Anybody got a Panagale V2, any thoughts on day to day use?
Anybody got a Panagale V2, any thoughts on day to day use?
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philcray

Original Poster:

866 posts

233 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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Not in a mad rush but I am planning to change the Monster 821 some time next year so have started thinking about what to go for. I will be sticking with Ducati so initially had thought a Supersport as I like the sports bike look. The great thing about the Monster is that it is very comfy to ride so the power is easy to use, my main concern is that it the performance of the Supersport will be too similar, which is not bad, but I quite fancy something with more grunt for a couple of years.

The Panagale V2 looks like a potential option, (I will be buying pre-owned), looks fantastic, priced about right with a bit of man maths. I would be more than happy to have one in the garage just to look at but the questions is, what is it like to ride on a day to day basis. The review in Bike this month implies it is quite friendly for real world riding but would appreciate any thoughts, especially if you have got one.

My riding is all for pleasure, I do c3k a year and it is mixture of country lanes and A roads, I don't really go on the motorway. I am not the most spirited jockey in the biking firmament but like to open it up every now and then.

Any thoughts appreciated.

lazybike

1,009 posts

121 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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I have a friend who has a 2014 Tricalore, he rides it to the MOT and back and that's it smile, his 1200r monster gets used way more.

James-m5qjf

1,845 posts

77 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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I loved my 899 Pani on track but it was a misery on the road, hot and uncomfortable really sums it up. It doesn’t really ride like a traditional twin, you need to ring its neck to get the most out of it. My Triumph 675R was far superior in every way other than looks.

Why are you sticking with Ducati? They make some good bikes but there are plenty of other manufacturers out there, seems a bit of a limiting approach to me.

philcray

Original Poster:

866 posts

233 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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Hi, I realise sticking with Ducati narrows it down a bit(!), it is largely down to a thing I have for Italy & Italian bikes but also pragmatic as there is a main dealer not too far away from me in Preston.

I recall the old Ducati sportsbikes were a pig to ride in the real world, my thoughts are how are the new ones, specifically the Panagale V2.
Reviews in magazines etc seem to imply it is a lot more usable and user friendly than the older bikes and indeed the current v4's..

James-m5qjf

1,845 posts

77 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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Like I said, my Pani 899 (V2) was a misery on the road. I guess it would be okay for 30-60 min blasts, but you need to thrash it to get the most out of it. Take one out for a test ride.

Personally I would avoid clip-ons and stick with bars for the road. Ducati Monster, Diavel or Streetfighter would be top of my list.



Edited by James-m5qjf on Monday 27th July 13:31

waters28

17 posts

190 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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If you can get a test ride that would be the answer as there’s plenty of demos out there at the mo.
I haven’t ridden the v2 but had an 899 before and it was perfect for the road. I did about 3k a year on it as well a roads and B roads. Didn’t find mine hot or uncomfortable. Right blend of torque and usable power to make it fun on the road. Good on track too if you so wish. 675r I didn’t think was superior. No torque for road use, felt slow after the 899. 675 is better on track up in the power band and on limit handling.
V2 looks like a good package.I’m tempted myself. Do it

James-m5qjf

1,845 posts

77 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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waters28 said:
If you can get a test ride that would be the answer as there’s plenty of demos out there at the mo.
I haven’t ridden the v2 but had an 899 before and it was perfect for the road. I did about 3k a year on it as well a roads and B roads. Didn’t find mine hot or uncomfortable. Right blend of torque and usable power to make it fun on the road. Good on track too if you so wish. 675r I didn’t think was superior. No torque for road use, felt slow after the 899. 675 is better on track up in the power band and on limit handling.
V2 looks like a good package.I’m tempted myself. Do it
No doubt they are well known for being hot in the summer months. I took mine on a euro trip and it was the most uncomfortable bike I’ve had the pleasure of taking overseas. Horses for courses but I found the 675r far superior on road and track; better chassis, gearing, suspension and brakes. Clearly the engine is much more subjective but I personally prefer the triple - even the 959 was way off the pace of the little Triumph on track. If you want something to polish and rode down to the odd bike cafe than the Ducati is probably just the job.


