VOL. 52 ISSUE 10 MARCH 10, 2015 P55
Panigale will make a great road
bike. Even before considering all
the extra electronic gizmos it fea-
tures, it's in the handling, specifi-
cally the way it steers. The way
that Ducati has compacted the
mass of the bike with the Super-
quadro engine architecture—plus
sticking the exhaust (complete
with heavy catalyst) centrally un-
der the engine—makes for a bike
that is very agile and predictable
in the way it changes direction.
And the slightly sharper steer-
ing geometry is surely a func-
tion of that too. It's rewarding to
put your faith in the front Pirelli
and keep up the corner speed,
because there's good feedback
from the front end even on the
side of the tire, making braking
deep into a turn then letting off
the brakes to keep up the corner
speed a valid option. And thanks
to the stiff chassis it pays off to
be quite aggressive in how you
change direction on the 1299,
because you can speed up with-
out upsetting the bike's behavior.
The Brembo brakes are
absolutely superlative! And I'll
admit, I wasn't brave enough to
really test their limits, which are
phenomenal. I saw 183 mph on
the speedo down the .6-mile
Portimao main straight with its
long, long downhill entry (this
is a FAST bike!), but couldn't
persuade myself to really push
my brake markers into the
downhill third-gear right-hander
at the end of it. Yet every time I
mentally cussed myself because
it seemed I'd braked too early.
It was because the radial Brem-
bos are so effective, combining
balls-out stopping power with
so much feel and modulation,
you just end up taking it for
granted. Thanks to the ABS set-
tings and the Öhlins semi-active
suspension I didn't get the rear
wheel lifting. Even when I twice
squeezed extra hard on the
front brake lever, the Ducati just
stopped. And there was definite-
ly more engine braking available
in both Race and Sport mode
than I remember from before, all
without upsetting the stability of
the Ducati under braking. Magic.
The drive out of a turn has
also improved. You can feel the
1299 jump out of a second or
third gear turn more aggressively
D U C A T I R I D I N G M O D E S
There's a trio of riding
modes on the 1299
Panigale. Here are
the default settings:
Race Riding Mode
205 bhp, with
direct RBW throttle
response and, on the
S version, a racetrack
suspension setting.
DTC level 3, DWC
level 2, DQS fully
active, EBC level 2,
DES circuit mode,
ABS only active on
the front wheel, and
with the Cornering
function not engaged.
Sport Riding Mode
205 bhp, with less
direct RBW throttle
response and, on the
S version, a sports
type suspension
setting. DTC level 5,
DWC level 5, DQS
fully active, EBC
level 2, DES road
mode, ABS active
on both wheels, with
control of rear wheel
lift when front brake
is activated, and the
Cornering function
engaged to provide
maximum ABS control
when cornering.
Wet Riding Mode
120 bhp, with a
gentle RBW throttle
response and, on
the S version, a
suspension setting
that's optimized for
conditions with little
grip. DTC level 8,
DWC level 8, DQS
fully active, EBC level
3, DES rain mode,
ABS fully active with
maximum effect, and
with the Cornering
function engaged to
provide maximum
ABS control when
cornering.
