Sport-Touring.Net - 7600 mile Ducati Monster EVO Updates

Right, it's been 8 about 8 months and 7600 miles since purchasing my 2012 Ducati Monster 1100 EVO and I thought it would be a good time to post up a Mid-Term "Ride Impressions" report.

The Good:
1.   Styling: Superb. Really, I love the looks of the bike. The Garage Appeal of the bike is massive. I find myself walking to the garage again just to look at the machine…Seriously, I get so many looks on this bike even sitting at the gas station. That parts really sweet.
2.   Comfort: I rate the seating position as 9/10 for general comfort. The seat is 500 mile comfortable, the riding position puts weight on my wrists/hips/feet very evenly, I have a very neutral back pressure at speed and the forward lean is not severe. I did an SS1k on the bike in 18 hours and can honestly state that I was still fresh enough to clear a BBG.
3.   Wind Protection: Seriously? (Ok, truth be told I don’t miss it at all. The seating position puts me just enough forward into the wind that I’m perfectly comfortable at any speed. I did an SS1k with no fairing changes and didn’t suffer for it. I’ve ridden a naked bike in the rain and it’s really not much different to me than a faired bike. Then again, 8 hours of rain riding isn’t unfamiliar! Wet is Wet…and after 8 hours there’s little difference…)
4.   Power & Engine: I love it. I love twins so consider me biased. It’s got a wonderfully broad spread of torque and plenty of power for the street. I haven’t Dyno’ed it…yet. I did get the ECU reflashed to a performance map (airbox + open exhaust, no flapper) and the bike feels incredibly genteel – easy off-throttle positions and hugely improved bottom (due to restricted emissions). It also makes such a lovely sound – even the factory exhaust sounds great. Has a lot of vibes but they are never intrusive at least to me.
5.   Handling. 420# wet on sport-rubber. Yeah, it’s razor sharp handling, dead stable in corners, plenty of leverage on the bars. I spent the first 3000 miles adjusting my riding style to be a lot more gentle and finessed. This is not a bike that needs to be forced.
6.   Suspension: I really need to spend a day just dialing in the suspension at the track. It’s not bad – perhaps a little harsh but very evenly matched front-back. I think a good track day will work wonders. The moto-rags seem to criticize the Monster for being harsh on expansion joints and the like…maybe it is…but I didn’t think it deserves to be slagged as hard as they do. I found the balance between performance and comfort to be decent.
7.   Maintenance: Dear Lord. I’ll do the oil changes but damn, Ducati can service this one. Oh, and keep your basic wrenches handy…crap rattles loose on every ride! ☺
8.   Tank Range: I thought this would be a bigger issue than it’s turned into. Yes, I had as much as a 240 mile range on the GS and now I’m looking for gas at 100 (out at 140). But you know what? It hasn’t been an issue at all. It came up just once on a ride up the Coast where I had to make an unexpected detour for fuel because I mapped wrong. On tour I carry two 1 liter fuel bottles and haven’t had to use them yet. If I do Alaska again then the fuel would likely be an issue…otherwise? Nahhhhh.
9.   SoCal Ducati Dealer: Pretty good so far. I just wish they were a bit more reasonably priced…
10.   Customizability: ok, some people love to bling their bikes. What makes me laugh is how much true Ducati BLING there is out there! Carbon Fiber, chrome, anodized doodads that I couldn’t care less about. But it’s out there!
11.   Durability: these are thin, lightweight plastics. I dropped one and chipped a mounting tab right off. I fixed it but it was a lesson learned. They scuff and scratch easily. On the other hand you can buy replacements relatively cheaply…so at least Ducati was smart enough to price the plastics right.
12.   Electronics package: I love ABS though I’m still on the fence about the Traction Control. I’ve found that setting 2 seems ideal for my riding (4 and 3 really cut into the throttle leaned into the corner and also restrict wheelies). I haven’t use the Ducati DDA system yet for track days but I darn well might. And I LOVE the lap timer! That’s just fab!
13.   Mirrors: Whatever. Yeah, good visibility and they look good…only the bike vibes enough to make them about 50% useless.

