More Crap & Nonsense today
 

Anyone get today’s copy of the rag MCN?

Reasonable, if brief, interview with Federico Minoli. Some interesting points he makes:

o He’d like to see an entry level Ducati sportsbike………..wouldn’t we all……..something smaller than the 749, he says.
o No radical changes to the Monster…………….more like an evolution like the Porsche 911…………..now where did I read that before?
o The possibility of a high performance Multistrada……………….yes, yes, oh yes………I want one!!!
o No V4 production road bikes
o Good answer as to why the 999S is better than the Aprilia RSV Factory…………..it’s all about feeling & soul ( see below* )
o Best answer of all regarding whether the 999 can ever be as iconic as the 916………….he says, and I quote……………’MCN made the Ducati 916 the Bike of the Century. So the 999 has another 96 years to cement its place, yes?’ Good answer Mr Minoli………..shame we won’t be around to see it!!!

* Only other thing that caught my eye was the letter from some muppet called Steve Edwards entitled ‘Ducati needs to sharpen its act’. In it he states why he believes the Japanese 1000s and the Aprilia RSVs are better than the 999. His only reason, as far as I can see, is the price. Well if that’s the way he sees it then he just doesn’t get it does he. :mad::mad:

It’s all about soul man………..the feeling…………..you can’t put a price on that. :sing::sing::sing::sing:

Sorry if I’ve spoilt anyone’s enjoyment of their weekly MCN read.

[Edited on 7-4-2004 by everton]

Err, no, we wouldn't :)
Without trying to sound elitist in any way (I'll leave that to Tim, Webby et al ;) ) I don't like the idea of a cheap Duke. It takes something away from the marque in my view. You'll end up with every Tom, Dick and Harry riding around on them and it will take away much of the specialness. If you take BMW as an example. I used to think they were something special, something to aspire to owning. But with the release of the lower end, cheaper 3 series models they devalued the whole image of owning a BMW. Every tosspot has one (Sorry again Tim :lol: ).

[Edited on 7-4-2004 by Desmondo]

I'll have you know, I'm an elitist if i believe everything a hair dresser tells me!

Dave, thanks for spoiling my morning read of mcn :frog: I'll have a ganders of it once i've got dressed, and popped down the shop.

I'm sure the elders will be having a word with you about your language.....

So you wouldn't like to see a 400 or 600 twin costing about the same as a Monster 620?

Shame...........the easier and more we can get buying Ducatis the better in my book.

I hate the whole elitist thing...............there are always models in any range that you can aspire to own, I just think making the path to it easier has to be better.

btw always hated BMWs...........never owned one, never wanted one...........just too common. I live in a small group of houses, one of four, and at one time the other three neighbours all had BMWs. My near neighbour had 2 - a Z3 and 5 series estate.............made my XJR stand out a treat

Mark, don't bother...........you can have my copy to wrap your pie n' chips in when you go to Yorkyshire........I've read it already.

This month's Big n' Bouncy is a much better read.......especially the article on flagellation :o:o blimey.........is that Vman on page 38 :o:o

I think a 400 twin, would be good for the sub 21 age group who have restricted licences. Tho the SS is a good entry level to the marque i feel. And quite a cult following the 2 valve desmo has. Ducati has a chance to face Prilla with their 450 twin with a whole new SS range, and distance the SS from the Monster, making two distinctive bikes. Modern, and aimed at the right riders. Both starting at a 400-450 twin, right upto the 1000, and maybe a 996 R version. I see no reason why Duke could not make a SS996R or SS4R? Be a good stepping stone.

Dave, stop flirting with that blue touch paper and that zippo :lol:

Your right Dave it would be nice to see a smaller capacity Ducati, something along the lines of a 400BP, 400S and 400R, 90 degree watercooled 4 valves per cylinder V-twins with a lowish seat height. Not necessarily a cheap bike but cheaper to insure than its big brothers. Unlike the 350SS and 400SS which were every bit as big as the 600SS and just as heavy.

small duc
 

Am I missing something here chaps did'nt ducati make loads of small affordable bikes(350 F1 250 Singles 400 SS etc)
And as for being elitist the reason i joined DSC was everyone seemed more interested in the bikes than how many cars/buisnesess/airlines they owned.
after reading Vmans threads perhaps i'm wrong.
is the club not going to be interested in owners that have the passion but not the kudos off loads of money""""
i feel a kebab coming on

Bring back the supermono.

