Hmmmmm, Mixed review and feelings about the Panigale in MCN against the others

Spilly1199 said:

Thanks Phil for the translation & perspective RE Motorad positioning.

Even they say the Pani is a big step up on the 1198 - that's really all I need to know! Did they test a non-ABS base unit?

Steve B - that's very interesting RE the pro racer for motousa getting his quickest of all lap times on the 675R. I think that's the nail in the coffin in the relevancy of lap times to evaluate the 1199.

One thing I noticed when the 1198S was in the litre bike shoot outs in AMCN mag here in Oz was that it was the bike that all the testers who had a variety of capability & experience were either fastest or 2nd fastest on. This is presumably due to the torque, TC & mid-range. I wonder if the 1199 will be the same in that sense - I get the feeling it will be faster but a little trickier to master.

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jjmontesanto said:

And ironically, in other racing news, the Panigale won at Monza in Superstock with the highest trap speed of any bike. Meanwhile, the Aprilia finished in a dismal 10th place . . . a full 51 seconds plus behind the race winner, oh dear.

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jjmontesanto said:

So, just checking out Motorcycle.com's pictures on FB of the start of their European liter bike testing, and they have the Pani set to F:

Someone call them quick and tell 'em they're all f'ed up!

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akalapovic said:

I do hope they change the linkage, just to make sure that P does really solve all the teething issues that we are always concerned abt!

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jjmontesanto said:

+1, I'm lame enough to have left a comment on the picture asking that they at least try the P setting and see how it does. I doubt they read those those comments though.

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ttkarp said:

Ducati 1199 Panigale Horsepower Torque - Sport Bike Blog - Motorcycle USA

I'm starting to wonder if US models may be restricted in some way. Any insights?

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d1098man said:

if restriction is the case.....full termis or any exhaust should fix the problem

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Spilly1199 said:

Ok boys (& girls), picked up my 1199S ABS tonight after the launch party here on Melnourne. Just rode it home.

Two words: .... ME!!

Beleive me when I say I'm a real fussy bastard - if something's not quite right I can't dismiss it, but this thing is to me perfect - except that perfect makes it sound like it lacks soul - which it has in spades!

Ok, it's taking some discipline to make the time to post thoughts but here goes:
- Engine - feels very similar to the 1198 to 6000rpm - doesn't seem to be missing anything to me but the engine spins up quicker & with less (read no) vibration
- Quickshifter - awesome - even at low speeds, felt like I was in a video game
- Handling - shock set to P in Sports mode it felt a lot more stable to me over bumps than the 1198 which would kick me outa the seat at times over bumps. At this stage better & lighter
- Brakes - super powerful but with MUCH more feel than the '98 which had great brakes but they felt kinda wooden in comparison
- Trans - way slicker shift, just as direct but doesn't hurt your toe like the '98 which demanded boots. Clutch a lot lighter & more progressive
- Sound - like a '98 with full system but I reckon even better - less clutch rattle & more mechanical engine noise at idle. When I got into my garage tonight it was idling with my helmet on & my eardrums seriously felt like they were gonns burst - really hurt! My 98 was fine on the ears with helmet off. No need for Termi's sound wise in my opinion
- Ergos - SO much better. Once feet / weight are on the pegs the shock doesn't press on left thigh. Easier to rest feet on ground when stopped. Biggest thing is almost no weight on bars. Once moving all the weight is on pegs/thighs/tank - if you didn't need to twist the throttle you could seriously ride no hands - so much so that I too my left hand off while quickshifting & it made no difference. No stretch at all to the bars so no pressure on lower back

The biggest thing though was how much better it was in traffic around town. Wher the '98 was super lumpy & generally unhappy under 80kph (even with smaller front sprocket), the Pani is perfectly happy cruising around at low speeds like <20kph in 2nd gear! I left it in 2nd with clutch out all the way to 5kph up to a red light before pulling clutch in. On the 98 I was always feathering the clutch in 1st gear & had massive vibrations - the Pani seriously doesn't vibrate! I remember the 98 fairing / mirrors vibrating like crazy, but not the Pani. And trying to ride in 5th or 6th under 100kph on a 98 the bike felt like it was going to either stall or shake itself to pieces - the Pani is fine in 6th at 70kph!

I've had a few instances of motorcycling nirvana, tonight was one of them and it was only a 10km ride home. And this is not placebo talking - if that was gona happen it woulda been on the 98 which was my first bike in 5 yrs & my first ever Duke. But much as I grew to love it, it was never quite right - beautiful but flawed. The Pami is like taking all the good bits of the 98, making them better & adding a dash of more - and I haven't even revved it past 6000 yet!!

