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Ducati V4 engine

The start of a new era

The Ducati V4 is already running on the test bench. It is not a cheap copy of the MotoGP engine, but a slightly tamed version of the racing engine. MOTORRAD participated in the first tests.

Test bench work is hard work. Countless load conditions
have to be combined with innumerable speeds. It is important to understand the engine first: How much fuel do you need to inject and when? How much pre-ignition is given at which point on the maps? How high can you compress without popping? And how far can you turn at all?
Only when the mechanics function reasonably painlessly does the targeted search for performance begin. And that’s exactly where the Ducati engineers are currently stuck with their V4 cylinder. "We need as many horses as possible," is the simple message from engine manager Gigi Mengoli. The Desmosedici is said to be the first series machine in the world to break the 200 HP bar. To underline the words of his boss, the man on the test bench lets the engine really get going: 10,000, 11,000, 12,000 rpm, the V4 already delivers much more power than any other Duc. Despite the armored glass pane, you get a gruesomely beautiful glimpse of his bear powers. The two small end tubes emit rather restrained sounds, no comparison to the earthquake hit. Road approval is the challenge for the engineers; thanks to the desmodromic valve control, they already have the exhaust gas values ​​under control.
Mengoli is happy because the V4 works on
Right away. Overall, it was only ten millimeters wider than
the racing engine and is actually a new design,
because the cylinder distances were chosen differently. AT
common shaft drives oil and water pumps, the cooling circuit also differs from that of the racer. "There are some things you would do with a GP engine today as it is here," says the happy maestro and proudly points out
the clever choice of the cooling water connections, which prevents water from running into the cylinder head when adjusting the valve. Of course, Mengoli does not reveal all the details.
What is certain is that the huge, 86 millimeter thick special pistons are connected to the 360-degree crankshaft via titanium connecting rods and the two crank pins are in
bind on one level. Find out the exact cubic capacity
we also: 989 cm3. This results in a stroke of
42.6 millimeters. The four camshafts are used to
Noise reduction driven by tensioned gear sets. There are four each in the combustion chambers
Generously dimensioned titanium valves, which are positively controlled by opening and closing levers. An effort that guarantees steep valve lift curves and high speed stability. The racing engine now reaches 17,400 rpm, and that without pneumatic valve springs. In the standard trim, you will stay below 16,000 rpm. Current 1000s put an end to at 13700 rpm.
Four measuring over 50 millimeters work in the airbox
Throttle valve, the idle regulation is done by a stepper motor. The cassette gear is very high in the engine block,
the waves on top of each other. This results in an extremely short engine housing, which allows the use of a long rear swing arm – without the wheelbase being too lush. As with the MotoGP bike, the engine is fully supporting the structure of the machine
integrated. The rocker arm and strut are mounted in the engine, the main frame is mounted on the cylinder heads.
“It will be a real MotoGP replica, not a blender,” explains Mengoli. “That’s why we can only build one a day.” The investment in casting molds would be far too high for large-scale production. But that has D.ucati already claimed. 17 years ago, when the original four-valve Desmo 851 was presented.

Ducati V4 engine

The start of a new era

–

€ 2.00

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