[speedmiester]

What a wonderful review. I am not a biker by any means, but the passion and the knowledge for your bike is commendable.
All the best and I wish you a happy and a reliable ride for many many miles.

[no_fear]

Originally Posted by //M

Wow what a gorgeous looking thing this is. I'm pretty sure we both had a crisis seeing these gorgeous Italians in flesh. Back then, the Aprilia dealer had a Vespa 946 Emporio Armani on display as well. We both enjoyed the window shopping Sunday and it was quite an experience for both of us.

@M, Thank you very much for the kind words. I always follow your delightful car pictures you post on the forum. In fact on that Oct 19 trip, I saw the Armani Vespa in the Piaggio HQ. It looked awesome, but it's overkill. It won’t last 3 days in India without a rickshaw banging into it. My dad loves Vespas. I asked if he was interested, he said not a chance. He would rather get an electric Bajaj Chetak.

Originally Posted by aarnav_b

Ever since you mentioned your collection of bikes in the V4 review, this review was the most awaited one.

@ aarnav, thank you very much. I do want to get an Aprilia, but I have realized that I reached critical mass in terms of owning and maintaining bikes. This is happy problem, but still a problem.

Originally Posted by krishnaprasadgg

You have delivered yet another killer of a thread.

I had the chance to visit the Ducati museum when I was in Italy for the San Marina grandprix in 2019. Missed out on the factory tour through and yeah everything was paid experiences. It's refreshing to hear it was different with them.

@ Krishna - well your R1 thread is what got the ball rolling. Btw, I consider the R1 and the F4 as spiritual cousins. They have the same ethos and are admired for very similar reasons. I am still on the hunt for a R1.. hahahha, as I have told you already.

Wrt to your Ducati factory visit, I had missed that thread. If I had known before, I would have told you to skip the Ducati gift shop as it's extremely overpriced. In fact there is a Ducati dealer literally at the corner of the Ducati factory that keeps more stuff and charges way less on Ducati goodies than the actual Ducati gift shop. Italian logic!!

I love the 999 / 749 looks the most btw. It's a look that has aged very well. Now you are giving me ideas. If you know anyone planning to sell a 999, do let me know.

Originally Posted by GTM

Congratulations on owning such a fine piece of motorcycling history Attaching a pic of my childhood dream.

@ GTM, many thanks for the wishes. I hope MV comes back to India and launches a F4 Senna. I would not mind seeing that bike in person.

Originally Posted by man_of_steel

Made my Monday morning….. f4s were too sensitive on the clutch side. Especially off the line. May be the earlier ones. How does the RR fare in this area?

@ man of steel - thank you for the kind words. For the RR clutch, it is indeed a bit soft and sensitive but it suits me very well for city riding. I am glad I made your Monday morning enjoyable.

Originally Posted by contact.nitin7

hope the CCT and Servo are not causing any more problems, Anyhow, I do see that the pic looks like Noida, are you from somewhere around nearby?a buddy who is mastermind behind the light retro mods and lives here in Noida.

@nitin - thank you very much. The servo error is gone thankfully. I did consider looking into eliminator but I have a plan to install a link pipe and remove the servo motor. The healtech servo eliminator doesn’t always work but I am still weighing the options. Yes, I moved to Noida last year. I think I have heard about your buddy, as my FNG mentioned him.

Originally Posted by loki

My favourite iteration is the 2007 - 2008 F4 1000 in Red & Silver with the single sided swingarm showing off those silver 5 spoke (star shaped wheels) - pure bike porn. I also like the circular end pipes of the older version more. I know what to do...

@ loki - same for me brother. I love the red and silver F4 with the silver 5 spoke wheels. It is just something else. If I see that bike in person, I will need some quality one on one time with that machine.

Originally Posted by Vasuki

Excellent review and an eye-opener towards the legend MV….remember the guy in WB, whose Ducati was stolen @gunpoint )...Also please never judge a used adventure bike by its belly pan.

@Vasuki - I am very intrigued to hear about this WB gun point robbery. Do you have any information or news sources. With regards to prices, Delhi police stopped me a few times and asked how much the bike costs. My psychology is the same as yours so I told them it's 4 lacs. I don't want to tempt fate. I don’t check ADV bike belly pans, but I had a horrible experience when I wanted to buy a used Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak edition.

