Take a look at our first ride on the 2012 Ducati Panigale S! The 1199 Panigale is, without question, Ducati’s largest undertaking in decades and is better than its predecessor in every aspect. The next question then, is it the new king?
It’s nearly impossible to overstate how important the 1199 Panigale is to Ducati. Not only does the bike represent the Italian manufacturer’s first attempt at a completely reworked superbike, but it also marks the first time Ducati engineers have done away with the time-honored technology that long made its line of superbikes so distinct. As if the pressure wasn’t already on, the release of the 1199 Panigale directly succeeded the very public failure of Ducati’s similarly constructed GP11 MotoGP bike. Put simply, Ducati engineers need the Panigale to work; if not to put the manufacturer at the top of the literbike class, then to at least reassure it that the time and money invested in developing a monocoque chassis was worthwhile.
It’s not just the bike’s monocoque chassis that separates the Panigale from its 1198 predecessor; rather a slew of technological updates and engine revisions — the 1199 is the epitome of a clean-sheet design. The only engineering concepts that have been carried over, for instance, are Ducati’s 90-degree L-twin engine configuration and proven desmodromic valvetrain. We’ve covered the mass of technical updates in previous issues (Late Braking, January ’12 and March ’12), plus you’ve likely already gone cross-eyed from reading the spec sheet elsewhere, so straight to the important part: what it’s like to ride the Panigale. In case you missed both of our tech-based stories of course, the tech sidebar on page 34 will bring you up to speed.
Read more: http://www.sportrider.com/bikes/146_1206_2012_ducati_panigale_s/viewall.html#ixzz1wsqWioOU
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