New Multistrada V4 spied for 2021
Ducati’s superbike engine lands in all-new adventure bike
Spy shots have revealed that Ducati are developing a V4 Multistrada, something Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali has previously hinted the firm will build. Although the engine isn’t clearly visible in the photos, the bike itself is clearly wider at the front to accommodate the shape of the 1103cc V4, which will replace the 1260 V-twin DVT currently used. While the basic engine is likely to be unchanged, Ducati will have retuned the V4 motor for more torque and may even boost the capacity to ensure that it doesn’t lose the punchy delivery its current
model is famous for. Meanwhile the trademark steel trellis frame appears to have been superseded by an aluminium beam that still uses the engine as a stressed member.
The big question is whether Ducati can make the new bike work. To date all the really successful adventure bikes are big twins; fours do exist (for example Honda’s Crosstourer) but most struggle to deliver the engine characteristics or outright character that make an adventure bike engaging and effective.
The other big change is the addition of radar-controlled adaptive cruise control unit. Ducati have already said that the plan is to have a bike with a radar that modulates the cruise control speed based on traffic flow, as well as operating as a warning system for potential collisions. The radar sensor is clearly visible between the headlight units, and is likely to be paired with another unit at the rear of the bike that acts as a blind spot detection device. The firm have already told us that a model with their new radar set-up will be available on a Ducati in 2020. It’s possible that an updated 1260 with the radar tech will be available next year, but integration would require a lot of work for a single model year. More likely is that it alludes to the new V4 Multistrada. With confirmation that the V4 Streetfighter will arrive for 2020 (which is unlikely to have the radar system), we expect that the new radar-enabled V4 Multi will be unveiled in late 2020 at the big end-of-year shows as a 2021 model.
‘The radar is visible between the headlights’