Originally Posted by SnS_12

You Sir, seem to have been on a shopping spree since 2020 This one costed you on the similar price point of your V4S?

@ Sns - Sachin, it actually cost me lower than the V4S. Goes to show how poor the re-sale value of MV is in the Indian market. I won’t change the instrument panel because the newer generation bike electronics are a bit different, and given the limited resources I have, I don’t want to take on too much of a challenge. My hands are already full maintaining my other bikes.

You are right on the Ducati factory visit. It was too scripted and corporate. They spent 30 minutes just showing us the yellow bins where bike parts are kept. I did the MV factory tour first and then Ducati, so the Ducati tour was a total let down.

Originally Posted by neil.jericho

My goodness! What a fantastic bike. What a fantastic thread. Congratulations on purchasing such an epic motorcycle. The MV dealership was close to the BMW Motorrad one…. They just need the right dancing partner.

@ Neil - the fact that you are a George Costanza fan has warmed my heart so much. George Costanza is my idol. I try to emulate his antics when I have corporate shindigs to attend and I want to bail out.

Deep respect for going to the Motoroyale showroom to see the F3. I would like to know how the interaction was with sales staff and dealer management. I have not heard anything pleasant about them.

Motoroyale, and by default Kinetic - I really don’t understand what their game plan is. I expected quite a lot given that they used to be in the 2 wheeler segment themselves. However, after their tie up with MV, I realized they bit off more than they can chew. Their media interviews and awards were so tacky and the CEO trying to pose with Bollywood stars to show the charisma of MV was just crass. You are absolutely right - they never hosted any events for actual bikers to promote the bikes. All they did was showboating. Find some Instagram stars, some ladies to complement the bikes and hope that the bikes sell themselves. Most of the bikes sold in 2016-17 period were to posers, who promptly sold the bike in one year. The instagram account of MV Agusta India is just a recycle bin of different people posing with the same bike, either doing stunts, or pretending to be millionaires. This juvenile and infantile way of marketing a brand doesn’t work with bikers who know their stuff.

The same stuff is being peddled by dealers for the current Hayabusa. A storied bike that was touted by Suzuki as a grand tourer, has now been reduced to parody by dealers, just to cater to influencers.

Imagine that for Bangalore, which is ground zero for all super bikes, Motoroyale doesn’t even have a dedicated service center. It doesn’t inspire confidence at all. What were they thinking? What was their strategy, their game plan? My mind boggles at the sheer incompetence. They announced they will open 20 dealerships by 2021. The only MV dealership in North India, at Dehradun is now closed (found out today). Brilliant going. I am not finished.

Just to highlight their sheer incompetence. Back in 2019, when I was looking for bikes, and I was thinking of getting a Brutale instead of a Hypermotard, I called Motoroyale Hyderabad. The sales guy on the phone told me they don’t entertain customers over the phone. If I am interested, I need to visit them in person. What a brilliant response!!!! They channeled George Costanza themselves.

[Vasuki]

Originally Posted by no_fear

@Vasuki - I am very intrigued to hear about this WB gun point robbery. Do you have any information or news sources. With regards to prices, Delhi police stopped me a few times and asked how much the bike costs. My psychology is the same as yours so I told them it's 4 lacs. I don't want to tempt fate. I don’t check ADV bike belly pans, but I had a horrible experience when I wanted to buy a used Ducati Multistrada Pikes Peak edition.

Link :

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LxiS9dpNovk

Check out @5.00 onwards.

Do enlighten us about your horrible experience with the Pikes Peak edition.

[no_fear]

Originally Posted by Vasuki

Do enlighten us about your horrible experience with the Pikes Peak edition.

I never knew someone was shot at and bike robbed. Quite scary. I wanted to buy a 2017 Pikes Peak that was on sale at one of the used bike dealers at Delhi. The bike looked very shiny, too shiny in fact - had the full PPF treatment done on it. It had a Termi exhaust so I was very impressed. The bike looked fantastic from near. But when I started to check, something didnt feel right. The rims of the bike were bent. I took the bike to the Ducati dealer and did a diagnostic check. Several red flags popped up. The bike was never serviced in 7000 km, had engine issues and needed major work before it was deemed road worthy. Service costs were about 2-3 lacs.

