WE asked you on our Facebook page the things you wanted to know about Ducati's new 899 Panigale. I've put your questions to Ducati's engineers, testers and project leaders and here's what they have to say.
THE LAPTIME Difference between a stock 848 Evo and stock 899 Panigale at Imola is, according to Ducati's test rider, around 2 seconds. However, fully-setup and sorted versions of each bike will differ in laptime by a much smaller margin. Ducati claim 148bhp for the new 899 and reckon a sorted version will produce 7bhp more, taking it to a claimed 155bhp.
IT FEATURES A double-sided swingarm as it's cheaper than the single-sided version on the 1199 to help keep the 899's costs under control but the bonus is it's lighter than that of the 1199.
THE ELECTRONICS package is the same as what's fitted to the 1199, except the settings have been changed to suit the 899.
IT'S HEAVIER than the 1199, due to parts like the clutch cover, sump and cylinder heads being made from aluminium not magnesium. The tank is steel, which although it's heavier than the aluminim tank on the 1199, it's lighter than the plastic tank on the 848 Evo. The rear subframe is steel trellis instead of cast aluminium. In total, the 899 Panigale weighs in at 193kg, which is 5kg heavier than the standard 1199 Panigale.
THE 899 shares a lot with the 1199 but the main differences are: the 899 has a steel tank versus the 1199's aluminium, the steel subframe versus the cast aluminium subframe, various magnesium covers on the engine are now aluminium, the swingarm is dual sided not single-sided, the rear wheel is different. In the engine, the bore and stroke differ, along with the intake and exhaust valves which are smaller, the cam profile has changes, the 899's wheelbase is shorter but the 899 features the same crank cases as the 1199. The 899's suspension is fully-adjustable Shiowa BPF forks at the front and fully-adjustable Sachs rear shock. The LCD display is also a simpler version of the 1199's full-colour display. The LED running lights of the 1199 don't make it onto the 899. These are the main changes but there are a handful of other smaller differences too.
IT FEATURES Ducati's 8-level traction control, ABS and a quick shifter as standard. There are three riding modes, RACE, SPORT and WET. RACE and SPORT both offer full power but with two different throttle maps, while WET is limited to 100bhp. RACE offers front-only ABS allowing you to slide the rear. The intervention levels of the various safety and performance features can be adjusted or switched off altogether.
THE 1199 single-sided swingarm will fit if you really can't deal with the looks. But it'll cost you a decent amount and it's heavier too, meaning the 899's looks would have to really bother you to make the change worthwhile.
Click here for our Ducati 899 Panigale review