For anyone waiting, hang in there, it's worth the wait. I don't give a hoot what the mags say - anyone who says anything negative about this bike is either an idiot or has an agenda. For anyone considering buying one, I realise it's a lot of coin so I don't say this lightly, but if you buy one & don't like it I'll eat my hat. A 10km test ride will cure all doubts or your not human.

I'm a happy Vegemite - Ducati have really nailed it with this one.

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Spilly1199 said:

Ok boys (& girls), picked up my 1199S ABS tonight after the launch party here on Melnourne. Just rode it home.

Two words: .... ME!!

Beleive me when I say I'm a real fussy bastard - if something's not quite right I can't dismiss it, but this thing is to me perfect - except that perfect makes it sound like it lacks soul - which it has in spades!

Ok, it's taking some discipline to make the time to post thoughts but here goes:
- Engine - feels very similar to the 1198 to 6000rpm - doesn't seem to be missing anything to me but the engine spins up quicker & with less (read no) vibration
- Quickshifter - awesome - even at low speeds, felt like I was in a video game
- Handling - shock set to P in Sports mode it felt a lot more stable to me over bumps than the 1198 which would kick me outa the seat at times over bumps. At this stage better & lighter
- Brakes - super powerful but with MUCH more feel than the '98 which had great brakes but they felt kinda wooden in comparison
- Trans - way slicker shift, just as direct but doesn't hurt your toe like the '98 which demanded boots. Clutch a lot lighter & more progressive
- Sound - like a '98 with full system but I reckon even better - less clutch rattle & more mechanical engine noise at idle. When I got into my garage tonight it was idling with my helmet on & my eardrums seriously felt like they were gonns burst - really hurt! My 98 was fine on the ears with helmet off. No need for Termi's sound wise in my opinion
- Ergos - SO much better. Once feet / weight are on the pegs the shock doesn't press on left thigh. Easier to rest feet on ground when stopped. Biggest thing is almost no weight on bars. Once moving all the weight is on pegs/thighs/tank - if you didn't need to twist the throttle you could seriously ride no hands - so much so that I too my left hand off while quickshifting & it made no difference. No stretch at all to the bars so no pressure on lower back

The biggest thing though was how much better it was in traffic around town. Wher the '98 was super lumpy & generally unhappy under 80kph (even with smaller front sprocket), the Pani is perfectly happy cruising around at low speeds like <20kph in 2nd gear! I left it in 2nd with clutch out all the way to 5kph up to a red light before pulling clutch in. On the 98 I was always feathering the clutch in 1st gear & had massive vibrations - the Pani seriously doesn't vibrate! I remember the 98 fairing / mirrors vibrating like crazy, but not the Pani. And trying to ride in 5th or 6th under 100kph on a 98 the bike felt like it was going to either stall or shake itself to pieces - the Pani is fine in 6th at 70kph!

I've had a few instances of motorcycling nirvana, tonight was one of them and it was only a 10km ride home. And this is not placebo talking - if that was gona happen it woulda been on the 98 which was my first bike in 5 yrs & my first ever Duke. But much as I grew to love it, it was never quite right - beautiful but flawed. The Pami is like taking all the good bits of the 98, making them better & adding a dash of more - and I haven't even revved it past 6000 yet!!

For anyone waiting, hang in there, it's worth the wait. I don't give a hoot what the mags say - anyone who says anything negative about this bike is either an idiot or has an agenda. For anyone considering buying one, I realise it's a lot of coin so I don't say this lightly, but if you buy one & don't like it I'll eat my hat. A 10km test ride will cure all doubts or your not human.

I'm a happy Vegemite - Ducati have really nailed it with this one.

Click to expand...

Spilly1199 said:

Ok boys (& girls), picked up my 1199S ABS tonight after the launch party here on Melnourne. Just rode it home.

Two words: .... ME!!

Beleive me when I say I'm a real fussy bastard - if something's not quite right I can't dismiss it, but this thing is to me perfect - except that perfect makes it sound like it lacks soul - which it has in spades!

