Yes – it’s that time again. Each year, Ducati UK gets all its new bikes together, and invites the press along for a day’s ride around some sweet UK roads. It’s a great way to sample the latest kit from Bologna, and we always get along if we can.
This year, the Italian firm took its press fleet to a chi-chi location in Warwickshire, Henry’s Car Barn, and we headed along, praying for sunshine and a bit of warmth after a miserable ‘spring’.
First up was a really exciting machine that I was very keen to swing a leg over. The Hypermotard 698 is the first outing for Ducati’s latest engine, the Superquadro Mono, which is the first roadbike single-cylinder motor from the firm since the early 1970s (the gorgeous Supermono race bike was 30 years ago, terrifyingly enough).
It’s based on half a Panigale 1299 superbike engine, so has some proper heritage, and from the early reports I’ve read, it’s a belter.
If I’m honest, I’ve always thought the original V-twin Hypermotard was a bit compromised. The classic supermotard machine has its roots in a 1980s French race class, using high-powered motocross bikes fitted with 17-inch track wheels and rubber plus full-on superbike brakes.
They all had single-cylinder engines, and their raison d’etre was being super-light, super-slim, and super-crazy. The desmodromic air-cooled V-twin engine in the first Hypermotard was great, but it handicapped the whole bike for that class, adding a heap of mass, size and maybe too much power.
The various V-twin Hypermotards sold since have all been great bikes, packed with hilarity – and a hint of practicality too. But without a one-pot power option, it always felt a little off the mark.
That’s ended now though, with the new single-cylinder Hypermotard. I grab the key from the very nice Ducati PR person, and head over to check it out. I’d seen it at the bike shows, so no big surprises – it’s a handsome bike, though there’s a lot of messy bits, especially around the engine.
The Panigale 1299 motor was an amazing piece of engineering, but it definitely has the looks for living behind a fairing. Cutting it in half and hanging it out in the wind means lots of wires, hoses, oil gallery castings and sensors are all on show.
Part of me wonders what it will look like under its fifth owner after a decade of entropy aided by UK rain and road salt, but then I get a wee bit sad and emotional and move on…
I’m soon cheered up though, when I find that the seat isn’t stupidly tall for my traditional dumpy Scots frame. My inside leg measurement is around 29 inches, but I could easily keep a foot on the deck once aboard, and the flat, narrow seat is comfy enough.
The overall accommodation is fairly spartan as you’d expect from a supermotard. The mono LCD dash is super-minimal, in opposition to the enormous wide-screen cinema experiences elsewhere in the Ducati range, but they’ve squeezed enough info in there, and you can navigate through the various riding modes and settings easily enough.
The message is clear though: this is a bike where the entertainment comes via the throttle and brakes, not a huge colour TFT LCD dash Bluetooth-linked to your phone…
We set off, on roads which are cold and damp – though at least the biblical rain of the previous days has gone. A steady start then, which gives me a chance to settle in nicely.
The engine doesn’t feel too weird below me, despite its radical architecture: the bore is 116mm and the stroke just 62.4mm giving it the most extreme short-stroke on any road bike single cylinder at 1.86:1.
To compare, a Panigale V4R is 1.67, but the Panigale 1299 V-twin had an even shorter stroke at just 60.8mm, so a ratio of 1.9. The 659cc lump is smooth enough, thanks to cunning balancing, and is surprisingly flexible.
If you push your luck and try to sit in top gear down to 30mph, then things get a bit lumpy and chuggy. Be sensible with your expectations though, and it’s really well-mannered, almost purring away through the small villages sitting between the twisty A- and B-roads we’re on today.
It’s quite a rattly engine though: even at idle there are some queer ticks and resonances coming out of the crankcases, and on the move there’s a fair bit of mechanical sound.
So much so that I actually check with the tech guys back at base, and am assured that yes, sir, they do all do that. The final ‘on the limit’ 1299 Panigale V-twin motor was pushing the envelope in all areas in terms of engineering, and a bit of noise from the desmo valve gear and bottom end was apparently part of the price.
Removing half of it and taking away the fairing panels hasn’t improved matters.
Once the road opens up though, it could sound like a mozzarella-producing water buffalo farting in an Italian swamp for all I care. Because this is a jewel of an engine. Beautifully grunty, it braaaps through the gears with gusto, with the front wheel only kept in check by whatever wheelie control settings you’ve dialled in.
The midrange is the thing of course, but it’s strong up top as well, with peak torque at 8,000rpm and maximum power at a heady 9,750rpm. The throttle response is clean and crisp, and it’s easily on par with the very best single cylinder motors (currently that means the KTM 690 lump).
