THERE’S an awful lot more to this beast than just raw power. After 15 years of refining and evolving Ducati has produced just about one of the lightest bikes in this category mixed with the agility and power you’d expect from this marque.

On the stand

The most obvious features to differentiate the S model are extra goodies like the 43mm titanium coated nitride Ohlins forks. The standard models gets the Showa 43mm. Both are fully adjustable. At the back the S model sports a progressive Ohlins rear shock with adjustable pre-load and damping. Standard comes with Sachs adjustable monoshock. The other bits of bling on the S include carbon fibre cam belt covers, silencer guards and front fender. And those little goodies shave 1 kg off the standard model - 168kg instead of 169kg. The angle of the rear shock gives plenty of room to access the spring load and rebound damping adjuster. The S also gets the distinctive racing gold coloured five-spoke Marchesini wheels which hark back to the look inspired by Ducati’s racing models. The race-oriented single-sided aluminium swingarm adds to the looks with its smooth flowing lines. The re-shaped air ducts in the fuel tank cover mans that there’s a bit more room to move the handlebars, which now swing across a 64-degree steering lock.

On the road

Our test run on the Monster 1100S was designed to replicate the typical kind of environment that would accentuate the bike’s agility, power and light weight. So we made our way through typical Sydney traffic (on a sweltering hot Summer’s day when the temperature was forecast to reach beyond 40 degrees!) taking in the Lane Cove and Sydney Harbour tunnels. Around the city the bike is certainly no slouch. Even for a vertically challenged lightweight like myself, there were never any moments where I felt I was out of my depth on a bike too big for the city. For an experienced shorter rider the seat height of 810mm (31.9 inches) would not be a problem. If power isn’t your ultimate aim then try the new 696 for size (as tested in Cycle Torque’s October edition). It is definitely a bike that will appeal to serious sportsbike riders.

The Monster 1100 has a riding position that is very comfortable with a good ratio between ’pegs and handlebars. The ride height is 40mm taller than the 696 and has increased ground clearance too. The new fuel injection system on the Monster is very responsive. And new is the operative word here. New engine, new crank. The heads are still twin spark and are similar to their predecessors. It’s a brand new look for the motor, with a new design for the crankcases, black cylinders and a new carbon grey finish on the cam covers. But as a total package it’s a very punchy motor. The Desmodromic twin-valve V-twin has a bore and stroke of 98mm x 71.5mm delivering 95hp at 7500 rpm and a torque of 10.5kg at 6000rpm.

Out of the city and onto the highway and the Monster was happy upping through the gears as we headed for some tighter country out near Galston. Now this is where you really appreciate just how light and nimble this 1100 is.
The only time the handling was a bit suspect was when we hit some repaired tarmac on the Old Pacific Highway, the heat of the day melting tar repair strips and causing the Monster to have a little shimmy as we crossed each one. But the Monster wouldn’t be on its Pat Malone here. But this is more to do with the tyres scrambling for grip rather than any handling issues.
Brembo brakes are a great bit of kit to have at your fingertips. The front has four-piston calipers grabbing twin 320mm discs with a two-piston caliper on a 245mm disc on the rear.
From Galston we headed to some equally tight stretches of road into Brooklyn for our lunch stop. Mind you, there were plenty of rehydration stops on the way in the soaring temperatures.

After lunch it was onto the freeway and back through the city for some afternoon peak hour traffic. The narrow profile of the Monster 1100S also would allow you to indulge in some lane-splitting if you were inclined to break the law, which absolutely no serious journalist would ever encourage you to do - irrespective of your thoughts on said laws. The choice of route for the day certainly showed that the Ducati Monster 1100 is certainly in its element no matter where you choose to ride it. So living in the city, and with a penchant for longer rides in spare time, the Monster would certainly let you have your cake and it it too.

On the ’bars

The mini bikini fairing looks a bit tiny but seemed to do its job in deflecting the breeze, but then I’m a mini rider so you’d have to ask a taller rider about that. The new aluminium tapered bars are comfortably placed. The instruments are very comprehensive. The digital readout displays speedo, tacho, clock, scheduled maintenance warning, oil temperature, trip fuel, air temperature, lap time, low oil pressure warning, fuel level, fuel reserve, over-rev immobiliser, as well as your regulars like blinkers, neutral etc The instruments are also ready to accommodate a DDA (Ducati Data Analyser). One thing that many of the riders on the day commented on was that the temperature gauge remained at a civilised level all day, despite riding through some of the hottest conditions experienced around Sydney for quite some time, and considering the engine is air cooled.

On the eyes

The standard 100 has silver wheels but you can have the frame is red or silver and the body in red, silver or gloss black. The 1100S comes in red (red frame) or pearl white (matte black frame) both with racing gold wheels.

On the wallet

Ducati is continuing with its two-year unlimited kilometre warranty as well as the two-year roadside assist program. Longer distances between service intervals (12,000 kilometres) and a recommended retail price of $18,495 + ORC for the base model, and $21,995 + ORC for the S make the pricing very competitive for a bike with this kind of performance.

Final say

Realistically we didn’t cover too many kilometres, or any at high speeds, so it’s hard to comment on seat comfort and handlebar geometry, but it certainly felt fine for the smallish distance covered. And high sustained speeds are always going to be a chore without a decent fairing.

On thing is for sure, this is a rider’s bike which can boast a high level of handling ability, especially the S model, and the power from the V-twin is not likely to disappoint serious riders.