Ducati 1098R - what do I do with it?

This is kind of an odd thread, I'll admit, but bear with me.

I used to be an avid motorcycle rider. I've owned many Ducatis, including a factory 998RS race bike, held an AMA road racing license, and did lots of track time on my motorcycles. I stopped doing that years ago after all of the injuries from my professional cycling (bicycles) career (2x broken pelvis, 3x broken back, 18x broken ribs, etc.) and figured that the risk of falling off just was just not worth the consequences. I still love amazing machinery and still love the best stuff Ducati has made but haven't owned any motorcycles for a few years.

Yesterday, I was presented with an opportunity to acquire a pristine 1k mile 1098R that a friend had purchased years ago as an investment. I don't need to go into details but I was very honest and said I'd be happy own a motorcycle again but the odds are very much that I'd ride the bike 10 times a year to coffee and that's it.

Here's the situation: I never liked doing aggressive street riding as I always preferred to go the to the track instead and unlike street cars, I have always felt that superbikes were most at home on the track and they always run so great when properly exercised. That said, I love getting on one and just going for a spin around the city when there's little traffic and the days are just right.

However, the more I read about this bike it just screams to me that it's made for the track. It's a homologation model and essentially Ducati's 2008 WSBK with lights and a license plate (although it weighs 14 lbs less than the race bike and produces more power easily because of bigger intakes). But I explained why I don't go to the track on motorcycles anymore and, secondarily, this bike is pristine, pristine, pristine and really has been kept in showroom condition.

I don't really care if people think that it's a waste of a bike to just ride around town to coffee a couple of times a month (if they feel that strongly about it, they can buy their own and use it how they wish) but here's my question: since we all know that our Ferraris run better when driven properly regularly, do you think that I'm doing harm to this bike by not getting it to the track a few times a year and really opening it up? I know that it will get some highway time and I'm sure there will be some opportunities to open the throttle but it's not the same as these bikes are all really too much for the street.

As I said: possibly a dumb question but I figure it's worth asking.
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Harm by not tracking it? No. It doesn't need track miles, but does need routine exercise.

Have you had it inspected by a competent tech? I'd be cautious about buying a somewhat old-ish bike that's never really been run and is expensive to fix. At a minimum, it should have a full service prior to really running it.

BTW: I am supremely jealous. I love that bike. Las Vegas doesn't really provide me with much in the way of good riding, so I am bike-less.




Mark

 

Mark, I should have said that: yes, not only was it inspected by an actual Ducati WSBK race tech but it just received the complete service and got brand new tires, too. That was a major concern of mine as well.

 

Perfect. Enjoy the hell out of it any way you see fit.



Mark

 

Thanks, Mark.

 

"I love getting on one and just going for a spin around the city when there's little traffic and the days are just right."

+1

I have a 916 that I now ride once or twice a year.
Used to ride it along PCH on quiet Sunday mornings.
Now, it's essentially 3-D art in my garage.

I keep it serviced and the tires are new.
Rides just fine.

 

Think of it this way. You'll never ride it enough to run into prematurely worn valve guides which afflicts this model.

If its your jam... go for it! Of course you're not hurting it. If other peeps whine about it (and they will) who cares? I still have a 998r that I never ride.

Looks like possibly the fuel tank is swollen on this one. This is another head-scratcher from Ducati that they made fuel tanks out of a material that reacts poorly to the fuel sold in their largest sales market.

You can coat the inside of the existing tank to keep the issue at bay. Eventually they swell up so bad you can't get the mounting bolt in place and the front of the tank rams into the ignition switch. The steering damper wacks the tank too.

A cool guy can source an aluminum tank from an 1198SP Corse and paint to match. I've met your painter by the way Sherpa.... that guy can get it done haha.

Hopefully this does not come out disrespectfully. Do you truly like the 848/1098 series? I mean truly. Does it make your heart go boom? Knees weak sorta stuff? For me, this series is when Ducati figured out how to make a profit. They just lack that certain whatever that was so ingrained in the 916 series and the triple9 as well. Those bikes are the real deal hand built genuine article. Whenever I take apart an 848 or 1098 I feel like it was made by my people.

My mother is from Hong Kong

If its a no brainer price then yah just do it. For what you are describing you'd use it for... I'd get way more excited if your buddy had a 996SPS or 999R for you to acquire.

 

You could do a lot worse. Years ago, some guy on here took a mint yellow and dark brown (an unusual combination) low-mile stock Countach and powder coated the engine and wheels and put stickers all over it. The engine was powder coated yellow. He did a similar job with a purple Diablo roadster and a 6.0.

Enjoy the bike and ride it any style.

 

Hi Kie,
Thanks for the information. It's funny because as you know, every generation of Ducati seems to have its problems (remember flaking rockers the Tamburini super bikes, bad electrical on the 916, etc.)

Funny you should bring up the valve guides. I had actually asked my tech two days ago while going over the service stuff. My understanding is that while the early R's had valve issues, they don't have valve guide issues as the regular ones. I had my valves looked at and they're spot on. I'm sure you know this but the R's in my range have the Del West titanium valves and beryllium seats along with different guides.

