Daily Commuter with panigale

With all that good reviews about the panigale on track, i wonder how it fairs when it comes to daily use in terms of heat,fuel mileage before refills etc.

Any comments from the 1199 forum friends? =P

I think it would be fine but getting stuck in traffic when it's 35c is going to be bloody hot in any bike. I've previously used to ride to work on a sportsbike (r1) it was fine for a while but after a few weeks it wasn't so much the fact that it was uncomfortable, though it was a little, but mainly because you don't enjoy the riding. It's different to going for a spin on the weekend or after work.

nick1199 said:

I think it would be fine but getting stuck in traffic when it's 35c is going to be bloody hot in any bike. I've previously used to ride to work on a sportsbike (r1) it was fine for a while but after a few weeks it wasn't so much the fact that it was uncomfortable, though it was a little, but mainly because you don't enjoy the riding. It's different to going for a spin on the weekend or after work.

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So far among the superbike class, the 06 above fireblades did very well.
Its by far the "coolest" physically, and offers good mileage.

R1s are ultra hot lol.. enough to cook my lower half.

If I was buying a daily commuter i'd buy an in line 4 or v4 perfect around town if you are commuting in town.

I ride my Duacti straight to the city boundary and put up with its less than refined behaviour in town , twist the throttle and nothing but bliss... around town its a dog. ( a pedigree dog and thank goodness for the admiring glances otherwise it wouldnt be worth it) The new panigale may be different but they seem to be saying its more like a 4 at high revs, which proabably wont be any good for commuting. If I was buying a bike to commute it wouldnt be a Ducati.

Fuelling wise something has to drive those big pistons up and down, and thank goodness it has a 17l tank. Talking to an 1198 owner yesterday and he was lamenting the fuel useage same deal the power has to come from somewhere.( hes nearly always got the front up but loves it). If you want fuel economy a scooter is best.. if you want savage power 1198 if you want refined power Panegale or so it seems reading the reviews.

Heat wise hard to say, but underseat exhaust can get hot. where I come from you are hardly ever waiting in traffic ( 300,000 city) and when it does I often wondered how guys got on overseas where temps run in 30c upwards in summer. Panigale still an unknow but if its the same it should be just OK if it runs hotter it'll be a pain.

I personally wouldn't buy this bike as a daily commuter.
Depending on my ride to work I'd try for something upright, light weight, and smooth.
Don't need a ton of power, just enough to manage traffic with authority but luggage space would be helpful.

I would use my mts1200 as a commuter but it is much heavier than would be comfortable in traffic so it may not be ideal if you work in a city and have to fight heavy traffic.

The 1199 is a toy to me. perfect for canyon blasts and trackdays - not much else.

Still deciding btw the panigale or a 2012 s1000.

Just hope that the panigale can at least be on par with the other bikes in the same catagory lol.. given all the good reviews with improved ergo over the previous models, was hoping it has more practicability than other ducs.

Been riding my cbr1 daily as a commuter though, my country is pretty damn small.. less than 20km i would have reached my office.

flynbulldog said:

I personally wouldn't buy this bike as a daily commuter.
Depending on my ride to work I'd try for something upright, light weight, and smooth.
Don't need a ton of power, just enough to manage traffic with authority but luggage space would be helpful.

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Yup, makes a lot of sense.

Buy the Panigale and get the dealer to throw in a cheep hyper 796

akalapovic said:

Still deciding btw the panigale or a 2012 s1000.... my country is pretty damn small.. less than 20km i would have reached my office.

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I would say "go for the Panigale" over the S1000RR, but I'm a Ducatisti and therefore biased.

With that being said, during the 5 minutes I sat on a Panigale at a show, the ergos felt really improved (neutral) to where I could envision commuting on one. However, if your commute includes mostly city routes and traffic, like downtown Singapore, I'd say take Xbox's ideal of a Hyper and a Panigale

DRSapp said:

I would say "go for the Panigale" over the S1000RR, but I'm a Ducatisti and therefore biased.

With that being said, during the 5 minutes I sat on a Panigale at a show, the ergos felt really improved (neutral) to where I could envision commuting on one. However, if your commute includes mostly city routes and traffic, like downtown Singapore, I'd say take Xbox's ideal of a Hyper and a Panigale

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Thanks for ur advice,
I understand the panigale has been greatly revised in terms of ergo.. just curious about other stuff. Pretty sure the s1000 will be able to meet my requirements like my 08cbr had.