I’m following riders on the full range of Ducatis, from the DesertX to Panigale V4s, and the little Supermono is never left far behind out of a bend. It does tail off once you start to approach three-figure speeds of course, which might well be a good thing in these speed camera-blighted days.
But in its sweet spot, around typical British country roads, it’s nigh-on perfect.
The chassis is well up to the task too. Ducati’s not a firm that skimps on frame design or running gear, and while we’re not pushing particularly hard today (it’s still cold and there are loads of puddles and actual flooded sections on the roads), it performs flawlessly.
The single front 330mm disc brake is strong and feel-laden, and you’re not left thinking two discs would be better. The suspension works well on standard settings, and the Pirelli Diablo Rosso IV tyres are doing well, despite the marginal conditions.
The last element of the bike that gets a run-through is the electronic riding aids package. It seems less comprehensive from the rider’s seat, partly because of the small screen.
But it’s all there: wheelie control, launch control, IMU-assisted cornering traction and ABS, plus rider power modes, up/down quickshifter and engine brake control. A quick swizz through the rider power modes gives a real difference in performance, with the road and wet modes much less sharp on the gas compared with sport.
The wheelie control is also a welcome boon on a bike like this, letting you dial the madness in and out as required…
It’s a quick spin on the Hypermotard 698 today sadly – but the couple of hours I have is still enough to work out that this is a bike well worth the effort from Ducati.
The first single cylinder Bolognan supermoto is a thing of beauty – and I can’t wait to see where that engine turns up next: a 698 Streetfighter, lightweight Multistrada Enduro, or maybe even a Superleggera Panigale 700?
The Hypermotard is a pricey option – as everything from Borgo Panigale is – at £10,995, but you’re getting a lot of bike for that cash.
Back to base, and after a nice spot of lunch, I’m out on my second bike for the day. This time, I’ve gone large, opting for a spin on the Multistrada V4 S Grand Tour.
As I get older, I appreciate my comforts more and more, and the idea of a bonkers Multistrada V4 with even more luxury is right up my lazy alley. I stick my rucksack into the standard-fit panniers (which aren’t massive, but just about big enough for a full face lid), plug my phone into the special charging spot in front of the rider’s seat, and strap myself in for some high-powered extravagance.
Now, I already know how nuts the standard V4 Multistrada is. It’s a 170bhp superbike on stilts, with monstrous midrange, and all the tech needed to dampen down the danger a little.
It has the brakes, the handling, the grip and the (semi-active electronic) suspension needed to match the wild engine, and so long as you have the self-control not to go flat-out everywhere, it’s arguably the fastest way to cross countries in style.
The first 1200 V-twin started the trend for full-power ‘adventure tourers’ which sacrificed a chunk of off-road pretention for Tarmac performance, and every generation of upgrades has moved things on even more. If you’ve never ridden a Multistrada – any of the post-2010 models – you really owe it to yourself to have a spin.
Today is a recap of that performance, plus a quick taster of the Grand Tour accoutrements. To be fair, much of those extras are a bit moot today: things like a centre stand, the active cruise control, blind spot detection radar, tyre pressure monitoring and keyless fuel cap locking is stuff to make life easier on big, long-distance trips.
But the heated grips and seat are very welcome on this early April afternoon, the massive colour dash is a joy, and the Skyhook suspension is brilliant. The new Self-Levelling, Easy Lift and Minimum Preload functions all make it a bit easier to handle the big old Multistrada, especially if, like me, you’re not particularly tall.
As it is, the Grand Tour is a lovely place to be on the road. The performance is simply stunning, with overtakes happening in the blink of an eye, enormous grunty drive out of a bend, and a super-comfy, magic-carpet feel to the ride.
Turn up the wick to chase a mate on a sportsbike though, and you’ll never be far behind. It also feels like a bike you could ride a very long way on, for a very long time, in massive comfort. It’s so quick and high-tech that it feels like you’re on one of Elon Musk’s fancy rocketships (though the Ducati will be blowing up a LOT less often we predict…)
At £23,595, the Multistrada Grand Tour is priced a little like a piece of space hardware too. But it’s 2024, and that seems to be the new pricing paradigm in which we live.
If you’re in the market for a big fast distance too, and can swing the monthly payments, we don’t think you’ll be disappointed. Get along to a Ducati dealer for a demo now is our advice.
More info on the 2024 Ducati range: www.ducati.com
Words by Alan Dowds
Image Credit Gareth Harford