As Ducati dominates the MotoGP championship with an incredible prototype racer, it presents a new street legal Panigale V4 R that makes 218 horsepower from a Euro-5 compliant engine. With an available racing exhaust and a special oil developed with Shell, the bike can achieve a peak horsepower of 240.5 with a redline of 16,500 rpm!
This is probably the closest you can get to purchasing a factory race bike. Take a close look at the “gun drilled” titanium connecting rods, for instance, which evidence the extremes Ducati goes to for maximum power and torque.
Here is the Ducati press release followed by a video:
Ducati presents the new Panigale V4 R: over 240 hp in track setup, limiter at 16,500 rpm
- The new Panigale V4 R adopts technical solutions previously reserved to MotoGP and Superbike, such as “gun drilled” titanium connecting rods and pistons with DLC surface treatment
- The new Desmosedici Stradale R engine in track setup provides 240.5 hp at 15,500 rpm and continues with the limiter (in sixth gear) at 16,500 rpm: extraordinary numbers for a series production motorcycle
- Together with the engine, a performance oil has been developed, derived from the formulations used in racing, which contributes to reaching the peak of 240.5 hp of maximum power
Borgo Panigale (Bologna, Italy), 14 October 2022 – In the fourth episode of the Ducati World Première web series, the Bologna-based manufacturer presented the new Panigale V4 R. With this bike, Ducati once again confirms its vocation: to offer its enthusiasts the most sophisticated and refined technological solutions, which bring the road supersports bike even closer to the racing bikes used in the WorldSBK Championship.
The new Ducati Panigale V4 R is recognizable from the first glance thanks to the presence of carbon wings and MotoGP-inspired livery, which integrates the white plates with the number “1” in evidence. For the first time, the bike will be produced in a numbered series with the progressive number and model name shown on the billet aluminium steering.
The heart of the Panigale V4 R is the new 998 cc Desmosedici Stradale R, an engine capable of reaching a maximum engine speed of 16,500 rpm in sixth gear (16,000 in the other ratios) and delivering a maximum power of 218 hp at 15,500 rpm (Euro-5 compliant*), absolute benchmark values in the panorama of supersports bikes of the same displacement. The new Desmosedici Stradale R, despite all the improvements, delivers slightly reduced performance compared to the previous version due to the limitation generated by the exhaust system complying with the strict Euro-5 homologation. The full potential of this engine, however, is expressed on the track by fitting the racing exhaust, which allows it to reach 237 hp, 3 hp more than the predecessor.
The engine development of the new Panigale V4 R also involved the production of a special oil developed by Shell in collaboration with Ducati Corse. The new performance oil guarantees a 10% reduction in mechanical friction and leads to an increase in maximum power of a further 3.5 hp, which rises to +4.5 hp at the limiter.
The formulation of this oil is based on the use of racing-type additives, specific for high-rpm engines equipped with a dry clutch. It is in fact the dry clutch, as in MotoGP and SBK engines, that allows the use of additives, which would make torque transmission problematic in the wet clutch. These chemical elements are added to the base oil in dedicated quantities and percentages to ensure the right balance between performance and engine protection.
With the combination of racing exhaust and dedicated oil, the maximum power output of the Panigale V4 R can therefore reach an extraordinary 240.5 hp.
These numbers are possible thanks to the adoption of sophisticated technical solutions derived from the world of racing competition.
For the first time on a road bike, “gun drilled” titanium connecting rods are used, which are drilled longitudinally along the rod (1.6 mm diameter hole). This solution, allowing the passage of oil from the head to the small end, improves lubrication and reliability in extreme conditions.
The pistons of the Desmosedici Stradale R have a skirt characterized by DLC (Diamond Like Carbon) surface treatment, a solution used in MotoGP and Formula 1 racing competition, which reduces friction between piston and liner and which is applied for the first time on a road engine. The pistons also have a new geometry that makes them 5 grams lighter (equal to 2% of their weight) thus reducing the forces of inertia, to the benefit of reliability.