[/quote]Well said 888heaven................

[quote]
is the club not going to be interested in owners that have the passion but not the kudos off loads of money

Very much the minority mate. Why i joined the club myself. As mentioned before, it's all about owning a bike with a soul, of which owners are enthusiasts. On the whole, the few i've met are a good laugh and willing to help out. Webby, Antonye, Desmondo and Nick H (2 name a few)have helped me with various things, from Dukes through to web sites and home networks.

Someone being controversial and opinionated does not mean the rest of us are. Nor infact that person is wrong. After all we are individuals and entitled to our own opinions. Take an example of the whole club, not a individual. Owners of Dukes range from the wealthy to working class. I hand on heart don't think anyone here would look down on anybody because of their social standing. The impression i get, that is not the ethos here.

Don't forget there's already a Monster 400 - it's just that we don't get it in this country as an official import.

Ducati would do well to bring it here as a "learner" bike, and re-use the engine as an SS-alike and maybe even a motard?

Here's hoping...

supermono
 

was that affordable then!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
ps
stopped buying MCN when they started putting pictures of ****s reading MCN on the moon el sunday sport,that and saying how wonderfull Hodgson is anybody got more than 20 pages into his auto without reading about caaaatherine""""and how wonderfull i am.
Hodgson GPs phah.

Steve,

That's a typical koppite remark.............

.........next you'll be remarking on the types of supporter that Everton attracts V Liverpool ;););)

I love my 999R

Coming to Box Hill on Sunday??? I'm gonna wear my Big Dunc fighting shirt..........he has no Freunds you know..:lol::lol:

[Edited on 7-4-2004 by everton]

Wish we had been able to get my daughter a 400 Ducati sports bike - as it was/is - she has to make do with a Hon*a.
Also wish the sportsbikes could be safely shortened in height for us short legged type peeps who really want one, can afford one - but cant flipping reach one!

C

Club/money
 

I Know where your coming from Flanker,I only went to one DOC meet and all the talked about was how they flew to every SBK Round and the latest TVR in the garage the £100,000 worth of shares they traded etc
I'm not ashamed to say im not in this leage and never will be,i spend every spare penny on the bikes.
I've was brought up on jap bikes but they just dont compare with the feeling of shutting the throttle in a tunnel with tergis ohhhh that throb and sound"""
scuse me ill be back from the tiolet in a min""

It's only Clint that mentioned it here, but I would love to see Ducati making a smaller lighter bike along the lines of the proposed Aprilia 450 twin, and I said it before in the thread about the 'prilia, that they already have the answer.

The Supermono.

Just think...a single barrel, head and injector set up from a testastretta bolted on to lighter, redesigned crankcases and you could end up with a 375cc machine with about 55Bhp or a 500cc machine with about 70Bhp, depending on whether you based it on 749 or 999 bits (and taking a crude approximation on power by halving the power output of a good 749s or 999s).

The NCR 100-One used an aircooled 1000DS engine tuned up to about 100Bhp and Titanium everything to get the weight down to 100Kg. In road going form the weight of that thing would probably go up to around 130Kg. By losing the weight of half the engine, and using 250 sized frame dimensions a Ducati 500cc single could surely get down to around 130-140Kg without needing titanium trickery?

Having all that space left by losing a barrel would mean you could get a decent sized airbox in without problems, and moving the barrel to a more traditional angle somewhere between the horizontal and vertical barrels would mean that you could move the engine forward without front wheel clearance problems and get a relatively long swingarm into a short wheelbase bike, with lighter weight as well the handling would be potentially fabulous.

What a bike! Might not be the ultimate trackday tool for fast circuits but it would be a giant killer on tighter circuits and on real roads.

