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3B43

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Last night I sold my very nicely set up '08 FZ1. It went to a good friend of mine and she'll have a nice home. Am I getting out of m/c? Ahhhh.........NO! I'll be picking up my new bike this weekend.....(drumroll please!)..........

Ducati Multistrada!!!!!
 
I test rode it last week and it was simply stunning! Cycle World said, 'comfort of a touring bike, with the performance of a sport bike!'. Couldn't have said it better myself.
 
Since the nearest dealer is 250+ miles away....and I'm taking off for a 2000 mile trip very shortly, I'll definitely give a ride report and compare it to my very nicely set up FZ.
 
I picked up my '12 MultiStrada on Aug 24....3 months later I had 5000 miles on it! Haven't ridden it much in Dec, due to the weather (RAIN!!) So.....after all those miles on my FZ and now ridding a MTS for a few months, do I have any comments/opinion? YUP!!

1) I paid $8400 OTD for my new FZ (almost 2 yrs old, but in the crate) and 10K MORE for my MultiStrada---is it worth that much more $$$? Well, yes and no! First of all, it's very difficult to explain/describe how the MTS rides/behaves & 'responds'! It's almost telepathic!!! It feels 50-75 lbs lighter then the FZ, but weighs the same. It steers much lighter, and part of that is the higher/wider bars, but I had higher/slightly wider bars on my FZ, and there is really no comparison in that part.

Brakes: no comparison...not just stronger, but much more feel and feedback. I was getting ready to put a radial master cylinder on the FZ, to see if that would help 'feel', but sold it prior ( side note: I 'thought' the brakes on my FZ were great, until I bought a Gixxer 600 track/race bike....)

Motor: apples vs oranges. FZ is like an electric bike where the 'twin' you feel it between your legs. Not so much vibration, because it doesn't really 'vibrate', more like you know it's there. Popping 2nd & 3rd gear wheelies by just rolling the throttle just makes me giggle & smile! Lots of torque, BUT....the fueling below 3500 SUCKS! There are fixes and I did the simple/cheap one, which cured about 50-60% of it.

Suspension: the FZ's sucked, but I put an Ohlin on the rear which improved things 1000%. Front is the front! MTS has Ohlin's front/rear, and its ALOT better, but its sprung way too softly for me. I've got the springs, but haven't installed them yet, due to the 'weather'. Input from other riders are the new springs make it 'purrfect'!

Intangibles: simply put, the bike is just magical to ride! To some, the extra $$$ is NOT worth it, which I can understand. For me...ever time I ride her, I smile, giggle, and laugh! I'm glad I bought her!

Story: a friend of mine, after 7 yrs on a Honda ST, decided to buy a BMW RT. ridding home from Sacramento, I asked him if he wanted to switch bikes...of course he did. He rode the bike from Willits to Garberville (for those of you that know that piece of road). He took his helmet off and said, "why would you buy a BMW when you could buy that?"
 
3B43 said:
I picked up my '12 MultiStrada on Aug 24....3 months later I had 5000 miles on it! Haven't ridden it much in Dec, due to the weather (RAIN!!) So.....after all those miles on my FZ and now ridding a MTS for a few months, do I have any comments/opinion? YUP!!

1) I paid $8400 OTD for my new FZ (almost 2 yrs old, but in the crate) and 10K MORE for my MultiStrada---is it worth that much more $$$? Well, yes and no! First of all, it's very difficult to explain/describe how the MTS rides/behaves & 'responds'! It's almost telepathic!!! It feels 50-75 lbs lighter then the FZ, but weighs the same. It steers much lighter, and part of that is the higher/wider bars, but I had higher/slightly wider bars on my FZ, and there is really no comparison in that part.

Brakes: no comparison...not just stronger, but much more feel and feedback. I was getting ready to put a radial master cylinder on the FZ, to see if that would help 'feel', but sold it prior ( side note: I 'thought' the brakes on my FZ were great, until I bought a Gixxer 600 track/race bike....)

Motor: apples vs oranges. FZ is like an electric bike where the 'twin' you feel it between your legs. Not so much vibration, because it doesn't really 'vibrate', more like you know it's there. Popping 2nd & 3rd gear wheelies by just rolling the throttle just makes me giggle & smile! Lots of torque, BUT....the fueling below 3500 SUCKS! There are fixes and I did the simple/cheap one, which cured about 50-60% of it.

Suspension: the FZ's sucked, but I put an Ohlin on the rear which improved things 1000%. Front is the front! MTS has Ohlin's front/rear, and its ALOT better, but its sprung way too softly for me. I've got the springs, but haven't installed them yet, due to the 'weather'. Input from other riders are the new springs make it 'purrfect'!

Intangibles: simply put, the bike is just magical to ride! To some, the extra $$$ is NOT worth it, which I can understand. For me...ever time I ride her, I smile, giggle, and laugh! I'm glad I bought her!

Story: a friend of mine, after 7 yrs on a Honda ST, decided to buy a BMW RT. ridding home from Sacramento, I asked him if he wanted to switch bikes...of course he did. He rode the bike from Willits to Garberville (for those of you that know that piece of road). He took his helmet off and said, "why would you buy a BMW when you could buy that?"
Click to expand...

Sounds like a tops bike.
Got any pics?

Sent from my SG3
 
Wow, thanks for the review! :)
If I ever decide to replace my FZ1, it will be a tough choice between the MultiStrada and a BMW... The MultiStrada has it all over the BMW's for looks and noise in my opinion...
:tup:
 
FWIW.....when I decided to sell my FZ, the ONLY bike I considered was the MTS. I briefly considered the new Tuono, but since the majority of my ridding is long day rides + several 3-10 day rides/year, the no luggage/wind protection of the Tuono killed that idea. IF the Jap's built a MTS clone, on a Gixxer/R1/etc, I'd have bought it, but......I think they're missing a very nice niche in the market. Most guys that buy a MTS are my age (56) and can afford a $350 m/c payment and if a Gixxer was available with the ridding position/bags/etc., it would sell. While the FZ is a great bike, for the price, it does NOT have the suspension, brakes, etc that the R1 has and I, for one, am totally willing to pay the extra $$$ for those 'extras'!
 
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