Bike India

Best Bikes in India | No.1 Two Wheeler Magazine

  • Home
  • News
    • Upcoming Launches
    • Latest News
    • New Bike Launches
  • Reviews
    • First Ride
    • Road Test
    • Comparison
  • Features
  • Our Bikes
  • Videos
  • Subscribe
  • NG Auto
    • AUTO COMPONENTS INDIA
    • CAR INDIA
    • COMMERCIAL VEHICLE
  • Brands

Monster on the loose

April 22, 2015 by Team Bike India Leave a Comment

1-071 web

We ride the Ducati Monster 1200S through the Tenerife lava fields with memories of a ride on the Monster 1100 EVO three years ago still fresh in our mind

Story: Roland Brown

The ride through the dramatic, lunar-like Tenerife lava fields on the Monster 1200S is eerily reminiscent of the launch ride up Mount Etna in Sicily three years ago on this bike’s predecessor, the Monster 1100 EVO. As the new, liquid-cooled Ducati growls up the twisty road circling the Tiede volcano, it feels very much an evolution of that air-cooled 1100 EVO model — but not quite in the way that might have been expected.

DuMon12S_082 web

Sure, the new 1200S with its 145 PS Testastretta DOHC eight-valve V-twin engine is much quicker than the 1100 EVO, accelerating with shoulder-yanking force as it revs smoothly and hard through the gearbox. But other, more subtle things make just as much impression: the engine’s flexibility and sweet throttle response, the simple yet informative instrument panel, the comfort from the revised riding position and more generously padded seat.

It’s really no surprise that this new-generation Monster should be notable for more than just the added performance of its liquid-cooled engine. After all, Ducati already had the Testastretta motor that produces 162 PS in Diavel specification, and could have given it even more power to meet the challenge of the latest 160-PS-plus super-nakeds, including BMW’s S1000R and KTM’s 1290 Super Duke R.

DuMon12S_029 web

Instead, the Bologna firm has softened the eight-valve V-twin, and positioned the freshly liquid-cooled Monster slightly apart from those hyper-nakeds by making an effort to improve its all-round ability. This is the most powerful and fastest Monster yet, but it’s still a roadster that feels as though it was built to be ridden wearing jacket and jeans (albeit preferably reinforced and armoured ones), rather than racing leathers.

DuMon12S_013 web

Ducati’s approach is easy to understand, given the success of a Monster family that has sold more than 2,75,000 units since the original M900’s launch back in 1993. The Monster has always been about accessibility and streetwise style as much as speed, as emphasised in 2009 when the eight-valve Streetfighter’s imminent arrival prompted the firm to drop the liquid-cooled Monster S4Rs in favour of the air-cooled 1100.

bikeonline@nextgenpublishing.net'

Team Bike India – who has written 841 posts on Bike India.


Email

Related posts:

Kawasaki W175 Tested Review — The Indian Kawasaki
Royal Enfield Super Meteor 650 First Ride Review
Honda CBR1000RR-R Fireblade Anniversary - Enduring Magic Enhanced
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5

Filed Under: First Ride, Review Tagged With: 1200, 1200S, 2014, 2015, 821, bike, ducati, India, monster, power, speed, sportsbike

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

AlphaOmega Captcha Classica  –  Enter Security Code
 ⟲    ➴
 


JANUARY 2023

Bike India - India's no. 1 two-wheeler magazine

17TH ANNIVERSARY SPECIAL

Bike India - India's no. 1 two-wheeler magazine

Anniversary Ride to the Isle of Man with Freddie Spencer and Sid Lal

TVS Ntorq Ncounters I – Navigating the Night

BMW G 310 GS Explores Nagaland

SPECIAL Featured Story

Yamaha MT-10 SP – Ready for Road, Track, and Touring

Yamaha MT-10 SP – Ready for Road, Track, and Touring

In recent years, however, the MT-10 has begun to show its age, especially in terms of technology and rider aids. It was always on the thirsty side, too, and, by modern standards, the brakes were lacking. It was time for an update, which is why for 2022 Yamaha introduced a new MT-10 earlier this year.

More about this.

Car India and Bike India Awards 2019

Recent Posts

  • Kawasaki W175 Tested Review — The Indian Kawasaki
  • Honda Activa H-Smart Launched In India
  • Dakar Rally 2023 – Benavides Emerges Victorious
  • TVS iQube Long Term Review

Car India

Car India Magazine - Get your Digital Subscription

Latest News

Honda Activa H-Smart Launched In India

Dakar Rally 2023 – Benavides Emerges Victorious

HOP Electric Launch High Speed Variant Of Leo

Emotorad Launch Premium Electric Bicycles

Subscribe to Car India

Subscribe to our Car India Magazine

Bike India: India’s no. 1 two-wheeler magazine

BIKE India covers the two-wheeler industry in its entirety, both from the local and the international perspective. Also delivers the most definitive verdict on machinery and performance by explaining the hows, whys, and whats on every new bike in a lucid and user-friendly manner. BIKE India is the India’s most authoritative two-wheeler publication, a magazine for people with a passion for bikes and everything to do with their history and heritage.
SiteMap

Copyright © 2023 · BIKE INDIA INDIA’S NO. 1 TWO WHEELER MAGAZINE, BY FAR! ·