I also looked at the fuel tank and I can't find any bubbles or the swelling. It has been filled with ethanol free race gas which helps. HOWEVER, there is a scratch on the side of the tank that was touched up and I don't like that so I'll probably order a replacement one and have it coated. I am not a cool guy but I can probably find a friend who can get me the aluminum corsa tank but to be honest, I'd rather just order a replacement plastic tank (or two) when and keep the bike filled with ethanol free race gas. Since it's basically going to live in a cool garage for 99.99% of its life, I don't see why I would worry about it.

As far as the model goes, I think that you remember that I had lots of the better variations of the Massimo Tamburini super bikes. I had a 748s, 916 SPS, 996S, 998, 998S, 998RS (no 998R, though). I never liked any of the Terblanche bikes but I owned a 999S very briefly. While Ducati did do some things with this series of super bike that had profitability in mind, I really like it. There are a lot of things about it that suit me more than the Tamburini bikes and I like having this version. To your point, if it wasn't the R, I probably wouldn't be that excited but they did so much more with this R than they did with the 998R and that's cool.

And here's the thing: at the end of the day, if I like having a bike again like this but don't love the 1098R, I'll just sell it and buy a 998R like yours and call it a day. But then I would probably wish I had kept the 1098R. So there you go.

Where I really feel like Ducati lost me was with the Panigale with the aluminum frames and tons and tons of plastic parts. The 1098R is probably the newest Ducati Superbike that I appreciate.

 

Keep it safe and use it anyway you like. An old and close friend quit riding for many of the same reasons. He had a beautiful 750 Sport and a 750 Gt both parked in the front window of his house just because he loved looking at them, parked on Oriental rugs actually.

One day they were both gone. I was not happy, I loved the GT and had ridden it often but it found a new home without me ever knowing in advance.

 

Eh it will be fine.

I just added another Ducati to the stable yesterday. The bike sat for three years, and survived a serious flogging all day yesterday. It will be fine

 

Took it on a shakedown run today. I am going to have to up my weights in the gym because when I roll open the throttle in third gear and the front wheel lifts off the ground this thing pulls so hard I feel like it's going to rip my arms out of their sockets.

My only complaint is that the ride height and suspension are set up all wrong. I'm going to have to put it on the workstand and dial that all in but it's an easy fix.

But it's too awesome for just short rides. Maybe I'll just have to do coffee on the other side of town...
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I had a 916 brand new out of the box. Did the pipes and a few other things to the engine. I had to try and raise the bars for my hands so I ordered a lift kit. Only slightly better. If you not going over 100 or more these are just too agressive sitting position for every day driving. I went thru the art phase as well as I loved the looks. Eventually sold it. Miss it but glad it's gone too.

 

I have the opposite problem: I was a professional bicycle racer for years. The position feels too high in the front for me. The rear ride height needs to the raised and the front lowered a tad for the right turn in as well. If you try to raise the front at all, the weight distribution is way off and the thing rides like poop. This bike is untouched from the factory and as such, it's not aggressive enough.

If you're not equipped with that flexibility and possibly core strength then I can totally see how it would seem too aggressive.

 

Yep, you need a solid core to ride stuff like this properly.


Take it to a few open track days, and just keep the pace dialed back.


Cool bike!

 

It probably goes without saying, but be careful with "cold" tires and a bit too much lean angle, even at lower speeds. The front of a 1098 likes to slip under those conditions. Almost experienced a low-side with mine. Fortunately there was room to recover and it turned out incident-free.

 

No doubt. I have some very track oriented tires too so they're really temperature sensitive.

 

I always thought that was the most beautifully designed bike ever. I'm not positive, but I think that was the model (or similar) I saw exhibited in the lobby at the Guggenheim some years ago.

If I was you, I'd buy it in a heartbeat.

 

Thanks. I did get it the day after I started this thread. It's in my garage.
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So all I'm going to say is that I absolutely love this thing. I had Boulder Motorsports adjust the suspension with me to exactly what I wanted and I changed the rear sets so that I could actually move around on the bike a lot better to get it to handle more to my liking. Awesome guys there and they really kick butt with their race program.
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JMHO, I wouldn't push the bike too hard, that's when things start breaking. It would be nice to do some track "riding" days, just for fun. I wouldn't race it, but there's something special about riding a sport bike on a track.

In my experience, the worst thing is to let the bike sit unused for long periods of time. Same with cars.

 

The most that I would do are normal track days with it. I can't really come close to opening it up on the road and a nice day at PPIR or something would be fun. There is absolutely no "racing" in my future or the bike's future.

I said it before but I just did a complete service this month: Belts, bearings, all new fluids, etc. I am not going to push it out of the box like that but I did make sure it's completely up to date and ready to go.

 

A cool thing about these Ducatis; you can always enter it in the local car shows. The entry fee usually goes to a great cause and you get the perfect parking spot to enjoy the show.

 

Just don't try to outrun those cop cars. They're super fast !

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2WrtWGyhUvw

 

With any luck he'll be dead soon. I just hope he doesn't take anyone with him.