A new Ducati family is to be coming out of Bologna in the new future and the first member will be the new Multistrada 1000.  Ducati describe the new model as 'a high spec bike with Superbike componentry that offers some of the convenience, storage and flexibility of the big enduros.'

"We have broken new ground in motorcycle design with the Multistrada," says Carlo Di Biagio, Chief Executive Officer of Ducati Motor Holding. "The Multistrada demonstrates our total commitment to new product innovation and represents a fresh chapter in the glorious history of Ducati - seventy five years old this year. We are entering a cycle of new product at Ducati after investing four years of effort into research and development. Each of the bike's components has been rethought, reworked and improved upon. The Multistrada Project is just the beginning… we are excited about a fifth family of Ducati bikes, a new category that we feel will be embraced by real motorcyclists who make everyday sport bike riding their passion."

"The Multistrada represents an entirely new niche," says David Gross, Director of Strategic Planning at Ducati. "It embraces the performance and design of a sportsbike and combines those characteristics with the flexibility and practicality of an enduro-style bike. From perfect tarmac to gritty mountain passes, from city centers to the glittering beaches of the Riviera and beyond, the Multistrada is a bike designed for the real rider whose everyday enthusiasm for motorcycling is a passionate way of life," says Gross who managed the product development process for the Multistrada. "This is a true Moto Totale - born on the streets, hills, mountains and highways of Emilia Romagna - but ready to attack tarmac around the world."

"This is a bike that reaches its full potential in the hands of experts who want to rip around mountain roads and zip along costal strips," says Pierre Terblanche, Ducati Design Director and Chief Designer on the Multistrada project. "At the same time, the Multistrada allows everyday enthusiasts to fully explore and expand their talents on this most exhilarating of bikes."

"I was inspired by standard, pre-specialization bikes of the 70's, " continues Terblanche, "so the design of the Multistrada is lightweight and compact, which allows it to be versatile in use, powerful and practical. Classic Ducati red and silver and a variety of metal finishes celebrate a mechanical look, with cast aluminium, stainless steel, and chrome."

Utilising internal design and engineering resources as well as the design facilities at Idea Institute, a leading-edge automotive design firm in Turin (Italy) that has worked with FIAT, BMW and Ferrari, Ducati developed the Multistrada using state of the art design procedures, CAD systems as well as traditional hand modeling techniques. The Multistrada, currently in its prototype phase, will undergo final design changes and advanced testing during 2002 and will go into production in the beginning of 2003. The bikes will be manufactured at the Ducati factory in Bologna, Italy. Further sales information and retail pricing figures will be released at a later date.

The new air-cooled engine fitted to the Mulitstrada is dubbed the Ducati 1000TS.  Ducati claim this new air-cooled engine offers some advantages in application. 'The most obvious is its relative simplicity and lighter weight compared to its liquid-cooled counterpart. There are no radiators, water pumps, hoses, reservoirs, nor the need to compromise the placement of ancillary components displaced by the liquid-cooling system. Maintenance on an air-cooled engine is simple, reducing long-term cost of ownership.'

The 1000TS is a new 90° L-Twin power plant based on the best of Ducati's existing liquid and air-cooled engines. The design starts with a new cylinder head, big bang, short stroke cylinder design and additional innovations extending to the very heart of the motor. The design goal was clear: increase total power, boost mid-range power, simplify mechanicals, lower engine temperatures, raise reliability and lighten weight.

Starting with the cylinder heads, ignition is now accomplished with twin-spark plugs and the conventional method of supporting the camshafts with ball bearings has been replaced with oil-pressurized plain bearings, reducing moving parts and improving heat dissipation. The twin-spark design offers more complete combustion, increasing power especially in the mid-range.

A significant reduction in valve angle between intake and exhaust is the design element that characterizes Ducati's "Testa Stretta" or "compact head" technology. This design allows a better shape for the combustion chamber and reduces volume, resulting in more complete fuel combustion, higher compression and more power. The new configuration also places the camshafts in a more direct relationship to the valves, lowering friction and stress on valve components and consequently increasing reliability.

The crankshaft was given a new shape, with more centralized mass and repositioned oil delivery ports, resulting in greater rigidity, lower vibration and increased reliability.

The lubrication system has also been updated. The 1000TS now runs significantly higher oil pressure and volume, achieved through the use of a new oil pump and oil channels. Reliability and lower engine temperatures have been further advanced with an increased number of ideally placed cooling fins. The new clutch basket, drive and driven plates are now made entirely of special-alloy aluminium.

Even the transmission output shaft has been improved with the use of a double row bearing on the chain sprocket side for improved durability and strength.

The frame is of course Ducati's signature Trellis frame. The mitered and welded tubing gains its rigidity from triangulation and material integrity, not mass as is the case with more common extruded aluminium frames. The engine cases become an active component of the frame, a "stressed member," saving weight and contributing to rigidity.

Ducati have not skimped on suspension for the Multistrada. Fully adjustable Showa forks with TiN treatment ensure plush, accurate and confident handling. The Multistrada has an added 25mm of travel for a total of 160mm which should make the bike well suited to the roughest of road conditions.

A new single-sided swingarm featuring a larger axle carrier and bearings just like Ducati's Corse race bikes increases rigidity and reliability. It combines with an Ohlins fully-adjustable shock to handle rear damping duties and the familiar Superbike-derived rising rate, height-adjustable suspension system. Ride height can be adjusted independently from spring pre-load.

Brembo "Serie Oro" calipers are used front and rear. Up-front newly designed 320mm discs are gripped by Brembo four piston calipers while a single 245mm disc is used in the rear. Performance is enhanced with steel-braided brake lines front and rear. And to complete the system, newly designed lightweight, compact and space efficient reservoirs are mounted to Superbike Brembo brake pumps.

Ducati Design has developed new front and rear wheels. The discs are now mounted directly to oversized hubs, eliminating the disc carriers.

Particular attention has been paid to the seat and tank combination. Ducati Design has made it as slim as possible -- as narrow as a typical single cylinder. Comfort on a motorcycle is a combination of many things, but primarily it is determined by the handlebar/seat/foot peg relationship. Multistrada strikes a balance between the rear-set/clip-on super sport position and the raised wide handlebar/feet forward position of big dual sports. The fairing takes a unique approach to wind protection. The slim windshield is no longer integrated with the fairing, but is mounted to the handlebars and fork. This allows a broad angle steering arc as the clutch and brake levers swing with the windshield, unrestricted.

A new instrument cluster includes an oversize electronic/analog readout rev-counter. An LCD screen can be set to display a variety of readouts including speed (in kilometres or miles), clock, engine temperature, low fuel warning and tripmeter. Front turn signals are integrated in the mirrors, saving weight and adding a 'clean' look to the bike. The newly designed headlamp includes a projection lamp and a wide-field main beam.

Click here for an interview with R & D director Gianluigi Mengoli about the new engine

Click here for an interview with director of Ducati Design - Pierre Terblanche