Ducati 1098 Streetfighter 2011 model motorcycle test

Menus

• Street superbike
• She wants to see the sky
• Fork at arm’s length
• Attention tracker
• Cold sweat
• No protection
• In the city
• Practical aspects
• Duo
• Conclusion

Street superbike

By grafting a superbike engine onto this incisive cycle part, Ducati goes a step further in its vision of the ultimate roadster. More than just a 4-valve engine on a Monster, the Streetfighter imposes a new genre. As indicated by his name.

All shots are allowed. Referee on the mat, it is knees and nudges at each turn with this machine. The grip is radical, almost intimidating. The line is polished, the curves arched. A real hourglass figure with an Asian hornet mill, this wicked and big insect that devours little bees by inviting itself into an ecosystem not armed to fight against it. In this image, the streetfighter is a UFO. We forget the natural position of a roadster, sometimes sport typed on some models, to taste the exclusivity. Once you step over the rear hull facing the sky, you take a little time to find your place. Difficult to be everywhere at the same time. We first try to look at the road and familiarize ourselves with the controls..

She wants to see the sky

After only a few hectometers, and even in the 100 horsepower version, you immediately feel the connection with the 1098. The engine could not be more present and imposes its ardor at each go-around. Fire starts are surprising. A clutch lever released a little late and the bike stands up immediately, as if it was normal. In second, it’s the same. Either we look for the cabriole using the clutch, or we take advantage of the relief of the road to adopt this figure of style in favor of a bump or the beginning of a hill. What is certain is that the torque of more than 9.8 mKg (11.7 mKg in free for 155 horses) will be of all the maneuvers.

Fork at arm’s length

Little by little, we find our place on the machine. We think of moving back from the tank on this saddle which makes us slide towards the element which contains 16.5 liters. And there, we forget the first pain in the knees that hit against the frame. Once the pilot has moved back, the joints slide under the notches to tighten a tank of transalpine finesse. The bust is squarely tilted towards the road. Curious, we can see the coat of arms of the Bologna firm flanked on the front mudguard without having to crane. With this feeling that the arms directly support the jolts of the front wheel, as if the hands were placed directly on the hub. They are in any case in the axis of the fork, detail which seems wanted in view of the asymmetric fork bridge and tilted in this direction

.

Attention tracker

The instructions assimilated, we quickly realize that it is impossible to stay in the nails of the legislation with such a device. To comply, you have to stay in fourth gear and forget to cross in sixth. Because, if you want to stay above 4,000 rpm, a necessary regime not to abuse the crankshaft, you have to review your habits. FYI, at 4,000 rpm, the bike crosses at 120 km / h in six. And just ask to open his lungs.

As rigid as Ducati is used to designing them, the Streetfighter’s frame is no exception to the rule. And the machine turns all at once or does not turn. With a few kilometers in the arms, the aches of the first day passed, we dare a little more with the machine. What is certain is that it requires the engagement of the pilot to be swung from one turn to another. In this game, we quickly realize that the bike is cut for the attack. The sway is essential as a rule of comfort to impose its rhythm on the machine and not undergo its stiffness. A real track bike, which reacts with precision to what is asked of it.

Cold sweat

We then start to think that the tool is a little more familiar. This is usually when you need to know how to calm down. Because we quickly forget the ardor of this engine, although castrated at 100 horsepower. And that continues to surprise, even when the pace picks up. A little quick exit from the turn with a particular relief and the machine will quickly remind you that it is light.

The front axle indeed displays a certain propensity to rear up. Which can be both exciting and terrifying. It all depends on the traffic conditions. So we come back down to earth and we learn to ride with one more gear to avoid getting out of the rear wheel of the slightest turn. It helps to stay whole. Especially since the rear brake lever which could help calm the ardor of the machine is not easy to find. In fact, it is because of the cover attached to the double exhaust that the right foot is not aligned in parallel with the machine. And goes against the habits a little. If at the attack, the detail does not interfere because of the mobility of the rider on the bike, in cooler use, we often look for the command.

No protection

Fortunately, to stop the some 169 kg (manufacturer’s data) of the motorcycle, the double Brembo disc clamped by calipers with radial mounts, is more than sufficient. Even formidable. It gives the impression of a reverse gear. The opportunity to drop a few reports to start afresh with this feeling of being a ram, the use of which is to repel air. Make no mistake, the ram will be you, because the Streetfighter does not provide any protection. We take everything live without having the choice, except to find it pleasant.

In the city

Out of a well-paved departmental traffic, one can risk going into town. It is obviously not the ideal playground, if not to be seen on the handlebars of this very beautiful machine. The noise of the twin and the two superimposed exhausts will call the eyes which will linger on the very beautiful rim released by the single arm or the particularly successful rear loop which recalls the MV Agusta. Beware of slippery cobbles, the couple will be happy to burn the rear wheel when passing and beware of U-turn maneuvers. The machine is not the best at exercising.

Practical aspects

On this point, we might as well say that there is none. Apart from a small cable slipped under the seat backrest to hang a helmet, the machine is not the easiest. It is above all a beautiful object which has not made a single effort at the risk of breaking its beautiful line. This is also what we ask of this kind of motorcycles.

Duo

And this is what often appeals to young girls who fall for the line of a Monster without knowing what awaits them in the passenger seat. Here again, Ducati is pushing the exercise to its limits. The saddle allocated to the duo should only be considered as a breakdown to go quietly to the movies, no more.

Conclusion

For those who shun fairings but want to ride a real sports car, the Streetfighter provides a more radical answer than many trackers can offer. There’s not just a Superbike engine in that red frame but a real unreasonable machine that requires a lot of experience to be ridden, even castrated at 100 horsepower. It requires both physical commitment and concentration to be piloted, even without the pretension to start a pendulum. A real beautiful and brutal machine whose keys are returned with a mixture of fear and desire. That of raising the tidy sum of € 15,290 to see it again as soon as possible, in red or pearly white.

Strong points

• Expressive engine
• Dantesque braking
• Amazing look

Weak points

• Demanding machine
• Radical position
• Non-existent protection

Competitors:

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