Ok, it's taking some discipline to make the time to post thoughts but here goes:
- Engine - feels very similar to the 1198 to 6000rpm - doesn't seem to be missing anything to me but the engine spins up quicker & with less (read no) vibration
- Quickshifter - awesome - even at low speeds, felt like I was in a video game
- Handling - shock set to P in Sports mode it felt a lot more stable to me over bumps than the 1198 which would kick me outa the seat at times over bumps. At this stage better & lighter
- Brakes - super powerful but with MUCH more feel than the '98 which had great brakes but they felt kinda wooden in comparison
- Trans - way slicker shift, just as direct but doesn't hurt your toe like the '98 which demanded boots. Clutch a lot lighter & more progressive
- Sound - like a '98 with full system but I reckon even better - less clutch rattle & more mechanical engine noise at idle. When I got into my garage tonight it was idling with my helmet on & my eardrums seriously felt like they were gonns burst - really hurt! My 98 was fine on the ears with helmet off. No need for Termi's sound wise in my opinion
- Ergos - SO much better. Once feet / weight are on the pegs the shock doesn't press on left thigh. Easier to rest feet on ground when stopped. Biggest thing is almost no weight on bars. Once moving all the weight is on pegs/thighs/tank - if you didn't need to twist the throttle you could seriously ride no hands - so much so that I too my left hand off while quickshifting & it made no difference. No stretch at all to the bars so no pressure on lower back

The biggest thing though was how much better it was in traffic around town. Wher the '98 was super lumpy & generally unhappy under 80kph (even with smaller front sprocket), the Pani is perfectly happy cruising around at low speeds like <20kph in 2nd gear! I left it in 2nd with clutch out all the way to 5kph up to a red light before pulling clutch in. On the 98 I was always feathering the clutch in 1st gear & had massive vibrations - the Pani seriously doesn't vibrate! I remember the 98 fairing / mirrors vibrating like crazy, but not the Pani. And trying to ride in 5th or 6th under 100kph on a 98 the bike felt like it was going to either stall or shake itself to pieces - the Pani is fine in 6th at 70kph!

I've had a few instances of motorcycling nirvana, tonight was one of them and it was only a 10km ride home. And this is not placebo talking - if that was gona happen it woulda been on the 98 which was my first bike in 5 yrs & my first ever Duke. But much as I grew to love it, it was never quite right - beautiful but flawed. The Pami is like taking all the good bits of the 98, making them better & adding a dash of more - and I haven't even revved it past 6000 yet!!

For anyone waiting, hang in there, it's worth the wait. I don't give a hoot what the mags say - anyone who says anything negative about this bike is either an idiot or has an agenda. For anyone considering buying one, I realise it's a lot of coin so I don't say this lightly, but if you buy one & don't like it I'll eat my hat. A 10km test ride will cure all doubts or your not human.

I'm a happy Vegemite - Ducati have really nailed it with this one.

Click to expand...

Spilly1199 said:

I have to say, this experience has made me question reviews in mags in a big way. I already had reservations when I read the shoot outs for 2yrs (09 & 10) before buying the 1198S. Thing is in all those tests, beside saying it had a lot of torque they made the '98 sound very similar to the I4 litre bikes. Maybe in terms if technical performance like lap times etc it is but if you ride a Duc 1098, 1198 or 99 after riding a 4cyl litre bike it's two TOTALLY different riding experiences - literally night & day. Yet none of the tests told me this so I don't think they do a good job of informing prospective buyers.

Which makes me think that's probably not their #1 goal - either that or they're just really bad writers which I'm sure is not the case. But let's face it, advertising dollars are what make or break magazines, so whilst I'm not suggesting that manufacturers outright pay for opinions, I'm sure that editorial is "balanced out" so that all manufacturers get at least some positive exposure, if not there'd just be one clear winner and the winner wouldn't even need to advertise! That explains for example why all the bikes sounded so similar when I was reading the litre bike shootouts that included the 1198. In hindsight I really can't believe no one said that it's TOTALLY different to 4cyl litre bikes - staggers me. Maybe they think everyone has ridden as many bikes as they do & take that for granted?? Who knows.

But Jap/I4s & Dukes are chalk & cheese and I likes my cheese!! You know until tonight when I picked up the 1199 I never felt like a "proper" Ducati fan, felt on the cusp, almost phony in a way, but the 1199 has really rung my bell. I seriously wouldn't dream of swapping it for any other road registerable bike, including a Desmocedicci D16.

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Quinten said:

these dyno figures are ..... i have seen 2-3 others way more powerful.
mcn 176/177
austin racing also got 176bhp.
and here in holland they got 186rwhp (with termi slip ons)

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Spilly1199 said:

Oh, and I spoke to the dealer about the dyno graphs. He says Ducati gave them a list of things you have to do to get accurate dyno figures because the engine adjusts depending on the amount of airflow coming in. So if stuck on a dyno & revving it out without 280kph of airflow coming through the front the engine won't run as lean (or rich, can't remember) as it would with the airflow coming in. In other words the engine will compensate for the lack of airflow resulting in artificially low Hp readings.

They got 192 at the wheel of Warren Lees test bike with full Termi system. So that explains bogus dyno figures

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