Cursed the used bike dealer and walked away.

I attached a screenshot of the ad - redacted the names and other contact information. I heard the bike was sold last year to someone else. I do not know if the problems were fixed.

[RohanDheman]

Beautifully penned down! I have been drooling over MVs since my college days in Pune from 2003 onwards and this one has been right at the top of my must ride list. And thank you ever so much for the details on the factory visit. The wife and i have been planning Italy for a while and i think i will skip the Ducati tour and do this instead.

PS; need better pics that the ones at tea shop mate! Lets do that soon too.

PPS: Your post above is why i am absolutely mortified of going the used route specially in a place like delhi where it is so so difficult to trust dealers. Will tell you all about it when we meet

Cheers
Rohan

[mugen_pinaki27]

My respect for MV has touched a new level. Thanks no_fear for penning down your honest thoughts on the same. I remember watching the F4 in 'The Dark Knight' way back in 2008. The looks, the sound and the feel stirred my imagination and made me bow my head down to the design and automotive genius of MV.

[krishnaprasadgg]

Originally Posted by no_fear

@ Krishna - well your R1 thread is what got the ball rolling. Btw, I consider the R1 and the F4 as spiritual cousins. They have the same ethos and are admired for very similar reasons. I am still on the hunt for a R1.. hahahha, as I have told you already.

Don't worry, I am keeping my eyes peeled, I'm pretty sure we'll find you on your very own CP4 soon.

Originally Posted by no_fear

Wrt to your Ducati factory visit, I had missed that thread. If I had known before, I would have told you to skip the Ducati gift shop as it's extremely overpriced. In fact there is a Ducati dealer literally at the corner of the Ducati factory that keeps more stuff and charges way less on Ducati goodies than the actual Ducati gift shop. Italian logic!!

Ah..I did not know about the dealer thing. The day we visited there were a few Multi and hyperstradas press bikes that were cleaned and serviced and shining in all their glory for some lucky journalists to take on a road trip. Man it was such a joy to see that.
Also, a big relief was that they offered a discount for anyone who could produce the ticket for the next day's race for their complete museum tour and they also took us on a technical tour where they allowed up to work on a monster's clutch set and few other stuff.
Also got the chance to hold the Titanium connecting rods and few other parts of the Ducati Panigale Superleggera(L twin), Man what a mind-blowing experience that was.
I agree about the prices, but I did end up buying a Dovi and Petrucci cap from the Factory shop and also a lanyard, I paid criminally high prices but it had to be done, a souvenir for the pilgrimage to the Bologna land.
I better not get into how much I spent at the VR46 shop at Tavulia...Yikes!

Originally Posted by no_fear

I love the 999 / 749 looks the most btw. It's a look that has aged very well. Now you are giving me ideas. If you know anyone planning to sell a 999, do let me know.

Haha...I love it, I think there are only a handful of 999 in India(or is there any, I seem to remember there are), no idea if any of them are even in running order. I'm sure you'd find one if you really wanted.

Cheers
Krishna

[AtheK]

This was such a beautiful write up, that I actually shed a tear drop by the end of it. This is passion oozing in every single sentence framed. I am not going to quote thread or write too much, as I am still getting the feels. Sorry I was busy with getting certain things sorted (you know), so missed this gem.

Congratulations on landing yourself a rare find, this is such a beauty. MV is one brand I always dreamt of owning some day, and maybe it will realize in future, if not, so be it, but reading threads like these make you happy, proud, that some one who actually can take care of such a beauty owns it. Friend of mine who owned an MV in states during 2012, had
the below photos of his bike on his face book, he doesn't even know how long I had them as my wallpaper. Today also when he speaks about all the bikes he has owned (Likes of Ducati and Aprilia), MV always has a heartfelt mention and the one he misses the most.





Those go pro holders, hate them, have two on my bike too, will need to get them off soon as well. Wish you many KMS of safe riding brother, and may your garage keeps getting such beauties in future.

