each one of these is an expensive fix (other than #4). And most who have run these bikes will have to deal with them at some point. The general rule from my diligence was that the piston issue was limited to the early builds. No one has an exact number but call it below 400. Ducati has come out with several versions of the return springs. The latest is Gen 3. Supposedly bikes after around 900 have the latest generation springs. At least that's what the internet will tell you. HOWEVER, my bike is #1139 and had Gen 2 springs! The previous owner found metal pieces in the magnetic drain plug and so when I bought mine I had all the springs updated. They also changed out the shift springs and detent arms, and regulator.

The higher mileage bikes are tough to find since most owners hold on to them. Be patient and do your diligence. There are a few for sale now that I looked at. Check out Newport Beach Ducati and Fay Myers in Colorado. Also the lotus dealer you mentioned. The one in Laguna HIlls that was on ebay recently looks like a nice bike. It also has the GP7 exhaust kit. This is a great option. Cost $10K when new and is no longer available. Folks are paying a fortune for these, even used examples. The PO of my bike had a new kit in the box which I installed when I bought it.

The other "issue" to be aware of is the stock rear wheel (16'') makes finding proper rubber tough. There is only one option that works which is the old Bridgestone tire. It's crap and Bridgestone just stopped making it. Replacing the wheels is insane too. Ducati wants $18K for a set of the stock wheels!! Most go with aftermarket BST's or other carbon wheels to upgrade to a 17'' rear. I ended up going with a 17'' marchesini wheel that is the same style as the factory wheel, but in a 17. Looks the best in my opinion but takes Marchesini forever to make them.

I could go on and on about the D16rr (oh yeah and there are two paint schemes - Rosso which is all red with a white tail or Team version which is what I have. The GP7 tail is the same for both the Team and Rosso versions and has the white paint). Feel free to shoot me a PM if you have any questions I didn't answer. I feel like I've gotten decently well versed in these bikes recently and would be happy to pass along what I've learned.

Cheers!

Oh shoot, I forgot to answer your question...

If I could have just one I would take the Desmo and ride it HARD as often as I could.

It's not an easy choice though. The Desmo would be hard to live with day in and day out. It's got the coolness factor that the R can't quite match (although the R is pretty dang cool), but hates doing anything less than 8/10th's. Much more so than even the R. It's expensive to maintain too and most of the riding on public roads just doesn't suit it well.

That being said it is truly a treat to ride sparingly and on roads where you can get it up in the revs. The experience is sublime, like no other bike I've ridden before.

If it was my second bike it would be a no brainer, but even if I could have just one, I'd choose it over the R. Those rare moments of brilliance would be worth it. It really is that good.

KMY said:

Oh shoot, I forgot to answer your question...

If I could have just one I would take the Desmo and ride it HARD as often as I could.

It's not an easy choice though. The Desmo would be hard to live with day in and day out. It's got the coolness factor that the R can't quite match (although the R is pretty dang cool), but hates doing anything less than 8/10th's. Much more so than even the R. It's expensive to maintain too and most of the riding on public roads just doesn't suit it well.

That being said it is truly a treat to ride sparingly and on roads where you can get it up in the revs. The experience is sublime, like no other bike I've ridden before.

If it was my second bike it would be a no brainer, but even if I could have just one, I'd choose it over the R. Those rare moments of brilliance would be worth it. It really is that good.

Click to expand...

Thanx for the replies KMY!! Unfortunately, because I am going to have to finance the bike, I'm not going to be able to explore bikes down south. I'll have to stick with the ones up here in Canada. There is also a Rosso one on Kijiji in Alberta, and the guy is asking $45,000 obo. Thanx for the heads up on the springs etc. I don't remember what the build number is on the one in Alberta, but the one in Ontario is in the 600's. I live 5 blocks from work, so the "livability issue" doen't really apply to me. It's more the fact that I have dreamt of owning the Desmo, and just seeing it in my garage next to my GTS would be unreal. I hear ya on the wheel size issue. Crazy they put 16" wheels on the bike!! Yeah, that's going to take some rectifying. Did you have a pre-purchase inspection performed on yours before you bought it? Or did you just dive in and say, "What will be will be...?"

Reached out to the owner of the one posted on Kijiji as well. It's a rosso version if I remember correctly. He never got back to me. I also know of a couple owners that would entertain sales but aren't currently listing their bikes. Happy to pass those along but it sounds like you're looking for a local bike.

My Desmo had all of 261 miles on it when I bought it. The owner was local and a well known owner of bikes and cars. He's a great wrench too so showed me everything on the bike from the inside out. I got about $25k in parts too including body work, wheels, etc. I had the folks at Pro Italia in Southern California do a few ppi's on bikes I was considering. They are a very reputable Desmo service center here in CA. When I bought my bike I shipped it directly to them. They got it all sorted with fresh fluid and all the updates I mentioned above. The bike now has 334 miles. Hope to rectify that low mileage problem in the coming months! These things are meant to be Riden!!