The other changes involve a more aggressive profile of the intake cams, characterized in this version by a greater lift (1 mm) and matched to new variable-length horns, reduced by 5 mm in the short configuration. This modification improves breathing at high revs and thus increases the maximum power in the configuration with racing exhaust.
Again with a view to improving performance on the circuit, the Panigale V4 R adopts the same gear ratios used by the bikes competing in the WorldSBK Championship, as was already the case with the Panigale V4 S 2022, with the lengthening of first (+11.6%), second (+5.6%) and sixth gear (+1.8%) compared to the previous model. First gear therefore becomes more usable in circuit riding, offering the benefits of greater engine management when braking and better acceleration when exiting corners. In addition, the smaller jump between first and second gear allows the Ducati Quick Shift to work more effectively, increasing the effectiveness of the new racing pattern.
The Desmosedici Stradale R in its 2023 version is also equipped with a new dry clutch derived from the development of the version used in the WorldSBK by the official Ducati team. The diameter and axial length of the clutch have been reduced (-24 mm) and above all its weight has dropped by around 800 grams.
The greater effectiveness of the new Panigale V4 R in circuit use is also obtained thanks to the adoption of all the electronic evolutions already introduced on the Panigale V4 ’22 and ’23, with the expansion and evolution of the Power Modes, new “Track Evo” display on the dashboard, engine maps with calibration dedicated to each single gear, refinements to the Ducati Traction Control and the Ride By Wire system, but also the adoption of the Engine Brake Control EVO 2 strategy, the new strategy for the DQS and the cooling fan control update.
To make the Panigale V4 R even faster and more usable in racing use, the Power Mode logic already successfully implemented on the Panigale V4 and V4 S has been adopted, naturally with calibrations dedicated to the Desmosedici Stradale R engine.
There are four engine strategies: Full, High, Medium, Low. Full and Low are newly designed, while the High and Medium configurations have been revised. Full Power Mode allows the engine to express its full potential with torque curves without electronic filters, except for first gear. For the Medium and High Power Modes, a new Ride by Wire map management system has been developed with dedicated calibration for each of the six gears, which ensures the rider always obtains optimum drive every time the throttle is opened. The Low Power Mode, on the other hand, has been designed for riding on the road or for low-grip surfaces, limiting the maximum power of the bike to 160 hp and offering a particularly manageable throttle response.
The motorcycle operating parameters can be viewed even more effectively thanks to the new dashboard graphics, which differ in a revised distribution of the functions of the warning lights outside the screen. The most important change on the Panigale V4 R, already introduced on the V4 S, concerns the interface, which evolves by means of the inclusion of a new Info Mode, developed by the MotoGP riders and called “Track Evo”, which is added to the already existing “Road” and “Track”.
To improve stability, precision and directionality in braking and corner entry phases and allow the rider to define more precisely the best electronic engine configuration on each circuit, the Panigale V4 R also adopts the Engine Brake Control (EBC) EVO 2. This electronic engine brake management system features a different gear-by-gear calibration on each of the three selectable levels. The strategy was developed to optimize the intensity of the engine brake as a function of the load on the rear axle.
The Panigale V4 R adopts a new strategy for the Ducati Quick Shift (DQS) which improves the fluidity of shifting at every degree of opening of the throttle, both when the latter is partialized and when it is completely open, dealing with the two different situations in a different way.
In partialized throttle shifting, the strategy acts both by means of an injection cut of the previous strategy and with a reduction in advance, making the action smoother in road use thanks to the absence of engine shutdowns and re-starts.
In fully open throttle shifting, typical of track use, the DQS strategy is refined with an evolution of the torque restitution phase that guarantees more stability to the bike and a more homogeneous and therefore more profitable drive in the lap time.
In addition to these changes, there is also an update of the cooling fan control strategy, now able to offer better management of operating temperatures while also reducing the accumulation of heat typical of the conclusion of track sessions. Furthermore, this strategy guarantees greater thermal comfort for the rider at the typical speeds of road use.
For those who use the Panigale V4 R only on the track, the Bologna-based company has developed the specific Ducati Performance DTC EVO 3 software for slicks and rain tires (sold as an accessory, and which makes the V4 R not approved for road circulation open to traffic), which now also allows to activate the flashing operation of the rear position light, as required by racing regulations in case of rain, and replaces the Street Riding Mode with a Rain Mode specifically designed for use on wet surfaces.