Edited by James-m5qjf on Monday 27th July 17:44

Ho Lee Kau

2,278 posts

155 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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waters28 said:
If you can get a test ride that would be the answer as there’s plenty of demos out there at the mo.
I haven’t ridden the v2 but had an 899 before and it was perfect for the road. I did about 3k a year on it as well a roads and B roads. Didn’t find mine hot or uncomfortable. Right blend of torque and usable power to make it fun on the road. Good on track too if you so wish. 675r I didn’t think was superior. No torque for road use, felt slow after the 899. 675 is better on track up in the power band and on limit handling.
V2 looks like a good package.I’m tempted myself. Do it
I rode MV F3 800 and 899 back to back and came to the tests on my Daytona 675. Between the two I prefered F3 and between the three I was happy that I bought 675. Certainly did not feel slow after 899, not to mention comfort and ease of use.

Zakalwe

194 posts

91 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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What’s “real world riding” for you though? I find my 899 perfectly comfortable on the road, though it gets hot when you’re not moving and it’s lumpy at low revs. I don’t ride in town much though, so none of this is an issue for me. If you’re commuting, expect to be sitting in traffic or spending a long time in 20mph zones, it’ll be horrible - I don’t see how the V2 will be any different in any of these respects. From what I gather it runs hotter than the older twins, probably because it runs leaner at idle to meet emissions. I test rode an 821 and the torque was fairly similar to the pani low down but soon ran out of puff in comparison, you don’t really have to rev the tits off it like a middleweight to make progress but it really does come alive when you pin it. Just up to you whether you can live with the riding position. I’ve also ridden the new 765RS, that’s got decent torque, really lively - but anyone claiming a 675 is quicker than a V2/959/899 needs to have a bloody good word with themselves

James-m5qjf

1,845 posts

77 months

Monday 27th July 2020
quotequote all
Zakalwe said:
What’s “real world riding” for you though? I find my 899 perfectly comfortable on the road, though it gets hot when you’re not moving and it’s lumpy at low revs. I don’t ride in town much though, so none of this is an issue for me. If you’re commuting, expect to be sitting in traffic or spending a long time in 20mph zones, it’ll be horrible - I don’t see how the V2 will be any different in any of these respects. From what I gather it runs hotter than the older twins, probably because it runs leaner at idle to meet emissions. I test rode an 821 and the torque was fairly similar to the pani low down but soon ran out of puff in comparison, you don’t really have to rev the tits off it like a middleweight to make progress but it really does come alive when you pin it. Just up to you whether you can live with the riding position. I’ve also ridden the new 765RS, that’s got decent torque, really lively - but anyone claiming a 675 is quicker than a V2/959/899 needs to have a bloody good word with themselves
Lol it’s definitely is quicker, I’ve owned both. In the FastBikes supersports shootout the 675 was a good chunk quicker than both the 899 and then the 959 across multiple tracks, riders and years! Just because it’s red and has a bigger engine doesn’t make it faster wink


Edited by James-m5qjf on Monday 27th July 18:17

PIGINAWIG

2,339 posts

195 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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If you’re serious about getting the Ducati, it’s called the ‘Panigale’


Walter Sobchak

5,739 posts

254 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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I can’t really comment on the V2 but I had a V4 and changed it for an R1M.
I don’t know if it’s just the new bike factor at the moment but I much prefer the Yamaha, it’s just so much easier to get on with.

tankslappa

715 posts

236 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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I've got one, but it's a second bike/sunny day toy.

I could think of a number of bikes that I'd prefer to use day to day. It does get hot in traffic, it can be felt even through the thicker comfort seat, and the fuelling down low is typical big twin. Even with the Akra map.

I do find it relatively comfortable, for a sports bike that is. Decent seat to peg distance, I don't get any leg discomfort at all. Bars feel reasonably close too.

Ironically, I sold a 765RS to make room for it laugh

Ho Lee Kau

2,278 posts

155 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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Walter Sobchak said:
I can’t really comment on the V2 but I had a V4 and changed it for an R1M.
I don’t know if it’s just the new bike factor at the moment but I much prefer the Yamaha, it’s just so much easier to get on with.
simply because it IS easier to get on with. Congratulations, btw, great move, there is life beyond Ducati. :-) And the R1 engine sound and vibrations are second to none, imho, it sings and zings more interesting than Italian V2s or V4s.

you get Panigale, any of them, you better come into the ownership with the eyes open, "no compromise" is Panigale's middle name.

