quote:

Originally posted by armedprof:
I have wanted a sport bike since ...

So if you can afford one and buying and riding gives you pleasure then [ b]YOLO![/b] by God, and life is too short.

I have requests:
1. Act responsibly at all times.
2. ATGATT.
3. Take out $25M life insurance specifically for MC riders, naming me sole beneficiary.
4. Get out and set a new Sea-to-Sea solo motorcycle record.

If you haven't had a bike in a while (can't tell from how your post was written), maybe buy a $3 or $4k bike, ride it for a season, sell it, and then buy the Ducati? Dropping a Ducati in the driveway because you are out of practice would be expensive and inconvenient.

Ducati’s used to be ridiculously expensive to service but newer bikes are not much different from anyone else’s top tier street bikes nowadays. My previous bike was a ZX-7R which while a little porky compared to competitors 750’s, was still a formidable machine. My current ride, an 09 Yamaha FJR-1300 is a pig by comparison, but surprisingly nimble once you get rolling. If you’re physically fit enough to enjoy it and financially able, why not?

I say do it.
I was really close to buying a Monster in 2008 when I lived in SLC. Had the canyons right there and a track in Tooele.
Ended up with a Kawasaki Z1000 and loved that bike too.
Do it now while you can.

Get the Ducati.

When I bought my ZX-9R for $10k out the door in 1998, a Ducati 916 would have been $15k. I still have the ZX-9R and I still want a Ducati. The good news is that through the magic of compounding interest that $5k I saved back then will buy a new Ducati. The bad news is I now have a wife, three teenage kids, a dog, and the Ducati is going to be a want for a while longer.

Beautiful machines, challenging to ride well for most people and miserable to service. It's not a bike I'd want to jump on getting back into the saddle after decades off a bike.

I think you should consider buying a used bike. There are a lot of used Panigales with low miles. If you think you want to ride it a lot, consider getting the Supersport instead. It has the sporty looks but is more comfortable. Better yet, get a Panigale to ride on occasion and stare at its beauty and also buy a KTM 890 Duke R. I've had high horsepower sport bikes and they are great for mind blowing speed but my KTM Duke R is more fun to ride than any of them. Also, if you get a Panigale, get the V4 just for the awesome sound.

Do it. You only live once and you need to enjoy it.

Ducati is very nice. I would say do yourself a favor and also research Aprilia. I owned two Aprilia Mille 1000 sport bikes and the discount on a used model is steeeeeeep! They are phenomenal bikes with virtually Honda like reliability with Italian heritage.

They used to (maybe still do?) use Rotax V-twin engines.I rode thousands of miles on mine and never had any trouble and only needed occasional PM.

I miss bikes and if I were buying one today (49) I would look really hard at a used Aprilia Tuono.

I'm sure Aprilia makes their own engines now. They're part of the large Piaggio group.

Yup...They do, and have done so for some time now! The RS660 is a particularly interesting Aprilia worthy of serious consideration...



Here's an excellent tech article on the Aprilia RSV4 engine.

https://www.cycleworld.com/201...rsv4-factory-engine/

The Aprilia RS660 engine is, for all intents and purposes, the front two cylinders of the RSV4 engine. The 270 parallel twin of the RS660 essentially duplicates much of the performance characteristics of a 90 degree V-Twin/L-Twin engine (and even sports a similar exhaust note/rhythm!) in simpler and much more compact (and more easily serviced) package!

Missing --- Rain Suite.

Wet Clutch vs Dry Clutch

Read the article, watch the video, and read the messages. Cheers.

If I were newly single, I'd buy a Ducati (or two) to display in my living room. For regular riding, however, I'm sticking with my BMW S1000R and may grab an R1250GS soon.

Back around the turn of the century one of my Corporals had a spiffy Duke of some kind - might have been a 888? Anyhow, he took it to the big bikefest here at Peterborough and crossed the path from tarmac to grass - or rather, he meant to do that. Instead, he caught the front tyre obliquely in the rounded concrete kerb, and fell over at around 3mph. It cost, then, around $3000 to put right.

Budget a LOT for what would be minor bits on a lesser bike - think like it's ALL Ferrari F40-priced.

That is an amazing motorcycle. My only hesitation would be if that was my only motorcycle. Personally I can’t spend very much time on a purpose build sport bike like that. Built for the track that is where it is best used. There are so many other options that add in some comfort and the usability.

The Supersport with the Termi exhaust is nice as well and built for street riding.

Whatever you choose enjoy the ride.

They're all comfortable for about as long as you'd take it on a test ride.

Test ride the Panigale.
Price insurance too!

But I would get the bike I want,
don't get a Monster because it's cheaper,
don't get a Multistrada because ADV is what's cool right now.

Taking a motorcycle safety course to refresh you is a good idea too, may lower your insurance premium as well.

Co-worker tracked a Ducati for a few years. Several issues took him to the Aprilia dealer.

The Ducatis are drop dead sexy.

I have a less sexy motorcycle, though it’s fine for me, CB-1100. Yeah, you could scratch the itch for less that 1/2 of the $20k.

I heed the warnings about driving defensively, even planning routes that may be longer, but less busy. I expect to be invisible to others while driving.

If you have the coin, no reason not to.

If you want one buy one, life is short and no one knows what the future holds. If I were to buy a Ducati I'd go for the V4S Multistrada Pikes Peak, sport bike performance with comfortable riding ergos. Good luck and ride safe