If you could then make the styling drop dead gorgeous like the Supermono...and then ther is something so evocative about a 500cc single...BSA goldstars...jumpers for goalposts...

I would be first in the queue

Regarding the Supermono:

From an interview last year with Ducati President Federico Minoli:


Question:

"Why won't you make the Supermono with lights, for the street? Especially as you can add value, and performance, by fitting a supercharger which has been proven to work effectively on single-cylinder motorcycles, represents an avant garde form of proven technology that on two wheels would be unique to Ducati, and would allow you to position the model advantageously pricewise."

Answer:

"From my point of view, this is a matter of priorities. We are a small company, so we have to choose what's most important. Do we develop a single? Do we make a four? Do we produce a three-valve air-cooled twin? Or how about a triple? I don't think we can afford to bring too many kinds of engines through to production, because although you're correct when you say that we've done all the hard work in actually designing a prototype Supermono, from there to actually rolling the first engine off the production line will cost us approximately five million Euros. Can we really expect to turn that much profit from such a product? That's what we have to ask ourselves. I'm not going to take this company down the road of over-investing as compared to the size that we have, and the profit we want to generate. So - sorry!"

Supermono, definitely!

Jools, don't forget the "R" version, which has a supercharger and produces in excess of 100 BHP. Ducati had hinted at this in the past already. That would be the ultimate track tool: GP250 type weight and dimensions with 100+ BHP. Wouldn't be cheap, though. But, the lesser versions of the Supermono could be.

Thanks for that Des....You meant Tom, Dick and HARRIET!

Ducati motorcycles with soul, priceless. For all the others there's mastercard.

:D

Really? 5 million Euros for the engine to move to production when you have all the major parts in production already? Haven't they made more surprising investment decisions like redesigning and making the cylinder head of the 996 engine different for the ST4S because the original head fouled the chassis? Could've moved a frame tube or two and I'm sure it would've worked out better than trying to amortize the tooling and production costs of a new barrel and cylinder head against a relatively low volume bike like the ST. Maybe the competition from Aprilia might goad them into it.

I had forgotten about the supercharger...Oh my, if only they would make it. A lightweight, 500cc supercharged exotic jewel of a bike...never mind entry level, I would rather have one of those than a 749R or one of the mythical desmosedici replicas that may never happen...and I'd be prepared to pay 749R prices as well.

I wonder if Ducati UK are really listening to us on this board?

Dear Ducati UK,

I would like an updated version of the Supermono for my Christmas present in 2006. If Santa would only bring me one I promise I will be good until then.

Love

Jools

[Edited on 7-4-2004 by Jools]

Sorry KB :(
Consider myself well and truley reprimanded :D

I am adding more bits to make it look more expensive...:P:P:P

Just phoned Ducati in Italy, Jools, and they are taking deposits on the new Supermono!!!

























Sorry, I know it was tasteless...

Just checked...No it's April 7th and it's past 12 'o clock, so it can't be an April Fool wind up..

Is this for real Felix?

Wow, gotta start saving now so I can put my money where my mouth is

No, mate, I wish. Read the last line of my previous post!

[homer mode] DOH !!!! Fell for the old multiple line feed spoof [/homer mode]

:lol::lol::lol:

. It takes something away from the marque in my view. You'll end up with every Tom, Dick and Harry riding around on them and it will take away much of the specialness. [/quote]
I'm sorry to tell you that the rot has already set in as I have one of the above names:;)

Isn't the Desmosedici a V4?


Back to top----->

[Edited on 25-5-2004 by everton]

i've been digging around the F.I.M website the rules for motogp state that all competing bike must be prototypes as soon as they release a road going desmosedici it will cease to be a prototype and will be banned from racing in motogp so if it comes out in 2006 either Ducati won't be in motogp's anymore or they will but with a totally different bike to the Desmosedici or indeed the road going version will be a completely new engine sharing no parts with the current gp bike

They can use the same layout and technology, they are just not allowed to use the same parts - shouldnt be a problem since even the full factory 999 corse engine shares virtually no parts with the road-going testastretta