Ducati Diavel Carbon, 2015 road test

Ducati Diavel Carbon ABS: Eicma 2010, more than 4 years have passed since its debut, but when you see one on the street the Diavel continues to turn heads. Because it's a motorcycle from unique and particular design, irrational and outside the box, so much so that it cannot leave anyone indifferent. Defining it as muscular is an understatement and if the 240 at the rear it can make you think of a clumsy and unwieldy motorbike, once in the saddle you are amazed by how pleasant and easy it is to drive, very stable on fast speedswhere he gives his best. Only on narrow mixed terrain, between the hairpin bends of a pass for example, does it show some small limits imposed by the dinghy and the kilometric wheelbase. Powerful with its 162 horsepower, without however becoming too demanding. It remains theDucati soul, with a package of high-end electronics and supersport motorcycle details, such as the Brembo braking system with radial calipers and exquisite attention to detail. Some truly noteworthy design solutions are worthy of note, such as the "retractable" passenger footrests and handles.

Aesthetics and finishes:

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Before being a motorbike, it is a design object

We said it, after over 4 years it still turns heads. Even before its performance and characteristics, a Diavel is chosen for its uniqueness, with a bold, exaggerated look, attention to design and without any real and direct competitor. A sports bike with an American flavour, a sort of muscle bike which however reinterprets this genre with new concepts, because it has very little in common with a Yamaha V-Max or a Harley-Davidson V-Rod (even if some slight similarities could be found with the latter). Perhaps only the exaggerated wheelbase (1.590 mm in this case) and a very wide rear tyre, even double that of the front. The Diavel has a presence that he inspires fear, his name is emblematic in this. It looks like something out of a movie though futuristic and innovative in its design. You can also recognize it from behind when moving, thanks to the particular shape of the rear lights, placed under the tail, but what distinguishes it is its aggressiveness and being massive, almost a single piece, from which only the two wheels protrude and the tail, in addition to the two large 2 into 1 into 2 exhaust pipes, with the related sinuous manifolds in plain sight. From the front it appears all black, from afar you can only notice the headlight (revised with the MY 2014), in two overlapping pieces, set between the two air intakes. The front view instead looks like a drawing from a comic book, with streamlined and clear lines that outline the silhouette. At the bottom, the exhausts and the tip under the engine form a wedge, which seems to join the support point of the front wheel to the hub of the rear rim. While above, the curves reign supreme, with a sort of horizontal and flattened "S" drawn by the headlight, which continues on the tank and the saddle, rising decisively up to the passenger portion. However, it is the details that make the difference in this observing it up close is a pleasure and you discover real gems, design solutions that make it an object to be admired calmly.

Beyond the carbon finishes by Diavel Carbon, here in the White version, with a white frame and lines contrasting with the black (you can also choose in the AC Milan version, if you are not a Juventus fan), you can see, just to give a few examples, the low license plate holder that goes around the wheel and attaches to the swingarm, or i Marchesini forged 9-spoke light alloy wheels with visible machining showing the contrast between the shiny black channel and parts with unpainted metal. The rear has an even 8-inch channel round (the front is 3,5!), to accommodate the dedicated tyre. Some details escape even closer observation, such as the bellows mudflaps anchored to the fork, which open and close like the wings of a bat when you rotate the handlebars. The saddle, here in a single-seater configuration with a carbon "nail" covering the passenger seat, hides two other effective solutions. The first consists of rear “T” handle extraction mechanism, which extends beyond the shape of the codon, the second is the long passenger footrests, which disappear into the silhouette of the bike when closed. In the saddle you find yourself in front of a long tank, in which one of the two displays is positioned, with the second in the more traditional position reserved for the instruments. As with other Ducatis, all functions are managed from the left block on the handlebar, with the now usual Riding Mode options and so on. In addition to this the Diavel offers as standard a Keyless system, one of the first because it has been present since 2010, but which in comparison with the current solutions of the competition appears to be improvable in terms of intuitiveness and operation, the fuel cap is excluded, as well as the saddle, which work with the classic physical key, which is it opens and closes using the remote control, while the steering lock can be inserted both with the handlebar on the right and on the left.

Engine and performance:

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Monster couple? More than anything unexpected malice

