2014 DUCATI MONSTER 1200 AND 1200 S – FIRST LOOK

For 20 years, the Monster has brought home the daily bread and butter for Ducati. Originally designed by Miguel Angel Galluzzi, the sporty V-twin has been a huge success, an icon among younger riders who appreciate its fresh styling, semi-relaxed riding position, and solid performance.

Through the years, the Monster has grown more powerful, peaking with the 1100 Evo. But the old, air-cooled SOHC twin in its largest displacement—still based on Fabio Taglioni’s Pantah 500—was unable to grow further due to emissions requirements. So, the latest liquid-cooled, DOHC, four-valve V-twins were called upon to rescue the top-of-the-line Monster.

Biggest and strongest of those engines, the 11-degree Testastretta 1198, was chosen. The new Monster 1200 is now a real monster: 135 hp for the base model, 145 for the S. This engine has been significantly modified and now features cylinder-head frame-attachment bosses to allow use of a chassis conceptually similar to that of the Panigale.

 

2014 Ducati Monster 1200 and 1200 S at EICMA 2013

 

Framework follows traditional Ducati steel-tube trellis, which is also a significant styling element for the Monster. This short, tight triangulation of thick-diameter steel tubing, combined with the solid platform provided by the 1198 Testastretta engine, generates high torsional rigidity better than that of any previous Monster chassis.

Overall, the new Monster is a much bigger bike than before, with a wheelbase spanning 59.4 in, 2.4 in. more than the Monster 1100 Evo. The longer wheelbase was selected for maximum stability and smooth reaction from the chassis even when full power is applied. A 43mm inverted Kayaba fork and a massive single-sided swingarm with a multi-adjustable cantilevered Sachs shock are standard. The S version uses Öhlins front and rear.

Styling was, of course, critical. Great attention was paid to comfort through what appear to be well-designed ergonomics. The larger 4.6-gallon gas tank is neatly sculpted, and the exhaust system follows the contorted bundle-of-snakes design, with some excess at the front branch of the manifold. The electronics suite is derived from the Panigale. With a claimed curb weight of 460 pounds, the new machine has impressive performance potential.

Of the previous-generation models, the Monster 696 and 796 have survived untouched. This is critical because, at $13,495 for the standard model and $15,995 for the S version, the Monster 1200 is rather expensive. If the less-costly versions were no longer available, a large portion of the following that the Monster has created would be quickly alienated.