As the topic solicits, anyone try it yet? If so, any thoughts about it?

Will get my first taste this Saturday. I'm more interested in the SP version, but will try the standard as well. It's a street-only demo.

I'm not generally a fan of the big twin supermoto-style bikes. Always seemed a contrived type of bike, usually under-tanked, and with dirt bike planks for seats. Suspension travel aside, usually setup too soft for my liking.

This one on paper seems a little different however; Ride-by-wire, all the contemporary electronic crap (a mixed bad IMO), smaller displacement (800-some-odd cc), and probably about the same RWHP as a bone stock SD. Not as hideous as most of this ilk are either.

EDIT: 18K Mi. between valve checks - on a Testastretta desmo !?!

The new DUC's are taylor made for yuppies,,,never liked em after the F1 TT1,,,TBH,,,and those SM bikes never appealed to the masses over here really,,,to funky for me to buy,,,

Good fun bike for the twisties , they sound great and handle really well , I would be surprised if you didnt like the little bike...
Really like the new 800 MV , that looks like a really nice bike

I look forward to the write up on this

ive seen them at the show this year, just cant get excited about it with the new SD coming out, thats one of the few that interest me. not even the Panigale set me on fire like i thought it would.

Gents - before you get all riled up about this, I intend to demo it regardless. You can label the (or me) all you wish, and it won't matter.

I feel fortunate to be invited with some regularity to demo bikes, and pretty much any time I have an opportunity to take an all-new naked bike out for a thrash, I do so.

As the mega-super-hyper-moto category of bikes goes, their looks and performance both generally leave me flat (and KTM's are no exception including the SMR/SMT and new 690 Duke - demo'd a few weeks ago and even more hideous in front of you). This one however, is not nearly as painful to the (my) eyes as its predecessor, and the motor's features hold some appeal.

Am I going to pop for one 2 seconds after I return it? I don't know, but it's unlikely. I'm more fired up about the MV 800 Brutale.

As a technologist, I enjoy experiencing new things. I appreciate the variety of bike experiences I've had (most, anyway - LOL), and I will continue to try to ride as many different bikes that appeal to me as possible. It's just another aspect of my overall motorcycling experience. I am not a brand obsessive, and continually seek what best suits my motorcycling interests.

As for being "excited" about the new SD, based on what I've seen in the spy (yeah, right) shots so far, I'm not there. On what little I know at this point, I would be unlikely to give up my current SD for the new thing. Given the foibles of the original SD, I would definitely not be an early adopter.

If I felt I needed 150 RWHP from my everyday street ride, and didn't give a damn about what it looked like, why would I buy anything other than a Tuono?

I'm with you on the new MV trip,,,,it's a looker fer sur,,,,,

I'm sure all of you have been just dying to wade through my blather on this bike - LOL.

Please note that this was a street-only demo on the base model. If you actually believe you need 150 HP or more for your street ride, you can stop reading right now, and go buy a Tuono or StreetFighter (if you can still find the now-no-longer large displacement version).

First, I want to express a brief note of CAUTION: After an hour on this new Hypermotard, you may want to leave your SD with the dealer and just ride the thing home.

No, I'm not kidding. It's that good. Especially those of you who came to the SD by way of dirtbikes. I was surprised by the qualities of this bike. It's visually more appealing in person than the in images. And far more appealing than its predecessor. It looks short - almost stubby. That detracting "duckbill" is less prominent.

Let me start with my one sentence description that I gave to the dealership owner when I (reluctantly) returned the bike: "It's like the smoothest, most powerful thumper I've ever ridden - and it handles well too!"

These are not remarks I generally make about Ducs I've ridden. Simply put, the new Hypermotard is the most refined and fun Ducati I've ever ridden. That's right - I just used the words "refined" and "Ducati" in the same sentence.

So they hand me the key, and point to where its parked. I ask "Is there anything I need to to know about it?".

"Naw - you'll figure it out; it's in Sport mode, which means DTC and ABS are on their lowest settings, oh, and it might need gas."

Mmmmmkay. I start it, spend about 30 seconds trying to figure out how to change the various modes, and console features (surprisingly intuitive).

The first thing I notice is that it really didn't sound like a Duc. Or at least, any Duc made in the last 40 years that I've heard. Its single can exhaust ("... it's a v-twin - right?) sounded more like a thumper (intentional?). Exhaust was OE, and louder than one might think EPA would allow.