KMY said:

Reached out to the owner of the one posted on Kijiji as well. It's a rosso version if I remember correctly. He never got back to me. I also know of a couple owners that would entertain sales but aren't currently listing their bikes. Happy to pass those along but it sounds like you're looking for a local bike.

My Desmo had all of 261 miles on it when I bought it. The owner was local and a well known owner of bikes and cars. He's a great wrench too so showed me everything on the bike from the inside out. I got about $25k in parts too including body work, wheels, etc. I had the folks at Pro Italia in Southern California do a few ppi's on bikes I was considering. They are a very reputable Desmo service center here in CA. When I bought my bike I shipped it directly to them. They got it all sorted with fresh fluid and all the updates I mentioned above. The bike now has 334 miles. Hope to rectify that low mileage problem in the coming months! These things are meant to be Riden!!

Click to expand...

Yep, you're right. The one in AB is a Rosso. It's for private sale, and I'd feel more comfortable dealing with the Lotus dealership anyway. I also like the red and white team version like yours. Yeah, I've heard of Pro Italia. In fact, I bought my yellow Foggy Dainese leather jacket from them back in the day when I had my 999. I still have the jacket. It has the white on top and Italian flag colours down the arm Kinda cool. My brother was going to USC at the time, so I flew in for a visit, picked up the jacket, and left. They were really cool there.

I texted my banker a little while ago and told her we needed to talk about a motorcycle. She laughed and said, "So, the Viper isn't fast enough for you anymore?" I said, Nope. It's a long weekend up here, so she is going to get back to me on Tuesday. As you indicated, I'm going to have to stay "local" as in Canada, and quite honestly, with the exchange rate, the bike at the Lotus dealership is being sold for the equivalent of $29K U.S. which is pretty crazy.

Do you recall if there was anything that put you off of that bike beyond perhaps the distance to Cali? I haven't seen one priced that low, ever. In fact, I typically still see them for $60K whenever they come up, so I'm kinda stoked to check it out, but I'm also curious as to why it isn't selling? Perhaps for the same reason I indicated: Panigale R. I guess I'll also see what Courtney has to say next week

lochnessmonster said:

I'm in the market for one of these bikes. I've owned a 900SS/SP and a 999 in the past, along with many ZX-7s, CBRs, and GSX-Rs. So far I've got $5000.00 saved up, and I'm hoping to have about $15,000.00 put together by next spring for a down payment. If you had the choice, and you could only own one of these bikes, which one would you choose? Because I certainly can't buy both (My Gen 5 Viper GTS is taking my extra $$$ for a few more years). There is a Desmo for sale in Oakville, Ont. at the Lotus dealership (which also sells Ducatis) for $40,000.00 It has 10800 km on it. The ad states that it was "recently serviced" at a Ducati dealership in 2015 (hahahah) with a new battery and spark plugs installed. I gotta say, if their idea of "recently" is over a year ago, I'm already leery. In addition to that, the good old "spark plugs and battery" routine sounds pretty bad. I've looked over the maintenance requirements for the bike, and there is a ton of items that should have been covered over the years/km. Are there particular things to look for with this bike? I absolutely love the Desmo, I even have a toy of one in my office. I'm just struggling with the fact that I can buy a brand new 2016 Panigale R for about $36,000.00 MSRP, with a full warranty etc. On the other hand, the Desmo is the dream................... thoughts????

Click to expand...

I live in Oakville
The Dealership you are referring to is run by ........ and crooks ....Peninsula Motorsports

I barely like GP bikes better ... They're all crooks... .... them all


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Prince Albert said:

I live in Oakville
The Dealership you are referring to is run by ........ and crooks ....Peninsula Motorsports

I barely like GP bikes better ... They're all crooks... .... them all


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

Yikes, have you had dealings with them? I agree with you, in the sense that I absolutely hate most "stealerships" I've dealt with. Can you expand?

The R would definitely be faster in every measurable way against a Desmo. A few magazines did comparison tests on them and the Desmo proved to be slower than even an R1 (and this was the previous generation R1 that was a turd).

Would I take one? Sure. If I could run across one for sale for $10k or something like that, I would probably get it. But I have never been one to buy bikes just because they are "cool". I buy them for their capabilities, competitiveness, eligible race classes, etc. I don't care about how "special" or "rare" a bike is. Bikes are meant to be ridden and abused, not put on display or kept in the living room.

Of course, that is just my opinion.