To improve rider feeling when opening and managing the throttle, a new throttle control that is 50% more compact and characterized by radial and axial clearances reduced to a minimum, as well as being virtually free of initial idle travel, has been adopted.
Finally, as on racing bikes, there is a Pit Limiter to limit the speed at the exit and entry of the pit lane.
The Panigale V4 R continues with the layout based on the “Front Frame” and single-sided aluminium swingarm of the Ducati Panigale family. It is possible to adjust the height of the rear swingarm pivot in 4 positions in 2 mm steps.
To increase nimbleness, rider feeling and grip, the chassis of the Panigale V4 R also follows the evolutionary direction traced by the Panigale V4/V4 S with the 2022 model, while maintaining fully mechanical suspension adjustment. At the front, the Öhlins NPX25/30 pressurized fork increases its travel by 5 mm compared to the previous “R”. This technical solution, combined with an Öhlins TTX36 shock absorber whose centre distance goes from 312 to 316 mm and a standard adjustment of the swingarm pivot to the +1 position, increases the rear height by 20 mm. In this way, a higher centre of gravity is achieved and therefore greater nimbleness in corner entry and changes of direction.
The adoption of a less rigid spring for the shock absorber (from 105 N/mm to 80 N/mm) and a lower ground load on the front due to the lengthening of the fork travel, as well as improving the ability to “copy” the asphalt, accentuates load transfers by exploiting the greater negative travel of the suspension, increasing grip and feeling when entering corners. At the same time, the greater travel of the fork allows the front wheel to maintain contact with the asphalt even when faced with more accentuated load transfers towards the rear during acceleration, while the position of the swingarm pivot accentuates the anti-squat effect by improving stability, precision and ability to maintain the trajectory when coming out of corners.
Finally, to speed up and simplify calibration, the rear shock absorber is equipped with a hydraulic adjuster for preload.
The bodywork of the bike have also been updated, with the adoption of a brushed aluminium tank with a capacity increased to 17 litres and a profile that offers better support for the rider’s arms and legs when braking and when cornering. The changes to the tank are added to a flatter saddle, with a reduced amount of foam and with a different covering, which on the one hand guarantees greater freedom of longitudinal movement, and on the other helps the rider to become more stable when necessary.
On the Panigale V4 R the aerodynamic package has also been revised with a view to greater efficiency: the new two-element wings (main + flap) guarantee the same aerodynamic load, but are more compact and thinner (respectively by 40% and 50%).
To improve the cooling of the engine, stabilizing its performance in extreme use on the circuit, the fairing has been modified in the layout of the extractors in the lower area and complies with the World Superbike Championship regulations. Also in the lower part, on the left side, there is an air intake to cool the sensor of the Ducati Quick Shift.
To further increase efficiency in track use, Ducati Performance offers a wide range of accessories with which to complete and embellish the Panigale V4 R. It starts with the Akrapovič titanium full exhaust system with double under-seat silencer, which improves the already reduced weight/power ratio of the V4 R thanks to a weight saving of 5 kg compared to the standard system and the increase in power up to 237 hp. The exhaust is supplied with dedicated mapping with which all DTC, DWC, DPL and DSC parameters are adjusted to the new performance of the bike.
Further lightening is possible by fitting the magnesium rims, which guarantee a saving of 0.7 kg (-10%) compared to the already light forged original equipment rims, improving all aspects of dynamics and above all nimbleness in corner entry and in changes of direction.
To better adapt the riding position, adjustable aluminium rider footpegs are available, developed by Ducati Corse in collaboration with Rizoma. They are equipped with articulated brake and shifter pedals to minimize the risk of breakage in the event of a slide, and they use the standard DQS, which can be configured both as a traditional shifter and as a reverse/racing shifter.
The Pit Stop accessory package offers tyre warmers and garage stands to enable to approach your track sessions in the best of conditions. Those wishing to use Slick or Rain tyres can choose the DTC EVO 3 software, which introduces the specific calibrations of the electronic controls.
