Spy Photos: Ducati Scrambler Caught Testing

It seems that no sooner did Ducati tease us its upcoming Scrambler model, than the Italian motorcycle maker was busy sound-testing its latest machine for road homologation.

Luckily, we have some spy photos from that event, and not only do we get to see what the near-finished form of the Ducati Scrambler looks like, but we also get a glimpse into what has to be the most ridiculous looking tests we have ever seen.

Unless we missed the part where the 2015 Ducati Scrambler will operate as a submersible, in addition to its expect on/off-road capabilities, the photos attached here (two more after the jump) show the great lengths that manufacturers must go to in order to pass all the stringent government protocols for motorcycles.

You will note that the photo above shows us the obviously not finished underslung exhaust, with its GP-style exit. And, we can also see clearly the cast wheels that Ducati has selected for the Scrambler, which might irk some diehards who were expecting a more properly laced-up wheelset, for the Scramblers supposed dual-sport activities.

Unsurprisingly, we can clearly see the Scrambler’s air-cooled v-twin engine, which we hear will be either of 696cc or 796cc in displacement — Ducati having come to the conclusion that a proper single-cylinder engine would be too costly to design and build, and perhaps too risky, should the Scrambler not be successful at market.

It is of course impossible to miss the testing equipment involved, as it appears both emissions and noise tests are being performed on the Ducati Scrambler in these photos.

Of note in the images below is the metal enclosure around the motor and chassis of the bike. We assume this is designed to lessen the sound from the engine during the noise tests, so only the exhaust note is measured.

With a hose going from the exhaust, into a giant fuel canister, and then up a snorkel where an emissions monitor is held, we get a glimpse into how governments standardize their exhaust emissions testing procedures so that they can work model-to-model.

The laptop and forward-facing pipe are likely to measure the air particles coming into the intake…or someone lost a bet involving elephant pornography — it could go either way. A perhaps untraditional perspective from your typical motorcycle spy photography, we find this whole photo set to be doubly interesting.