Cycle News is a weekly magazine that covers all aspects of motorcycling including Supercross, Motocross and MotoGP as well as new motorcycles
Issue link: https://magazine.cyclenews.com/i/128335
Other than the revised fa iring, which does away with the upper flaw conveyors for better aerodynamics, the R model loa k s like any other 999 at first g lance. _ 1""""'"- ridden Mazda Raceway know that it is a fast, very technical course, with many of the I I turns on the 2.238-mile ribbon of tarmac being completely blind. Turn one isn't really a turn at all, but rather a 130+ mph arc over a rise that doesn't present a clear view of turn two until you are way over it. Turn two, also known as Andretti curve , is actually a double apex left-hander that leads to a short chute to the righthanded turn three, then another fast straightaway to another right-hander. turn four. The next two lefts. turns five and six, feature somewhat odd pitches. as five starts banked but finishes flat, while six is off camber. Turn seven is another virtually unnoticeable arc at the top and rearmost section of the course that sets the rider up for the most famous turn in all of racing, the Corkscrew, which is followed by the superfast, downhill Rainey curve . After another fast right-hander, turn 10, the course is completed with an extremely tight left-handed turn I I tha t leads back onto the front straightaway. Perhaps more than any other circuit in the world, Laguna demands a tremendous degree of precision by bike and rider to be ridden properly. Blowingone turn often means that it will take two more to recover and get back on line. My last experience aboard an Italian bike at Laguna had come three years earlier, and it had ended with our $18,495 MY Agusta F4S test unit and me leaving the racetrack, aboard separate emergency vehicles. I joked to Ducati officials that if price were the deciding factor, I'd bet that I could toss the R twice as far this time. At that point I realized that more than a few of the Italian techn icians standing around could understand English better than I thought they could , and that nervous laughter is the same in any language. With only 300 copies of the 999R available in the United States. (the requ ired numbe r to meet AMA homolgation regs), they were not keen on leaving Laguna with only 299 to sell. Neither of us had reason to worry, though, as the 999R's potent mill pumps out copious amounts of torque as the engine races toward its claimed peak power output (150 horsepower) at 9750 rpm . Claimed peak torque is I I kilogrammeters at 8000 rpm, which calcs out to just over 86 foot-pounds. These numbers show an improvement over the 2004 999R's claimed I 39hp at 10,000 rpm , with a claimed torque of II kilogram-meters. or 79.5 foot-pounds . at 8000 rpm. Compared to its 999 and 999S Siblings, the R model 's user-friendly thrust is especially noticeable in the midrange, and you don't feel much of a tapering off as the revs increase, and this makes for a deceptively fast motorcycle as you snick through the Ducati's Six-speed gearbox with 600-like abandon . only to find that you are going way fast as the next corner rushes up on you. Ducat i engineers accomplished the increased power with several changes to the 999R's 90-degree L-twin Testastretta powerplant. Although the bore and stroke remain the same at l04mm and 58.8mm respectively, the 2005 999 R's ottovo/vole engine has be nefited in several ways, starting with a compression increase to 12,45: I, up from 12.3: I for the '04. The valve diameters have also grow n, fro m 40mm to 42mm on the intake side and from 33mm to 34mm on the exhaust side, with new cams lifting them higher and opening and closing them sooner than in last year's engine. The valves are also lighter, the titanium componentry a claimed 36 percent lighter on the intake side and 39 percent lighter on the exhaust side to aid in acceleration. Sharing the technology of the earlier-released 749R, the desmodromically operated valve gear also utilizes half cones instead of half rings to retain the valves, aiding in valvetrain stability and durability. The distance between the valves has been increased by 1.5mm . Downstairs, a new piston design incor- www.cycleneW5.com CYCL E N EWS • AUGUST 4,2004 51