Monster

You can relax now, citizens, Ducati has decided to make just the one Monster 1100 model for 2011. The new Evo replaces the base Monster 1100 and the big- buck 1100S version, fire-breathing staunch naked sportsters both.

The Evo might lack the golden Ohlins suspension bling of the 1100S but it does offer a harder- hitting engine, a tasteful redesign of both bodywork and exhaust and a new electronics package that includes ABS brake intervention and four-way adjustable traction control. But the most brilliant thing about the newest Monster 1100 is that at $22,790, it is more affordable than either of the bikes it replaces.

So more performance, better looks and extra safety, all for less money; what is not to like about the Evo? Not much, but a little extra fuel capacity and a less restrictive steering lock would be nice. Neither are real biggies. The 13.5 litre fuel tank will allow the bike to travel around 200 kilometres between refills, and the lack of steering lock really only makes its presence felt in U-turns.

So if you constantly know where you are going, and can remember whether you turned the oven off before leaving home, that lack of lock will not be a problem. Think of it as a reminder that you bought a Monster, arguably the most instantly recognisable of all Ducatis, courtesy of a design theme that stretches to the original Monster M900 of 1993.

That theme includes air-cooled V-twin engine, phallic-looking fuel tank (an immigrant from Bhutan informed me that the test bikes would be symbolically powerful enough to ward off evil spirits as he fuelled the bike up at a petrol station), and a minimalist approach. The Evo, with its new exhaust routed down the right side of the bike to balance the weight of the single-sided swingarm on the left, is more simplistic and stripped down-looking than the bikes it replaces. It exudes a renewed sense of purpose thanks to the new exhaust, the new radial mounts of the front brakes and the sportier looks of the revised tail section. The changes are subtle, but they combine to great effect and warn that this is the first air- cooled Monster capable of generating 100 horses.

To achieve this new performance milestone, Ducati bumped up the compression of the venerable 1078cc V-twin to 11.3:1 (up from 10.7:1), fitted a lighter flywheel and the freer-flowing exhaust and tuned the cam timing and fuelling for increased performance. The changes unshackle a new engine persona.

The four-spark, four-valve V-twin with the single belt-driven overhead camshafts is not quite as tolerant of the riders’ gear choice as before. The reduced flywheel mass and the bigger bangs of the firing strokes make lower gears mandatory for engine speeds below 4000rpm. Then, at 6000rpm, a flap opens in the new exhaust, and the V-twin kicks a little harder. The result is three distinctive power deliveries where the old Monster 1100s had one – an idle-4000rpm zone that really is a no-go for the chain snatch it can cause, a 4000-6000rpm band where the Monster will spend most of its cruising time and a 6000-9000rpm sweet spot where you will swear the engine is putting more than 100bhp on the table.

The latter impression is helped by the bike’s weight, or rather the lack thereof. Ducati says the Evo scales in at 169kg when fully drained of fluids. So add another 31kg for petrol, battery acid, lubricants and suspension fluid, and you have 200kg wet, which is about what the Evo feels when you wheel it out of the garage. This equates to 2kg for every one of those easily spooked 100 brake horses to shift. However, the Evo is not stupidly fast to ride, its performance is immensely satisfying without being silly and I never felt the need for more.

The new electronics are so well calibrated that they were never called into action during my test ride. I had already been warned that the most nanny-like setting of the traction control intervened as soon as you lean the bike over, reacting to just the changes in the rolling circumference of the rear tyre. So I never selected that setting and enjoyed riding the Evo free from the blinking of either the TC or ABS warning lights. Even scrubbing in the brand-new Pirelli Diablo Rosso II radials to the edges and bedding in the brakes with some hard stops never triggered the systems once the traction control’s fourth setting was avoided.

This left the usual sharp steering and ample tyre feedback of the Monster’s chassis free for my enjoyment. The result was an excess of back-road bliss, even while wrapped in winter’s cold embrace. There might only be the one Monster 1100 model now, but believe me, the Evo is a complete and utterly inspiring package.

AT A GLANCE

Engine: 1078cc air-cooled 4-valve sohc V-twin, stoked by electronic fuel injection to develop 100bhp (74kW) at 9000rpm and 103Nm or torque at 6000.

Transmission: 6-speed sequential gearbox, chain final drive.

Frame: Steel tube trellis frame, with cast alloy single-sided swingarm, 43mm fully- adjustable inverted front forks and a fully adjustable rear monoshock.

Price: $22,790.

Hot: Engine’s extra kick is accompanied by character-enhancing pops and bangs on the overrun.

Not: 13-litre fuel tanks belong on dirtbikes; steering lock could be more generous.