New Multistrada V4 spied
Ducati’s tourer on the home run despite Covid lockdown
More spyshots have emerged of Ducati testing a Multistrada V4, which suggest that despite coronavirus delays plans are still in the works to have the bike ready this year. This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the model, in fact Ducati themselves have talked about a V4 Multistrada for some time, but this is the closest thing we’ve seen to a productionready machine.
As the name suggests, the old V-twin is out in favour of a V4 motor – most likely the version fitted to the new Streetfighter. It’s probably had another little re-tune for an even fatter midrange but we’d still expect the engine to break the 200bhp barrier. That new motor is also a likely explanation for the chassis changes.
The steel trellis frame remains but up front the V4 Multistrada has a 19in wheel, like the 950, rather than a 17in wheel of the 1260. This could be an element of Ducati wanting to fit in (virtually all the major adventure bikes have 19in front wheels) but it could also be about shifting the extra weight of the new engine further back. Also carried over from the 950 Multistrada, rather than the 1260, is the doublesided swingarm. There are plenty of possible reasons why Ducati have done this including weight, stiffness and handling as well as fitment issues. The big leap forward in the bike is likely to be in the electronics. We can see there’s a brand new and much bigger full-colour TFT dash. This should bring Ducati up to date as the old model was lagging a little in this department. The cornering lights have moved from the ‘face’ area down into the bodywork, which is wider anyway because of the new engine. This has freed up space for the radar unit between the lights, which will be used in the adaptive cruise control (as per the BMW on page 15).
There’s been no official word from Ducati about when we expect the bike to arrive but assuming they keep to their traditional schedule, we should see this machine before the end of the year as a 2021 model.