While Ducati’s MHE and 900SS may be collectible and iconic now, they were seriously long in the tooth by the time they were discontinued, and even the Pantah-engined SS didn’t exactly offer cutting-edge performance when new. In order to keep their racing heritage alive in any meaningful sense, Ducati needed a top-shelf sportbike like the…
Just 500 of the classically-proportioned Ducati Paul Smart 1000LE bikes were imported to the US, with silver half-faired bodywork and a blue-green frame intended to recall the bike ridden to victory by Paul Smart at the Imola 200 in 1972, a win without which Ducati might not exist. Modern retro-styled bikes often use their throwback…
Unless you have access to one of NCR’s Desmosedici-based bikes, there is quite literally nothing on the road like the Ducati Superleggera. The idea is simple: take the Panigale 1199R and take a cost-no-object approach to making it perform better. Basically one-off every mass-produced component, un-cut every corner. I wonder if there’s even any steel…
Enough ink has been spilled complaining about the design of the Ducati 999, but two things are clear: it is a far more practical, useable motorcycle than the classic 916, with ergonomics that at least took actual human physiology into account and the controversial looks of the bike are aging well. To be honest, as…
Introduced in 1987, the 851 was a huge leap forward for Ducati, adding four-valve heads, liquid-cooling, and fuel-injection to their 90° v-twin. The resulting engine was good for a claimed 93hp at the rear wheel and was dubbed the “Desmoquattro” for obvious reasons. The new bike allowed Ducati to again be competitive in racing, and…
2001 Ducati 748R on eBay Nobody would blame you for overlooking this one. I almost did. Just another guy who thinks his Ducati is worth way more than it really is, right? Maybe not. It turns out this is a very rare Ducati 748R. I happen to have a good friend who is a serious…
Introduced in 2008, the Bimota DB7 is yet another collaboration with Ducati and has been one of their most successful bikes in terms, not only of sales numbers, but in terms of function. While they’ve always offered on-paper advantages over the bikes from which they borrow their engines, many Bimotas, right out of the box,…
The Paso has long been the low-cost entry into Ducati ownership, an often overlooked bike maligned for its slab-sided styling. Shockingly different when introduced and unfairly shunned by the oddly conservative Ducatisti, sales were disappointing. But in spite of its red-headed-stepchild reputation, the bike has the usual Ducati pedigree: it was designed by Massimo Tamburini,…
