Ducati Sporting Club UK - 996R vs 996SPS Performance Touring Test! and DYNO CHARTS.

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Go to the bottom of BDG's first post in this thread.......

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Originally posted by BDG
HOW THE BIKES COMPARED.

So now to the bit Rattler has been waiting for (mind you he should know as he's owned both of them as well).

Since returning from the trip the R has been on the same dyno i put the SPS beforehand. Both the power and torque curves are remarkably similar all the way through the rev range except at 2 points. Between 6500 and 7500 rpm the SPS holds a clear advantage over the R, but when the R reaches 8750 rpm it clears off and leaves the SPS climbing to a peak of 132.5 bhp whereas the SPS reaches a max of 120 bhp.

The R produces a peak torque figure of 72.5 ft lbs against 71 ft lbs for the SPS, but the R continues with a pretty flat torque curve higher up in the rev range whereas the SPS torque curve drops off a lot sharper after its peak.

The SPS feels raw and more brutal in its power delivery which certain people think gives it more character. The 'stretta' engine feels smoother, more refined and seems to rev a little quicker, which is what you would expect from a shorter stroke engine. For some reason the clutch on the R is so much lighter, the lightest Ducati clutch i've ever had.

The R feels slightly quicker off the line and marginally quicker on top speed. Azzy said the only way he could stay with me on ultimate top speed was to play silly buggers and draught me taking advantage of the rather large hole I punch in the air.

Slight differnces in performance and feel could be attributed to the gearing changes. The SPS runs standard 15 tooth on the gearbox, but 2 extra teeth on the rear; whereas the R has 1 tooth less on the gearbox, which equates to 3 up on the rear. Fairly common mods on lots of 916/996's as common concensus is they are overgeared as standard.

One very definate improvement on the R is the front brakes with the P4 calipers and lighter disc's. Simply awesome

One not very interesting fact is that the stretta engine in the R was a little more economical at each fuel stop and if you cruise at a relaxed 100mph you can get not far short of 50mpg. Not that we did that much cruising. Don't think it would be a good excuse for getting away with speeding. 'Sorry Officer, i'm just trying to conserve fuel'. Oil consumption on both bikes was minimal over the course of a good 2600 mile thrashing.

Handling wise, the R was a bit of a disappointment. When i bought it the Ohlins fork seals were leaking, now there's a real surprise!

Instead of just getting just the seals replaced i decided to get shock serviced as well as it was over 3 years old with zero attention, and had both resprung and revlaved to suit my fat git sponsored by stella, physique. The end result is garbage, way way too hard, and i actually much preferred the standard SPS suspension that had been set up for me, but not resprung or revalved.

When i've had this done on my ST4s the results were superb, and the bike just glided over bumps rather than bounced off them. I did experiment during the course of the trip and backed the settings off, but things still didn't feel as good as the SPS:flame:

Phone call has been made to the shop and i have been promised it will be resolved, time will tell.

Azzy used to be an R1-ophile (not quite as bad as a paedophile) and the SPS is his first Ducati. His comments are interesting. Common sense dictates that a Year 2000 R1 is a better buy at half the price of the SPS, in performance/value for money terms, and he did miss the extra power of the R1 at times.

BUT he had lusted after a 996 for years so finally succumbed to the dream/madness. Did he regret it?

Not in the slightest, he loves the Ducati despite the fact the R1 is lighter, quicker and more powerful. The sound, feel, power delivery make up for it, and he said on certain roads the R1 could get a bit too lively. Whereas the Ducati just inspired total confidence, but then i suppose i'm preaching to the converted here.

Back to the R vs SPS. I'm definately glad i bought the R but being completely honest the difference between the 2 bikes is a little less than i expected. The R is a definate step forward but not a quantum leap.

This may well sound strange in view of the top end power advantage and better brakes, but this only comes into play when you're chasing the last 10%. I suppose it demonstrates the effectiveness of Ducati's evolution from 916 to 996 to 998 engines in their various guises bip to S to SPS to R.

They are both superb bikes which i'm very lucky to own/have owned. To sum it up i would give the SPS 9.96 points and the R 9.98 points.

Now who will let me borrow a 998R please?

[Edited on 16-5-2005 by BDG]

Forget all that touring twaddle and get to the comparison!!!!

Nice write up!! I suppose I felt the R was a lot stronger on the track and your findings echo that. With the SPS it was more of an animal and less refined, whereas the R was smoother and pulled for a lot longer - neither necessarily better, but different.

The reason I prefered the R on the track was because it had the longer legs and could keep up with the big Jap thous' wherreas the SPS was foud a bit wanting.

As for touring - what the hell would you want to do that on either anyway!!!! ;)

Tim

I must try and R - my sps feels refined to me, so either I have it wrong, something is wrong with the bike or the R feels sooo much better???

great write up - I now know who must be the happiest person in the world....996R in garage (git!), just toured Euopre in a week (git!), tried others while on route, and Sunderland in the Prem (my team alreadyt there)...does it get any better??

Nice writeup Shaun.

Interesting that you found the R smoother. I find exactly the same when comparing the 998 to the 996 (or the ST4S for that matter - 996 engine). Must be down to the stretta engine I suppose.

Tim, the answer is - because you can :D
Well, you can if your ar$e & wrists can stand it anyway :lol:

Quote:

Originally posted by bradders

great write up - I now know who must be the happiest person in the world....996R in garage (git!), just toured Euopre in a week (git!), tried others while on route, and Sunderland in the Prem (my team alreadyt there)...does it get any better??

:DI'm a very happy man on all counts, and off again in July for some more 'touring';)

Tim, in answer to why would i wanna tour on either of those bikes? I must be right wierdo!
Lets rephrase it then, its not touring as in load up the kitchen sink and gently potter around, its fast and hard for as long as we want, and rather than circulating the same 3 miles a multitude of times, its the variety of ever changing roads (good ones through years of doing it) ridden at a fair old pace.

Certainly not as mental as a track day in the fast group, but still pretty demanding, ask DIbble his opinion as he loves his track days, but also gets off on the buzz of the Central Massif.

Its a personal thing which i really get off on, and i prefer the 996 to the ST4s. I know you're not being crictical, just bemused i think:puzzled:

Funny that, I prefer the 4S to the 996 for touring.

I think it is simply down to riding position as performance & brakes are the same. The 996 feels a bit too committed for some of the roads we do, whereas the 4S is a bit more forgiving (probably no difference in reality but it seems it).

Agreed about the roads compared to a track too.
One of these days we'll have to see if we can't get our trips to cross paths, eh ;)

Northern France in late June perhaps ?? :roll:
Or Black Forest / Alps in September ?? :bouncy:

John,

I loved the ST4 and the ST4s, both great bikes and more comfortable, especially on a motorway. I suppose i've just got to live upto the D part of the BDG:lol:

I'd love to join one of your runs but this years pretty well mapped out in between the massive inconvienience of having to do some work to pay for it all:)

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Originally posted by BDG

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Sean - I was just joking - it takes all sorts and you "touring" boys and acceptable in the club as long as you sit quietly at the back and don't disturb anyone!!!! ;)