When I swung a leg over it, again - there was nothing Ducati about it. Immediate impression was "dirt bike". Bars just the right width, and close. Much closer than on an SD. Ergos are such that you sit bolt upright, and you feel very forward on the bike - like a dirt bike. While a subjective matter, the the seat is NOT like that of dirtbike, and at no time did I feel uncomfortable or really even notice the seat except that it seems to place the rider pretty far forward. You definitely sit on this bike (not in it).

I feel the levers and throttle, drop it in gear (NO CLUNK!), and the low idle fooled me: I fed it a little throttle, eased out the clutch and it just wants to wheelie RIGHT NOW. Compared to the SD, 1st in particular is geared pretty short. The thing spins up as fast and perhaps even more easily than the SD does. Whodathunk it? After my ride, the dealer guys were all impressed that I would wheelie a demo bike even a little out of the chute like that. I swore up and down it wasn't intentional. They didn't want to believe me.

Holy shit does it spin up quickly! It's crank felt even lighter out of the hole than the SD's, and will spin that way all the way to the cutout (~10.5K?). No surprises/troughs/hits anywhere, and very linear until about 9+K RPM. Not 1st generation Street Triple R linear, but as linear as the SD.

Usually the greatest power exaggerators in all of motorcycling, this may be the first Ducati in history where the advertised horsepower is really what it produces. I haven't seen any dyno data yet, by the 'ol butt dyno tells me that its as strong as my SD (or damn close), at least at any velocity that matters in street riding. Sorry - I didn't see the absolute top end. Regardless the gearing, it has at least as much torque as the SD does, but seemed to fall off a bit after 8K RPM. The overall power curve and where it rolled off felt like an SV650 with about 70% more horsepower and torque. I make this comparison as there seems to be a lot of SV-lovers on here.

The engine is so flexible and smooth, my poor SD felt dated. It was damn near impossible to lug - even in 6th. How dated? Like carbs to F.I. dated. Power was ample everywhere, and I never wanted for more.

Next thing that really comes to my attention is that it actually shifts smoothly. Japanese I4 smooth you may wonder ? No, but then no v-twin I've ridden is that smooth. Not even the Japanese ones (including Honda's and Suzuki's). Compared to Ducs of yore, its can be shifted notably quick. I abandoned using the clutch for upshifts after about the first mile. Not unlike the SD, the transmission takes well to clutchless upshits. Translation: Like the SD, clutchless upshifts work better than clutched ones. Never missed a shift, no false neutrals - the transmission just works.

The throttle was light, and there were no vagaries typical of most ride-by-wire systems: You twist, and it does what you'd expect it to - immediately. The Hypermotard's ride-by-wire is as good as they get (R1 and RSV4 are the standards IMO). No jerkiness, no abruptness, no lag when returning to throttle, rev matching for downshifts was as natural as on any bike with throttle cables.

As if it's not enough to get over the fact that Ducati's clutches are now wet, the clutch on the Hypermotard is not only cable actuated (!), but was also nice and light feeling with good feeback. It has one of the most transparent slipper clutches I've experienced (we're talking Japanese OE supersport/superbike good).

The console isn't the most readable ... It's not bad, and everything you could want informationally is there. I didn't care that much as I only looked at the bar-graph tach once in a while when winding it to the limiter; and the speedo less frequently when trying to determine how strongly it pulled in 5th or 6th above 80 mph. And yes - it pulls nicely in top gear at that speed, as you're still a couple thousand RPM from what felt like the horsepower peak.

Funny thing about the other riding modes; at some part of the demo I switched into the "Touring" and "Urban" modes - and after going only about 1/4 in each, I switched back to "Sport". "Urban" was particularly worthless - it was like riding a hotted-up SV650 (lame). Apparently there is some means by which the maps can be tailored to a rider's preferences easily; if true, that could be a great feature.

Surprisingly - even with my fat ass on board - the essentially non-adjustable suspension (KYB front, Sachs rear) worked remarkably well. Yet another surprise as they really got it right IMO. Not racetrack-ready right, but urban hooligan right. Steering was quick (so NOT Ducati), but not what I'd call flightly or unstable.- even at 120 mph (don't ask where - I'm not tellin'). But if there was one thing I think the Hypermotard could benefit from is a steering damper. Particularly if you ride it aggressively around town (tee-hee) on lousy pavement. I can't stop making the dirtbike analogies - the suspension soaked up the rough-n-bumpy stuff as a dirt bike should, without the harshness typical of WP stuff, or wallowy softness.

