Took delivery of my 2021 Ducati Panigale V4SP: Initial review

I have not had a chance yet to fully open the throttle and enjoy 214 HP of craziness.

BHPian no_fear recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

2021 was a year of promise, contradiction and confusion. It started with a lot of promise. Promises of upcoming vaccines, chances to travel, end of lockdowns, etc. Instead, it was twists and turns, heartbreaks, misery. Amidst all this drama, I got a call from Ducati Delhi sometime during April 2021 asking if I was interested in the upcoming Ducati V4SP.

What is special about the SP. A quick history lesson

Ducati produces a special road-going version called Sports Production (SP) for all its sports bikes. It takes the best bits of the regular production bikes and the coveted R series and comes out with these limited editions very rarely. The first was the 851 SP, followed by the 916 SP, then the 996SP and last was the 1198SP. There are many theories as to why Ducati skipped several models and did not launch the SP for the 998, 999, 1098, 1199, and 1299. Volumes were low, prices were high and there was supposedly little to no demand.

Back to the present

I saw the newly launched SP on YouTube, especially the content created by Jaret Campisi. The bike looked interesting and the colour scheme was a stark contrast from the usual candy red versions. The India launch price was not announced, but Ducati Delhi assured me it won't be ludicrous like the 18-19 V4R models. It was a limited production model and not too many were assigned for India. If I did not pre-book now, I would not be able to get it later.

I was hesitant at first since I already have the 2019 V4S and also the granddaddy of all SP models, the 1198SP. So I consulted the oracle aka my older brother. He sent a one-line reply on Whatsapp - "Get it". So as an act of impulse, I paid a deposit to Ducati Delhi.

There was no guarantee that my order would be honoured since production is very limited. But if I did not get the bike, my money would be refunded. The delivery date was scheduled to be around 2021 Diwali.

Months followed. Ducati Delhi promised me once the bike was loaded on sea freight, they will notify me. I find Ducati Delhi to be among the most competent and professionally run showrooms in India. I know the staff and the owners and they have always done their best to help me out. Recently my Hypermotard developed a fuel line issue and they took care of it.

Around 13th Nov, I got an update from Ducati Delhi that my bike has landed in Mumbai and is headed to Delhi. I can come and unbox it myself on 17th Nov.

17th came and I was ready. Ordered an Uber and made my way to Naraina, West Delhi for the unboxing. Now, let the pics do the talking.

V4SP in the crate being inspected by Ducati technician

Special triple clamp for the V4SP. The bike is numbered 546. The wire crossing under the instrument panel is for adjusting the brake lever and settings manually. The feature is borrowed from the V4 Superleggera

Now, when the bike was launched worldwide, the bike came with BST manufactured carbon fibre wheels. However, the bikes headed for India, Malaysia, Thailand and China got Magnesium wheels. There was a bit of hoo-ha and ruckus on why we got the Mag wheels. The Mag wheels have appeared only twice before - on the 1199 Superleggera and the V4S Carl Fogarty 916 25 year Anniversario edition. The wheels are exorbitantly priced and a pair retails for about 6.5 lacs. The BST carbon fibre wheels retail for 5.4 lacs. So we got lucky and got the higher-spec and priced wheels. But why did we get the Mag wheels? It was a mix of supply chain issues and road conditions in India. The CF wheels will easily crack due to the poorer road surface quality and Ducati Italy did not want that to happen. But the CF wheels were already spoken for, so they got a special batch of these ultra-rare Mag wheels and stuck them on the V4SP.

After the PDI was done, I kept the bike at Ducati Delhi and asked them to install a few more accessories and I would come back over the weekend to do a proper handover of the bike and pay the remaining balance. I got a Ducati performance lower radiator guard, Evotech upper radiator guard and Rizoma front-wheel bobbins and Motografix tank guard added on the bike.

A few pictures of the bike at Ducati Delhi showroom and handover.

