Ducati 749S - A few thoughts

The 748 is much the same, Seat is brutal to get used to, mirrors are pointless, does not like sitting traffic.. get's dam hot fast! When it's hot it does not idle well and the clutch seems to get a bit grabby, under seat can's are great on a cold day though!
Got a few bad points to it, but once the needle passes 5k they dont seem to matter anymore.. I'm starting to love it

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by Stu

Very timeous write up thanks. Since you posted in bikes other than SV I was wondering what was the best 750 out of them.
So is it the Gixer's better, but the Ducati is individual and can appeal more? what about price? purchase and running?
Cheers

For me I like the GSXR better. But dont get me wrong the 749 is not by any means a bad bike. Having ridden it personally I wouldnt buy a 749 theres just not enough there to keep me interested. I'd be looking at its bigger brother the 999, especially now the 1098 has been launched it means the prices of the 999 will start to drop.

I think the trouble is with the 749 if I had got straight of my SV onto the Duke I'd be well happy, but I've been kind of spoilt by the power on tap with the GSXR. The Duke IMHO just feels flat after riding the GSXR.

The GSXR is lighter, it has I think more Torque and also more power. But thats beacuse its an IL4 where the 749 is a twin. You cant really compare them, just because they are both 750's doesnt mean that IMHO they are a comparable bike power wise.

The Duke does cost more to run, but theres not much in it and the serive interval is longer that the GSXR. But you have to factor in that the Duke does need regular cam belt changes which does up the cost of ownership if you do a lot miles.

Dealer labour rates are about the same, in fact the Duke dealership we took Liz's 749 to had a lower hourly rate for labour and the parts prices were reasonable to. Its an urban myth that Ducatis are ridicously expensive to run and maintain. IMHO.

I think at the end of the day you have to ask yourself do you want to stick with a Twin or do you want to try and IL4. If you are not sure and undecided then get yourself a test ride on a GSXR 750 and then take it from there.

Liz paid £5699 for her Duke, 04 Plate with just under 3000 miles on it. She did get a really good deal. They were going for around 6K mark on Biketrader when she was looking to buy. I paid £6695 for my K5 GSXR. I expect in few years time they'll be worth roughly the same, but maybe the Duke will hold its value better.

Hope thats useful.

Nice wrute up Fizz, it would be interesting to see what the real world difference is betwen the 749 and its bigger buddies. Sometimes more is not always better.

Though it pains me to admit this, I have recently found my Ducati to dissapoint me! Built on atrack bike basis fast cornering is indeed it's strong point but of late I have found it's manageability on very slow winding roads very tricky indeed.

The steering geometry is not at all best suited to this kind of slow tight switchback kind of activity,(exaggerated I am sure by my own edginess of the bends mentioned being downhill and me being so watchful for front end wash outs)

But it has left me pondering and yes yearning for the fast turning bikes that thiose nice little Japanese people make.

It pleased me not at all when on the last ride out I gradually saw a Gixxer 1000, Speedtriple and Fireblade just make acres of ground away from me. The point being, it was not at all a mere question of them having more power to hand than me. I am indeed distraught,nay devastated.

[fizzwheel]

Originally Posted by Pedrosa

Though it pains me to admit this, I have recently found my Ducati to dissapoint me!

EEk !!! dont let your boss hear you say that. Your supposed to have Honda written through you to the core like a stick of rock.

Mr.Fizz.......Honda pays the bills, but my Ducati gives me thrills!

Better than anything I've read in the media. Perhaps you can havea website or blog with reveiws of the bikes you've ridden?

Matt