The Zakalwe comment about the 675, I guess it was a dig at my saying that D675 did not feel slower for me than 899. Well, that is how it felt.
Obviously I did not rev the tits off of either bike as I am a law-abiding public road driver.

I was not impressed with 899 at all, was so happy to give the keys back, the F3 800 Agusta was much more to my liking, but the ugly instrumentation and the useless mirrors with built-in turn signals, and the weird clutch operation made me reconsider switching from D675 to F3-800.

As far as D675 acceleration goes, well, if 0.1, 0.2, damn, even 0.5 seconds faster acceleration of 899 is important, great, for me it was not important. D675 is missile enough already.

And it is built for fast (in its class) acceleration, look at the front and rear sprockets. Front is 15 teeth, rear is huge.



Here, comparison 675 and GSXR-750, in-gear acceleration and the last plot shows that there is more power on the back wheel in 6th gear on Triumph:

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/triump...

Here is GSXR750 and Ducati 899, Durchzug = in-gear acceleration, these guys always measure in 6th gear.

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/ducati...

These are measured standing start acceleration times and in-gear accelerations times, I do not "need to have a bloody good word with" myself, thank you.


Edited by Ho Lee Kau on Monday 27th July 21:45

Walter Sobchak

5,739 posts

254 months

Monday 27th July 2020
quotequote all
Ho Lee Kau said:
simply because it IS easier to get on with. Congratulations, btw, great move, there is life beyond Ducati. :-) And the R1 engine sound and vibrations are second to none, imho, it sings and zings more interesting than Italian V2s or V4s.

you get Panigale, any of them, you better come into the ownership with the eyes open, "no compromise" is Panigale's middle name.

The Zakalwe comment about the 675, I guess it was a dig at my saying that D675 did not feel slower for me than 899. Well, that is how it felt.
Obviously I did not rev the tits off of either bike as I am a law-abiding public road driver.

I was not impressed with 899 at all, was so happy to give the keys back, the F3 800 Agusta was much more to my liking, but the ugly instrumentation and the useless mirrors with built-in turn signals, and the weird clutch operation made me reconsider switching from D675 to F3-800.

As far as D675 acceleration goes, well, if 0.1, 0.2, damn, even 0.5 seconds faster acceleration of 899 is important, great, for me it was not important. D675 is missile enough already.

And it is built for fast (in its class) acceleration, look at the front and rear sprockets. Front is 15 teeth, rear is huge.



Here, comparison 675 and GSXR-750, in-gear acceleration and the last plot shows that there is more power on the back wheel in 6th gear on Triumph:

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/triump...

Here is GSXR750 and Ducati 899, Durchzug = in-gear acceleration, these guys always measure in 6th gear.

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/ducati...

These are measured standing start acceleration times and in-gear accelerations times, I do not "need to have a bloody good word with" myself, thank you.


Edited by Ho Lee Kau on Monday 27th July 21:45
It’s not my first non Italian bike or even my first R1 tongue out.
The Aprilia V4 and the CP4 R1 sound as good as each other imo, I do love the R1 though, still working out how to get it set up though.

waters28

17 posts

190 months

Monday 27th July 2020
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Yes ok so regards to heat issue they do get hot but i never rode into town often and in full leathers it’s not too horrendous. If in jeans it was pretty cooking lol.
As to what I meant to say regarding 899 vs 675, the 899 felt faster. I’m sure the 675r is quicker but it’s also a more rounded and polished bike thus giving that feeling.
Will be interesting to see how the v2 gets on in track tests. It’s looks much more friendly to ride. Have there been any yet?

