I'll take two......
V4R
- Thread starter Soulcatcher668
- Start date
I'll take two......
Very cool!
I am casually looking at marketplace ads for a new track bike. The old V4R has been cropping up in a lot of my searches, not sure why...
Was not seriously considering it, but went down a rabbit hole that kept me occupied for a few evenings anyway:
Pluses:
- cachet: WSBK bike. 'nuff said.
- has dry clutch which is not found on the V4 or V4S models, love dry clutch
Minuses
- that 998cc engine is constrained to that size due to WSBK rules. That engine is highly tuned to pump that kind of hp out of those limited cubes. WSBK riders are given an allocation of seven engines per season. Most people who buy motorcycles for personal use only get one engine for the lifetime of their bike, barring any warranty failures. My take on this is that if you're not racing it in a series that has a 1000cc or less rule, then it's better to get the V4S or SP2. Similar power but spit out from a larger engine (1103cc) so it's not that stressed. Or if you just want the bragging rights to be tooling around on a WSBK-homologation special then 'R' it is!
- dry clutch has a limited street life. Not the same clutch as previous street Ducatis, this one is smaller diameter and doesn't last long on the street. On the racetrack, the only time racers ever use the clutch is at launch, rest of the time they're quick-shifting throughout the race. Street use is very different as you're clutching in all the time or in neutral at stoplights, and that's where the wear happens on these newer clutches (edges of the plates come in contact with the basket). The clutch is outsourced from STM and owners who have made the wet-to-dry conversion have complained that they get about 2000 miles out of the dry clutch before they have to replace the basket (!) and plates. I have seriously contemplated switching out my wet clutch on my Hyper for the STM dry clutch conversion kit, but after doing a lot of reading, I'm now convinced that wet is better for mixed street and track use.
- if you plan on actually riding an 'R' model, the value will sink faster than a mob snitch with concrete shoes in the Hudson River. I owned a 1098R and made the mistake of putting ~15,000 kms on it. Sold it three years later for less than half the MSRP. If it's a numbered bike, prospective buyers want you to have kept it in the living room under a glass display. Because most of the time that's why they're buying an 'R' bike... Unless you have the kind of F-You money to not care about any of that.
- most of the 'R' technology gets passed down to the streetbikes a couple of years after the 'R' is released. I got a 999 after their mid-model refresh, and it had the same hp as the 999R as well as the braced swingarm, etc. Towards the end of the model run is where you get all the neat paint schemes as the factory tries to drum up interest in a bike that's been on the market for a few years. If you can wait, you'll get 'R' specs in a cool wrapper for the same price as a V4S today.
I am casually looking at marketplace ads for a new track bike. The old V4R has been cropping up in a lot of my searches, not sure why...
Was not seriously considering it, but went down a rabbit hole that kept me occupied for a few evenings anyway:
Pluses:
- cachet: WSBK bike. 'nuff said.
- has dry clutch which is not found on the V4 or V4S models, love dry clutch
Minuses
- that 998cc engine is constrained to that size due to WSBK rules. That engine is highly tuned to pump that kind of hp out of those limited cubes. WSBK riders are given an allocation of seven engines per season. Most people who buy motorcycles for personal use only get one engine for the lifetime of their bike, barring any warranty failures. My take on this is that if you're not racing it in a series that has a 1000cc or less rule, then it's better to get the V4S or SP2. Similar power but spit out from a larger engine (1103cc) so it's not that stressed. Or if you just want the bragging rights to be tooling around on a WSBK-homologation special then 'R' it is!
- dry clutch has a limited street life. Not the same clutch as previous street Ducatis, this one is smaller diameter and doesn't last long on the street. On the racetrack, the only time racers ever use the clutch is at launch, rest of the time they're quick-shifting throughout the race. Street use is very different as you're clutching in all the time or in neutral at stoplights, and that's where the wear happens on these newer clutches (edges of the plates come in contact with the basket). The clutch is outsourced from STM and owners who have made the wet-to-dry conversion have complained that they get about 2000 miles out of the dry clutch before they have to replace the basket (!) and plates. I have seriously contemplated switching out my wet clutch on my Hyper for the STM dry clutch conversion kit, but after doing a lot of reading, I'm now convinced that wet is better for mixed street and track use.
- if you plan on actually riding an 'R' model, the value will sink faster than a mob snitch with concrete shoes in the Hudson River. I owned a 1098R and made the mistake of putting ~15,000 kms on it. Sold it three years later for less than half the MSRP. If it's a numbered bike, prospective buyers want you to have kept it in the living room under a glass display. Because most of the time that's why they're buying an 'R' bike... Unless you have the kind of F-You money to not care about any of that.
- most of the 'R' technology gets passed down to the streetbikes a couple of years after the 'R' is released. I got a 999 after their mid-model refresh, and it had the same hp as the 999R as well as the braced swingarm, etc. Towards the end of the model run is where you get all the neat paint schemes as the factory tries to drum up interest in a bike that's been on the market for a few years. If you can wait, you'll get 'R' specs in a cool wrapper for the same price as a V4S today.
