Quick Question Multistrada Owners

TalH said:

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.

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He had insurance, the repairs cost $4500, (around $3000 US id guess) from a minor tip over. Ive since fitted descendent off road tires, plus crash bars to mine, which i inherited second hand with damage, from a 950S that was knocked over by a reversing car. Yes the guy was a novice on the gravel, and the bike was new to him, and he had touring boots on, not really suitable for off road. I take my Multi off road all the time now, and its very good, but no match for my mates on their Nordens or 790/890 Adventurers. But i love the bike on the tight twist sealed roads. Couple more picks

Ray Ouelette said:

In the videos I have seen on the new Multistrada, the off, on switch seems to be in a silly place.
With it at that location on the fuel tank I would think it would be inaccessible with a tank bag.

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I have the Ducati tank bag and it clears the ignition switch, just barely.

DaveNZ said:

A reasonable video, KTM better at off road, and the V4 Multi, better on the seal. Both very very good bikes over all. Can't go wrong with either. And unlike TALH, i really like the look of the KTM's, I remember when the first 1200 Multi came out, most hated the looks of it, but i loved it, had to have one, and did 90,000 trouble free kms..

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Not sure this is oranges to oranges (ha!). KTM's adventure flagship should be compared to Ducati's, which is now the MTS V4S Rally (also the topic of conversation here, I believe).

Maybe it's just me, but whenever I see a KTM I think of... 😛

Down here on the Darkside we have a push button instead of the US style turn switch and it's no biggie to push it 'on' before stepping onto the horse. By the time I'm seated with side stand up the dash is ready and I fire up and go. I have a 10-12ltr tank bag so I can't see the start button when sitting on the bike, hence I hit it before jumping on.......

Yes the V4MS is tall and heavy, yes it is better than you might expect on dirt roads, but for the 80% tarmac riding you will not find a more comfortable or capable machine. The KTM's usually eat all comers in the dirt due lighter wet weights and that 3 section fuel tank and airfilter access hatch, but they can be a bit hard to ride for hours on tarmac roads.

It's a big call, the MSV4Rally is well equipped but at an actual wet weight of 260kgs before rider and clothes in cases, it's one big mothership on a dirt road.......but it's a fabulous long range tourer.

If you really like your 20% off road adventures, at 71yrs, maybe it's better to buy a lighter bike and enjoy the ease of riding light - even the so called king of adventure bikes (GSA1250) weighs over 270kgs, but they only fall onto their cylinder heads/full crash cage, so they are easy to pick up......the Ducati will fall flat sided and would be back breaking to pick up on your own. Don't ever let one fall down .

I have SWM bars on my V4S which are a bit wider than the Ducati bars, so I hope they help if I ever make a mistake, but I seriously doubt if I'd be able to lift mine without help and 2/3rds full of fuel.....

Good luck deciding.....keep in mind the weights - sadly we are not as strong as we once were, though we are probably a lot smarter than when we were young and indestructible .

Ray Ouelette said:

Stupid question #2.
In the videos I have seen on the new Multistrada, the off, on switch seems to be in a silly place.
With it at that location on the fuel tank I would think it would be inaccessible with a tank bag.
I usually run with a tank bag to carry sunglasses, windshield/visor cleaner and spare batteries for my camera.
So my question is, once it is turned on, do you leave it there throughout the day and just use the keyless start system? Or ?
I use a tank bag with the mount ring to make it easy to remove for fueling, but I leave it mounted when I stop to eat
Sorry for the stupid question but I am not sure of how the Ducati keyless system operates with that switch.
Thanks

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I have one of the Ducati branded Givi tank bags on my V4S. In the photo below my gloves happen to be covering the ignition switch. I can reach it with either hand just fine while seated and the tank bag installed. It’s the ring lock bag and it comes off when refueling. Pro tip: pick a tank bag that is easy to remove and reattach because you will be refueling often (three times yesterday).



I would prefer the switch system my 2016 X-Diavel had. The twist switch was in the same location, but was only needed to activate/deactivate the electronic steering lock or to start the bike with the PIN code (when the key fob was absent or had a dead battery). Normal operation only required using the switch and button on the right hand grip.

Ray Ouelette said:

Thank you for your input. This is all valuable information. It seems odd that Ducati advertises the Rally as an all around machine to go up against the BMW GSA.
There adds show it on gravel
However, info from someone who has been there, done that is more valuable than any add.

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Comfort, Ascetics, and a whole host of other things are very subjective. A couple of friends of mine and I rode the Idaho Backcountry Discovery Route (IDBDR) in 2021. We all left San Diego and met in Elko Nevada. I did a little more sight seeing along the way (purposely avoiding the interstate to see cool things). I was 1,150 miles (1,850 kilometers) into my motorcycle adventure when they parked their truck and unloaded a Honda CRF 450 RL and a KTM 790 Adventure Rally in Elko. After riding the IDBDR to Porthill Idaho at the Canadian border, they rented a truck to haul their bikes back to the truck they left in Elko, to haul their bikes back to San Diego.




Meanwhile, I pointed the V4S Multistrada west and rode to the north west corner of Washington and then down the Hwy 1 (and 101) to the Mexican border.

The CRF can probably do more off road, more easily than the V4S, but if you are more interested in riding motorcycles
than loading and unloading bikes into the back of a truck or trailer, perhaps the Multistrada gets the nod. Yes, I know the KTM 790 has a lot more comfort and street touring ability than the CRF, but that particular 790 Rally has done more miles in the bed of that truck than on its own.

on Saturday, I rode 115 miles (185 kilometers) from Mesquite, Nevada to Gold Butte Townsite. About 40 miles was on a road that was like this most of the way.



Some spots had some deep gravel or loose dirt, but I just slowed down.

Figure out your use case and decide appropriately. Others will always have reasons to dispute your decisions and there will always be a “better” bike for a given scenario. Every bike makes certain concessions or compromises somewhere.

Good luck figuring out if those compromises will affect your enjoyment or what you want to do with it.



Yesterday, in Joshua Tree National Park.

My decision will be based on several things.
1. A silly one,I always wanted to own a Ducati for the past 30 years, and this is my chance to scratch that itch.
2.Even though Imhave a local KTM dealer I am not impressed with their service department.
I own a 2012 FJR that has a strange rear brake issue that they could not fix. they have been a Yamaha dealer for a very long time. So having a dealer close doesn’t really carry a lot of weight.
3. Most of my riding is going to be done on pavement, what none pavement riding I will do will be on graded gravel roads.
4. I will be taking the bike on 4 to 6 week trips every year, so long day comfort is important
5. the ability to carry weeks worth of camping gear and still play in the corners is important.
6. I live where ther are some very nice curvy roads,plus a days ride away to our daughters place puts me in CANYON COUNTRY with some beautiful canyon roads to play on. So handling is important.
7. the large fuel tank of the Rally isn’t an issue as it doesnt always have to be filled to capacity
8. At 71 years old I don’t know how many more years of riding I have left on a large bike, so if I am going to do it I need to do it soon.
9. I am 6 ft 5 inches tall and 285 lbs so to enjoy 650 mile days I need a fairly large bike to be comfortable.

Thank You guys for your input, I really appreciate it.

Ray Ouelette said:

Here is a video I made of my ride from British Columbia in 2020
It was on my Yamaha FJR.
I want to redo it on a Ducati, especially the Icefield Highway

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That was a fantastic ride.

I tried to ride from the Idaho/British Colombia border at Porthill/Creston in the summer of 2021. But, it seems Canada was closed then. I hope to ride through parts of Canada. Please let me know when that’s allowed again.


That’s the Canadian Customs office in the background.