I have seen several "low miles" examples breaking cover, on eBay and other venues. The styling of these is fantastic, IMO, (also the little sister 748)... Is it a better decision, than just picking up a later, newer (and not so pretty!!) 1098, for the same money?? The consideration, having bought a "zero miles" Ducati ST3s, is all the repairs that would need to be done, to put one of these "sleepers" back on to the road. Easily $2K in belts, tires, battery, fuel lines/pump, and other stuff!! Thoughts from you guys that repair them?? Local techs pointed out that they DO hold market value, compared to the other marques....
I guess it depends on your definition of classic. They might be eligible to race in classic races based on age. But if you are referring to collect ability, I think they made a couple race replica editions. Purdy bikes for sure. I dont track price trends on the 996, but at worst, they make nice garage art. I never owned a Duc, but had a MV F4 1000, RC30 etc. Sold them all to get a TR for cash.
A, I owe you a call on this. sorry to have been distracted. I have a 916 you may be interested in hearing about at the very least. I have my 916, 748 RS and 888...all are seemingly getting investment grade traction. the 916-998's are all GREAT machines and have unmatched good looks...only the MV is as gorgeous! P
The 916 family definitely will be collectible to an extent in the years going forward. One thing working against them is that there are a lot of them, about 60,000 total were produced. Compare this to around 5000 851 models and maybe 3000 888 models. I think you have already seen the 851/888 start to climb in value, look at what the F1 or Bevel Ducs are doing today to see what the 851/888 will be like in a few years (hopefully...the day I can trade my 851 straight for a Panigale R the old duc is gone ) Anyway back to the 916 family. There were many special editions for some markets. But I will comment on the US market specifically Just a few off the top of my head: 916SP (perhaps 25 in the US, actually 955cc) 916SPS (996cc before it was called the 996, around 100 each year it was made) 748R (not sure if it is techincally street-legal as the injection system is entirely different, but many have plates) '01 996R (998cc Testaretta engine, 500 made worldwide) '02 998R (800 made worldwide IIRC) '02 998S Bostrom (155 for US, 155 for rest of world) '02 998S Bayliss (150? for US, about same for rest of world, not sure) '04 998 Matrix '04 998FE The 998R and 996R have the highest prices of these models today. In truth a 998FE is almost the same bike, prices are definitely lower. The SPS also gets interest because it was the best bike Ducati could make street-legal in the late 90's, an R-model before it was called that. The Bayliss and Bostrom bikes are regular S models in the US with fancy paint jobs, elsewhere they also had a hotter engine too. So disregarding the special editions and the various "S" mdoels with upgraded suspension, in all honesty I see the "desirability" of the standard production models being like this: 1) 916 (with early Varese production being the most desirable sub-set) 2) 998 3) 996 4) 748 The 916 will always be the original, a mint early model will be the first of these to rise in price. The 998 is an upgrade in performance and maintenance. Having owned a desmoquattro and testaretta, the newer engine is definitely better. The 996 is sort of the middle child, it has more power than the 916 but also all of the same old problems the desmoquattro engine is known for but is still the best of that engine line. The 748 is definitely the cheapest to buy, but perhaps not to maintain of the family. With all that said, it is like Ferraris. Some Ferraris are more desirable than others, but almost all are much more desirable than other cars.
Perfect! http://www.kilometermagazine.com/artman2/uploads/1/ducati-916-2.jpg . Image Unavailable, Please Login
Not 100% stock but very nice regardless... The early graphics shown here are the most attractive IMO. '95-97.
Thanks for taking your time with such a detailed answer.... The Service guys nodded towards an 888 on the stand (for sale at $12K) and said: "That would be REAL expensive, to make run (daily) again..." It was just these 'Sleeping Beauty' bikes hitting eBay that got me thinking! They had just recommissioned a 998, and said the total bill was $2,100.
No reason to think an 888 would be any more expensive to put right than a 916. Bodywork parts are expensive and hard to come by, but the basic engine and chassis are very similar to the 916, or 996 for that matter. Surprisingly most of the rubber parts are still available either from Ducati or aftermarket. The only gotcha would be fuel injection or ECU, those can be tough to find but are out there. Owning one of these old desmoquattros is actually easier today than 19 years ago when I bought my 851. In the pre-internet, pre-Ebay days, and a few hours from the nearest dealer, owning one was an adventure. If an 888 sells for $12k and isn't even roadworthy, I wonder what an 851 you could ride across the country tomorrow would be worth? Might be closer to being able to trade for a Panigale that I thought
A, let me add to this as the owner of a 916 and 888. the difference in cost to service a triple 8 vs a 916 is only in the disassembly and re-assembly of the body work. the 916 bodywork comes off in 30 seconds. the 888 is a bunch more difficult. over 12 screw type fasteners and lots of body parts to align etc.... the body work and pipes and other 851/888 goodies are getting very scarce where as 916 body work and parts are easily found new or used. the 888 is the bike to have/collect of the two in my opinion...it will always be THE quintessential superbike period! the 916 is dead sexy though and less risky to use and will get to a collectability point in the future. pb
I have a 888SP5 number 143 - the motor is an ex Fogarty Petronas 926 Corsa, with the appropriate Termis etc. 5000km I have owned the bike for 17 years. Anybody any ideas on value etc?
Thanks guys for adding in great opinions. Looks like a 996S, with less than 900 miles is headed my way. It's going thru a Ducati dealer to load it on the truck, I'll pay them to give it a quick once over. The repair bill will tell the tale, good buy, or disaster. Stay tuned, (pardon the pun) I'll report back.
I went through a progression of Ducati > MV Agusta > Bimota. I do enjoy the older Ducs, and honestly the model I'm eying up now is the 999. Couldn't stand the looks when they came out, but they've certainly grown on me and the performance is great. That said, whenever I'm in the market for a Duc I seem to find comparably priced Bimotas on the market, and I can't resist the artistry of that brand.
Go Big Tex! I am getting familiar with my new to me 900 SS/SP #153. I pulled it out of Texas a couple of weeks ago with 2500 miles on it! They are all awesome! Cant wait to hear more about yours.
One of my all time favs. I loved mine every day I owned it. Miss it every day since selling. Congrats on yours!!
They are still out there for sale. I really wanted an FE (the final edition '98) but those just don't come up for sale very often and I got tired of waiting. I ran into a nice red one '94 and had to have it, those FE's only came in silver. A red Desmodue in the garage is a beautiful thing!
I don't know how comfy these are but undeniably classic! [ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PPRiXgdSA24[/ame]