Luca Bar, who we last wrote about when we showed you his BuellRod design, has another interesting concept using Ducati 1098 power in a long wheelbase custom. His Ducati D-66, is aimed, somewhat, at the V-Rod market segment, one of his illustrations even compares it directly to the V-Rod in various dimensions. With the V-Rod aiming at a slightly different and a bit younger demographic than their other big twins, it seems perfectly logical for a Ducati design to look in the V-Rod’s direction, perhaps there’s a crossover point where both machines would appeal to the same riders.
Although Ducati would most likely not take this route itself, others have used the Ducati as the basis for choppers and customs so this is certainly within the realm of design possibilities. Mark Savory, a regular here on The Kneeslider, has done some very nice work and 13 Choppers has also done quite a few customs with Ducati power. The D-66, though not yet in the real world of metal and hard parts, looks interesting.
More illustrations below:
Link: Luca Bar and Infomotori
Related: 13 Choppers
Related: MotoCreations – Mark Savory
Poo-Chai says
Allright… So now I maybe consider to go on a Ducati one day….
That kind of concept turns me on !
C’mon guys, it’s time to open minds on something different !!
Well done anyway.
Cheers !
Clawbrant says
Very nice! Reminds me a bit of the BMW Lo Rider concept.
lostinoz says
SOLD!!! oh its only a concept… ok well make it so I can buy it already!!!! I own and ride a V-Rod, and I’d sell it in a heartbeat for this Ducati. The only thing that makes me nervous is the cooler hanging down there in empty space, its BEGGING for kicked up debris to take it out. That can be relocated higher up easily enough, and with that easily changed issue, there is not ONE THING that I DONT like!
Some may complain about “TSSM” not being shown on it and that “itll change the whole look of the bike” but it wouldn’t change the appearance that much if the right pieces were used.
Luca, seriously, get backing, make it, introduce yourself to Ducati, whatever it takes, that is a beautiful rendering, it NEEDS to be on the road!
rafe03 says
Ill handling Ducati. Isn’t that an oximoron?
Clive Makinson-Sanders says
it looks like that bmw cruiser more than the vrod. you sit ON the vrod, you would sit “in” this bike.
Jar says
Instantly reminded me of the MotoCreations guy sometime back….www.motocreations.com
Little bit different, little bit the same..
Liked the thought then, think it is still cool now….
Mark Savory says
Ducati-powered customs are truly fun — I’ve admittedly built quite a few. Not for everybody though I will honestly admit. Mostly due to the love/hate relationship from the Ducati community itself. Plus they generate incredible amounts of attention on the street as there is nothing quite like them out there. Even after 5 years of riding one, I still get folks daily taking pictures or asking questions about mine.
Handling? Mine has been on the racetrack more than most Ducati’s are. I know that Matt (13) has done the same as well. Turn-in is a bit slower due to rake (on my bikes but trail figure is @4.2in), but we can get the power on sooner and hookup a bit better exiting the corner and utilize more of the torque factor of the v-twin Ducati engine. I know I’ve surprised a LOT of people by this aspect on the street while canyon carving and the track as well. I’ve also spent more time optimizing the front forks / rear shock to work properly than I will care to admit — but I’m a perfectionist. (I’ve also done many 800+ mile days on mine over the years so long distance riding works as well)
The Luca Bar illustration? It’s interesting but a few things aren’t correct. That exhaust wouldn’t work in the real world as there wouldn’t be enough cornering (ie: lean) angle for it given the engine height. Second the triple clamp would need quite a bit more offset to correct the trail figure for the rake shown. (You could do a front shock as shown using a revalved one from a longer Multistrada setup) Given the pullback of the bars, the rearsets would have to be moved a few inches forward and down or else it would be incredibly uncomfortable to ride.
Hopefully he builds one and has fun riding it!
hoyt says
It looks like there is a bracket for forward mount controls. Note the zoomed-in picture and look at the oil lines. That looks like a rear brake lever
Jason says
Look like the new Streetfighter (that someone wheelied, came down to hard and bent the frame).
Troy Smith says
Abomination. Thank goodness i don’t actually have to worry about Ducati building something like that.
Phoebe says
I’m glad Troy said it before I did. Not my cup of tea at all!
Doug Barker says
Why waste a good motor on a chopper?
That’s what all those old HD knock offs are for.
But using your imagination is a great thing, so keep coming up with ideas!
John says
Visordown.com has pictures of a possible v max fighter from ducati using a 1400 cc engine.
Kirk says
Hate it !!!!!!!