STM EVO dry slipper clutch with Rizoma CF cover. The STM clutch is used on the Superleggera and the V4R

I had a quick ride home on the new bike. First impressions were quite varied:

1. The bike gets hot tremendously fast. Even in the Delhi winter, it felt uncomfortable. Engine ice, CF heat shield and maybe further engine break-in will help me, but I doubt I can ride this bike much in the Delhi summers.
2. The electronics are overwhelming. My Ducati V4S is BS4 while the SP is BS6. The SP has more advanced electronics and techno-wizardry and it shows. The bike feels very controlled and won't let you kill yourself. The V4S is ready to take you on a death race and then come to your funeral with a bottle of whiskey and a 90s hits remix tape.
3. The dry slipper clutch and gear shifts are sublime. I always love the clangy bangy rickety dry clutch sound of Ducati. That is what makes a Ducati a Ducati. The V4SP has it but its not too loud. My 1198SP dry clutch will wake up the whole neighbourhood. Along with the quick-shifter and auto-blipper, the clutch mechanism is an absolute delight
4. The bike feels bulkier. It has a lot of CF on it and weight savings, but the body panels and side fairings and wings make it feel a bit bloated. I love the colour combination and the matte black finish gives the bike a very dark, ghostly, menacing, silent, ethereal look. Hence the term black ghost.
5. The power delivery is smooth and oodles of torque are available. I have to keep it under the 6k rpm until the 1000 km break-in period so I have not had a chance to fully open the throttle and enjoy 214 HP of craziness.

The past vs the present

I cannot "not" compare my 1198SP against the new kid on my block. The Ducati 1198SP is a bonkers no holds 170 HP bad boy that Ducati made in 2011. Globally about 1200 were produced, but now only 600 are left standing. The remaining were lost to the usual track day mishaps and crashes. My 1198SP is the only one in India. It did not have a good start. When Ducati shipped it to India in 2011 under Precision Motors, the bike was a showroom decoration item and spent the next three years shuttling around different showrooms in Pune and the South. BHPian neil.jericho saw the bike in Bangalore. Sometime in 2014 the bike was sold through a used dealer and came to Delhi. It spent the next 6 years in Delhi with an owner who then sold it off to NS One. I came upon the bike during a random visit to NS One and picked it up in a heartbeat. I call it my wild child. It is loud, noisy and difficult to ride in city traffic. The dry clutch wakes up every dog and cow, and the Zard exhausts announce my presence to the whole block. Some BHPians and XBHPians rode this bike and opinion has been varied and mostly negative. But I adore this bike. Ducati was at its engineering peak when it made 1198. My brother is so impressed with 1198 that he bought a 1098S. Yes, it's that good. We are die-hard Ducati fans and prejudiced, but once you ride the 1198SP on empty streets and twiddle through the gears and the dry clutch, a whole different portal opens up. The bike turns heads and growls and menaces forward. It takes no prisoners. It has no electronic wizardry. You need to know how to ride this bike. There is no safety net. And this makes it exhilarating. I wish bikes were like this. Anyways, enough of my rant and obsession. A few pics of 2011 vs 2021

The past vs the present

My brother had come to visit me and we took both bikes out for a spin. We both agreed that the 1198SP is the better bike.

Funny how a bike that is 10 years older, with less stuff, managed to shock and awe us both. Sometimes old is truly gold. There are not many 1098 or 1198 in India but if you get your hands on one, don't let go of it. You will be rewarded with what many Ducatistis consider to be the best Ducati ever made (yes, better than the epic 916) And no sorry, you can't ask me for a ride. It's my precious (cue Gollum dialogue).

Just for kicks and giggles, we also compared the V4SP against a 2020 Kawasaki ZX 10R that I have put up for sale through my company. It's like comparing chalk and cheese. The ZX 10R has a lot of power, but it's unrefined, gawky and too skittish. The handling and suspension need a lot of work. The bike needs to be tuned thoroughly before you turn it into the track killer. I love the ZX 10R, especially the older ones. It's like riding a tornado on steroids. But it has no grace. The ZX 10R is a bull in a china shop. The V4SP is a ballerina. It is moving beauty. But the two are ying and yang. Sometimes you need grace and sometimes you need brute force.

I planned to take the V4SP for longer rides. But my brother came over to spend some time with me and we took a trip to Rajasthan that I documented in my V4S thread. After his return, I finished some pending office work and as soon as I was free for my ride, Omicron made its presence, and with the lockdowns coming into force, 2021 ended with a twist.

Here's hoping 2022 delivers on 2021's failed promises.

PS: A total of 5 V4SP were delivered to India. 3 are in Delhi, and the remaining 2 are in Pune and Kochi. I believe there is 1 still on sale at the Delhi showroom so if you want to grab the last of this epic model, you still have a chance. I have made this review more of a pictorial than the usual plethora of technical specs, pricing and 'kitna deti hain'. For the latter, Google is your best friend, pricing remains obscene and 'kitna deti hain' is irrelevant. It's a Ducati, it will bankrupt you one way or the other. Just enjoy the ride.

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