TOP TEN - MOST POPULAR DUCATIS SOLD IN THE UK Which Italian exotic is Britain’s favourite? By Visordown Win a luxury holiday to Oman with British Airways Oman is a wonderful combination of ageless heritage and modern life. Click to win Promoted by Experience Oman INSTEAD OF the snapshot of the latest sales figures, we’ve delved into the Department for Transport’s vehicle licensing numbers to see which bikes – new and secondhand – are the most common on British roads. Ducati Panigale V4 review %7C Visordown test This time it’s Ducati’s turn, and for a brand that’s synonymous with sports bikes you might be surprised to see which models have found most favour with the supposedly superbike-crazy British public… 10: 1199 Panigale Can you believe that the 1199 Panigale isn’t just a last-generation Ducati, but the range-topper from the generation before that? C’mon, it’s still drool-worthy, and so packed with technology and ooh-look-at-that thinking that it would be adorning every magazine front page if it was launched as a 2019 model tomorrow. In fact, of course, it first appeared seven years ago. But even today its radical, MotoGP-inspired monocoque frame means it’s the ultimate expression of the V-twin superbike. Well, nearly the ultimate, because of course it did have a successor… 9: 1299 Panigale …and the 1199’s immediate replacement has proved even more popular. While the DfT figures showed 690 1199 Panigales on the road at the end of last year, there were 708 1299 Panigales in use at the same time. Showing up for the 2015 model year, the 1299 Panigale’s main change was the bigger, 1,285cc engine, the biggest V-twin in Ducati’s history and also the most powerful. Yes, the new Panigale V4 is better, but if you like a V-twin superbike, the 1299 has got to be the ultimate expression of that idea. After all, nobody’s making a twin-cylinder superbike anymore. 8: Monster 821 Ah, the Ducati Monster. The bike that’s regularly lauded as the machine that saved Ducati when it first appeared in the early 1990s, forming a double-whammy with the original 916 to bring the firm back into the limelight and set it on a course that would see it become the powerhouse it is today. There’s no arguing with the Monster recipe; it’s the distilled essence of motorcycling, with no frills, no unnecessary add-ons, no styling-for-the-sake-of-it edges or curves. It’s a fuel tank, a frame, a seat, and engine and some wheels and suspension. That’s about it, and what more do you need? Nothing, according to the 780 people riding Monster 821s in the UK at the moment. 7: Monster 696 Of course, the Monster 821 is a bit more complicated than the original, but the Monster 696 – made from 2008-2014 – was even more like the 1992 original. It was air-cooled, for a start, and for years was the absolute starting point in the Ducati range, the first step on a ladder than goes all the way to heights like the Desmosedici RR and Panigale V4. It’s not that fast, but there are lots of them and prices are relatively low, and with 820 in use over here, they clearly have some longevity, too. 6: 848 The Panigale generation of superbikes might have represented a huge step forward for Ducati, but the 848, and its larger 1098/1198 siblings, represent the last of the line with trellis-framed links back to the 916 and even earlier Ducati superbikes like the 888 and 851. Production stopped five years ago in 2013, after a five year production run, but there are still loads of 848s in use – 835 at the end of last year when our figures were collated. 5: Hypermotard You might have thought that the Hypermotard was a niche machine even in the already small market for Ducatis, but they’ve proved surprisingly popular, with 855 on the road according to DfT numbers at the end of 2017. Of course, there are several machines rolled into the ‘Hypermotard’ heading, including the original 1,100cc air-cooled machines from 2007 and the more recent 796 version. And then, of course, there are the 2013-on, water-cooled Hypermotard 821s and the 2016-on Hypermotard 939s. Even so, we were surprised to see them this high on the list, particularly since more famous Ducatis like the 916 don’t make the cut. Ducati Monster 821 video review %7C Visordown.com Stolen Ducati 899 Panigale.jpg 4: 899 Panigale We always knew that you lot had taste. While the big, bruising 1199 and 1299 Panigales were the ultimate Ducati V-twins, the smaller-engined 899 version hits a sweet spot, with a little less of the intimidating power but still benefitting the huge array of electronic safety nets that came with the Panigale generation. It’s no shock to see that knowledgeable British buyers picked them up in big numbers – 1,184 were on the road at the time our figures were collated. There is a surprise, though; this is the last sports bike that you’ll find on this list. Ducati XDiavel.jpg 3: Diavel What? Ducati’s take on the idea of a cruiser has certainly shaken that market up, eliminating old ideas that they needed to be heavy, slow and ill-handling beasts. The Diavel is everything you expect of a Ducati, but with brawny styling like nothing else on the road. Even so, it’s surprising to see it up here on the bottom step of the podium when it comes to UK Ducati popularity, with some 1,485 in use (and rising). Ducati Scrambler 1100 2: Scrambler It’s an impressive reflection of the Scrambler’s success that in just three years of production it’s managed to become the second-most-common Ducati on our roads, with nearly 2,000 in use at the end of last year. That figure will be significantly larger now, too, with the advent of the 1100cc version for 2018. Will the boom in retro-style machines be maintained to keep the Scrambler that high on the list? Only time will tell. 1: Multistrada 1200 When the original, Pierre Terblanche designed Multistrada first emerged few would have guessed that its distant successor would become the single most commonly-seen Ducati on UK roads. But the 1200cc, water-cooled bike that bears the Multistrada badge has proved itself as the ultimate all-rounder, happy to tour or commute, but capable on track too, with a proven competition record and wins at the Pikes Peak hillclimb. At the end of last year there were more than 3600 of them in use on our roads, and that number will be rising constantly.
Interesting, but distorted by comparing hypermotards and scramblers as groups with single engine sized variants of other parts of the range. There’s also the issue if you use the government website that they didn’t always put the model name on the log book so it isn’t now in the database.
Diavel, hyper ahead of 848? Think they need to stop employing Diane Abbot to do the stats in her spare time....
