Well my test ride was for 10AM at Riders in Bristol A short history of bikes I’ve owned in the past 10 years I’ve been riding. it’s not a long list but every bike I have owned i’ve loved. And I always take my time making sure the bike I want next I will be happy with for years to come. So i’ve owned a 600cc Fazer, New 1050cc Speed triple and currently a 2011 Honda Fireblade ABS. So only 3 bikes. I’ve never kept a bike for more than 3 years as I did with my Speed Triple but having the Fireblade for almost 5 years in Spring 2016 is a result of a bike that can do everything i throw at it. Touring Europe, Fast road and weekend out with mates and the occasional Track day. So the Panigale has a huge amount to live up to. HUGE. Well Andy was very helpful and took my details, ran me through the controls. Even with lots that can be changed and altered with regards to Engine mapping. Riders as a company only allow Accompanied rides which I was more than happy to do if it meant I had a chance to ride the Panigale . And the Rider was Another Andy lovely chap. We had a chat and he explained when type of roads we re going to ride. Some town 30’s, a few A & B roads and some By pass roads. Which was great for me as I always like to do pretty much that type of road on a test ride to see what it’s going to be like to live with What I was not expecting was how comfy the bike was to ride. I started on the Sport mode and half way though went to the Race mode but still had a little traction control set to 5and corner ABS set to 3 on the dash. I had to get used to the huge difference between the massive V Twin of the panigale compared to the smooth inline 4 of the Blade. Like anything a clutch always takes a little time to get used to but the Ducati was not hard to get used it. I also had to get used to the clutches up and downshifts which was fun in Sport mode but I what I found was changing the mode to Race mid test ride and then hitting a little wet under a few tree’s while kicking the gear shift without a clutch down a few gears made the rear tyre . Possibly due to the almost slick Supercorsa’s and wet roads. Another thing I found was how light the front end turned into corners. and how planted the bike felt when braking hard before corners and accelerating hard from the same corner. If felt really well planted. After a hour or so I got of the bike with a massive smile. I was shocked just how well the Panigale felt when riding. And how bikes in just 4-5 years have progressed from my lovely and faithful Fireblade to the High Tech Ducati Panigale 1299 which I hate to say I would be happy to replace the blade with. Lets shorten this down to Negatives : 1) Christ my old man got warm with the massive exhaust headers a only a few inches from my Todger. Once they got to sticky they did not warm up any more. It was not uncomfortable just warmer than I am used to. 2) Mirrors vibrated a lot and most speeds. they gave better rear visibility than my Blade Mirrors which only show my Shoulders but only when the Ducati was not moving. But who meeds to see anything behind when your on this beast. 3) OMG the standard exhaust is LOUD. Would it ever get on a track day with even 105db noise limits ! Positives: 1)comfy to ride. really i’m not kidding. i’m not small and 6ft 2” but found the seating position to be spot on. My legs felt good after the ride. No issues with leg room, The seat was as if not more comfy than my Gel touring seat on my Blade. 2) Christ on a bike it is quick and handles like a dream. 3) It looks beautiful. 4) everything else. I feel I would be happy too track this bike, Tour Europe and go out with mates for a lat over wales. OMG the noise of even the standard exhaust is Loud but lovely I'm only at the point of test riding a few bikes and the R1 is next on my list when and if a dealer has a bike local that I can test ride. before I make my choice and put my money down on a next bike in 2016. In short I loved it. I can’t bare to hand over an extra 4k for forged wheels and active suspension. So if I bought one I would be more than happy with the non S model.
Great write up, I have yet to try the 1299 but my 1199 is going in for its second year service very soon so hopefully they will let me have a play on the 1299 so I can compare the two back to back. It was interesting to read your comments on how comfy you found it, an hour on mine and I am walking like I have pooped my pants and cant lift my arms above my head. I would also like your to hear your take on low speed traffic, mine is an absolute bastard and I would imagine its something like breaking in a through breed stallion that's never had a saddle on its back. Every ride is a love /hate thing, I hate it at anything below 50mph and love it at anything that involves licence and life risk. Your absolutely right about the sound, mine has a full Termi system without the baffles and Jesus its a riot that batters the senses.
I did a fair bit of following cars at 30MPH and around town. it really felt as good as my blade. the proof would be having one for half a day and comparing but for the housing riding I felt fine and could have ridden for another hour before the need to stop just to stretch my legs. I've not ridden a ducati before and must say i was really impressed. I was expecting it to be a animal (which it is power wise) but was expecting a more extreme seating angle. for my size it was pretty much pot on
Interesting comparison of the 'Cooking' Panni and the 'S' in this months PB. The 'S' it seems is a good deal better but is it £4K better is down to U!
thanks for the heads up on PB i'll get it and see what they have to say. As for unbiased review I love bikes. I would never say one is better than another as I've not ridden loads. So I am not really in a position to say what is best just what I like and don't with any bikes i've ridden
Nice one mate! I'm picking my 899 Panigale up this Saturday, cannot wait. Surprising the amount of leg room you have aye!? I'm over 6ft3 and I would almost call it comfortable. I've specced the comfort seat on mine, "apparently" it's not as hot. Certainly more comfortable anyway.
Nice review mate. The 899 that i have tried on track was very good and i didnt felt any heat at all so thumbs up for me. The 1299 i would pressume it is even better so a tough choice to make for the next bike!!
