For a niche luxury motorcycle brand with just about nine showrooms in the country, Ducati has a fairly large range of bikes on offer for enthusiast buyers here. Of the rugged, luxurious and sporty motorcycles that the Italian brand offers, the line that is most focussed on adventure is the Multistrada. Ducati India already offers four variants of the bike and has just announced the launch of the all-new Multistrada 1260 Enduro at a price of ₹19.99 lakh (ex-showroom India). Being one of the top-spec trims, the Multistrada 1260 Enduro is a combination of performance and comfort and is equipped with top drawer components to enhance its off-road and touring capabilities.
The Multistrada 1260 Enduro premiered at the Milan AICMA show in November last year. It is equipped with the new 1,262cc, Ducati Testastretta DVT (Desmodromic Variable Timing) engine which ensures outstanding pulling power right from the low-to-mid rev range. A Ducati release says that 85 per cent of maximum torque is already available below 3,500 rpm with a 17 per cent increase at 5,500 rpm as compared to the torque curve on the engine of the previous model. Ducati claims that this makes the Multistrada 1260 Enduro — the motorcycle with the highest torque (at 4,000 rpm, the most common rev rate while riding) in its category. The peak power and torque numbers remain the same at 158hp and 128Nm respectively.
Riding modes and more
While the new Ducati Multistrada 1260 Enduro provides impressive performance, riding modes rein in and bring control to the power delivery. Also, the new Ride by Wire function ensures both smoother throttle control and better safety, and the DQS gearbox (Ducati Quick Shift) Up and Down, which significantly improves the ride experience by ensuring precise, fluid upshift and downshift gear meshing.
The Multistrada 1260 Enduro sports spoked wheels — 19-inch at the front and 17-inch at the rear. Featuring electronic semi-active Sachs suspension (with 185 mm of travel both front and rear) and a 30-litre fuel tank, the Multistrada 1260 Enduro offers a range of 450 km. One of the big changes in the new Multistrada is the revised ergonomics to the riding position brought on by changes to the seat, handlebar, and centre of gravity; all of which are lower than on the 1200 version and the new suspension set up.
Ducati also claims that the Multistrada 1260 Enduro boasts of the most advanced electronics package in the segment. The new 6-axis Bosch Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU) controls Bosch ABS Cornering, Ducati Cornering Lights (DCL) and Ducati Wheelie Control (DWC). Riders can set both DWC and DTC to one of 8 different levels, or simply deactivate them. Also, as-standard on the Multistrada 1260 Enduro is Vehicle Hold Control (VHC), which makes uphill starts easier, especially with a full load.
The motorcycle also gets a sophisticated new Human Machine Interface (HMI) which includes a 5-inch TFT colour display, user-friendly switchgear controls and Ducati Multimedia System (DMS).
The DMS connects the bike to the rider’s smartphone via Bluetooth, giving access to all key multimedia functions (incoming calls, text messaging, music). The Ducati statement says that it also features cruise control and a hands-free system for easy and comfortable riding.
Ducati says that the Multistrada 1260 Enduro has long maintenance intervals: the oil only needs changing every 15,000 km while a Desmo (Valve) Service is required only every 30,000 km.