Ducati 1000SS DS

Ducati 1000SS DS . .

After more than three decades of design development, the Ducati Supersportis considered an icon in the modern motorcycling world with a reputation forgreat handling, smooth power delivery, versatility and light weight. For2005, the Ducati Supersport 1000 carries the family heritage proudly intothe future while adhering to and improving on the time-tested formula of itspredecessors.

Confidence-inspiring and built with quality throughout, theSupersport models are a great way to enter the world of Ducati sportmotorcycles. The air-cooled engine expresses the essential practical andpragmatic Ducati philosophy and has significant design and applicationadvantages. A bike that’s fun to ride, beautiful to look at, and easy to maintain.

Features & Benefits

Supersport 1000 DS: Easy to handle but high in performance, it sports apowerful 992 cc Dual Spark fuel-injected Desmo engine, an advanced trellisframe, and superior suspension to ensure top of the line performance andhandling. Confidence-inspiring and built with quality throughout, theSupersport models are a great way to enter the world of Ducati sportmotorcycles.

In all, the 1000 DS is the most advanced air-cooled Ducati Desmo engineever designed.

Review

Looking at the 1000DS, it is quite easy to trace itsheritage right back, through the obvious SuperSport range of the late ninetiesand early noughties, back through the lost years of the early nineties whenDucati really weren't all they could have been and all the way back to the mideighties when the Pantah broke new ground by being a Ducati sportsbike that wasboth mechanically quite up to date and electrically quite robust. Belt drivencams, oil level sight glasses and electronic ignition may all be pretty much thenorm now, but back in 1984 they were a revelation.And yet I feel that there is a deeper, more spiritual relationship to the olderbevel drive bikes. The original 900SS, it's racing predecessor the 750SS and thecelebration Mike Hailwood Replica. Don't get me wrong, though. Although I had a900SS and a Hailwood Rep, I see no similarity at all between those bikes, whichI loved very much but which were, in all honesty, prehistoric, and this latestin the line. What there is, though, is a common feel.

Perhaps I should explain. I raced bevel drive Ducatis in the eighties, and theracebikes were derived from the 900SS road bikes. But obviously they werestreets apart in reality.

The roadbikes were from an era where good suspensionsimply meant that there was very little movement. The frames were fairly rigidbut there was enough flex at either end to necessitate the best handling bikesbeing fitted with rock hard shock absorbers that would probably contravene theTrades Description Act if sold today. A fast bike in the mid eighties wasgenerally very harsh and didn't work very well on bumpy roads. It would also beincredibly slow steering to make up for the inherent deficiencies of thesuspension and tyres. But a good racebike, on the other hand, needed to work onall sorts of surfaces.

The ride wouldn't be plush by any means but thesuspension would be very well controlled and would take up a lot of bumpsbecause otherwise the bike wouldn't get its power down properly. The swingarmwould be heavily braced, likewise the forks, and the tyres would be far betterthan road rubber. Finally, the racebike would probably be 15-20% lighter thanthe road bike.

All of which would add together to give you a bike that steeredquickly but was reasonably stable, that dealt with the worst of the bumps andthat offered the rider an enormous amount of feedback as to what was going on.At the same time you had an engine that developed plenty of power from low downand a slick gearbox, plus a setup that actually worked best overall if youdidn't hang off like a gibbon but simply shifted a little weight.

Which is pretty close to what the 1000DS gives you. To the extent that I feltinstantly and completely at home on it. Swinging a leg over it is easy becausealthough quite wide it is also fairly low, and once in the seat you are rewardedby a view that couldn't be anything other than a Ducati. Two white faced roundclocks in a black crackle finish panel with a neat cluster of idiot lights abovethem. And no redline on the tacho. The bars are a fair reach away but arepositioned to fall immediately and comfortably to hand once you adopt "theposition." In this case, with the pegs set high enough to provide acres ofGround Clearance while low enough to avoid cramp, the position is quite acomfortable one and means that you can carry someone other than your osteopathon the pillion seat. Which reminds me. The pillion seat. There is one, and it isactually quite usable.