Chaotic said:

The R would definitely be faster in every measurable way against a Desmo. A few magazines did comparison tests on them and the Desmo proved to be slower than even an R1 (and this was the previous generation R1 that was a turd).

Would I take one? Sure. If I could run across one for sale for $10k or something like that, I would probably get it. But I have never been one to buy bikes just because they are "cool". I buy them for their capabilities, competitiveness, eligible race classes, etc. I don't care about how "special" or "rare" a bike is. Bikes are meant to be ridden and abused, not put on display or kept in the living room.

Of course, that is just my opinion.

Click to expand...

I hear ya. And I certainly don't buy bikes as display pieces. I buy them for the same reasons you do. But let's be honest here. Am I ever going to push this, or any other bike I own to the point where those tenths of seconds matter? No. I live 300 miles from the nearest track (Leduc, AB). Will this bike ever make it to the track? Honestly? Probably not. I'm a very advanced rider, but the ownership experience for me is not just shear speed. It's aesthetics, sound, exclusivity, and performance. To me, if I buy the R it will be replaced by a better faster model next year, just as they always are, and I will have lost at least 30% in devaluation. The Desmosedici? Not likely. Anyway, the whole issue might be moot until I investigate the bike further. Trying to convince my banker that spending this kind of money on a bike that's 8 years old and prone to major repairs might not go so well.......

Just get the R that way you can be a "one upper" at the next starbucks meet .
Or...you know guys say don't get the 959 cause you will always wonder about the 1299? By that rationale if you get the S you will always want the R

BROsiah said:

Just get the R that way you can be a "one upper" at the next starbucks meet .
Or...you know guys say don't get the 959 cause you will always wonder about the 1299? By that rationale if you get the S you will always want the R

Click to expand...

I bought the base 999 back in 2003 brand new. A yellow monoposto. I owned a CX650E, 600 Hurricaine, CBR900RR, CBR929, GSX-R 750 SRAD, GSX-R 750 Slingshot, ZX-7 ('89, '91) and a Ducati 900 SS/SP prior to that. I'm not new to this sport, and I'm no poser. I grew up in Lions Bay, B.C., and I have yet to have anyone ride the sea to sky hwy faster than I can. Ever. I started riding when I was 6 years old, on a Honda trail 50. Then CR80 etc........until I was 16. That's when the CX650E was purchased..........

I loved the 999, but honestly, I wished I had saved up more money for the R. We don't have a Starbucks where I live, and I ride alone. Always have. I am a 45 year old lawyer with a wife and two kids. I'm not some punk kid who thinks they need the latest and greatest to be one up on their buddies. I simply feel that I'm at the point in my life were I don't want the "base model" of anything. I've earned it. I bought a Gen 5 Viper GTS for all the extra amenities that the SRT model doesn't have. Not because I think it will be more impressive to anyone. It has to be impressive to me. I've always wanted to be able to afford the "top of the line" and I've finally arrived at a position in life where I can do that. I know the R won't be a problem in terms of financing. Courtney doesn't have a problem with loaning me money on something new. It's going to be interesting to see what her thoughts, and the thoughts of the underwriters, are on a Desmosedici. I'm dying to find out...............

lochnessmonster said:

Yikes, have you had dealings with them? I agree with you, in the sense that I absolutely hate most "stealerships" I've dealt with. Can you expand?

Click to expand...

Well, customer service is NIL
the prices are inflated and they are ignorant of Ducati specs on the bikes...
Truly a bunch of useless ........

Prince Albert said:

Well, customer service is NIL
the prices are inflated and they are ignorant of Ducati specs on the bikes...
Truly a bunch of useless ........

Click to expand...

It appears as though they don't have a service department. Is that correct? So it's just, we'll sell you the bike, but not deal with you after that? I've never seen this before.

The Anniversario will be an easier bike to live with outside the track. The R is a no-compromise, hard-edged circuit weapon. Awesome, and intensely focused. If you plan to do most of your riding on the street and in the canyons, you'll be happier with the "softer" Anniversario. Good luck

psyclone said:

The Anniversario will be an easier bike to live with outside the track. The R is a no-compromise, hard-edged circuit weapon. Awesome, and intensely focused. If you plan to do most of your riding on the street and in the canyons, you'll be happier with the "softer" Anniversario. Good luck

Click to expand...

he ended up buying both

That's kinda my fault. I derailed the thread into a discussion about the Desmosedici vs. the Panigale R. It's just that you don't get the opportunity to talk to someone who owns both very often.....................if ever. Not to mention an RC45/RC30.............unreal!!!! Talk about a dream collection. Anyway, I saw the pics of the R and Desmo together, and since I'm in the market for either of them, I jumped in. I should start a new thread.