Ducati Motorcycles

About ducati

Ducati Motor Holding S.p.A. is an Italian company that designs and manufactures motorcycles. Headquartered in Bologna, Italy, Ducati is owned by Audi through its Italian subsidiary Lamborghini.

In 1926 Antonio Cavalieri Ducati and his three sons, Adriano, Marcello, and Bruno Cavalieri Ducati; founded Societa Scientifica Radio Brevetti Ducati in Bologna to produce vacuum tubes, condensers and other radio components.

At the small Turinese firm SIATA (Societa Italiana per Applicazioni Tecniche Auto-Aviatorie), Aldo Farinelli began developing a small pushrod engine for mounting on bicycles. Barely a month after the official liberation of Italy in 1944, SIATA announced its intention to sell this engine, called the "Cucciolo" (Italian for "puppy"). The first Cucciolos were available alone, to be mounted on standard bicycles, by the buyer; however, businessmen soon bought the little engines in quantity, and offered complete motorized-bicycle units for sale.

So in 1950, in collaboration with SIATA, the Ducati firm finally offered its own Cucciolo-based motorcycle. This first Ducati motorcycle was a 48 cc bike weighing 98 lb (44 kg) with a top speed of 40 mph (64 km/h) had a 15 mm carburetor giving just under 200 mpg-US (1.2 L/100 km; 240 mpg-imp). Ducati soon dropped the Cucciolo name in favor of "55M" and "65TL". The chief designer of most Ducati motorcycles in the 1950s was Fabio Taglioni

In 1952 Ducati introduced 65TS cycle and Cruiser (a four-stroke motor scooter).

In 1953, management split the company into two separate entities, Ducati Meccanica SpA and Ducati Elettronica, in acknowledgment of its diverging motorcycle and electronics product lines.

In the 1960s, Ducati earned its place in motorcycling history by producing the fastest 250 cc road bike then available, the Mach 1.

In the 1970s Ducati began producing large-displacement V-twin motorcycles and in 1973, released a V-twin with the trademarked desmodromic valve design.

In 1973, Ducati commemorated its 1972 win at the Imola 200 with the production model green frame Ducati 750 SuperSport.

In 1993 Monster model appeared, a bike with exposed trellis and engine. It makes about half of all sales.

Ducati is best known for high performance motorcycles characterized by large capacity four-stroke, 90° V-twin engines, featuring a desmodromic valve design. Ducati refers to this configuration as L-twin because one cylinder is vertical while the other is horizontal, making it look like a letter "L". Modern Ducatis remain among the dominant performance motorcycles available today partly because of the desmodromic valve design, which is nearing its 50th year of use.

While most other manufacturers utilize wet clutches (with the spinning parts bathed in oil) Ducati previously used multiplate dry clutches in many of their motorcycles. The dry clutch eliminates the power loss from oil viscosity drag on the engine even though the engagement may not be as smooth as the oil bath versions but the clutch plates can wear more rapidly. Ducati has converted to wet clutches across their current product lines.

Ducati also extensively uses the Trellis Steel Frame configuration, although Ducati's MotoGP project broke with this tradition by introducing a revolutionary carbon fibre frame for the Ducati Desmosedici GP9.

Moto blog

Effenbert-Liberty Racing Tests Ducati 1199 Panigale Superstock Race Bike

Our own Kevin Duke is in Abu Dhabi this week to test the 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale, but elsewhere in the world, the Panigale was receiving another shakedown test in Australia. The Effenbert-Liberty race team was at Australia’s Phillip Island circuit to prepare for the 2012 World Superbike Championship and Superstock 1000 Cup. While WSBK racers Sylvain Guintoli and Jakub Smrz tested their Ducati 1198 Superbikes, Superstock racers Brett McCormick and Federico Sandi got their first chance to ride their 1199 Panigale racebikes.

Ducati Recalls Monster and Hypermotard Models for Fuel Line Flaws

Ducati is issuing a recall on its entire 2012 Monster and Hypermotard lineups due to internal cracking of fuel lines. According to documents released by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, Ducati‘s quality control department discovered micro-cracking on the four-layer extruded fuel lines. The cracks occured on the inner surface of the line that comes in contact with fuel.

2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale Pre-Test

Ducati‘s upcoming 1199 Panigale is the most exciting new sportbike in years. The outgoing 1198 was one of the most highly regarded sportbikes on the market, but the Panigale immediately demotes it to has-been status. It’s especially noteworthy for its monocoque chassis design that eschews a traditional frame for a structure built only around its new Superquadro engine.

Superstock Panigale porn

It's just a Panigale, in Superstock trim: brushed ally tank, larger screen, race map, Termignoni full system, Supercorsa SC2 tyres. 2011 848 Challenge winner, Leon Morris will be running one with JHP Ducati Coventry in British Superstock 1000. Can't wait to see him on that.

Bayliss + Panigale - Traction Control = ?

Troy Bayliss is at the world launch of the Ducati 1199 Panigale. The gritty Aussie has been keeping the world updated via a running commentary on his Twitter feed and Facebook page. He posted a couple of pictures yesterday and said: "Plenty of laps , turned everything off for extra fun , yep, I am still a kid , TB 21".

2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale Launch This Week!

The normal life of a motorcycle journalist is actually kind of mundane, as 95% of my time is spent slouched over a computer. But then there are rare days in which we are hosted in lavish accommodations in a cool location to ride some new bike no one else in the world has yet ridden. For a motorcycle enthusiast it’s a charmed life.

Provisional 2012 Superstock 1000 Cup Entry List Released – Six Ducati 1199 Panigale Entries Included

The international Motorcycling Federation (FIM) has released a provisional entry list for the 2012 Superstock 1000 Cup. Though it has yet to be included on the official FIM homologation list, the 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale is listed six times, representing three different teams. The 1199 is expected to be added to the entry list this month, as homologation is all but a formality at this point for the most anticipated sportbike of the year.

Investindustrial to Sell Ducati

Ducati may be up for sale again, according to a report by The Financial Times. The Italian manufacturer’s primary owner, private equity firm Investindustrial, is reportedly looking for a buyer in either the automotive industry or a rival motorcycle maker. The firm’s chairman, Andrea Bonomi, told Financial Times the time is right for finding a buyer.

Ducati Announces 2012 848evo Racing Contingency Program

Ducati 848evo racers rejoice. Today the company announced racing contingency programs for select series throughout the country. FreedomRoad Financial has partnered with Ducati and is offering substantial cash payments to race winners. Eligible series include CCS, CMRA, CRA, USBA, MRA, OMRRA, WMRRA, AFM and WERA, with cash payments equaling $300 for third place, $600 for second, and $1200 for first, payable via cashier’s check. Ducati and FreedomRoad Financial will support and follow racers with PR activities, including regular updates on ducatiusa.com.

2012 FIM Road Racing Homologation List Released – Ducati 1199 Panigale Not Listed

The International Motorcycling Federation has released a list of homologated motorcycles for the 2012 Superbike, Supersport, Superstock and Formula Endurance World Endurance championships. The list includes all the motorcycles that are allowed to compete in each of those world championships. Notable for its absence however is the new 2012 Ducati 1199 Panigale.