And here's the extended list of mods and my thoughts (five star rating system):

1.   Symtec Heat Demon's heated grips. (2 out of 5)
2.   13 tooth front sprocket. (5 out of 5) Absolutely superb bang for the buck.
3.   Works Performance Exhaust. (4 out of 5) Sounds great but it’s loud! Lightest exhaust I could find, fit and finish is great, factory USA support is top notch (my exhaust was damaged in shipping – they overnighted me a brand new one before I ever had a chance to drop the original in the mail.)
4.   Rexxer ECU Reflash: (4 out of 5) only 4 out of 5 because I shouldn’t have to be forced to do a reflash instead of getting the bike set up this way from the factory! $300 and worth it. Rumor is that this is the same reflash as the Ducati Performance Map from the Termi kit. Maybe, maybe not, but it does three things: Adds Fuel/smooths performance, Removes the sub-4k emissions restrictions (critical if you want to add a PCommander down the road), raises the limiter by 500 rpm.
5.   DIY 24x7 2000 lumen LED fog lights: (5 out of 5). They’re small, they mount easy, they have minimal power draw, and they are massively bright mothers! Top notch stuff this! I slaved them to the high beam and they are completely transparent to use.
6.   Garmin Nuvi GPS (4 out of 5): Zumo 550 with the left hand physical buttons is easier to use. Otherwise I’m sold on Garmin’s for GPS.
7.   Bell 955 Radar Detector (4 out of 5): I have it mounted in the seat (cut out the padding under the rear seat cowl) and then have a Marc Parnes light bar up front. Works a charm! I’m sure a Valentine arrow setup is better but it’s also a whole lot more money.
8.   Gerbings N-type e-Hookups (5 out of 5): best I’ve used to date. Small, convenient, minimal footprint for use. LOVE them. I have one by the left knee for the e-Vest and one on the Dash for a tank-bag powerlet.
9.   Go-Cruise throttle lock: (5 out of 5): it’s just so damn simple…
10.   Removed the flapper assembly: saved three pounds. Makes room under the seat. Otherwise who cares.
11.   Canisterectomy.

Stuff I still want to do:
1.   Maybe lower bars – I could go for a bit more forward lean.
2.   Maybe some rearsets! But that would compromise the comfort of the bike in the knee section and I’m not thrilled about that.
3. Full suspension rebuild at some point! GP Suspension rebuild, complete fork changeover, Penske rear-shock. The goal being to improve smoothness and eliminate some harshness. It needs more compliance, stiffness is fine.

Tires:
1.   OEM Pirelli Diablo Rosso II’s: Not bad. Got 3k out of them, shagged horribly on my SS1k. I never got too agro on them so I’m going to call it 3 out of 5.
2.   Dunlop Q2’s: (4 out of 5) I haven’t ridden in the wet on these…yet. They stick, they’re pressure neutral, they have great feel. My “Go-To” tire. Looks to be about a 2750 mile tire.
3.   Michelin Power Pure’s: (2.5 out of 5). Ok, I’m pacing for about 3500 miles on these and I seriously don’t like them. They are very pressure sensitive. Too much pressure and they lose feeling and grip, too little and the extra soft carcass mushes about. Decent wear though for a full on sport tire.
4.   NEXT Tire? Q2’s…or MAYBE a set of Conti SA2’s if I can get a good deal on them. At $240 a set for Q2’s I’m going to have a very hard time moving away from them…

So, Would I buy this bike again?

Hell yes. It’s exactly what I wanted and does exactly what I expected. Power, weight, handling, comfort, looks: it’s fits my bill perfectly.

Would I recommend this bike to a friend?

Maybe. It depends really on what they want. It’s not perfect, never will be and that’s what I love about it.

Do I see myself parting with this bike?

Nope. This one’s a keeper!

Topic: 7600 mile Ducati Monster EVO Updates (Read 1973 times)