Well yesterday i had a 3rd test ride on the DVT, this time a standard one. Unfortunately the seat was again set in low position :Facepalm: I can only assume Ducati figure that the normal sized people who own the previous generation aren't as keen to upgrade and so are wheeling the DVT out for all the vertically challenged? Anyway, its a shit idea and wrong to assume :Stop: Ducati dealers of the UK take note..... Get one of these: Then for those not making the cut, issue a pair of these Now that I've got that off my chest a few observations. Firstly the engine. I don't know whether its me or what, but I've not thought once during any of the test rides I've had that the dvt is under powered. This thing, if ridden differently than the previous generation, is a rocket ship...FACT You can hold a gear for far longer on the DVT engine than you could on the previous gen and not feel the need to change up. I don't think i saw 5th gear during any of yesterdays ride, mainly 3rd gear if i recall. 3rd gear is a beauty, 2nd gets floaty if you hold on to it for too long (enough to power wheelie fairly easily) but 3rd gear without even bouncing of the limiter is smooth and controlled and enough to blast you well past the 100mph mark and then some..........apparently Honestly, I'm surprised none of the journos have mentioned how to ride this thing different from the previous models. Maybe I should try and get a job with them Yes, ill admit, its deceiving. When you trundle along in traffic or blip the throttle coming in to a corner/roundabout it doesn't sound like a 'bark' , it feels and sounds flatter, muted even, less eager to make you know its there.....dunno, i can't quit put my finger on it. The previous 2012 ohlins model i had you could give it a short sharp blip and it'd bark and growl immediately, on the DVT the throttle requires more input during said 'blip' . It 'could be' that they've changed when the valve opens and i suspect that a decat will put that feeling and sound of immediacy back in to the throttle, It just needs waking up a little at small throttle openings. I guess my 2012 had a decat fitted so its wrong to directly compare. My previous bike just felt more alive at lower throttle movements, that could be felt as more angry, more raw...and so on. Other than that i think it makes a glorious noise when you get a wriggle on, probably half the reason holding a gear for longer is so addictive. The previous bike wouldn't like how i rode the DVT yesterday and thats something people need to realise, don't ride them the same, the DVT enjoys more throttle and for longer, don't short shift and don't be afraid to thrash it a little. They love it and you'll find it far more rewarding. The mono dash is fine, a little reflective if I'm honest when i had the sun directly above but i'd presume a screen cover would dumb that down and remove glare. Its nicely laid out and more than adequate, in fact better than most other dashes I've seen and so don't hanker after the colour version as it really makes no difference. Fit and finish on the one i rode was lovely and i did really look for imperfections. Paintwork was nice, panel gap bang on and the black plastic trims were far better than that of the XR. i gave them a scratch and rub and didn't mark them at all Just quickly on the XR, its a phenomenal bike and i'd definitely buy one, i don't feel this buzz/vibration some people mention. Maybe its just me enjoying the ride and maybe my idea of perfection isn't buttery smooth. If you're riding a motorbike part of that sensation is to know what the engine is doing. However with that said the XR black plastics mark incredibly easily, not the tank surrounds which meet the nose fairing, but the part that wraps around the tank between your legs and the fuel filler cap surround are shockingly bad for marking. Its that kind of plastic that if you simply run your finger nail over it leaves a line, no amount of wet finger rubbing or wet rag removes them again. Its just a poorly chosen plastic and one that'd need replacing a lot. It won't take long to make the XR look used and coming from an ocd cleaner of bikes I'm not sure I'd be happy leaving that stock plastic in place. Back to the standard DVT i felt the suspension was absolutely fine, I'm fairly heavy i guess at 15st and it could've done with a tweak to the preload and maybe the rebound needed sorting a bit. All in all its more than compliant enough and was set slightly on the sporty side of things yesterday. At least it's a system that allows being resprung easily as there's no fancy motors or whizz bang electronic thingamejigs One thing that isn't particularly good in my opinion is the seat, maybe because it was set at a height barely above the earth's core. It just seems to put pressure on your bum and doesn't really do much of a job in terms of comfort. It also tends to slope forward, maybe because it's set at subterranean levels and the curvature of the earth comes in to play? Anyway it's not a big job to sort and £100 would be a very good investment having it recovered and new / extra foam. Personally I prefer riding higher akin to supermoto, I think multistradas handle better that way Would i buy one? Well yes i reckon i would although right now I may set my sights lower and consider another far cheaper older generation, its looking like i may need money for a house as one of my Mrs's older relatives has passed away and his old house is up for sale soon, something we'd quite like to try and go for. Still.....theres aways PCP eh Bradders Recent edit- my Mrs has just opened a letter from Barclays and they'd like to give me £2499.78 for some ppi claim apparently.....well it's a start It'd still be a toss up between the XR and the DVT but i reckon the Multi looks better and could be made to look even more stunning with a new paint job (something i quite like designing) The XR isn't as nice to look at, theres not much you can do to change it but as/when somebody releases a short tinted screen and you remove all the scaffolding around the rear end i reckon it'd look far nicer. Both engines are glorious but clearly the soundtrack to the DVT wins that as well. The Dvt would also ride more like a supermoto if I increased height in the saddle and although not as sharp as the XR, I think it'd be more fun in the point and squirt department and leg out round corners Overall it gets my big thumbs up and i think owners will really start to love them when you whack on a decat and pipe. Maybe some better rubber to boot.
Great write-up. I'm not sure what's going on with this XR vibration thing. The one I test rode at Wollaston BMW was pretty bad. Maybe there's an Ann Summers edition?
I honestly think it's a range of things, some will be people looking for it and that's all that sticks out when riding, some may well be vibration but my understanding is that if certain bolts are torqued correctly it subsides. Who knows. The dvt vibrates, but due to the nature of a Vtwin instead of saying it vibrates people say it's smooth for a twin.
When I test rode the xr I was to busy hooning around to notice the vibrations . It just wasn't the bike for me.
Had a 2 hour test ride on the Xr and after 45 mins my hands were numb. I could feel the buzzing through the pegs and even occasionally the seat as well. The Mrs was on the back and even she commented on it. I visited an Xr forum and lots of them do it, but not all apparently.
Same experience for me. Not just a niggling buzz but a full-on numb-inducing bad boy buzz through hands and feet.
Strange how some buzz and others don't, on collection of mine i torqued the bar clamps correctly to 19nm and the correct method of how the clamps sit (the dealer had torqued the clamps 35-40nm) i put 36-38 in the tyres and fitted the HP rear sets and my bike was vibe free, the hire bike we had loaned from the weisserspitzer vibe'd that bad it was felt everywhere and very off putting .
