Episode 56 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is out with another weekly episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
Ducatisti who bemoaned that the Multistrada V4 would come with a 19″ front wheel and a double-sided swingarm should be happy about today’s news, since a 17″ version of the ADV bike has been spotted, with a single-sided swingarm to boot.
Spotted by our friends at Moto.it, the model is being tipped for a 2022 debut, and could be the rumored “Pikes Peak” bike that has come out in US government documents.
For four-and-a-half years now, Ducati has had an ongoing recall with the XDiavel motorcycle and its faulty kickstand design. Today, we get news that problems stemming from this performance cruiser’s side stand continue on.
This iteration of the Ducati XDiavel kickstand recall sees the kickstand bracket at fault, as it may fatigue under load, which could result in a failure of the side stand assembly and a potential for the motorcycle to fall when stationary on the stand.
Episode 186 of the Paddock Pass Podcast is out, and this one get us ready for the MotoGP action, as we dissect what we can learn from the MotoGP team launches from Ducati, KTM, and Yamaha.
To handle that topic, we have Neil Morrison, Steve English, David Emmett, and Adam Wheeler on the mics, as they discuss what the riders and team bosses had to say about the upcoming MotoGP Championship.
Episode 54 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is out with another weekly episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
Back in the studios…sorta…we recorded this show for you in the aftermath of a snow and ice storm, and in the middle of a power outage. Lit by candles, we cover only three topics in this show, but it will take you two hours to get through all of it.
One of the most anticipated motorcycles of the 2021 model year is finally here for us to test, and in case the title to this review didn’t give it away, I am talking about the Ducati Multistrada V4 adventure bike.
Ducati has teased us long enough on this new ADV machine, including giving us an early look at its new Granturismo V4 motor, which is most notable for its lack of desmodromic valves. *Gasp* goes the Ducatisti collective.
With 168hp (125 kW) on tap, and 92 lbs•ft of peak torque coming from the compact V4 engine, it is hard to imagine why anyone would complain about what is beneath the fairings on this new Multistrada model, but then again…Ducati did leave a few sacred cows on the slaughterhouse floor when designing this motorcycle.
A pillar to Ducati’s two-wheeled lineup, the Multistrada V4 is a critical bike for Ducati to get right, as it accounts for roughly 20% of the company’s unit sales.
And for all of its changes and upgrades, the Multistrada V4 continues Ducati’s core principle for the Multistrada lineup – of having a model that is four motorcycles in one.
To see if Ducati got this recipe correct, the Italian brand invited us down to Borrego Springs, California, to ride the 2021 Ducati Multistrada V4 S in the Anza-Borrego Desert State Park.
Our ride involved equal parts of curvy mountain roads and sandy desert tracks, giving us a good glimpse of what the Multistrada V4 S was capable of on the street and in the dirt.
The verdict? It’s a big one. If there was only one motorcycle we could buy with our hard-earned blogging dollars, this would be it. The Ducati Multistrada V4 S is the new standard in the premium ADV space. Let me explain.
As the 2021 MotoGP Championship season rapidly approaches, we are beginning to see our first glimpses of the bikes that will be on the grid this year. First up is Ducati Corse.
The much rumored, much anticipated Ducati Multistrada V4 S is finally hitting US soil (in dealers, as we speak) and today we get a chance to ride this new adventure bike in anger.
Ducati North America has brought us to the Anza-Borrego desert in California to try this new machine, and put it through its paces both on the street and in the dirt.
Our bikes are also equipped with the new front and rear RADAR systems from Bosch, which means that we will get to test the adaptive cruise control and blind spot warning systems on the Ducati Multistrada V4 S, even though they won’t officially be available on the bikes until later this summer.
It should be a lively day of riding, and a prime chance to get your questions in about this machine and its new systems.
The Italians have been talking a big game with the new Multistrada V4, so we will be looking to see if this Ducati can top the very best in the big-bike ADV class.
Per our new review format, I will be giving you a live assessment of the Ducati Multistrada V4 S right here in this article (down in the comments section), and I will try to answer any questions you might have about this exciting motorcycle.
So, here is your chance to learn what it’s like to ride the Ducati Multistrada V4 S, before even our own proper review is posted.
As always, if I don’t know an answer, I will try to get a response from the Ducati personnel. So, pepper away.
You can follow our thoughts on the bike live via Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram, and you can see what our colleagues are posting by looking for the hashtag #MultistradaV4 on social media.
Spec-Sheet Comparison of Relevant Models to the Ducati Multistrada V4 S:
| Ducati Multistrada V4 S | BMW R1250GS | KTM 1290 Adventure S | |
| Horsepower | 168 hp | 136 hp | 158 hp |
| Torque | 92 lbs•ft | 105 lbs•ft | 103 lbs•ft |
| Weight | 529 lbs (wet) | 549 lbs (wet) | 524 lbs (wet) |
| Engine | 1,158cc / V4 | 1,254cc / Boxer-Twin | 1,301cc / 75° V-Twin |
| Price (w/ bags) | $24,095 | $22,415 | $19,847 |
Source: Ducati
Episode 53 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is out with another weekly episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
Since we are on the road right now, we thought we would dig up this old episode that for whatever reason just didn’t get out on time when we first recorded it.
It was recorded in July 2020, so you will hear some dated references in the discussion, but we think the content holds up pretty well. Don’t worry, we will be back to present time next week, with plenty to talk about.
The beancounters are working hard to close the books on 2020, which means we are starting to see our first reports on the total economic situation from last year.
With factory closures, disrupted supply chains, and stay-at-home orders featuring heavily in the first-half of the year, the coronavirus decimated motorcycle sales worldwide.
Then, the second-half of the year saw a huge bump in two-wheel interest, buoyed by economic relief efforts, delayed sales trends, and a renewed interest in the ultimate social-distancing machine.
This makes for a grab bag of perspectives when it comes to motorcycles sales, and nothing could be more true than what Ducati Motor Holding is reporting today.
Episode 49 of the Brap Talk motorcycle podcast is back with another weekly episode, for your two-wheeled listening pleasure.
As we bring you our first podcast of 2021, Shahin and I want to wish everyone a Brappy New Year! Though we take a circuitous route, the episode covers three main topics.