Quick Question Multistrada Owners

Though service intervals and oil changes are extremely long, I would still be hesitant. Perhaps consider these questions:

• What's your plan for when you do need to see the dealer, either for routine service or diagnosis? Are you going to put the bike on a truck and haul it 500 miles, spend a night or two in a hotel, and then haul it back? Keep in mind that if repairs are needed, parts usually need to be ordered from Italy, which can take a few days to arrive.
• Do you depend on the bike for commute? Do you have a backup?
• How handy are you? Will you invest in a DSS or a similar device ($1,000-2,000) so you can reset the computer after you do oil changes and annual service yourself? You could potentially skip turning off the service lights, doing the oil changes every 10K KM or so. Are you ok driving around with the warnings on?
• Perhaps there are Ducati mechanics in your area, who have the tools and knowhow to work on your bike? Did you look?
• What kind of riding do you do, and how much of it? Sensible pavement riding on the weekends, or daily commutes in all weather and occasional squirrely off-road trips? Are you going to break stuff?
• I believe you are in Canada? Check Canadian law re warranties - some countries mandate vendors to honor warranties regardless of where the service is performed (i.e. not at an authorized dealer).

The MTSV4 is pure joy, and probably one of the best bikes in the market right now. It is also heavily loaded with high-end technology and electronics, so I suspect it might need support and service from time to time.

To answer your questions.
1. If the bike totally fails and is unridable I would haul it back to the dealer on a trailer.
I have a long time riding buddy that lives where the dealer is, so accomadations are not a problem.
2. I am retired so the bike will be used for day rides, weekend 2 or 3 day rides and at least one 4 to 6 week trip every summer.
3. I dont care what the price of the scanner is, if I can find one that will reset the service light I will buy it.
I am a certified Red Seal mechanic and have been pulling wrenches for the better part of 50 years. So I know my way around tools and as long as I have the electronic scanner to help with the diagnostics it doesn't scare me.
4. Nope, no Ducati mechanics around here.
I have only ever seen 1 other Ducati up here.
5. 80 percent of my riding will be on pavement on trips. The other 20 percent will be on well surfaced gravel roads.
Those gravel roads are logging roads heading into the mountains and lakes.
At 72 years old, i have done enough of... hold my beer and watch this riding style off road.
Now I like to actually enjoy the rides and the scenery.
I know the KTM probably makes more sense as I have a dealer close, but on my 6 week trips I could be a long way away from a KTM dealer as well.
When I talked to the salesman I told him that a Ducati shop manual was part of the deal, a digital version would be fine.
He said Ducati doesn't like to sell them and they are not available to customers.
I told him he could kiss the deal goodbye if he can't produce one.
He said he thinks he can make it happen if I go ahead with the purchase.

G'day Ray, from the land down under.....

I have over 34k KMs on my 21v4 and I like the look of the Rally's 30ltr tank. Might be a fraction tall for my 32" inseams, but I think it's a great choice.

Did you know after the initial 1000km oil change, the next "service" is at 15,000 kms and also, the valve clearances are not checked until 60,000 kms..... There are no belts or Desmo to adjust.

So your plan to get the warranty ratified at 1,050 kms is all you need to do.

Subsequent services are just oil changes and software updates (if any).

I change my oil half way between the scheduled 15k km services (suggested by the head mechanic) so I know it's an easy DIY job.

Nothing goes wrong, they just keep on going. Very un-ducati like not needing Desmo or belts or anything, except routine coolant at 2 yrs, brake fluid at 2 yrs, and air in the tyres.

They run much better with a QD decat too, and mine has not yet been upmapped due lengthy delays at the QD factory. It really doesn't need the tuning module for normal road riding, but when my module arrives (soon I hope) I will be able to write about the difference since I have ridden mine unmapped for 9months and 10,000+ kms (actually wondering why I spent the $840Au on the tuning module...... ).

The Rally might be a bit heavy compared to the SAS which though ugly, has it's fuel tanks down low around the engine vs the Rally with 30ltrs up high at handle bar level. The SAS has easy access to it's air filter.....I haven't tried to exhume my V4S airfilters yet.......tank has to come off.

So you really only need to visit a dealer for the 15k service after that 1k km job to preserve ongoing warranty and pick up any software updates, so go for it, it will be a trouble free bike as the engine and electronics have been around since late 2020 and are used in all the V4 Multi models....the S, the PP and the Rally, with some new features like 2 cyl highway cruise cut out

I don't have the workshop manual & you don't need one, everything is simple and just like a Jap bike, and there's plenty of help on here if you can't work something out.......