Nicolas says
It’s like Ferrari building a pickup truck …
j says
Owned several Ducatis in the past….own one now. This ain’t what it’s about. YUK!
hoyt says
i’ve never owned a cruiser, but I’ve ridden them. They are heavy beasts.
If Ducati made this model with that engine, it would change things, big time. The next generation of cruiser riders would buy it.
This looks good for the intended purpose. (better than the street fighter for its intended purpose).
dave says
better looking then the v rod. sure it wont handle anything like you would expect from a ducati but we all know that going in. its a cool cruiser with plenty of balls.
Clive Makinson-Sanders says
Its not a bike, its a drawing. Im going to hazard a guess that ducati wont any time soon produce an inefficient poor handling slug. I hope im wrong, because i think alot of people would buy it, but the ferrari truck reference was spot on (although lamborghini did make the lm1 in the 80s and it was awesome!).
Mule says
Beautiful “Concept”, but hasn’t the world suffered enough non-handling choppers for a lifetime? Naked bikes? Yes. Bobbers? Yes. Choppers? No more please!
Mark says
That is just so wrong…
Ry_Trapp0 says
wow, some of you guys are as bad as the import sports car crowd(not the wanna be rice rocket FWD guys, but the miata worshipers and the like)! you just gotta have the car with the best handling numbers or the fastest lap time, even if you never even get near a road course! c’mon people, corner carving isn’t about be the fastest one through a section, but about pushing your wheeled object of choice, and having a ton of fun doing it! this concept isn’t about laying down the fastest lap time, but about having an original, fun to ride bike!
dont misinterpret this comment, im not saying everyone has to like it. rather, dont hate it for its “poor handling” when thats not even the point.
as for hoping that a company wouldn’t produce a certain design, whats the point in that??? if you dont like it, dont buy it!!!
all that being said, i love this thing! you continue to impress with your fantastic ‘shop, Luca!!!
Clive Makinson-Sanders says
its not that i dont like it. my dissapointment would be in the dissipation of the philosophy at ductai. when a race bred motorcycle company starts making straight line phalic symbols, something is awry. but again, its just a drawing and i doubt ducati will be playing catch-up with harley any time soon.
Schneegz says
I’m not into cruisers, but I like this concept. He should probably include a version with the 1100 cc air-cooled engine. I know a lot of gear heads who prefer that engine to the more powerful Testastretas.
bash says
sweet concept just wouldn’t compare it to the v-rod, ducati is in a league of its own
B*A*M*F says
Nicolas wrote:
“It’s like Ferrari building a pickup truck …”
http://www.autoblog.com/2008/05/12/ebay-find-of-the-day-the-jerrari/
This Ducati is hot stuff. I’d happily ride that. In tricolor as shown in the headline photo, please.
Nobody says
I’ve always found it both funny and pathetic that most cafe racers are used as trendy curb art than for racing. Here’s a bike that would actually run rings around the cafe racer set in that urban environment. This bike is far more functional on any road where there are more stoplights than triple digit speed/decreasing radius/carousel corners.
And givin enough clearance and riding skill, bikes like this are far more fun than the consumers can imagine on a twisty road.
It looks a LOT better to me than all the cliche’ custom sportbikes – you know, the lowered/stretched swingarm/beachball rear tired/eyesore paint & chrome ones.
Matt in NC says
Makes about as much sense as dubs on a Porsche, but to each his own.
OMMAG says
Well that’s ONE way to get out of the rickie racer crotch rocket rut.
andreas nur hidayat says
I dont think DuC will built that kind of radiculus bike with OOOOH soo strong enginge, dont waste that horse power DuC
Luca Bar says
Hi All, first of all I’m happy to read so many posts, thank you guys.
Some of you may don’t like to see a Ducati engine on a chopper, anyway that’s not the point, we would not be here discussing if I would have drawn a sport bike with a Ducati engine…what a news. This kind of designs are made to give something to talk about, so for the moment it’s working fine. This concept is tought for the US and if you think about the “american way” to ride a bike like this would make some “HD-bored” happy to find a different choice to buy (and in the other hand Ducati happy to sell).
Thank you again to who like this work, and to who doesn’t please be patient, other works will come.
Ciao
Luca
Clive M.-Sanders says
id like to see more choppers with narrower rake setups.. roland sands makes a couple that keep a sporty rake profile and look really good.
Jom says
No. For several reasons.
One, cruisers make my back hurt; even in my mid 40’s, sportbikes are more comforable, my favorites are streetfighters. After 30+ years of riding, comfort is important.
Two, cruisers don’t handle better in, well, any situation. I’ve had my share of cruisers, including a long custom. Compared to a Bonneville or my Street Triple, cruisers just dont turn or brake as well.
