Times change

Giulio Fabbri Fabbri, Ducati’s Product Communications Officer, on the death of Desmodromic, Ducati values, and their reputation on reliability...

‘We discussed Desmo a lot – it had become a pillar for our customers. But the pillars for Ducati are different: they are style (every Ducati has to be born with style); performance (every Ducati has performance as a goal); sophistication (you can see the Multistrada is very sophisticated); and you have to be able to trust a Ducati. When we say ‘trust’, we know 20 years ago we didn’t have a great reputation. But things changed a time ago and that’s why the Multistrada not only has 37,000-mile valve clearance checks, but also has a four-year warranty. So these are the pillars for Ducati – not Desmo. But there were technical reasons for using valve springs: mainly because there is less stress on the valves, but also a spring valvetrain has fewer parts and is easier to assemble, and it’s also easier to service. And that means it’s cheaper to service.’