Zakalwe

194 posts

91 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
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Ho Lee Kau said:
The Zakalwe comment about the 675, I guess it was a dig at my saying that D675 did not feel slower for me than 899. Well, that is how it felt.
Obviously I did not rev the tits off of either bike as I am a law-abiding public road driver.
No, it was in response to james-m5 claim “ even the 959 was way off the pace of the little Triumph on track”, I assumed he was talking about a street triple 675 anyway as he also recommended nakeds over a sports bike but I might be wrong

Edited by Zakalwe on Tuesday 28th July 07:57

Ho Lee Kau

2,278 posts

155 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
quotequote all
Zakalwe said:
Ho Lee Kau said:
The Zakalwe comment about the 675, I guess it was a dig at my saying that D675 did not feel slower for me than 899. Well, that is how it felt.
Obviously I did not rev the tits off of either bike as I am a law-abiding public road driver.
No, it was in response to james-m5 claim “ even the 959 was way off the pace of the little Triumph on track”, I assumed he was talking about a street triple 675 anyway as he also recommended nakeds over a sports bike but I might be wrong

Edited by Zakalwe on Tuesday 28th July 07:57
OK, I missed that particular comment. I cannot comment on race track pace of 959 wrt 675, because when I rode 959 on track there were only Panigale V4s besides 959, and 959 is definitely way off the pace of the Panigale V4. :-)

Here is another article comparing D675, Panigale 899 and Fireblade SP, it's in German but there are plots and figures down the page:

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/ducati...

I could dig out some articles in English, but I am too lazy.

There was also a US page where there were long tables of acceleration comparisons for lots of manufacturers and models, but I forgot the name, unfortunately.

899 may feel fast because it is so damn loud all the time. headache

Ho Lee Kau

2,278 posts

155 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
quotequote all
Walter Sobchak said:
Ho Lee Kau said:
...
Edited by Ho Lee Kau on Monday 27th July 21:45
It’s not my first non Italian bike or even my first R1 tongue out.
The Aprilia V4 and the CP4 R1 sound as good as each other imo, I do love the R1 though, still working out how to get it set up though.
Cool stuff! cool

I still stand by my comment, for me R1 sounds and vibrates more exciting than Panigales or RSV4.

I rode the 2015 or 16 version of R1 on track and it was great experience.
Cannot comment on the numbness of brakes as I am not a particularly experienced racer.
At one point Yamaha fixed jerky throttle as well, because when I rode my GSXR1000R back to back with 2019 R1 and 2019 S1000RR on the road the R1 behaved exemplary, just like BMW, while my Suzuki was very on-off. The new BMW is really an amazing superbike as far as road riding is concerned. R1 was by far the most exciting because of the way that engine lives, but was the hardest for me to get a hang of, very racy bike. I like my GSXR for its comfort but need to do something about that throttle.

Don't you find the instrumentation on the R1 a bit too small? Especially after Panigale?

Zakalwe

194 posts

91 months

Tuesday 28th July 2020
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Ho Lee Kau said:
Zakalwe said:
Ho Lee Kau said:
The Zakalwe comment about the 675, I guess it was a dig at my saying that D675 did not feel slower for me than 899. Well, that is how it felt.
Obviously I did not rev the tits off of either bike as I am a law-abiding public road driver.
No, it was in response to james-m5 claim “ even the 959 was way off the pace of the little Triumph on track”, I assumed he was talking about a street triple 675 anyway as he also recommended nakeds over a sports bike but I might be wrong

Edited by Zakalwe on Tuesday 28th July 07:57
OK, I missed that particular comment. I cannot comment on race track pace of 959 wrt 675, because when I rode 959 on track there were only Panigale V4s besides 959, and 959 is definitely way off the pace of the Panigale V4. :-)

Here is another article comparing D675, Panigale 899 and Fireblade SP, it's in German but there are plots and figures down the page:

https://www.motorradonline.de/supersportler/ducati...

I could dig out some articles in English, but I am too lazy.

There was also a US page where there were long tables of acceleration comparisons for lots of manufacturers and models, but I forgot the name, unfortunately.

899 may feel fast because it is so damn loud all the time. headache
Daytona is undoubtedly a fantastic track tool, probably a better option than any version of the baby panigale if you’re chasing lap times. Tbf, a well sorted CBR600 is probably better for that than a V2 as well. As a point and squirt machine down an A or B road, I’d still say the extra torque and power of the bigger twin will make it a better point-to-point machine, and it’ll definitely make you “feel” faster if you “get” Ducati in any way as well, which seems to be what the OP is looking for