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

The standard 1098 engine is 3.4kg lighter than the previous 999R range topper. Despite being larger again, the 1098R donk is a further 2.2kg lighter thanks to titanium connecting rods, carbon-fibre cam-belt shrouds and the cam covers themselves are made of magnesium.

Special chrome nitride coated valves are around 5% larger than the standard 1098 items and the cams have 16% more lift. I am not sure of the actual cam specifications, but I do know that it is the desmodromic valve actuation system used by Ducati that allows the use of cam profiles with more aggressive ramp angles and wild durations than otherwise would be possible.

Feeding the beast are elliptical throttle bodies that measure a jaw dropping 63.9mm, 6.5% larger than the standard 1098 items. For the first time on a Ducati roadbike twin injectors are utilised on the 1098R. A centrally mounted four hole injector is aided by a second offset 12 hole injector.

As you would expect with such large cylinders, the throttle response is not as fluid and precise as that of the Japanese standard setter in this area, the GSX-R1000, but it is still damn impressive and more controllable than I imagined. Especially considering those pistons are a huge 106mm in diameter and bang away against a ferocious 12.8:1 compression ratio.

A 15.5 litre fuel cell contains the best premium unleaded you can get your hands on and a fuel reserve light warns when four litres remains.

Third, fourth and sixth gears are slightly taller than on the base model. All six gears are made of the same high strength steel used by Ducati Corse and third through sixth gears are all treated to a special shot-peening treatment to further aid durability. While that may make it sound like a truck gearbox in use, I am pleased to report that the 1098R box is an absolute gem. My experience with the machine has been racetrack only and I haven’t pottered around town at slow speeds but the gearbox did nothing to suggest that it might be painful in the city.

The dry clutch however may not be quite as town friendly. Two Ducati 1098R machines made available at Phillip Island for the launch were hammered all day around the fast Phillip Island layout. Around lunchtime however some testers, myself included, had trouble taking off cleanly from a standstill with the dry clutch grabbing and grating and the machine lurching as a result. Ducati mechanics swapped the plates and there was no trouble again. But it may, or may not, suggest that under extreme sustained use the dry clutch could be a cause for concern. I am no technical expert but my best guess would point to the steel plates getting a little warped from the sustained racetrack abuse. Perhaps this was something that could have been affected by the large amount of slip dialled into the slipper clutch on the machines we rode.

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