Ducati 916

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The Ducati 916 and its upgraded brothers are sports motorcycles manufactured by Ducati. Whilst it lacked the outright power levels of the Japanese inline four-cylinder opposition, its excellent handling and broad spread of torque more or less made up for the deficiency, depending on personal preferences.

Four Valves

The first development of the 916 model family can be traced back to the development of the 4valve Ducati engine, thru racing to the road going 851 and 888 models.

The chief designer of Ducati motorcycles since the 1970s was the late Fabio Taglioni (1920-2001). He introduced the Pantah in 1979; its engine was updated in the 1990s in the SuperSport (SS) series. All modern Ducati engines are derivatives of the Pantah, which uses a toothed belt to actuate the engine's valves.

Ducati 916

First released in 1994 (very limited number released in 1993), the Ducati 916 was admired because of its epochally new design and outstanding technical features. Designed by Massimo Tamburini and his team at the Cagiva Research Centre in San Marino, it was a water-cooled version of the 888 that allowed for higher output levels, combined with a striking new bodywork that featured aggressive lines. It was later replaced by the 996 and 998 with similar design but revised engines and even more power.

Design of the Ducati 916 was a balance between function and form:

• The single-sided swingarm was beautiful, but designed to make wheel changes faster during races
• The underseat exhausts improve aerodynamic performance, and resultantly gave very clean lines

Massimo Tamburini went on to design the MV Agusta F4, the bike which is seen as his replacement for the 916 range, and it shares many similarities with the 916 especially in the tail section.

Technical Data

• two-cylinder, four-stroke four-valve watercooled V engine
• 113 hp (84 kW) at 9000 rpm
• top speed of 265 km/h
• Single-sided rear swingarm
• Upside-down forks
• Underseat exhaust pipes

A Ducati 996 resting on a rear wheel stand

The Ducati 996 V-twin motorcycle arrived in the 2000, and was the successor of the 916 model. It featured a larger engine and five-spoke aluminium wheels.

The 998 only lasted for one season in 2002. It featured a combination of items dragged from parts bin of higher specification versions onto the basic SP model, plus the Testastretta engine across all models. There were some chassis and aerodynamic modifications which made the bike far easier to ride.

A 2002 998 in very Dark Green, was featured in the 2003 motion picture The Matrix Reloaded. Trinity, played by Carrie-Anne Moss, escapes her chasers riding the superbike. Stunt doubled by Debbie Evans, it is considered one of the all time great chase scenes. Ducati subsequently announced a limited edition of similar dark green 998's and Monsters.

Racing

From the 916 onwards, through the 996 and the 998, the motorcyle campaigned very successfully in the World Superbike competition, winning world championships with Carl Fogarty, Troy Corser, and Troy Bayliss:

• * 1994 Carl Fogarty - Ducati 916
• * 1995 Carl Fogarty - Ducati 916
• * 1996 Troy Corser - Ducati 916
• * 1998 Carl Fogarty - Ducati 996
• * 1999 Carl Fogarty - Ducati 996
• * 2001 Troy Bayliss - Ducati 996

Replacing an Icon?

Ducati has since ceased production of what many called the bike of the 1990s, supplanting it with the Ducati 749 and Ducati 999.

External Links

• [Monsta article - show's histogram of 916 models]
• [Ducati announcement of release of the Ducati 998 Matrix]

 

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