monster 696

[tradedog]

Has the new Ducati Monster 696 raised the bar? It certainly looks the part and the price is good. I personally feel this might be the first bike to challenge the sv650s on all levels. Anybody ridden one?

[zsv650]

they be a tractor to ride i hear very agricultural :D

[arenalife]

I've heard the opposite, James Whitham in TWO says it's the most fun bike his ridden for a long time.

[Lissa]

they be a tractor to ride i hear very agricultural :D


Yep, and they run on diesel and won't work in the wet:rolleyes:

[zsv650]

I've heard the opposite, James Whitham in TWO says it's the most fun bike his ridden for a long time.
not what i heard and this is from a real person i spoke to:D however they did say it was a basically good competent machine look nice too.

[rob13]

http://www.totalmotorcycle.com/photos/2008models/2008-Ducati-Monster-S4RSTricolorea.jpg

[yorkie_chris]

Has the new Ducati Monster 696 raised the bar? It certainly looks the part and the price is good. I personally feel this might be the first bike to challenge the sv650s on all levels. Anybody ridden one?

Lol!

Price? Service costs and intervals? Parts availability? Parts prices?
In general fun per £ it's going to be a no brainer...

[stewie]

I went to have a look at one after reading all the mag articles, looked a bit plasticky and cheap in the flesh, bit like meself really,meant to be very good though.

[rob13]

Lol!

Price? Service costs and intervals? Parts availability? Parts prices?
In general fun per £ it's going to be a no brainer...


I think in general its probably at a level above the SV in terms of quality (dont ask about reliability though). Its certainly more timeless in design and does look fantastic but I do find these Monsters quite long for the stretch to the bars which isnt that comfortable.

[yorkie_chris]

Yup but you pay for it. IMO the difference in price doesn't justify the price tag.

...At least with the money I'd be prepared to spend on a bike

[fizzwheel]

Price? Service costs and intervals? Parts availability? Parts prices?

I'm going to play pedant with you here...

As a sort of 749S owner I would counter that with.

Hourly rate in the dealer where we take the Duke is less than the hourly rate at the Suzuki dealer I take my GSXR to.

The service interval is longer on the Duke than the SV

Parts prices on the Duke are about the same, IIRC the cambelt was £80 ish. Yes its a pain to fit and fitting takes a while, but then see above about dealer labour rates.

We looked at 2nd hand 749 Panels on Ebay, cheaper than SV panels were.

As for reliability I would say that the modern Monsters are a lot better than they used to be. Its like any bike, used regularly and maintained properly ( i.e not left in the garage and only got out on warm sundays ) its going to be fine.

In general fun per £ it's going to be a no brainer...

I'm not so sure. Yes it costs more to buy, but I bet it'll hold its price better than an SV will. Then you also have to factor in the fact that do you want to ride.

1. A piece of italian thoroughbred exotica
2. A japanese girls bike that rusts as soon as you get near a sniff of water

;)

[yorkie_chris]

Mine doesn't rust :-P And if it is a girls bike then the girl who likes that level of filth I really need to spend more time with :-D

I still maintain that you can be a total barbarian with jap motors and not get bitten, I know a bloke with over 100k miles on a GSXR750M, he generally "warmes it up" by doing a wheelie the length of the road and/or banging it off rev limiter a bit. You wanna try that on a duc?

[zsv650]

Mine doesn't rust :-P And if it is a girls bike then the girl who likes that level of filth I really need to spend more time with :-D

I still maintain that you can be a total barbarian with jap motors and not get bitten, I know a bloke with over 100k miles on a GSXR750M, he generally "warmes it up" by doing a wheelie the length of the road and/or banging it off rev limiter a bit. You wanna try that on a duc? bang:shock::D

[yorkie_chris]

Indeed. Don't thoroughbred horses get shot when they fall over? I want a bike that I can abuse, will be cheap when you get it wrong, and I'm not going to cry about when I fall off it. Hacks are ace :-D

[zsv650]

the only italian bike i'd have would be a aprillia.

[Tiger 55]

Why is there a picture of an S4RS Tricolorea in this 696 thread? It's Ducati misinformation I tell you!