2018 Ducati Multistrada 1260 Pikes Peak (Photos courtesy of Ducati)
Perched at the top of the adventure-sport touring heap sits Ducati’s Multistrada, which bested its closest competitor, the BMW S 1000 XR, in our 2015 head-to-head comparison. Ducati clearly wants to maintain that position, so for 2018 it has announced a slew of upgrades including a new engine, an updated chassis, new electronics and an aesthetic refresh.
Watch our video review of the 2015 Ducati Multistrada 1200 DVT
As its nomenclature indicates, the new Multistrada’s DVT (Desmodromic Variable Valve Timing) L-twin engine has been enlarged from 1,198cc to 1,262cc, with its 106mm bore unchanged but the stroke lengthened 3.6mm to 71.5, which was first seen on Ducati’s XDiavel power cruiser. Ducati says this results in 18-percent higher torque output at 5,500 rpm, with claimed figures of 158 peak horsepower at 9,500 rpm and 95.5 lb-ft of torque at 7,500. Ducati has been refining the Multistrada 1200 since it was introduced in 2010, including the smoother and more tractable DVT update in 2015, and for 2018 it aims to further please sport-touring riders with an updated throttle-by-wire system that promises smoother response, along with its Ducati Quick Shift (DQS) system, optional on the base model and standard on the S and Pikes Peak versions. Chassis updates include a longer swingarm and revised geometry for quicker steering and greater stability when riding with full luggage and a passenger.
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