I understand, but hear me out.......Very cool!
I am casually looking at marketplace ads for a new track bike. The old V4R has been cropping up in a lot of my searches, not sure why...
Was not seriously considering it, but went down a rabbit hole that kept me occupied for a few evenings anyway:
Pluses:
- cachet: WSBK bike. 'nuff said.
- has dry clutch which is not found on the V4 or V4S models, love dry clutch
Minuses
- that 998cc engine is constrained to that size due to WSBK rules. That engine is highly tuned to pump that kind of hp out of those limited cubes. WSBK riders are given an allocation of seven engines per season. Most people who buy motorcycles for personal use only get one engine for the lifetime of their bike, barring any warranty failures. My take on this is that if you're not racing it in a series that has a 1000cc or less rule, then it's better to get the V4S or SP2. Similar power but spit out from a larger engine (1103cc) so it's not that stressed. Or if you just want the bragging rights to be tooling around on a WSBK-homologation special then 'R' it is!
- dry clutch has a limited street life. Not the same clutch as previous street Ducatis, this one is smaller diameter and doesn't last long on the street. On the racetrack, the only time racers ever use the clutch is at launch, rest of the time they're quick-shifting throughout the race. Street use is very different as you're clutching in all the time or in neutral at stoplights, and that's where the wear happens on these newer clutches (edges of the plates come in contact with the basket). The clutch is outsourced from STM and owners who have made the wet-to-dry conversion have complained that they get about 2000 miles out of the dry clutch before they have to replace the basket (!) and plates. I have seriously contemplated switching out my wet clutch on my Hyper for the STM dry clutch conversion kit, but after doing a lot of reading, I'm now convinced that wet is better for mixed street and track use.
- if you plan on actually riding an 'R' model, the value will sink faster than a mob snitch with concrete shoes in the Hudson River. I owned a 1098R and made the mistake of putting ~15,000 kms on it. Sold it three years later for less than half the MSRP. If it's a numbered bike, prospective buyers want you to have kept it in the living room under a glass display. Because most of the time that's why they're buying an 'R' bike... Unless you have the kind of F-You money to not care about any of that.
- most of the 'R' technology gets passed down to the streetbikes a couple of years after the 'R' is released. I got a 999 after their mid-model refresh, and it had the same hp as the 999R as well as the braced swingarm, etc. Towards the end of the model run is where you get all the neat paint schemes as the factory tries to drum up interest in a bike that's been on the market for a few years. If you can wait, you'll get 'R' specs in a cool wrapper for the same price as a V4S today.
Shiny V4R
But also, hear *me* out...
Desperately trying to talk myself out of a $72,000 mistake...
Glenn/RZ500
Well-known member
Go get it. Remember.. "Don`t be the wealthiest man in the cemetery".
Trust me guys, they are not good street bikes. The heat was literally miserable. And I sunk an additional $1,000 into heat shielding under the seat/subframe/engine cylinder heads. If you really must have one, make it a future $10,000 or less mistake.
Or just mount it in the living room and stare at it.
Or just mount it in the living room and stare at it.
I knew I could always count on GTAM to give me sound, financial advice when it comes to motorcycles!
I'm planning out my 2026 calendar and it's going to be full of track days.
Right now the Hyper is on deck, all I gotta do is buy some higher rearsets for it and I'm set.
But will I be happy being down 100hp from the rest of the cool kids? I'm not fast and I needs all the straight-line powah I can get. Plus I'm more comfortable being in the frog-getting-an-enema position on the bike...
Gots some hard thinkin' to do over the wintertime. Thankfully, I have good financial counsellors like @Glenn/RZ500 in my corner giving me excellent advice. Last PM he sent me contained two words of golden wisdom:
"YOLO MUDDAFEKKA!"
Unless there's some 'Must track a V4' box, i'd say just spring for a dedicated track bike. Just keep the corner speed up and you can still dominate.
My ZX4R is about to go up for sale, all it needs is race fairings.
If I get a Panigale, it'll be a dedicated track bike.
Someone told me those things get hot on the street...
Quel surprise! You kept it a few months longer than I thought you would!
PacoT
Well-known member
Does that mean Evo will now, without a doubt, be bikeless??? Sad timesMy ZX4R is about to go up for sale, all it needs is race fairings.
I thought it was already a done deal with
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My ZX4R is about to go up for sale, all it needs is race fairings.
I thought you liked the bike... what next?
Nothing for now, get my fix from teaching
Glenn/RZ500
Well-known member
How about a well set up GSX-R 750? Obviously not the bling factor but pretty potent for 99% of us here. And you won`t cry hysterically if you pitch it big time.
Daheck?!?
What happened to this guy:
I think I like him better...
NR750 or Britten for the win. King baller at the track.
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Glenn/RZ500
Well-known member
You`re married or in a LTR? What does she, the Minister Of Finance, say?
Glenn/RZ500
Well-known member
I suspect Lightcycle is reluctant to show up at the track with that NSR 500V2 he`s been admiring at home. You know,...the one that disappeared from the Science Center years ago.