To further embellish the Panigale V4 R it is also possible to adopt one or more of the carbon fibre components for the bodywork, from the rear mudguard to protections for the frame, swingarm, sprocket and crankcase, even arriving at details such as the ducts for the cooling of the front brakes, which improve performance on the track and make braking more efficient and consistent.
A complete overview of the accessories is available on the dedicated section of the Ducati.com website.
The dynamic video of the new Ducati Panigale V4 R has been published on Ducati’s YouTube channel.
#PanigaleV4R #ThisIsRacing
* Bike specifications and dealer availability may vary from market to market. Please refer to the tech specs contained in the press kit for further information
** Timing and availability of the product may vary depending on the county
Badass, man, that thing is badass. Everybody with their thoughtful reasons not to like it, but you gotta admit, that thing is badass.
At least Jay Leno will buy one…
Not a lot of comments here. Who’s the market? And why should the rest of us who are definitely not in this market care?
Development of race bikes results in improvement in the more affordable bikes as well. So there’s that.
The last time I went out shopping for a vehicle, I gave myself a $40,000 budget. I came home with a 690 KTM Duke as I felt it was the best bike available for my needs and use, still do. Even if I did it again today and gave myself a $45-50,000 budget, I still wouldn’t buy this Ducati.
Was that budget for an SUV or truck?
That’s a heck of a budget for a motorcycle purchase
For a vehicle. I ride motorcycles, not cars or trucks. It’s not much of a budget for a vehicle. Many people spent two or three times more than that.
$45k ain’t exactly cheap, until you realize that you get the closest thing possible to a road legal World Superbike. The two wheel equivalent to a McLaren Senna. From that perspective it’s a steal. And who knows, twenty years from now it may even have proved to be a good investment. If one manages to keep the shiny side up that is.
I thought that way about the Desmosedici. It was gorgeous when it came out. It’s looking a little slabby now to my eye.
This bike has wings. They are not going to age well. They will eventually disappear or change radically. For this bike to gain a lot of value as a collectable it would need to be a movie prop and have been ridden by some actor that future people really admire. Though right now I can’t think of a current Marlin Brando or Steve McQueen. The bikes ridden in The Matrix or Mission Impossible aren’t fetching tons of money.
The bike is not road legal. It is for closed course only.
Huh? It’s a homologation special. It has to be street legal. And it comes with some race parts and you can buy more “kit” parts from the factory.
Gun drilled titanium connecting rods, now there’s some know how! Or, I wonder if they EDM those long small holes.
Either way, I continue to enjoy riding fast bikes fast.
EDM stinker.
Khm. Anything but lough. May be it is not that simple but. There are SpaceX vessels that are much more complicated. And those things are useful. That things with price 45 kilos simply make people smile
It is interesting to see how Ducati’s marketing models keep getting cheaper. This one isn’t bad at all by automotive standards.
Too bad they seem to have lost the ability to create something visually stunning. This bike doesn’t look bad. But nobody is mentioning Ferrari and Ducati in the same sentance anymore. Maybe that’s a good thing. Having been to the Ferrari museum. I must say that their designs do not age very well at all.
This bike won’t age well because the wings already look silly. Almost as though there was an argument over including them that ended in a compromise that isn’t going to please anyone.
For what it’s worth, there you have it. MotoGP is working quite well for Ducati. And now their bucks up model is fairly attainable by anyone who really wants one. $45K won’t buy you a car that anyone will look twice at. It will buy you one of these. People who care at all about the current motorcycle market are going to notice.
Credit is due to them for resisting the temptation to include subscription anything. But boy are they going whole HOG with the accessories and Ferrari crazy with special oil. You know that stuff is going to make Champaign seem cheap. It won’t be long now before they will be selling special fuel as well.
Sometimes it’s a blessing to be old, jaded, and uninterested in anything over 350 pounds. I have long accepted the curse of having plenty of money and nothing to spend it on. My wife was wondering why I don’t buy a new truck Sunday on our return from riding the Tail of the Dragon and all the cool roads in that area. Well…
Sometimes I really wonder what your motivation is. You really are a glass if half empty kinda guy who seems to have a knack for finding something negative to say as your go to position. You mention your life of abundance often though I wonder if you are happy.
