We bought a 1200RT in 2011 because we were travelling a lot, both in weekends and holidays but, in the last 2 years, my wife is coming less often with me and 90% of the rides, I find myself alone doing curvy roads with a motorbike which is great for touring two up. So, I started thinking about just the opposite; I bike which will be fun in the curves but we could also use it occasionally for travelling. So, I started searching for motorbikes around 230kg, with more than 100cv, with seat height around 830mm, nor naked neither “RR” type and with 17 inches front wheel. And this how I ended up with the BMW S1000XR and the Multistrada 1200s. I test rode the BMW and OMG how quick is it! There is one bike below 4500 rpms and another bike (angrier) above. It is also easy to move around with traffic. The gas was extremely sensible or could be my fault as I am not used to 4L engines. I started a post here asking what shall I look after when buying a used MTS and, a couple of days later, I was able to test it. It is really fast, different engine than the BMW but also with 2 distinctive characters. I loved the screen and the different setting you can play with. The only think I didn´t like was that, in a couple of times, I was not able to change the gear and went to N (I guess I need to be more “aggressive” when changing gears). And, at the end, I purchased the MTS. In the way back to the BMW dealer, I thought “let´s drive like my wife would be in the pillion seat”…it is impossible. You exit a village, you accelerate smoothly until 120km/h (maximum speed 100km/h) and the bike is looking at you and saying “come on!!” So, you move slightly the gas and you are already at 170km/h. And, under 3000 rpms, the pegs vibrate, the seat vibrates, the tank vibrates and you too! The Multistrada is, indeed, more “Multi” and allows you to go relaxed if you fancy or to do some very spirited driving. As you see, there was some rain yesterday. Any recommendation for a good oil for the chain? Is the one sold at Ducati dealers any good?
Welcome to the club! I often ride my Multi in the city and I found the DVT to be a big improvement over the old model. It's not a smooth bike and I agree it likes to be ridden harder. At 3,000 revs it's only just ticking over, 4,500 would be better. When it came time to change my chain I increased the rear sprocket by 2 teeth which makes it even better at low revs. The original chain is poor quality, they all seem to rust but any sort of chain oil/lube will be fine, no need to buy it from Ducati. You need to be positive with the gear change but sometimes it's a good idea to adjust the lever to fit your feet and style. Enjoy the bike and if you want some fellow owners to ride with you could join some of us on the EMM trip later in the year. https://www.motoroutes.net/emm2018
Welcome along. With regard to the original Ducati chain, they are crap, and my advice is to replace it with a quality Afam/DID etc.
As stated above.... No point in letting revs drop below 3000 rpm, it is not an inline 4 cylinder bike, and cannot be ridden the same. On the open road i do not drop below 5000 rpm.....And welcome to our world ot the bike making us be naughty!!
Thanks a lot for the warm welcome! Point noted about how to drive this engine but, unfortunately, next days will be really bad weather. Regarding the chain oil, I just brought in Amazon a can of Castrol Oil for O-R chains and also a can of Castrol chain cleaner. Thanks for the link Twin4me, it looks really interesting but I will be on holiday at the same dates.
Castrol is good but definitely likes to be applied onto a warmed up chain, otherwise can fling a bit off.
A thing not mentioned much but If you put a top case on the rear for when you ride with your wife you will find that she will be very pleased with the space and comfort that the multistrada provides. As for chain lube I personally like Wurth dry chain because its nice and sticky
Thanks again! Really appreciate your welcome and "hints". Regarding oiling the chain it is new world to me after so many years with cardan . So I will now change my "mental process" and make sure I use the Castrol oil when back from a ride and the chain is still warm. I didn´t know abut the space for my wife, good news too!. I guess I am too new in the forum and this is why I can´t "like" your very good suggestions.
