New Ducati Multistrada V2
New Ducati Multistrada V2 which is, of course, their mid-range adventure touring bike.
And while they do look pretty similar with a fairly modest styling redesign, well, I think under the covers, there’s actually a really significant update here.
I’m going to tell you exactly why I think it’s such a big deal and also what effect it could have on the rest of the Ducati lineup.
End of Panigale V2
Now, this all starts with the announcement earlier this year that Ducati was set to discontinue their Panigale V2 sports bike or at least in its current form.
Specifically, their Superquadro V-Twin is set to cease production, and they announced this final addition, so it goes out with a bang, celebrating an iconic power unit that’s been used in many of Ducati’s sports bike over the years.
Ducati’s Shift Toward V4 Engines
Now, admittedly, Ducati have moved more recently, more so towards V4s in their top-end sports bikes, pretty much ever since they introduced that engine layout for their Moto GP program, and they’ve also gone on to use it in lots of other genre of bike right at the top their lineup.
But it still seems to me absolutely inconceivable that they wouldn’t have a thoroughbred sports bike powered by a V-Twin in their lineup, because I’d still argue it’s pretty much what they’re best known for.
Importance of the V-Twin
V-twins are synonymous with the Ducati brand, or L-Twins, if you prefer, and some of their most iconic models, in fact, most of their most iconic models, and some of the most iconic models across the whole motorcycle market, have, of course, been powered by a V-Twin.
On top of that, there’s a pretty big gap in their lineup now, especially for a company who’s renowned for making sports bikes between the Super Sport, which is down at 110 horsepower, and the Panigale V4s,
which are up over 200. So you have to think they must be looking at bringing something in to bridge that gap.
The thing is, though, engine development is complex and expensive.
Multistrada V2: Ducati’s Future Power Unit?
And so I think it would be unrealistic to expect Ducati to develop a whole new engine solely to power a Panigale V2 replacement. And so that’s where this new spied Multistrada V2 comes in.
The engine cases look absolutely nothing like the Testa Stretta V-twin that’s used in the current generation.
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if you put them side by side, you’ll see completely different casings, a completely different appearance.
And so presumably, this is where Ducati are heading.
In fact, visually, it seems to have more in common with the V4 engine, but naturally a fair bit slimmer. And I think that opens up quite a few questions.
Ducati’s Desmodromic Valves
You see, another signature feature of Ducati engines over the years has been their Desmodromic valves, which are both both opened and closed by finger followers, as opposed to being spring-actuated like most other valves in most other engines.
The benefit of this is it means they can operate better at higher RPMs, which leads to more peak power.
But the downside is they need service in regularly, and also they’re fairly complicated to service, so that makes it quite expensive.
Now, maybe that performance versus practicality trade-off is one that some people will be willing to make for an exotic sports bike that they only take out fairly occasionally.
But if you’re big miles on the regular, then it’s probably something you could do without.
Multistrada V4 Gran Turismo Engine
That is exactly why for the version of their V4 that they’ve used in the Multistrada V4 adventure bike, the V4 Gran Turismo, they decided to make a pretty big move and risk the wrath of the most dedicated Ducati fans by ditching the Desmo valves for regular old boring spring-actuated valves.
Service intervals are humongous on that bike.
It’s really quite impressive, even versus other spring-actuated valve-powered bikes.
And so given that this engine looks like it’s going to have to be a versatile all-rounder and it’s not necessarily going to be the most performant and high-rev in, then you’ve got to wonder if they’re going to go down the same route here, too.
Versatile Engine for Multiple Ducati Models
Certainly, it doesn’t look like it’s got the same timing belts running down the side as the Testa Stretta.
And although that doesn’t mean it’s not a Desmo, clearly, it’s still a very different architecture.
And look, the reason I say it’s got to be a fairly versatile all-rounder is because the Testa Stretter in the current Multi V4 is actually used in a whole a bunch of different bikes.
There’s also the Monster Naked, the Hypermotard 950 big Supermoto type thing, the Desert X off-road-biased adventure bike, and also the Super Sport, which is a relaxed sports bike for the road that I mentioned earlier.
I think it’s fair to say an engine change for the Multi V2, you’d have to assume over the next year or two, the rest of these bikes are going to be getting it as well.
Performance and Power
Now, in terms of performance, all of these bikes make roughly between 110 horsepower peak and 115, with slightly varying states of tune for the Testa Stretta to suit the specific application of that genre.
You’ve got to wonder, though, if this new engine is going to lead to a significant performance boost across all those bikes in the Ducati lineup, especially considering that that’s one of the reasons that the Super Sport, although it is technically a sports bike, just really isn’t a fit replacement for something like a Panigale V2.
It’s way more relaxed in the riding position. It’s way more relaxed in the chassis.
But also that 110 horsepower is just such a long way from the 155 horsepower peak that the Superquadro makes in this final addition.
If this new V-twin could get even halfway towards that figure, then although it’ll still be a bit of a disappointment, I think, for proper diehard Panigale V2 fans, it’d still be deemed a far more acceptable replacement than the Testa Stretta.
Weight Reduction and Efficiency
The other improvement it could bring as well is weight. The Testa Stretta is fairly old now.
I think in a recent update, they managed to shave one and a half kilograms or something, but ultimately it’s still fairly weighty, and so perhaps in starting from scratch, that will allow them to design something much lighter. Of course, the engine is one of the most significant weighty components in the bike, and so it could help to bring the total weight down of quite a lot of bikes there in the lineup.
Just to be more specific as well, the Panigale V2 in this Superquadro final edition is 190 kilograms wet, and the Super Sport comes in at 205 kilograms wet.
So you can see there’s quite a way to go to produce something that feels similar.
So basically, What I think we’ve got here is an engine that replaces both the Testa Stretta and the Superquadro and probably sits somewhere in between in terms of what it can produce.
Removing the Desmo valves could increase service intervals and help to keep the weight down, but of course, you’re going to sacrifice some of that signature Ducati flair and character.
But also I think they’ll have to make it significantly more powerful than the Testa Stretta for it to go anywhere near the Panigale name.
Then you’ve also got increasingly strict emissions regulations, which got to comply with. So perhaps they can achieve all of these things with this new V-twin.