I could be happier. I consider myself as living in exile for the last ten years, 2 in Netherlands (Neat place. Rode observed trials there.) 3 in Paris, France (I loath cities) 5 in NH (No real dirt biking). It kind of wears on me. I end up driving cross country al lot. Three times since August for instance. That gets old.
The 350 pound thing is where I drew the line on technical excellence since the late nineties. Dirt bikes are technically excellent in my opinion. The street bike market seems to self impose a 400ish pound wet weight minimum and just adds power. In the late nineties I got bored of my 916 Ducati, feeling that it had too much power to be an enjoyable street bike. I sold it and built a supermoto to replace it. What I wanted from the street bike market was an 80-90hp premium bike that didn’t conform to the 400 pound weight minimum. I never got it. So I have been buying used street bikes ever since. Though I did consider buying an NCR Ducati with an air cooled two valver in it. There was an NCR dealer in Paris. But importing motorcycles is a real pain.
There was a time when governments were discussing the idea of limiting street bikes to 100hp. I was hoping that more than just France actually did it. Were else to go but lighter premium bikes?
Recently the appearance of all these nice little parallel twin engines gave me some hope. But they are all going into budget bikes that are far heavier than they really need to be and are made so with heavy parts that are very difficult to replace. Few of them have dry sumps and are also quite tall as a result.
You should have started building your own motorcycles years ago. The parts are out there. Have exactly what you want.
In case you didn’t read his post, that’s exactly what he’s been doing.
todd: He swapped wheels on an XR650, perhaps some other work I don’t know about. Can’t remember him saying he built any bikes.
I have warmed up to Mick over the years (not that he should give a shyte) and respect his knowledge and opinions. But, based on how much he complains (and his age) he should have built 15 or 20 bikes by now.
I’m not a very good fabricator.
I bought the XR with its aluminum tank, custom intake, 41 FCR flat slide (huge difference), Ohlins suspension with titanium springs. I basically changed its color and added a luggage rack.
I did consider buying an NCR. I kind of like the air cooled two valve Ducati engine. Even a stocker in a 350 pound bike would be plenty fast for street use. But in the end I’m really more of a dirt biker. I wouldn’t value a really expensive street bike it’s worth. NCR has been inactive since 2017. I don’t think they are around anymore.
CCM has my attention. But I already have a cool single. I would like to see them do a twin.
Not a good fabricator myself Mick. But I love changing parts and there are some pretty cool parts for sale these days.
Seems to me there are a lot of very fine, low mileage bikes that could serve your purpose if modified. Go for it. I may do that for my next track bike or just buy one built and spend the extra time riding.
“Glass half empty” is being quite generous. “This is p–s” is more like it.
Anything over 350 pounds is too heavy? Are you trying to ride it, or bench-press it?
Yes.
I want to enjoy riding it. As a life long dirt biker, I grew up expecting technical excellence in my motorcycles. The street bikes have certainly gotten quite sophisticated for what they are. But while you can spend more money and get more power. You can’t spend more money and get the same power with less weight. If Yamaha gave a dry sump MT-07 engine to the dirt bike department and had them do the rolling chassis and the plastic, give it something like 8 inches of suspension travel and 17 inch tubeless spoked wheels, or 19s on a street tracker, grab one of the front brakes off of an R1 and whatever rear they see fit and as close to nothing else as possible.
BANG! We know what dirt bikes cost. We know what an MT 07 costs. Even if the resulting bike cost as much as one of each, I’d be all over it.
That would be an example of technical excellence. And it can’t be had in the street bike market at all. It seems like such a no brainer to me. It’s not that they can’t make things like that. It’s that they won’t make things like that. So I don’t buy their stuff.
