Ducati 1098R (2008) - Review

Ducati 1098R
Page / 1 - Intro / 2 - Engine / 3 - Performance / 4 - Traction Control / 5 - Electronics/Chassis / 6 - Summary/Specs
By, Trevor Hedge

Ducati 1098R - TREVOR HEDGE EXITS MG HAIRPIN AND THE 1098R LIFTS ON THE CHANGE OF DIRECTION - PICTURE BY KEITH MUIT

Ducati 1098R - TREVOR HEDGE EXITS MG HAIRPIN AND THE 1098R LIFTS ON THE CHANGE OF DIRECTION - PICTURE BY KEITH MUIT

It is fair to say that Ducati’s original 916 model released in 1994 set a new level for motorcycle design and many, including myself, doubted that its svelte lines could ever be bested.

Less than five years later however the MV Agusta F4 was born and suddenly the 916 look dated. Both those machines were penned by legendary Italian maestro of design Massimo Tamburini.

Ducati’s recent 749/999 series failed to live up to the glamorous precedent set by the long running 916 variants. Despite those machines being a far nicer ride than their more elegant predecessors, the buying public never really warmed to the model and Ducati sportsbike sales slumped as a result.

Pierre Terblanche designed the 749/999 series but the design of the latest 1098 series was entrusted to relative unknown Gianandrea Fabbro.

One glance is all it takes to see that Fabbro took his styling cues from Tamburini’s original masterpiece in designing the 1098. The buying public showed their approval by swamping Ducati dealers in droves. The new model was almost solely responsible for Ducati’s recent 43 percent sales increase in Australia during 2007.

The base model 1098 retails for $26,495 plus on roads, rises to $31,495 for the slightly higher specification 1098S and topping the v-twin price list is the 1098R at a whopping $54,995 plus on road costs. 75 of the range topping machines have arrived on Australian shores in the first shipment and over 50 of those are already spoken for.

For the price of two base models one would expect a lot of fruit and exclusivity, and Ducati have delivered. The 1098 is an incredibly pretty piece of art but in 1098R guise Ducati have come up with pure motorcycling porn. The changes however are much more than skin deep.

Despite keeping the 1098 nomenclature, the R model actually displaces 100cc more than the base model and measures in at a whopping 1198.4cc. Power is up nearly 15 percent over the base model with Ducati claiming the R delivers 132Kw (180hp) at 9750rpm and a prodigious 134Nm of torque peaks at 7750rpm. With those sorts of numbers and the characteristically fat v-twin torque curve the 165kg 1098R makes for a very serious ride indeed. Add the race silencers and matching ECU that come in a box with the 1098R and power rises to 186hp while releasing that trademark Termignoni boom that Ducatisti lust after. A meagre six horsepower at the top end does not sound like much of a difference but power is also boosted considerably through the mid-range which adds up to a twin-cylinder power delivery I really never thought possible.

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