I am thinking of buying a 748/916/996/998 and, having scoured the Forums and most of the internet for a while now, I am struggling to decide on a model. I had to choose a prefix in the title, so do ignore that. I owned a 748 many years ago but made the mistake of trying to commute into town on it and it beat me up rather.... I had a Panigale for a while a couple of years ago and, although a newer and perhaps "better" bike, for me it didn't have the soul or wow factor of the original series. The fundamentals for my search are: The bike will be used purely for enjoyment, on dry days and on the road, rather than any track action It needs to be in good nick, but not a "collector" type of thing, which seem to be commanding north of £20k these days. As original as possible, save for Termis, if fitted (I'm not a fan of decals, stickers etc) and I prefer the monoposto look to BiP, but that isn't a deal breaker. I am unlikely to be setting any speed records or getting any knees down.... I love the look and sound of the bikes, and will be happy riding around the country roads, rather than shredding away into the distance. I am not even vaguely mechanically minded, so will be relying largely on a dealer for repairs and servicing. I will obviously be looking for as much service history, number of owners, belt changes etc as possible. Ideally, I would be looking to spend £5k-£6k but understand that I may need to move up from that to get the right bike. I think £9.5k would be the absolute tops. Not sure that I need to be looking for S, SPS, R etc, as much of what comes with those would be wasted on me I think. Red. Obviously. My thoughts so far are that another 748 would be a decent option for what I need, but I have been drawn towards the 998, due to the better engine, later models and, some say, smoother ride, if more powerful? I haven't totally disregarded the 916 and 996 either. To give a flavour, some examples I have looked at recently are: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1999-Duc...ommissioned-12K-Service-Included/174292604227 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ducati-916-Full-History-916-Plate-Stunning/254615045128 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ducati-998-Biposto-Low-Miles-One-Owner/283902455640 https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ducati-748/303586215159 Any thoughts would be gratefully received and apologies for the long post. Thanks
Welcome to the Forum Shuff and interesting dilemma. Out of the ones linked I’d go for the 998. I agree with ducv2 above a 998S would be my preferred choice (and is as I just bought one having done a load of research & soul searching like you) due to its relative rarity but that’s going to be above your ceiling price. You may also want to consider the 996S, better spec and again relatively rare. Depending when you want to but @Expat Jack has a very nice, clean & well sorted 996 he may sell later this year (at least you made noises about that anyway EJ).
For the use you describe I would go for the best 748 I could find as they tend to be cheaper allowing you to get one with the province you desire. Welcome to the forum by the way. Might be an idea to introduce yourself to everyone in the Newbies section.
Of those you’ve listed the 996 is stand out for me. Price, looks & the better shaped fairing than the 998 (imo obviously)
You've picked out red with all the above motorbikes,so that means your in the right fruit field from day one.Whatever you decide,good luck with your selection.
We are in the same boat. I’m thinking of trying to hold out for a nice S model as I know I’ll only want to go and buy all the uprated suspension and stuff anyway and my impatience will cost me more money.
Can’t go wrong with a 998. Bit smooter driving,bit easier to maintain,bit more power Bit better on everything... Henk!!!
Hmmmm, having owned all three types (still got the 998) for the use you describe I'd buy a 748. But in yellow. I appreciate that I'm getting older, but somehow the 998 isn't as much fun as I remember the 748 being. Actually, if you could find one, maybe a late 748s in grey. Lovely. Good luck.
I have to agree with a few others, the 748 is probably the all round bike that you're looking for. The 916 is a truly iconic bike but I fear will cost a bit more to maintain, especially at the price point. A 996/998 I don't believe, will give you any more kicks than a 748 would on any UK road and infact, I'd go as far as to say that you'd have much more fun with the higher revving and lighter 748. I've owned a 748s (along with other Duc's) from new since 2002 and I love the thing. Its a proper yellow one too!! This one below is on Ebay, perfect bike for your needs. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Ducati-7...913915?hash=item263588c87b:g:snIAAOSwfe5dSZ5S Restrictions aside, are you limited to buying in the UK? If not, have a look at this link. There are so many 748's for sale in Euroland. An R really would be the machine to go for!! https://suchen.mobile.de/fahrzeuge/...NetGrossPrice&sortOption.sortOrder=DESCENDING
It’s a bargain. Rs are hex-clu-siv. And, seen that SPS on the Bay of Evil tonight? Snap em up while they are cheap. ps. I have one, open to offers north of £18k
Got a yellow 916 for 5k. Good working bike. New battery, belts, fork seals, rectifier. Not mint but by no means a shitter [email protected]
Welcome to the Forum Greg Are you saying you just bought that or are you offering it for sale, hence the email address? If the former, nice purchase , if the latter you gotta be a Subscriber to sell stuff on here dude. Well worth it for a fiver, worth it even more at £15 for the first year for the Halford’s discount card. Also your ad should go in the For Sale section so everyone can see it
