Revolution - The Ducati 1199 Panigale..... a new generation of motorcycle that offers more than any other motorcycle currently in the marketplace.

8 level traction control, 3 level ABS (optional on std bike), 3 power modes, electronic engine braking control, wet slipper clutch, quick shifter, fully adjustable suspension including a shock linkage that allows progressive to linear adjustment. The 1198 was the lightest bike in its class, the Ducati 1199 Panigale is now 10Kg lighter with 195BHP of very usable power thanks to the fly by wire throttle system... Awesome !!

To quote Pirelli - "Power is nothing without control" - the biggest Ducati requisite in the design of this revolutionary machine was that it had to be easy to ride.

The Ducati 1199 Panigale has an all new chassis married to an all new engine with direct design involvement from Ducati Corse. This bike combines the road going model and the old "R" race model into one new cutting edge machine.

Ducati have stepped away from the trellis frame and belt driven cams. Do not be fooled, the new Ducati 1199 Panigale is ALL Ducati. Ducati innovation, Ducati technology and Ducati's passion for performance all rolled into one. Phenomenali !!!

The Chassis

Built around the new Superquadro engine of the 1199 Panigale is a monocoque chassis that utilises a cast aluminium airbox that is bolted to the front of the L-Twin engine, the other end of the airbox doubles as the headstock, thus mounting the front fork assembly to the bike. A cast rear subframe is bolted to the rear of the engine.
The single sided aluminium swing arm is connected to the rear of the engine crank cases, hey presto we have a rolling chassis where the engine is an integral part of the frame. What was a 15KG frame is now replaced with a 4KG Airbox..........
Although wheel base has been extended slightly (7mm), rider position has been eased thanks to a 30mm reduction in the seat to handlebar relationship.

The fact that the exhausts are now underneath the engine has aided in achieving a most flickable chassis as well as making the back end of the 1199 Panigale look razor sharp.

Suspension:-

Dependent on model choice, the Ducati 1199 Panigale comes with either 50mm Marzocchi forks that are now ALL aluminium on the standard model or 43mm Electronically adjustable Ohlins forks on the "S". The rear end of the standard 1199 Panigale is looked after by a Sachs fully adjustable rear shock where again the "S" boasts an Ohlins electronically adjusted TTX36 shock. Both have the very simple link arm adjustment facility that allows for the rear shock to act in a progressive manner for road use or linearly for track and race use. The depths of electronic adjustments available are breathtaking. For instance both compression and rebound damping each offer 32 different settings - that's over 900 variations............or you can just revert to the default factory settings.

Wheels and Tyres:-
The standard 1199 Panigale has 10 spoke light alloy wheels, the 1199S however has substantially less unsprung weight thanks to the forged 3 spoke wheels. Pirelli have produced model specific tyres for this bike in dual compound, the Pirelli Supercorsa SP with the rear wheel now carrying a 200/55 profile tyre.

The Ducati 1199 Panigale Superquadro Engine

Redesigned from the crank outwards, not only was more power demanded from this engine, it had to be physically stronger in order to allow for the monocoque chassis design and with Ducati as proactive as they are they would obviously not be satisfied unless maintenance costs and periods were improved. Ducati and Ducati Corse over achieved on all counts. The previous 170 bhp is now 195bhp, valve clearances now not due until 15,000 miles and the belts that needed bi-annual replacement substituted for a combination of chains and gears.
The new vacural cast crankcase design for the 1199 Panigale includes the cylinder bores thus offering excellent rigidity and better cooling properties. Separate nikasil-coated aluminium “wet-liners” are inserted into the tops of the crankcase apertures.
The primary-drive casing, clutch casing and outer cover, sump and cam covers are all cast in magnesium alloy, ensuring a lightweight engine despite its increased strength as an integral part of the chassis.

The engine has earned the nickname "Superquadro " due to its very square bore. Piston diameter (bore) has been increased and stroke decreased ( 112mm x 60.8mm ) allowing the 1199 Panigale power plant to rev higher and more freely. This is all topped with cylinder heads that carry the huge valves - Inlet valves have increased from 43.5 to 46.8mm and exhaust valves from 34.5 to 38.2mm.