Let's say it right away, many talk about a monstrous couple, we are out of the pack. Because for the type of bike we are looking at, the Diavel's 130 Nm are a lot, but they don't cause a sensation and, above all, they are delivered at an impressive 8.000 rpm. Just to make some comparisons, the V-Max has 169 at 6.500 rpm, the monstrous Triumph Rocket even 221 at just 2.750. What no competitor can boast, however, is the impetuosity of the 1.200 Testastretta 11th, modified and made more aligned with the tone of the Diavel, but which remains a sporty and mean Superbike-derived engine, certainly not one of those American twin-cylinder engines with all the torque and diesel speeds. Spin high, i 162 horsepower maximum power reaches 9.250, they push and make a much more impressive impression than even the 130 Nm of torque. If in Sport mode in other cases we found it excessively grumpy for road driving, here it is perhaps at its best. Angry without going overboard, perhaps also thanks to the monstrous rear tyre, capable of discharging its impetuosity to the ground without too many problems, aided by optimal leverage, with the long swingarm designed to allow for some single-wheeling, but above all super sports car acceleration. Everything follows the classic recipe from Casa Ducati, with refined electronics to tailor the controls and settings. Basically we use i three riding modes standard: Sport, Touring with all the power and a smoother delivery thanks to the different calibration of the ride by wire, and Urban which "cuts" the horsepower by limiting it to 100 rounds, as well as further softening the nature of the response of the throttle control . From these three settings you can then indulge yourself to build three customized modes, acting on the traction control and ABS settings, as well as on the power and delivery. Barring special needs, the Sport on the Diavel does more or less everything. With the exception of driving on low-grip surfaces, for the rest it has a minimum of electronic reins to help the driver, without however limiting too much the desire to let loose. Wheeling is allowed and even a few small commas with the dinghy... And the Diavel can provide a lot of fun, it is absolutely not a design object to show off, or rather it is, but it's not just that. You get a taste for it, thanks to the unexpected chassis and very low weight for the type of bike it is, you end up riding it like a Monster, without major differences in performance. However, not even the Diavel is an exception to some typical Ducati flaws, for example the gearbox is excellent, but it is not uncommon to find neutral between fourth and fifth, or between fifth and sixth, if you shift up without the clutch in a less than perfect way .

Ride and handling:

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Despite its appearance, it is dynamic and sporty when driving, especially at fast speeds

Let's start with weight. We did a test among those who had not yet read the specifications of the Diavel, on average the expected value is around 280 kg. This is because looking at it it is certainly not a compact motorbike, it is massive and you don't expect that instead on the scale, in running order, it stops at just 234 kg. They are not few for a Ducati, even if they are only a handful more than a Monster 1200, they are certainly few for a muscle bike, whose better competitors pay at least 40 kg of difference. This in itself is a clue to understanding that the Diavel, in addition to being particular, is still a Ducati, even in riding. No problem for braking, where a top system, with ABS as standard, radial calipers and 320 mm front discs have no difficulty making it stop in very small spaces. In this case the size and wheelbase also help, because it becomes really difficult to raise the rear tire, thus making the action of the rear brake also useful. The beautiful forged Marchesini rims mount a classic 120/70 ZR17 in front, an exaggeration 240/45 Diablo Rosso II on rim with 8" rear channel. It is a specific tire developed by Pirelli specifically for the Diavel.

Even knowing that Ducati cannot produce a "gate" even if it invents a motorbike like this, with an appearance and contents light years away from the rest of its production, and not even after having had positive feedback on several occasions from those who had it driven, we would have expected to having so much fun with the Diavel on one of the classic "geek" routes. Departed from Milan towards St. Moritz, arriving at the foot of the Maloja pass we found ourselves moving our ass on the saddle from one side to the other, not even if we were testing the super sports bike on duty. And what a pleasure it is to push on the fast mix! In the third and fourth corners we liked it perhaps more than Monster 1200 S tested last year. It results to be more intuitive and less nervous, decidedly stable, thanks also to the "inflatable boat". But then the enthusiasm made room for physics, because on the narrow hairpin bends the Diavel highlights its limits, making it less manageable and slightly clumsy. Nothing sensational, but in this context other bikes become simpler and more fun, less tiring to push to the limit. Of course if they had told us we would be there have fun filing the footpegs on the asphalt, we really wouldn't have believed it. Even the chassis is anything but banal front fork, with a full black appearance, has 50 mm upside-down legs, a fully adjustable Marzocchi. The rear single-sided aluminum swingarm is combined with a Sachs shock absorber which is also fully adjustable, with remote register for preload.

Price and consumption:

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Challenging price, but it is a unique motorbike

The price list of the "basic" Ducati Diavel starts from around 18 thousand euros, but to buy the Diavel Carbon you need almost 21.590, ABS included. The series limited to 500 examples, Titanium, rises to the considerable sum of 28.740 euros. The technical basis is the same, with the same engine, what changes are the finishes and the precious materials intended for the richer setups. As far as consumption is concerned, the 17-litre tank, which when used at full throttle, does not allow for record range. In our test, the average consumption figure stood at 6.9 liters per 100 km, so we are at just over 200 useful km from full to full. If you then have problems with the fuel cap lock, as happened to us, it becomes quite stressful... It must be said that on the motorway things improve, because at the classic 130 km/h you travel almost 20 km/l, given more than discreet.

PROS AND CONS
We like it:
Spectacular appearance that attracts a lot of attention, unexpected performance and driveability, excellent and complete electronics
We do not like it:
Keyless operation not too intuitive, demanding price

Ducati Diavel Carbon: the Motorionline Report Card

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Test clothing:

Jacket: Dainese Black Hawk

Trousers: Dainese Jeans Prattville

Gloves: Dainese Blackjack black

Boot: Dainese TR-COURSE OUT AIR

Helmet: Shark Skwal