Well after 15 months with the Blade I have traded it in for an 899. I have had eight Ducati's over the years with the odd non Italian in between. I couldn't fault the Blade, it did everything that was asked of it easily but I like the involvement you get from a Ducati, they are definitely one of those bikes you love or hate. If you do not ride them right they can feel like a tractor but when you get it right they reward you with a superb ride. It's a bit late in the year to be changing but after being given insulting prices for the Blade a local dealer made me a great offer that I decided to go for. As mentioned I really liked the Blade, time will tell how I find the 899. Riding home I found the 899 felt tiny and so light compared to the Honda and it seemed much lighter to steer. It obviously didn't have the instant power in any gear like the Blade but the speed is very deceptive on a Ducati. The crap weather now means it may not even get out again this year but here's hoping.
Stunning - mate has done about 4k on his one now and loves it to bits, he swapped from a Blade to it and also says it just feels right, in a way the larger one felt too much for the road / real life. He's had no problems at all with it
Very nice! Well after the new bikes have been shown off the panagale is certainly still the best looking bike on the market imo
Need a tail tidy so I can remove the scaffolding from the back, also a seat cowl but need to sell my remaining Honda bits first or my life will not be worth living. The conversation when I informed my Mrs that I was 'looking' at an 899 was along the lines of, 'I have seen a nice 899 for sale', 'You don't need a new bike, there is nothing wrong with the one you've got', 'But its a good deal and will not work out much more than we pay already', Its up to you, suit yourself' !!! Ten minutes later after I had rang the dealer to accept, the conversation was 'You have ordered it and we haven't even talked about it', Err yes we did, you said to suit myself. Women, they say one thing and mean something else. I cannot believe that I was getting offered £7k ( From a few dealers ) for a 13/13 HRC with only 2400 miles which made changing impossible, my local dealer wanted me back as a customer again so offered substantially more than that. It Is really loud, even with standard cans and at around £1000 ++ even with a discount Termi's will not be going on this one.
Yes I agree Arthur, it is really smooth compared to my 848, not that I have been far yet. The airbox noise is addictive.
Very nice, never really considered a Ducati before possibly due to a misguided fear of reliability/maintenance issues, Ducati's of old How do they compare with Japans offerings.
The older Ducati's are more of an acquired taste if you have never ridden one before. If you jump on one and expect it to be like a smooth inline four then you have a big shock coming. If you are in the wrong gear they bog down and shudder like they are going to fall to pieces and a lot of people just cannot get used to the fact that you have to ride them completely differently to any other bike you have ridden before. Think maybe being two gears different to what you would be in on a powerful inline four. The 899 though seems a different animal. Yes it will still bog down but I was surprised how smooth it actually was compared even to my more recent 848. I think riders jumping from an inline four now will not have as big a culture shock as they would have had switching to previous models. That said I noticed lots of people jumping into the 1199 when it was released as they 'needed' the latest and greatest machine. Three months ( Or less ) later and quite a few 1199's started appearing in the for sale sections. Riders that had never had a v twin before and expecting it to feel just like their cosy inline four were quickly giving up on them without giving themselves a chance. If you just learn how you need to ride a Ducati though then you will grow to love them and realise just how involving and rewarding they are to ride.
Love the new bike Ian, I am sure you will love it And thanks to the Blade going I have some new bits for my Blade You were a pleasure to do business with Hope you have some sunny autumn days before you pack the Ducati away for winter
Nice bike. Enjoy it. The only thing putting me off buying a Ducati is the cost of the servicing. I'm sure many of read the article in Fast Bikes recently where the guy had the 2000 pounds sevice done. Ouch!
Gone are the days of expensive servicing, no belts to change now so they are no more expensive than any other bike. If someone was charged £2k that cannot have been any service, you would have a full rebuild with other parts as well for that. I have had eight Ducatis and the most I paid was £450 ish and that was belts, valve check, all oils and filters and all new fluids. Most yearly services were around £150/£200 a couple even cheaper.
