Ducati Multistrada 950

Ducati’s ‘little’ Multistrada is one fast, razor-sharp beastie.

 

Ducati says the Mutlistrada 950 is designed to ‘provide all the excitement of the Multistrada in a way that makes it more accessible and versatile’.

The Italian performance and style leader has done well. There’s no question the 950 is an exciting motorcycle, and thanks to the price alone it’s a lot more accessible than it’s bigger stablemates. It’s a blood rush of excitement to ride, there’s no possible argument there, and we can see how some riders would prefer it over the bigger Multistradas.

Whatever. On its own merits, this an excellent motorcycle.

All about the ride

 Ducati takes the performance aspect of its bikes very seriously, and that shows on the 950 as much as its does on bikes like the awesome Panigales. In this case a 937cc, 90-degree, liquid-cooled V-twin provides 113 horsepower and a hefty 96.3nM of torque. All that drive churns through a six-speed box with a wet, cable-operated clutch and a chain to offer what we have to say is a fairly glorious turn of speed and acceleration.

Helping control that delightfully growling powerplant is a set of electronic modes: Touring; Sport; Urban and Enduro. The modes are the same as on the 1200, so we won’t outline them again here. The names of the modes give a fairly clear indication of their intended use and you can read about them in issue #17.

Braking is sharp and strong, beautifully controlled by the ABS system, and is an absolute pleasure to use. Traction control is the same, and of course, both systems can be fine-tuned in the menus.

Maintenance intervals on the motor are 15,000km or 12 months, and the valve inspections are scheduled for every 30,000km.

Assume the position

Climbing on the bike is interesting.