Brakes (Brembo M4-type monoblocks and rotors) were very capable, and could haul the thing down from any speed muy pronto. I could get the rear wheel to lift of the pavement before the ABS came in. I am not an ABS fan, but I'm certain it will be de facto on all new bikes sometime in the next decade. As some of you may know, lightweight unobtrusive Bosch ABS systems have been on some Duc models for a decade now. In other words, Ducati is not new to ABS. IMO Ducati has always done a fine job of ensuring both least obtrusiveness and best possible feel/feedback at the lever on its ABS-equipped bikes. The Hypermotard is no excpetion. Likely due to the long line length (MC ?) however, the brakes don't feel as if your fingers are connected to the pads contacting the rotor as on performance models without ABS. Not unexpected. I'm not sure when its supposed to engage, but I felt as I could get what felt like some lock on the rear wheel, at least to where I could intentionally get the back end to step out of line (a good thing IMO).

Traction control - what traction control? I did see the idiot light come one now and then (whacking the throttle out of corners and once on a freeway ramp), but if it was intervening in some way, I couldn't really tell. Hey - its a demo, and I didn't want to bin their bike or have to explain why it was in impound. I'd really need to put it on a racetrack to evaluate the effectiveness of its traction control settings.

The dealer gets their first allotment of the SP model this week. Identical motor, fully adjustable Marzocchi pressureized cartridge front and Ohlins rear suspension (with more travel front and rear; the SPs are about an inch taller), forged Marchis, somewhat different map choices, and a Brembo radial MC. Seems a reasonable deal for only a couple grand more. They said they would call me so I could give one of those a go. I somewhat fear that experience, as I may abandon the SD that day ... Even though I am pretty committed to roll on the 800 Brutale before seriously considering a change.

This new Hypermotard shattered all my experience-based perceptions of Ducati products. For those of you wondering about doing long throws on one, there is going to be a bag-ready version called the "Hyperstrada". For anyone considering a big Multistrada, this may a lighter, more versatile, and more affordable all-round solution for you. I understand that the Hyperstrada will also be more suitable for the short of inseasm (lower seat = an inch short from pegs to seat).

If its a V4R Tuono you expect - you will be disappointed. If you consider yourself an urban brawler/hooligan/street-fighter rider, want a bike with serious juice that honestly adheres to the supermoto ethic yet with far greater refinement, I can only encourage you to get a ride on one. The testastretta mill is now at 18K miles for valve service intervals and will otherwise be low cost and relatively straightforward to maintain.

I think Ducati will sell a lot of these bikes, and for no doubt significantly less than the rumored pricing of the new Superduke whenever it emerges.

Nice write up Nerd Sounds like a great bike.

Thanks mate, I really really fancy a hyper, I just need the engine/bolts/casings to be sorted out on the new one.

I almost bought a 796 last night until I saw some of the scruffy bolts etc on a 4000 mile bike. The streetfighter has now casings which seem a lot better,the new hyper according to the brochure pics seem hugely better too!

I cant afford a new model right now, but when I can ., ., ., .

Nice writeup Nerd. Thanks.

Sharing the rest of this w/ the forum...
I've come to SD from Ducatis and flame me if you want .. there's a lot to like on the Ducs. The ones I've ridden/owned have had *NO* fueling issues. The dry clutch rattle is a classic .. gets the noobs.. You know it only rattles when you pull the clutch in, right? Its extremely easy to maintain. Its Dry!!

Fuel maps???? Neither my 916 or my (ex-) Multistrada spew gas out of the tail-pipe. Nor do they have issues w/the water pump seals. No trying to figure out hunting issues. No secondary flies to pull/push.. Oh.. the countless hours pouring over all the chatter on the forums when I should've been out riding...

Weak battery?? Oh... I can bump start my 916 if I needed to. The SD?... I'm calling a tow truck. Don't they use the same motor in the Adventure? Sounds like you need to carry a spare battery on your next trip to Africa.

Don't get me wrong, I'm probably going to keep my SD for good and try and sort it out as I go. I'd definitely be looking to pick up the air-cooled Hypermotard in a couple of years. Test rode one a few years ago and its awesome. You can't see the bill when u're astride.

The point here is no one manufacturer is too Holy! We should rejoice w/ new innovations from any camp 'cos they tend to raise the bar for everyone.

Whereas my 748 cost me £2000 for a new crank and 5roickers. My SD's have never cost me a penny