Superquadrata

[LA]

How come no one has mentioned the new Superbike - Superquadrata?

I always wondered why Ducati didn't rotate the engine backward and side it forward.  112mm X 60mm and 14,000 RPM and no trellis frame?

What's up?   

Just a cruel hoax?

LA

[Drunken Monkey]

It's long been rumored Ducati will be moving away from belt drives
It's long been rumored Ducati will be moving away from trellis frames to a carbon fiber mini-frame/airbox (most plausible, IMHO)
It's long been rumored Ducati will be moving to a radically oversquare engine.
It's long been rumored Ducati wants to move away from a 90 degree twin. The new bit is the reversed L twin, which I'm still trying to wrap my head around how that'd improve mass centralization. Let alone how that'd fit in the bike....

Anyway, old rumors mixed with new and a dash of silly season means... Superquadrata!

[Uncle Mofo]

Super-square?

[Bill in OKC]

Super-square?

Is that where they make it perfectly square... and then go a little further?  Like having an 11 on the volume knob.

[LA]

Motorcyclist says we'll see it at Milan.  90 degree, desmo gear driven cams F1 style finger followers.  Cam drive terminates in small chains that operate the rocker arms.  The engine is rotated rearward and moved forward allowing a longer swing arm.  The article says cases split so that a cassette gear box will allow easy gear changes.

The brief writeup is written as if they know of what they speak.  They say it's  based on a design for a twin GP machine done in 2001.

We'll see.

LA

[Grampa]

a hypermotard is in the works

[Moronic]

You may find a bit more here on the mooted new Duc Superbike.

It sounds exciting, with gears to short chains driving the cams, and obviously high max horsepower. Keeps the desmo valve train.

Only thing is, I'm not sure it will make a better road bike. The design will add top-end, which will be nice for the racers, but I'm not aware the 1198s have a shortage for road riding.

Probably good for road bike marketing tho. 

Will be interesting how the handling changes with the rotated engine. Layout will be more like KTM's. People seem to like the steering on those.

[Drunken Monkey]

Nice link 

Actually gives some details and explains (a bit) why we've been hearing those other rumors for so long. And explains that it'll be a 90 degree V twin, not some oddball reversed L as previously rumored.

As they say on MythBusters: "Plausible"

[pennyrobber]

a hypermotard is in the works

Wait a minute, Ducati is making a motard?

[Goat_Herder]

Wait a minute, Ducati is making a motard?

So where is the pic of a supposed "Superquadrata"?

[Grampa]

So where is the pic of a supposed "Superquadrata"?

this is close

SuziQuatro
Suzi Quatro - Rock Hard

[DoubleEagle]

So where is the pic of a supposed "Superquadrata"?

Motorcyclist Magazine's latest issue has what they perceive the " Superquadrata " will likely look like.

Dolph     

[WetDuc]

I guess I missed the link on this thread...

[Speeddog]

Dunno why they're going with gears *and* chains.
I'd like to see more info.

Plain bearings on the crank or still ball and/or roller bearings?

Does the magazine have any photos or accurate layout drawings on the engine?

[Triple J]

This is all I've seen on it

http://www.moto.it/news/ducati-avanti-col-nuovo-bicilindrico.html

Per google translate:

For several months in the department experiences of Bologna-run counter to several copies of the new engine with two cylinders, created to counter the offensive quadricilindrici in World Superbike, but not only ...
Architecture is always 90 ° V, but now the front cylinder is tilted and not horizontal (and hence the latter is no longer vertical). This, to limit the footprint longitudinal engine, not contained in the current Ducati twins.
The bore of the new engine is an impressive 112 mm, but it seems that now they have been proven most others, it seems certain that the engine will be the first of a new generation of twins of different displacements: this is a record value, which valves allow the adoption of larger and a smaller race, with great benefits for performance. The engine can reach higher and breathe better.
The measures for the characteristics of the twin Superbike races thus passed from the current 106 x 112 x 67.9 mm to 60.9 mm.


"The new engine's bore is 112 mm well, but it seems that now they have been proven most others, it seems certain that the engine will be the first of a new generation of twins of different displacements"

Among the technical solutions we highlight the neglect of rolling bearings and bushings in favor of the one removable cylinder, replaced by other integral with the base and fitted with rods set, like "wet" (directly bathed by coolant ) and upper edge of support. Even the timing belts are abandoned: the two camshafts housed in each head are driven by a short chain more gears. The distribution, obviously, remains desmodromic.
The twin-cylinder Ducati's future is a reality, but we already know that next year we will see him in the race nor in regular production.

Bore records!
The new twin-cylinder Ducati has therefore a very high value of boring. A record in the motorcycle, which for the moment still belongs to the twin Morini 1200, with 107 mm, closely followed by the same Ducati 1198 R, with 106 mm. For several years previously, the record was held by the cylinder Suzuki DR Big, product displacement of 750 cm3 and 800, with 105 mm: the same value reached by the recent twin KTM RC 8.
It may be worth pointing out at the other extreme, in that two-stroke tricilindrico RP 68 GP 50 cm3 (!) Made by Suzuki for the 1968 season, which turned to the bench but never ran due to the withdrawal from the House ' competitive activity, the bore was only 28 mm ...