[no_fear]

Originally Posted by RohanDheman

The wife and i have been planning Italy for a while and i think i will skip the Ducati tour and do this instead.
Will tell you all about it when we meet

@ Rohan. The Ducati factory tour is just a tour. It is a big let down. SnS and Krishna can add their perspective. For us, we did the MV tour first and then Ducati so we thought the Ducati tour will be personalized. There were 15 of us in the tour. All the tour lady did was walk along the floor, show us a CNC machine, a lathe machine, big yellow boxes where the parts are kept. As I said out of 1 hour, 30 minutes were spent on explaining what part goes where. Honestly, it felt like we were getting a lecture on supply chain and logistics. 15 minutes were spent on showing some scramblers being assembled, then at the end staging post, they showed us 3 bikes that were completed, 2 that had issues and needed to be fixed, and that's it. I was expecting a big room filled with bikes. Lots of V4, hypermotards, tons of salivating stuff......Nothing of that. You can clearly feel the VAG corporate vibe, it was too professional and no secrets were revealed.

If you want to get the Ducati experience, by all means, do the tour. But don't get too excited.

As an alternate, I will recommend you do this with your wife. My brother took his wife on the tour. You will not go wrong.

https://www.ariannandfriends.com/ves...r-with-museum/

It is the perfect Italian stereotype. You ride a Vespa through small towns and churches, have a hearty lunch, and just enjoy Italy at its finest.

I attached a pic of my older brother with the Vespas. My sister in law rode pillion, my dad was on the other scooter and the guide on the 3rd scooter.

ps. That green retro Ducati jacket - the Ducati factory gift shop was charging like 80 euros. My brother wanted to buy it and didn't. We went to the Ducati dealer, and got it for 30 euros.

pps - our riding plan is still on. I don't know if you heard, but 2 riders died on the Yamuna expressway yesterday. Riders on Busa and BMW. Both were speeding.

Originally Posted by krishnaprasadgg

Don't worry, I am keeping my eyes peeled, I'm pretty sure we'll find you on your very own CP4 soon.
I better not get into how much I spent at the VR46 shop at Tavulia...Yikes!
...... handful of 999 in India(or is there any, I seem to remember there are), no idea if any of them are even in running order. I'm sure you'd find one if you really wanted.

@ Krishna - actually the best clothing goodies are at this Italian company.

https://www.moto-store.it/en/

The Ducati and the VR46 stuff especially. They are a chain of brick and mortar stores found in all the big Italian shopping outlets.

I was in talks with them to ship a consignment to India. But with Covid last year in Italy, then Covid in India, and the whole debacle, I had to drop the plan.

Another great place to buy VR46 is from Japan. Yamaha has some amazing tie ups with a local retail chain that sell all this merch.

http://tokyo.nankaibuhin.net/article/184507847.html

I spoke to this company also in 2019 and asked them to help me get goods to India. Naturally Covid put a stop there too.

I am hoping once things normalize, I can get access to the goodies....

Originally Posted by AtheK

This was such a beautiful write up, that I actually shed a tear drop by the end of it. Sorry I was busy with getting certain things sorted (you know), so missed this gem.

Congratulations on landing yourself a rare find, this is such a beauty. MV is one brand I always dreamt of owning some day, and maybe it will realize in future......Those go pro holders, hate them, have two on my bike too, will need to get them off soon as well. Wish you many KMS of safe riding brother, and may your garage keeps getting such beauties in future.

@ Athek - many thanks for the kind words. I know you are also a die hard fan. If you are still interested, a Brutale 1090 and a F3 are on sale in Blore. I think the owner of the Brutale posted an ad on FB classified. The F3, I don't remember the exact details....

As for removing the Go Pro holder, have tons of patience. Use the hair dryer and brake cleaning fluid. Don't use acetone or any of the cheap glue removing sprays. It eats up the clear coat.

Your friend has very good taste with the F4R 1078. Is that the Seattle skyline? I think I recognize the needle. Never been to that city. I never found the Pacific North West appealing... lol.. too much rain and gloom.

[SnS_12]

Originally Posted by no_fear

@ Rohan. The Ducati factory tour is just a tour. It is a big let down. SnS and Krishna can add their perspective. For us, we did the MV tour first and then Ducati so we thought the Ducati tour will be personalized. There were 15 of us in the tour. All the tour lady did was walk along the floor, show us a CNC machine, a lathe machine, big yellow boxes where the parts are kept. As I said out of 1 hour, 30 minutes were spent on explaining what part goes where. Honestly, it felt like we were getting a lecture on supply chain and logistics. 15 minutes were spent on showing some scramblers being assembled, then at the end staging post, they showed us 3 bikes that were completed, 2 that had issues and needed to be fixed, and that's it. I was expecting a big room filled with bikes. Lots of V4, hypermotards, tons of salivating stuff......Nothing of that. You can clearly feel the VAG corporate vibe, it was too professional and no secrets were revealed.