Last thing I bought from Yamaha was a 2007 YZ250. I still have it. I bought two others used and have since sold those. The last new bike I bought at all was a 2017 KTM 300XC (counter balanced engine). It’s brilliant, save the #4 throttle slide, what were they thinking? Depending on your pipe, a throttle slide from a 2003 Kawasaki or Honda KX or CR125 (#5 and #5.75 respectively) are the ticket. I run the Honda 5.75.
We’ve been over this before, Mick. The reason this mythical multi-cylinder, 350lb unicorn doesn’t exist is because it cannot be made for an acceptable price.
“As a life long dirt biker, I grew up expecting technical excellence in my motorcycles.” – this is a telling quote. If you remember old dirt bikes as “technical excellence”, you wear some powerfully tinted rose colored glasses.
You believe that Dave. You will never get me to believe that. They make dirt bikes every day. Before they started to down the four stroke path you could buy them for $5000 out the door. Now that you have to fund the Formula One program that is the four stroke dirt bike engine they have doubled in price. But they are still affordable. My 2004 YZ250 has forth and fifth gears from a 450WR in it. The bikes use the same transmission.
If they can make an engine and put it only in budget street bikes, they can certainly wrap that same engine in a motorcycle that is much more dirt bike think. Some guys on YouTube took a couple of scramblers, Triumph and Ducati, out dirt biking for a day and broke both of them doing pretty tame stuff.
One of the lightest cars you can buy is a Miata, which is easily 500 pounds lighter than the norm. And it isn’t all that expensive.
KTM does sell dirt bikes that are street legal with their little Formula One engines in them. You can buy three of them for the cost of the motorcycle above.
All the parts exist and are for sale today. What you are expecting me to believe in your post about a $45k bike is that somehow a different combination of much more affordable motorcycle elements is impossible. It just isn’t.
I guess where I’m struggling is to understand why/how you believe it’s possible to do.
You continue to cite things that are adjacent to reality. 4-strokes did not make MX bikes more expensive, inflation did. KTM’s 2-Strokes are only ~ $500 less than their 4T’s of the same class of bike.
Aprilia has built a premium street bike around a compact, powerful P-twin similar to many others. It’s very expensive and it still weighs just over 400lb.
A Miata is light(er) because it’s VERY small . More common care are heavier because they’re physically bigger. There are some motorcycle equivalents, like the KTM Duke’s I cite but guess what, the P-Twin 790 isn’t 350lbs. How would you propose they make that bike 40-50 lbs lighter and still be street legal?
Light weight is universally appreciated. There is literally no rider on earth who would not appreciate a lighter version of a given bike than a heavier one. Any make that could do it would seize a market advantage. So where is it?
Wonder what trade-in I could get for my 1971 CB100.
60 hp per cylinder, way cool, and not easy to do. I’ll wait for the desmo single a little while more.
God, I wish:
1. I could afford $45K + on a race bike (probably $55K by the time it is fully converted),
2. I was a good enough rider to use this thing to its full potential, and
3. Panigales crashed better.
If I were filthy rich, I would have a deposit on one of these. I give Ducati a lot of props for building such a bada$$ bit of kit. What a machine!
It seems like a lot of money until you consider that 15 years ago you could spend more race prepping any of the best hyper-sport bikes, resulting in a finished product that wouldn’t be as powerful or capable as this.
100% agree. Heck, I think — including the bike — was around $25K on my last 600 build by the time it was done.
Truth is, every modern litre bike will likely out perform a WSBK from 15 years ago. 240hp from 1000cc would have been science fiction a few years ago. And this engine could probably be raced for several seasons before you would need to freshen the top end — not every other weekend like those 180hp “Superbike Builds” in the 2000s.
And, to somebody else’s post about weight, I bet once you remove the lights and ABS, replace wiring and ECUs with race bits, and install race fairings, it’ll be pretty close to that 350 lb figure. I’m sold!
It is an advantage of the Ducati brand that they can sell “exotic” bikes. This is likely a homologation special. I bet Yamaha, Kawasaki, and Honda would have difficulty selling 500 copies of such a thing at $45k in today’s market. If they can’t include a tech or configuration on a retail bike, they must get exceptions to the rules to include such things on their race bikes. Ducati? “Is no problem. We make special and sell to the Tifosi.”.