Take the Ducati Multistrada 1200 S Pikes Peak, for example. As a special edition model of Ducati’s Multistrada line that was built to celebrate Greg Tracy’s triumph at the world famous International Hill Climb race in 2010, the Multistrada 1200 S Pikes Peak is yet another example of Ducati’s penchant for building high-quality motorcycles.
Certainly, the once-ugly duckling Multistrada has now most definitely grown up.
Overall, the Multistrada 1200 S seems sporting and sleek, though once astride the machine it feels more like an aggressive adventure bike. Despite being so versatile, the Multistrada is anything but confused. By equipping the bike with enough electronic wizardry to instantly adjust almost every aspect of the motorcycle-including the engine mapping, the suspension, the ABS, and the traction control-Ducati has built a brilliantly adaptable motorcycle.
Equipped with Ducati's top-of-the-line L-twin 1198cc superbike motor, it is very fast, and has superb handling and braking. The Magneti Marelli fuel injection is superb, and the Ducati Traction Control (DTC) works well enough to win world championships. With a claimed maximum draw of 87.5 ft/lbs, the Multistrada out-pulls the Superbike handily up to 6250 rpm-and the Superbike is no slouch.
Each riding mode is selected using an easy-to-read menu and the turn-signal cancel button. Sport mode is, of course, familiar Ducati territory, and the 1200's full 150 horsepower is rapidly unleashed. Surprisingly, and despite the lack of steering damper, the Multistrada isn't twitchy.
Touring mode is a kinder expression of Sport, with softened suspension and an initially gentler power delivery that builds progressively. Once the engine speed hits 5000 rpm, the motor wakes up, and then runs to the same Sport mode peak of 150 horsepower at 9750 rpm.
Seriously high-speed sweepers with rolling bumps induced a little wallow, but switching to Sport mode cured it. Urban mode reduces the motor's prodigious power output to a "mere" 100 horses. "Multistrada" translates to "multi-road" and Ducati has decided that this generation of the bike will have some real off-pavement capability. Clearly, Ducati is aware that many destinations are reached via roads with little or no paving. In that scenario, the Multistrada owner will be well covered. Once the Multistrada is set to Enduro mode, the almost 6.7 inches of travel suspension is softened further, and rear ride-height is raised by three-quarters of an inch to help with engine clearance. The gorgeous-looking front fender, beak-nosed air-intake, cam-belt covers, and rear huggers turn the adventure-bike Multistrada into more of an upright streetfighter (small "s"); a carbon-fiber front fender, tank cover, adhesive-backed protection pads, and Termignoni sports exhaust are also available as accessories.
If the Multistrada's 33.5-inch saddle height is an issue for you, then a one-inch lower seat option is there to help. The Ducati Multistrada 1200 is an excellent all-round motorcycle-but paradoxically, because of Ducati's spectacular new technology, it is also a highly focused machine. By comparison, the Multistrada outputs a whopping 45 more peak horsepower-almost a third extra-and weighs around 20 pounds less. Even the Multistrada's torque output gives it a slight edge.
Without a doubt, the Ducati Multistrada 1200 is the adventure category road-burner. Unsurprisingly, if the road is paved, the Multistrada will blow away the competition-it is a fabulously capable motorcycle.
There are three available packages: Standard, S Sport or S Touring. S models come with anti-lock brakes, eight-stage traction control and electronically adjustable Öhlins suspension.