DUCATI PANIGALE V4
The Ducati, being a Ducati, is the dearest bike we had on test. But even this, the base model V4, felt like a special bike. From its shiny red bodywork to its suede-like seat, the Duke oozed class. Its sharp angles and lines give it the look of an out-and-out track focused machine, but when you throw a leg over you realise that, small though the V4 is, there is actually ample room for a decent-sized pilot. The bars are far enough forward and the pegs low enough to be comfortable; it’s as though someone has chucked some bodywork on a naked street bike.
That is until you fire the motor up and take it for a spin. From the get-go the motor feels strong, possibly a little too strong at first; negotiating a busy car park wasn’t the easiest of tasks on the V4 as the initial opening of the throttle, at very low revs, felt a bit harsh and jerky. Junctions were a bit of a pain too. The Duke liked plenty of revs when setting off; Bruce and I both had an embarrassing stall or two. Once the engine is opened up the drive the Ducati dishes out is super impressive – it’s not lumpy like Ducatis of old. It pulls so hard whatever gear you’re in and just begs for the next gear, and the next gear, and it doesn’t take long to lose track of how fast you’re motoring along. Luckily, these incessant gear changes are helped along the way with a quickshifter, which works like a dream, and treats you to a little pop every now and then, if you get the revs just right. Downshifts are aided by a decent blipper too, putting it up there with the R1 and RSV4 for gadgetry.
While we are on the subject of gadgetry, the V4 does come with some pretty cool systems which are really easy to faff with via the left hand switchgear and the nice big dash. Traction control, slide control and wheelie control can all be altered. The slide control