Here's my QD tucked up nice and tidy. It's not noisy either...... (I'm 65, not a loud pipe lover).

Thanks for the replys. I appreciate the input.
There has been some great information shared.
In response to the comments about the large fuel tank being top heavy. Yes that is true, an extra gallon or more of fuel up high would make it a lot heavier.
However, for short one day rides and around town I doubt that I would fill it to capacity.
Probably only carry 22 liters max.
Then when I head out to areas where the stations are a lot further apart, fill the tank.
It wouldn't be any different than having a spare container of fuel strapped on the luggage rack with any other bike.
Yep parts could be interesting to get if needed, however that seems to be the way things are now. I needed some of what I thought were common parts for my 2012 Yamaha FJR and they turned out to be 3 weeks away through the dealer, I found them till at another dealer that was almost 2500 km away and had them sent via courier and it still took 5 days to get them.
I still have time to decide which way to go.
The KTM dealer has 2 1290 SAS that will arrive in 2 weeks and I plan to make a visit to the Ducati dealer in 10 days or so. The Rally has not arrived there yet either.
So I will keep reading the comments and doing research.
Thanks and ride safe.

Having owned 2 Multistrada's and 3 1290 KTM's. And if id only be able to have one bike, and 80% seal 20% gravel id definitely go for the SAS 1290, or an 890R KTM, no question. The Multi's, and especially a V4 Multi is not suitable for gravel. On a recent trip, 4 Multi's 3 950S's and 1 V4, the guy dropped his V4, a slow tip over, and $4500 to fix the damage. KTM's are built bloody strong, low centre of gravity makes them great all-round bikes. And unlike you, i don't like multi cylinder bikes. Twins for me all the way. Ive owned a few V4's, even ridden the Street Fighter V4, (very disappointing bike) The 950S Multi's aren't to bad on light gravel, weighing in at 230 kgs fuelled up, they aren't light, i believe the V4 Multi pushes the scales at around 250kgs fuelled up. Pick of our gravel trip on multi's, the guy with the V4 broke his ankle and couldn't get off his bike.

You need to be able to access the on/off switch to turn the bike on or off just like an ignition switch. You have a kill switch and starter on the right control, of course, but ignition and handlebar lock/unlock must be performed using the button. I don't use a tank bag myself, but I believe you'll be able to access it without removing the bag. Actually, I went down to the garage and tried it out for you.

DaveNZ said:

Having owned 2 Multistrada's and 3 1290 KTM's. And if id only be able to have one bike, and 80% seal 20% gravel id definitely go for the SAS 1290, or an 890R KTM, no question. The Multi's, and especially a V4 Multi is not suitable for gravel. On a recent trip, 4 Multi's 3 950S's and 1 V4, the guy dropped his V4, a slow tip over, and $4500 to fix the damage. KTM's are built bloody strong, low centre of gravity makes them great all-round bikes. And unlike you, i don't like multi cylinder bikes. Twins for me all the way. Ive owned a few V4's, even ridden the Street Fighter V4, (very disappointing bike) The 950S Multi's aren't to bad on light gravel, weighing in at 230 kgs fuelled up, they aren't light, i believe the V4 Multi pushes the scales at around 250kgs fuelled up. Pick of our gravel trip on multi's, the guy with the V4 broke his ankle and couldn't get off his bike. View attachment 1062197

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I absolute, entirely, and irrevocably disagree. Any bike can ride on gravel, including a Grom or a scooter. The bike has very little to do with it, whereas the rider's skills, confidence and experience are everything. I ride my MTS V4 on gravel, mud, rocks, ruts, and in water - and even though I don't consider myself very skilled, I never dropped it once. Dropping a bike on gravel would suggest either an utter beginner, or someone who is riding outside their skill envelope. I rode my Ducati XDiavel on gravel roads with no incident, and then rode my BMW F750GS on the same roads and broke both wheel rims because I was over-confident.
Looking at the picture you attached, I notice 3 of the bikes do not have any crash bars or skid plates, and the one that does seems to be the original Ducati which is soft and bendy. I also believe I detect only one of the bikes has semi-offroad tires.
I agree KTMs are great bikes (though personally I find them aesthetically repulsive) - however there isn't anything quite like a Ducati. Paying an arm and a leg for the initial purchase and over again for maintenance, service, and repair is all part of the Ducatisti experience. You will not hear a true Ducatisti complain about cost.
Final note - curious as to how come the friend with no crash bars and no skills (or over-confidence) neglected to have insurance on their bike? When I broke my BMW, insurance picked up most of the $2,500 damage, after my $250 deductible.