ducati air cooled engines.

[sally101]

People buy what they want to buy.
What does it matter to you or I why they buy what they buy?

Its not like I knock on the window of every person who's driving a Pontiac Aztek and ask them why they bought one of the most hideous vehicles on the planet. Not my concern. Shouldn't be yours, either.

They bought their bike. You bought yours. I have mine.
Life's good.

BC.

Nothin personal.. I just don't get it..

And BTW it is socially acceptable to point and laugh at any and all Aztec drivers.

[Scottish]

Nothin personal.. I just don't get it..

And BTW it is socially acceptable to point and laugh at any and all Aztec drivers.

Price and ease of maintence was also involved.

[tristantumble]

so i guess the other bikes that have the same/similar size engine but are liquid cooled just run cooler, or are there any other advantages?

[teddy037.2]

so i guess the other bikes that have the same/similar size engine but are liquid cooled just run cooler, or are there any other advantages?

the water cooled are 4 valve vs. 2 and make more HP

[zedsaid]

Every car i've ever owned has at some point had a problem with the cooling system, whether it's the radiator, worn hose, or oil in the coolant and visa-versa.  

It's a pain i don't need.

In my opinion oil and water don't mix.

Oh yeah, and you save weight. = more flickability.


PS Aztec is fugly to the nth degree.

[sally101]

so i guess the other bikes that have the same/similar size engine but are liquid cooled just run cooler, or are there any other advantages?

Runs cooler = you can rev higher = fuel/air mix can burn hotter = ALOT more power. (1100DS makes 90hp on a good day, Testastretta (998) makes 130+ out of the box)
Additionally the fact that you have a more narrow expected temp range allows you to design the engine for more precise tolerances.

[The Don]

Runs cooler = you can rev higher = fuel/air mix can burn hotter = ALOT more power. (1100DS makes 90hp on a good day, Testastretta (998) makes 130+ out of the box)
Additionally the fact that you have a more narrow expected temp range allows you to design the engine for more precise tolerances.

the  Monster was made for city riding, do you really need 130HP, sure its nice for the track, but in suburbia? Plus its uncluttered and clean, water cooled engines need a fairing to hide all the hidious plumbing.

[mitt]

If that's the goal, why not use spring actuated valves too??

I just don't get you air cooled people who like it because it's more simple..
Desmo valves, trellis frame, single sided swingarm, but a radiator? NEVAH!

Half of those things you mentioned are more simple in my opinion.

Desmo is actually very simple, and I imagine it was thought of in some engineers mind before the system of overcoming heavy springs with a cam.

Also, the trellis is as simple as it comes. A bicycle uses a trellis frame. It is a bunch of triangles combined, the stiffest shape known to man, used by the Egyptians to build the pyramids.  What could be more simple?


I have been over 250 one time stuck in traffic in August.  Most of the time 200 is normal.

mitt

[jftoha]

Why do we have to make excuses for these engines?!!. Clearly the reason is nostalgia and character, not performance!! The 2 valve, air cooled engines may produce a bit more torque but for the most part any other modern engine configuration is more efficient than our engines. At the end of the day the reason Ducati still produces these obsolete engines is because enough of us still "like them". That is it, end of the story.

I, like most Ducatisti, constantly make fun of Harley Davison's owners but at the end of the day we like our bikes for very similar reasons.

[Porsche Monkey]

The more power an engine in a given displacement makes the more heat it generates thus requiring more cooling.  Air cooling can only do so much. The reason we don't see air cooled 4 valve ducs is because they would cook themselves if those engines were putting out as much as they do when water cooled.  The air cooled two valve bikes, while being simple, are a compromise. 

[NorDog]

Did someone really ask if I need 130hp?  Really?  Did he really ask that?

Well, need is a funny thing, and I have it.

[superjohn]

Half of those things you mentioned are more simple in my opinion.

Desmo is actually very simple, and I imagine it was thought of in some engineers mind before the system of overcoming heavy springs with a cam.

Also, the trellis is as simple as it comes. A bicycle uses a trellis frame. It is a bunch of triangles combined, the stiffest shape known to man, used by the Egyptians to build the pyramids.  What could be more simple?


I have been over 250 one time stuck in traffic in August.  Most of the time 200 is normal.

mitt

+1. I had someone last week bemoaning the complicated Desmo set up on my Monster and I just laughed. He was riding a Honda with VTEC.

Desmo is a really simple mechanism, it's just not as tolerant and as such needs to be checked and adjusted regularly.

[sally101]

Why do we have to make excuses for these engines?!!. Clearly the reason is nostalgia and character, not performance!! The 2 valve, air cooled engines may produce a bit more torque but for the most part any other modern engine configuration is more efficient than our engines. At the end of the day the reason Ducati still produces these obsolete engines is because enough of us still "like them". That is it, end of the story.

I, like most Ducatisti, constantly make fun of Harley Davison's owners but at the end of the day we like our bikes for very similar reasons.

Finally an honest person!

(disclaimer: I also have an MTS with an air cooled engine)

[redxblack]

The Aztek is so ugly, I saw one at the dog pound the other day. Someone was trying to get a dog to jump in their Aztek, but the dog was trying to get back to the pound. Maybe that was an adoptibility test to see if it was a smart dog.

[junior varsity]

While some things are common between the air cooled ducatis and harleys, most are not. Kind of a bad analogy.

While HD might also produce air cooled motorcycles, I fail to see many other similarities. Output per liter? Factory equipped oil coolers on the larger displacement models? Desmodromics? Lightweight?

If you mean that the owners are analogous because they choose the easy-to-work on bike, or pay obscene amounts of money for logo'd t-shirts, then I'd agree there.