For some odd reason, people always seem to complainabout Ducati mirrors. I have two issues with this. First of all, if you wantfantastic rear view mirrors you don't buy a committed sportsbike because theyjust don't have them. And secondly, I've never had a problem getting an adequaterear view on a Ducati. But the DS should satisfy the critics anyway, because themirrors, although they look like something of an afterthought, are brilliant.The lights are fine as well, with the single big headlamp providing acomfortably wide spread of light and a good high beam, though personally I'dstill like a second bulb in there because you can't have too much illuminationin my view. Finally, while we're talking about practical things, theconventional exhausts mean that yes, there is storage space under the seat.But enough of this practical stuff. This is a road test, and that means riding.Turn the ignition on and press the starter within 15 seconds or the energysaving ECU will turn itself off. A few seconds of the by now expected asthmaticwheezing by the starter motor and the engine catches, issuing a pleasant butrather muted burble from the pipes. Now that's something which has changed a lotfrom the old racers, which were fitted with Conti "silencers" that actuallyseemed to amplify the sound... Something else that changed quite a long time agois that Ducati have abandoned the comedy sidestand in favour of one that youhave to raise yourself. So flick the stand up, engage first and pull away. Firstis very tall indeed, so there's much clutch slipping and mirror shaking untileverything settles down, but it's still all very non threatening andcomfortable. This is a bike that you can simply get onto and ride. It's asthoroughbred as you could possibly want but seems to have managed to avoid thepitfalls that an impeccable pedigree can sometimes come along with.

That's not to say, though, that this bike is a true master of all trades. Atvery low speeds it gets a little uncomfortable after a short time as theheavyish clutch and the riding position conspire together to make the wristsache. In town the initial discomfort soon gets added to by the heat coming upfrom a power plant which, deprived of a cooling airflow, soon starts to do areasonable impression of an Aga. Great in the winter I'm sure but as we testedthe bike at the end of a very warm summer it became a trifle sweaty. And thereis one other little gotcha for town riding as well. The steering lock. You wantto do a U-turn? Well, unless you're doing it on the M4 it's going to be tight.But let's be honest here. If you want a Ducati to ride in town you buy a Monsteror a Multistrada, not a SuperSport. And once we take the 1000DS out of the cityand drop it back in where it belongs the story becomes a far happier one.On the open road the 1000DS continues to give the same impression that it doeswhen you first get on. It is comfortable, relaxed, smooth. It fits like a wellmade suit, and although the steering isn't in the "think of a line and it takesit" class, it is easy to turn and holds a line beautifully, regardless of roadsurface. But it really isn't very fast. At least it isn't until you glance atthe speedo. Hmm, so that's why that bend seemed a little tighter than usual,then.Make no mistake. The Ducati 1000DS may seem like a gentle giant, it may besubtle, relaxed, refined even. But it is a bloody fast motorbike. It doesn't somuch accelerate as just gain speed. That doesn't make much sense, I know, butwhen you open the throttle, especially out of a bend, you don't get thatslightly disconcerting feeling of an awful lot of power going through a tinylittle contact patch and you don't get the immense bang of acceleration that alot of sportsbikes deliver. There is no big drama at all, in fact. The enginejust makes a nicer noise and the horizon sort of gets closer. You never feel asthough you are going especially fast, although you are in fact going at least asquickly as you would normally. But here's the real magic. You aren't trying atall. Neither is the bike. You are going as quickly as you could reasonably wantbut you are completely relaxed and well within your limits.