Its not quite possible for me to own 2 bikes of that caliber actually..
it actually cost SGD$47000 to own to panigale base model (which is abt USD$36000) in my country =(

akalapovic said:

.. it actually cost SGD$47000 to own to panigale base model (which is abt USD$36000) in my country =(

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Yes, I'm well aware of the Asian import duties.. sorry..

In all fairness, I'm sure you would be happy with any of the top Liter bikes these days. However, none will be a perfect intracity commuter so its not down to getting what we or the industry touts as the best bike but finding the best bike for you. After all, we're all different and want different things from a bike. Go sit on them all and, if they allow this in SG, take the demo for a test ride.

DRSapp said:

Yes, I'm well aware of the Asian import duties.. sorry..

In all fairness, I'm sure you would be happy with any of the top Liter bikes these days. However, none will be a perfect intracity commuter so its not down to getting what we or the industry touts as the best bike but finding the best bike for you. After all, we're all different and want different things from a bike. Go sit on them all and, if they allow this in SG, take the demo for a test ride.

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Yepp. Sadly they wun allow test rides due to insurance coverage issues. Our government is very anal about that lol.

08 Fireblade has set a bench mark in terms of practicability (Extremely well vetilated, minimum heat from engine surprisingly good fuel mileage,and decent underseat space lol)
if only the panigale is close, i would pre-order 1 soon!

Anyway side note, it cost much more to own a car. (A honda civic 2.0l would cost sgd$130,000 or USD$100,000 for 10 years, after which u need to either pay another premium abt sgd$70,000 to retain it or get it scrapped)
(excluding all the additional cost u need to cough up annual, which is abt $6000++)
Thankfully for bikes, the premium for renewing the vehicle is dirt cheap.

akalapovic said:

Anyway side note, it cost much more to own a car. (A honda civic 2.0l would cost sgd$130,000 or USD$100,000 for 10 years, after which u need to either pay another premium abt sgd$70,000 to retain it or get it scrapped)
(excluding all the additional cost u need to cough up annual, which is abt $6000++)
Thankfully for bikes, the premium for renewing the vehicle is dirt cheap.

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Just move bro

1199 will be my daily commuter. its a short riding season in Boston, and i would not waste any time leaving the bike parked in the driveway. time will tell how this bike fare against daily abuse. i ride around 1000 mls/month last season, and looking to do the same or more on the Panigale.

duckyduc said:

1199 will be my daily commuter. its a short riding season in Boston, and i would not waste any time leaving the bike parked in the driveway. time will tell how this bike fare against daily abuse. i ride around 1000 mls/month last season, and looking to do the same or more on the Panigale.

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Thats about the same distance i travel monthly on all my bikes so far lol.. hope the panigale works out!

If anything the 1199 should be a better commuter than the 1198 because it doesn't have underseat exhausts, the low end power will be more refined, and the mirrors look to be mostly usable at least. Having said that, no Ducati is really suited for use in traffic, and they are probably the worst all around bikes for riding in congested, stop and go situations.

I have a multistrada I commute to work with and as someone earlier mentioned in the thread, after a while its not comfort its just not enjoyable. I have a 45 minute route each way, I thought it would be great to take the bike and save on fuel enjoy the right, blah , blah.

After a month I hated the ride, hated the other commuters and just had no fun on the bike.

There's nothing better to wake you up in the morning than a wheelie or two on the way to work.

I've been riding to work whenever possible.
Great joy in Germany, only half the time for 42 km, compared to the car (and I knew every little corner for overtaking).

Here in the US it is quite boring, 2 miles backroads and 12 miles interstate, but anyway - hitting the throttle and letting the v-twin scream makes every ride worth it. Even in full gear at 100 F in summertime !!!

Traffic made me stress and crazy as well but I prefer to commute rather to ride in a private vehicle because of the severe gas price rise. Public transportation usage has been pretty low for the majority of the past 50 years. However, a source from here Public transportation usage still increasing claims that usage of public transport has increased in the past couple of years due to high fuel prices and tepid economic conditions. 2011 was the second highest year of use since 1957 as more individuals took to buses and rails. As a public commuter, I can never deny the fact that public transportation like bus or trains is safe from terrorist attacks. Self awareness while riding in a public transportation is what I practiced for my own safeness.

I commute everyday on a Diavel. Pure pleasure. I am exchanging for a Panigale, which will be more fun to use everyday I think.
Had a run with a colleague after work. He had a BMW S1KK and I was surprised at how much it was good to run between cars. Like me, he's doing everyday commuting, so I am confident about my Panigale.

But in France, we are allowed to split lane. Well, allowed is big word, let's say it's legally a grey area, so commuting is nicer than when you have to be inline with all those awful cars.