In order to ensure safe operation of these valves at such high rpms, many steel desmodromic components have been replaced with titanium and surface finishing and then coated in polymeric-like carbon (PLC) previously designed for the aerospace industry. This is where previous "R" and Desmosedici RR technology has been rolled into the standard bikes. Additionally the new chain/gear cam drive system allows for more accurate cam setups adding to precision of power delivery and reliability at such high revs.

The Ducati 1199 Panigale not only utilises a most efficient pump for oil feed, but has another to remove negative crankcase pressure caused by the downward stroke of the huge pistons. Again ensuring unimpeded free flow of engine rotation.
Every last ounce of efficiency has been chased in the design of this evolutionary machine

The Oval Injector bodies of the Ducati 1199 Panigale have been increased from an equivalent diameter of 63.9 to a massive and high-flowing 67.5mm. The Ride-by-Wire throttle bodies feed air across twin injectors per cylinder, one positioned below the butterfly for enhanced flexibility and one above for outright power. These in combination with the new enlarged valves vastly improves the flow of gas.

On the end of each exhaust cam drive gear is a centrifugal flyweight which retracts at speeds below tick-over to rotate a “protrusion” from the concentric section of the cam, thus creating sufficient inlet valve lift to act as a de-compressor.  This ingenious device enables the 1199 Panigale engine to be started easily without using a larger battery and starter motor, which has reduced overall vehicle weight by approximately 3.3kg (7.3lb). When the engine starts and the camshafts begin to rotate at tick-over speed, the centrifugal flyweight flicks out, retracting the “protrusion” back into the cam and allowing complete valve closure for full compression.

With an all new engine comes an all new gearbox. This has allowed for larger diameter, stronger gears to transmit the increased power output. Also new for the big superbike is a “wet”, oil-bathed clutch. which is based very closely on the design of the Multistrada and Diavel components. The clutch assembly features a “slipper” function and a progressive self-servo mechanism that compresses the friction plates when under drive from the engine. While enhancing frictional efficiency, this also results in a rider-friendly light clutch lever “feel” at the handlebar. Conversely, when the drive force is reversed (over-run), the mechanism reduces pressure on the friction plates, enabling a true racing “slipper” action, reducing the destabilizing effect of the rear-end under aggressive down-shifting and provide a much smoother feeling when closing the throttle or down-shifting under normal riding conditions.

EBC - Engine braking control which works electronically to control the butterfly in the throttle body, holding this open to varying degrees ensures that the forces of deceleration offered by this engine are accurately controlled

Body/Instruments

The sleek 17 litre aluminium fuel tank doubles as the lid to the airbox. The front cowl that surrounds the full LED headlamps in the case of the "1199S Panigale" and "1199S Panigale Tricolore" models come with additional wind deflectors as standard (it is optional to fit) to esure that for track/race pace that more wind can be moved for rider protection. The rear tail piece that is now 2 part is minimalistic and elegantly encases the rear LED light. All models also come with rear seat and pillion footrests.

The full colour TFT dash (thanks to mobile phone technology) clearly shows RPM, gear indication, temperature and ride modes. This can be switched to view computer trip data such as consumption etc and also acts as the display for all ride mode adjustments and lap timer viewing etc.
For track/race use just RPM can be selected.
Once familiar, its operation is simple and easy to use on the move.
The RPM display utilises 3 colours:
1st colour - Normal operation
2nd colour - Warning mode - This is used to guide run in procedure, ie. gradually getting higher as accumulated mileage increases. It is also used as a guide during engine warm up. N.B. It is a guide not a limiter.
3rd colour - over rev/rev limiter

The display has day and night background colour modes that can be left as automatic or can be overridden manually.

Take a step into the future, take a step into the world of Ducati, take a ride to Seastar Superbikes to see it for yourself.

Our Demo/Launch bike is expected End March 2012.

Come and visit Seastar Superbikes and test ride the Ducati 1199 Panigale for yourself.

Feel free to browse our range of Ducati 1199 Panigale accessories.