Three, I just don’t dig doing anything for looks. It’s like seeing spinners on a Hayabusa, or steamroller tires and extended swingarms on streetbikes. Function before form.
kachunk says
I agree with Clive
A shorter rake would make this much more nimble and “Ducati-esque”
My 2 cents, but I say reduce the rake a tad, and add a few inches to that swingarm for a more balanced look.
This would be an interesting competitor for the V-Rod.
Chris says
Uh, no thanks. The geometry is all wrong, for one. And don’t sully the Ducati name with a chopper abomination. Leave that to the V-twin crowd. As mentioned, thank dog Ducati isn’t going this direction.
OTTO MANN says
I”LL TRY ANYTHING ONCE. BESIDES IF YOU DON”T LIKE IT DON”T RIDE IT.
steve says
It looks cool but fast raked out bikes are trouble when the roads get crooked but then people that have money to buy that type High ‘end bikes don’t ride that much. V rods aren’t in the fast catagory.
Daniel Volkmann says
BAD-@SS, I love it.
I dig the lines–very tough, very unique. This isn’t to replace or to be compared w/ other ducs/sportbikes. It’s a really fresh concept in the (power-)cruiser archetype.
Like most of the innovative bikes on this site I love it for what it is, not picky about what it’s not.
Kinda reminds me of that BMW cruiser they made a decade ago, used in a Bond film–very new-school, European cruiser. This one’s got a lot more bite, though–visually and (theoretically) performance-wise.
Man, i like it…keep up the good ideas.
tim says
I really like the colour scheme: An 848 would look well cool with that red and green stripe.
As for the rest of it, well, lets just say that profile is not what I want to see wearing a Ducati badge.
Jeff Ritter says
I am a huge fan (not owner, yet) of Ducati’s. I am not a fan by any stretch of the word of Buell’s. Sure, Buell is going the right direction with a modern powerplant but until they surgically remove the cancer off of their business model they will always be on my crap list. Oh, that cancer would be HD incase you were confused. Looking at this Ducati and the Buell, I’d run to the Buell screaming for mercy and ride it away from the abomination that is the D-66 as if the devil himself were chasing me. It looks like a Monster and a V-Rod got it on and that was the deformed and mentally challenged offspring. No thank you!! Now, that buellrod actually does look good, even with the porche, I mean Harley v-rod engine 🙂
Big Robby says
Is it wrong that I need to take a cold shower?
Keith L. says
Sorry, at first glance it’s appealing, but going back and forth between cruiser and street sport, I think it’s just shy of one or the other. The Monster was DuC’s answer to that debate. Go full chopper or go street sport. The concept shines in the use of the sport oriented tank/fairing and sport color scheme in a raked packed.
mat 13 zabas says
Luca, let’s build it. i love the tank design and what your goin’ for. This build is completely feasible with a little engineering to bring it onto the real road. There is an enormous category of bike that major manufacturers design to…the performance cruiser. yes it’s not a sport bike. and no, it’s not a pig with a steamroller tire (look up my busted knuckles article in an old street chopper). To all you purists, if every guy out there rode the ultimate race bike (a GP Ducati for those of you that don’t know), then NOBODY would be riding on the street. Or, you would all be riding the ultimate street and track bike (the 1098) trying to kill yourself, or posing with one hand on your thigh going down your local street trying to look like Stoner on a victory lap…and you’d all be bummed that everyone was doing the same thing on the same bike.
I love all bikes for all purposes. I understand there is not ONE bike that will ever cover ALL these purposes. Purpose built. if you don’t understand the purpose of a work truck, a baja racer, a Cadillac, or a sports sedan…well…nevermind. mat 13 zabas
mike says
I’d buy it in a heart beat Luca… Its a beauty for sure, very classy. All those critics are over reacting. I think the engine can be mated to a bike like this, which would help sport rides find the gap between clunky cruisers like HD and sportbikes that don’t offer the comfort for long rides. I see no argument for the “misplaced” power, 100 ci+ motors are put onto bikes all the time and end up producing more noise than usable power. Anyway, “HD-bored” as Luca said is an epidemic resulting in countless customs that are unique in the owners eyes and hard to set apart to many others. We are all faced with our own individuality and the repetitive designs of the motorcycle world have beaten some of us to death. Praise be to you sir for the design and innovation. I think those narrow-minded yet out-spoken bloggers should looker closer at the sales markets and respect the business opportunity represented here more than their own thoughts. The V-Rod is a popular bike and that market has great deviation, which leaves room for deviation. A model of this type would play on the natural human desire to shift from the norm, to be unique. DOWN with the V-Rod!