Long-Term Wrap-Up
Long-Term Wrap-Up
Ducati MULTISTRADA
GETTING BETTER ALL THE TIME
WHEN THE DUCATI MULTISTRAda debuted three years ago, it was portrayed as a boundarybreaker-a rider-friendly Openclasser combining an upright, dirtbike like riding position and pothole-swal-lowing, long-travel suspension with the Italian bike-maker's excellent 992cc Dual-Spark air-cooled V-Twin. Factory insiders hailed it as the Moto Totale, or total motorcycle. After two years and 15,000 miles with an early-release 2004 model, our conclusion? It is, and it isn't. Early on, we outfitted our silver testbike with a few of the staggering array of available accessories: centerstand ($232), Comfort seat ($215 front, $160 rear), saddlebags ($874), taller windscreen ($99) and carbon-fiber mufflers ($1238). Ready for the road, right? Yes and no. The taller windscreen smoothed airflow, and the centerstand simplified mainte nance chores. The saddlebags, however, while striking-looking and easy enough to mount and dismount, aren't terribly big inside. Legal-size folders don't fit, and a size XL helmet is a tight squeeze. Staffers criticized the thinly padded stock seat-"truly 50 miles before your butt starts to hurt," noted one rider. Though visibly thicker, the Comfort seat wasn't much better. Seeking relief for our pained posteriors, we ordered a Sargent World Sport front seat ($310, www.sargent cycle.com), which was beautifully turned out with Griptex inserts and a hand some Italian tricolore embroidered on the right side.
Installation was a bear. Because the bike's Z-shaped gas tank doubles as the seat base, much of the bodywork had to be removed before we could reach the four bolts that secure the seat to the tank. At least the result was worth the effort. Not only did the Sport up the comfort quotient, seat height was lower than stock, albeit by only a small margin.
ited six months lultistrada, and :! My only beef is that for a long time, I couldn’t get any accessories or a service manual. -Walter Sarzynski, Hanceville, Alabama
High marks to the engine, too, not only for its broad powerband and smoothrunning nature, but for how effortlessly it handles everything from commuting to multi-day sport-tours. Valve-adjustment intervals, scheduled for every 6200 miles, were extended via replacement valve collets from Martin Brickwood Performance ($150, www.mbpducati. com). Said to triple desmo service intervals,
Quotes from the logbook
Niggles aside, the Multistrada is a great all-rounder. Accessory handguards and heated handgrips would be a welcome addition for cooler climes.
I can't really see any reason for buying a Multistrada over a Monster S4R. The Monster isn't much more money, makes tons more power, is smoother and looks better.
Ducati owners are willing to put up with horrible electronics? The faulty gas gauge screwed up my entire ride, and after I washed the bike the instrument lights refused to come on until the following morning.
the collets were installed in conjunction with aftermarket shims from EMS ($289, www.ems-duc.com). So far, so good; when checked after 8K miles, clearances were still within spec. As for other modifications, a Yoyodyne billet-aluminum clutch slave cylinder ($200, www.yoyodyneti. com) reduced effort at the lever and looked great.
Seat height can be a deal-breaker on streetbikes with long-travel suspension, and the tallest Ducati is no exception. On our bike, the fork legs were run well up into the triple-clamps and the threaded rod for adjusting rear ride height fully collapsed. Good for keeping seat height to a minimum, not so good for cornering clearance. To keep hard parts off the tarmac, we raised the rear end, but to do so, we first had to remove the adjuster and grease the threads, as it had been put together dry at the factory!
We’d heard complaints about warped front brake rotors, but at test’s end, ours were still within the factory tolerances. We did, however, experience an annoying “chatter” while slowing to a stop. This was eliminated by switching to DP Brakes SDP Sport HH+ pads (www.dpbrakes. com\ $44 per caliper).
Buying a Multistrada was a good choice, but my saddlebags have been on backorder since last April! Maybe I should have bought a BMW R1200GS... -Steve Jost, Kingsburg, California
As for tires, we ran the gamut, from sport-touring Metzeier RoadTec Z6s ($380) to racy Michelin Pilot Powers ($324), but actually preferred the stock Pirelli Scorpion Syncs. Not only are they striking in appearance with their aggressive tread blocks, but they are relatively long-lasting, deliver good grip and offer excellent steering response.
While all agreed that the original Multistrada had great potential, there was room for improvement. Ducati has since smoothed out most of the rough edges, which helped earn the Öhlinssuspended Multistrada 1000S Best Sport-Tourer honors last year. But Moto totale? Not yet.
$11,800
