Ducati Multistrada Hits 100,000 Mark

Sixteen years after the first Ducati Multistrada rolled off the assembly line, the family has now reached the 100,000-bike milestone. Multistrada number 100,000, a Pikes Peak version of the 1260 with a customised laser marking on the top yoke, was handed over to Dave Hayard--a German Ducatista who had ordered his Multistrada from the Düsseldorf dealership--by none other than Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali in person.

Ducati's dual-purpose motorcycle has always been technologically cutting-edge. In 2010, the Multistrada was the first bike to feature riding modes, the system that changes the very character of the bike. Indeed, the tagline for the advertising campaign read: "four bikes in one." With the D|Air version, introduced in 2014, Ducati offered the first motorcycle with a system capable of interfacing with a dedicated airbag-equipped jacket. In 2015 it became the first motorcycle to feature a variable-timing engine: the Testastretta DVT (Desmodromic Variable Timing).

And as the technology evolved, so too did the reliability. Ever-longer, stricter development tests were applied. Production processes were improved, materials enhanced, numerical simulations honed, taking the Multistrada 1260 and 950 to unprecedented levels of dependability. Today, all the engines in the family have valve play checks at 30,000-km intervals--three times that of the first version. With no less than seven versions, today's Multistrada family has never been more complete: two 950 cm³ (113 hp) bikes and five 1260 cm³ (158 hp) ones. Presented in 2019, the new Multistrada 950--also available as an S version--is designed to put Multistrada performance within everyone's reach while maximising versatility, thanks also to the 19-inch front wheel. The most recent interpretation of the original dual-purpose sports concept, the Multistrada 1260 combines the comfort and load capacity of a dual-purpose bike with tire sizes, wheels, and brakes that are, instead, typical of sports motorcycles. Equipped with Öhlins suspension, forged wheels, and a carbon fiber end pipe, the Pikes Peak model offers maximum sports performance. For those, instead, who love adventuring, Ducati has come up with the Multistrada 1260 Enduro, designed to take on the toughest terrain and longest journeys thanks to the 30-liter tank, long-travel suspension, 19-inch front rim and, of course, the hard-wearing spoked wheels. Development is ongoing, and in 2021 the Multistrada family will expand to see the twin-cylinder 1260 and 950 motorcycles joined by a version with a new, specific V4 engine.