If you want to get the Ducati experience, by all means, do the tour. But don't get too excited.

For me it was a first time doing a factory tour and I didn't really know what to expect but when they told me the museum tour was not possible at that moment I was a bit disappointed.

But its an experience nonetheless and don't think we might get an opportunity again to see a IC engine being assembled and tested at the factory with the world going electric.

























We being the only Indians on the tour there were a few Asians and mostly the rest were Europeans and everyone seemed to be a Ducati owner and were discussing what bikes they own and I at that time had only a Japanese garage (still do) and the biggest displacement bike was a 200cc parallel twin two stroke. This was back in 2016

[RohanDheman]

Originally Posted by no_fear

https://www.ariannandfriends.com/ves...r-with-museum/

pps - our riding plan is still on. I don't know if you heard, but 2 riders died on the Yamuna expressway yesterday. Riders on Busa and BMW. Both were speeding.

That tour is perfect! We would love to do this for sure! Thank you.

Yes, i heard about the crash. As unfortunate the reason for the crash was, this is the main reason why I have ridden on the yamuna expressway a grand total of 3 times in the last 3 and a half years of the RS ownership (one of which was to go to the track). I avoid that place like the plague on weekend - too many bikes- too many unruly riders making life absolutely difficult for someone who wants to ride in peace. Another reason why i am never going to be part of a 'riding group' and will always ride with friends.

[balenopower]

what a lovely thread and a superb read. Being an avid motorcyclist, i connect on so many levels. The MV is definitely a keeper and at the same time its like marrying Ursula Andress who will never age. What a beauty.

[abhi_tjet]

What a lovely thread no_fear! MV Agusta’s wallpaper which came free with Auto India magazine was stuck at my home during school days in late nineties. I can feel your emotion. These bikes are just rarest of the rare at least in Indian context.

Buying them is one thing and maintaining is a different ball game altogether. Kudos to you for that. Yours is a dream garage! Keep them coming

[AtheK]

Originally Posted by no_fear

@ Athek - many thanks for the kind words. I know you are also a die hard fan. If you are still interested, a Brutale 1090 and a F3 are on sale in Blore. I think the owner of the Brutale posted an ad on FB classified. The F3, I don't remember the exact details....

Your friend has very good taste with the F4R 1078. Is that the Seattle skyline? I think I recognize the needle. Never been to that city. I never found the Pacific North West appealing... lol.. too much rain and gloom.

Ha Ha I wish I could, but being married has it's own set of disadvantages, not able to have multiple bikes is definitely one of them. Missus is still coming to term with Ducati purchase, a big ticket purchase is sometime away. Though i am adding something to garage, will update in Panigale thread next week, once I get it.

Yes I think he was indeed in Seattle, though he has been back for quite sometime now and recently picked up a continental GT 650 in Red!!

[no_fear]

Originally Posted by SnS_12

For me it was a first time doing a factory tour and I didn't really know what to expect but when they told me the museum tour was not possible

You didn't miss much on the museum tour. I see that you sat on the 1299 PanigaleR. Seeing Krishna's travel thread, both he and I sat on the Italia colored V4 that is kept outside the museum entrance.

Lol to the Europeans in the tour. We had the same types. We were the only Indians in the tour. There were a bunch on Europeans, I guess Germans, dressed in full Ducati gear. I was wondering whether they thought they will get called to become test riders for the Ducati MotoGP team, the way they were behaving.

As for your scale model collection, here you were making fun of Krishna with gold investment in his R1 thread. I can see you supporting India's GDP by spending big on die cast toys.

Btw for all you guys, I know parts, gears and accessories are always a hot topic for us bikers. My older brother gave me a pro tip. There is a massive annual motorcycle convention in Bangkok every year during Jan middle. He attended the 2020 one. If Covid situation gets better and you want to buy parts, do a Bangkok trip next time and stock up on your parts.

Buy parts, enjoy a holiday, and it's Bangkok, I am sure you will find various ways to have fun.