While we are talking about making brisk progress, it's probably worth mentioninghandling. I've been wracking my brains since I got off the bike trying to thinkof the right word to describe the handling of this bike. And the best I can comeup with is this. Fantastic. You may be able to do better linguistically butyou'll be very hard pushed to find a bike with better real world handling thenthe 1000DS. It's all part of the overall package, I think. A soft power deliverywith an extremely rigid frame and very high quality suspension, courtesy ofOhlins at the back, make for a bike that simply does exactly what you ask of it,when you ask it. But it does it with such great dollops of spirit that there isno way this bike could ever be accused of being clinical or over-efficient inthe way that some other equally capable machines are. One more thing onhandling. The 1000DS is perfectly happy to go round corners with your knees andelbows scraping the ground like Reuben Xaus or tucked in and tidy like GeoffDuke. It seems to make no difference to your speed, at least on the road,whether you hang off or not. If anything, to me at least, a bike like thisactually looks better if you aren't completely hanging off it but have justshifted your weight enough to look as though you mean business.I've already mentioned that Ducati have spent some money on the suspension. It'sprobably also worth mentioning the brakes, which are sublime. Classic goldBrembo calipers at both ends with standard braided hoses offer brilliantretardation with enough feel that you would have to try very hard indeed to lockit up accidentally. The back brake is slightly more of a brake than usual butstill doesn't really do a great deal. So no change there, then, but not exactlya problem either. The brakes, by the way, are mounted on lightweight cast alloyrims courtesy of Marchesini. More seriously good quality kit.I'm in danger of losing my legendary journalistic objectivity here. So I'dbetter sum up quickly and move on to something else. I loved this bike. Itpressed all the right buttons for me emotionally as well as providing a deeplyrewarding riding experience. I found nothing I didn't like about it, very littleI would change if I owned one and lots of things I liked a lot. Many people saidhow nice it looked and lots of other bikers expressed surprise at how well itwent. And it is staggeringly good value for money. Retailing at just £7250, the1000DS is comparable in price to any faceless, anodyne multi cylindermiddleweight you might care to pick.

Source:Motorbikes Today



Dane techniczne:


Make Model
Ducati 1000SS DS
Year
2004
Engine
Four stroke 90°“L”twin cylinder SOHC desmodromic 2 valvesper cylinder belt driven
Capacity
992 cc / 60.5 cu in
Bore x Stroke
94 x 71.5 mm
Cooling System
Air cooled
Compression Ratio
10.0:1
Lubrication
Wet sump
Engine Oil
Synthetic 10W/40
Exhaust
2 Aluminum mufflers with 3-way catalytic converter(non-catalytic on USA version)
Induction
Marelli CPU 5.9M fuel Injection 45 mm throttle body
Ignition
Marelli electronic
Spark Plug
NGK DCPR8E Champion RA6HC
Battery
12V 10Ah
Starting
Electric
Max Power
63 kW / 85.5 hp @ 7750 rpm
Max Torque
87.5 Nm / 9 kgf-m / 64.5 lb-ft @ 5750 rpm
Clutch
Dry multiplate with hydraulic control
Transmission
6 Speed
Final Drive
Chain
Gear Ratio
1st 37/15 2nd 30/17 3rd 27/20 4th 24/22 5th 23/246th 24/28
Primary Drive Ratio
Straight cut gears; ratio 1.84:1 (32/59)
Final Drive Ratio
2.53:1 (15/38)
Front Suspension
Showa 43 mm fully adjustable upside-downlightweight fork
Front Wheel Travel
120 mm / 4.7 in
Rear Suspension
Progressive cantilever linkage with fullyadjustable Öhlins monoshock with length adjustment aluminium swing arm
Rear Wheel Travel
145 mm / 5.7 in
Front Brakes
2 x 320 mm Discs. 4 piston calipers
Rear Brakes
Single 245 mm disc 2 piston caliper
Front Tyre
120/70-17
Rear Tyre
180/55-17
Rake
24°
Trail
69 mm / 2.7 in
Dimensions
Length 2030 mm / 79.9 inWidth 780 mm / 30.7 in Height 1110 mm / 43.7 in
Wheelbase
1395 mm / 54.9 in
Seat Height
820 mm / 32.3 in
Dry Weight
185.2 kg / 407.8 lbs
Wet Weight
202 kg / 445.3 lbs
Fuel Capacity
16 L / 4.2 US gal / 3.5 Imp gal
Standing ¼ Mile
12.0 sec/187 km/h / 116 mph
Top Speed
230 km/h / 143 mph