2022–2024 · Adventure · Buyer's Guide
The Track-Bred Road Tourer
This is the sharp end of the V4 Multistrada line. The 1158 cc Granturismo V4 makes 172 hp and 92 lb-ft at 8,750 rpm, and Ducati wrapped it in hardware that belongs on a fast road bike rather than a trail bike: forged Marchesini wheels, Brembo Stylema calipers, Öhlins Smart EC 2.0 electronic suspension, an Akrapovič slip-on. The 17-inch front wheel is the tell. Everything here points at pace on pavement, with front and rear radar running adaptive cruise and blind spot detection, cornering lights, and quickshift in both directions handling the housekeeping while you get on with the road.
It ages the way a well-built Italian road bike ages, provided you keep an eye on it. Some early V4 engines weep oil at the water pump seal or the spark plug well o-ring, which can put oil down the left side and onto the rear tire, so check that area on any used example before money changes hands. Who it suits: the rider who wants long-distance comfort and genuine speed on sealed roads. The honest caveat is the category one. With 6.7 inches of travel at each end and a 17-inch front, dirt is not on the menu, and heated grips, luggage, and tire pressure monitoring are options rather than standard fit.
Spec sheets don't ride bikes, but they set the baseline.
| Power | 172 hp (127 kW) |
|---|---|
| Torque | 92 lb-ft (125 Nm) @ 8,750 rpm |
| Displacement | 1158 cc |
| Engine | V4 |
| Cooling | Liquid-cooled |
| Gearbox | 6-speed |
| Fork | Upside-down (USD) |
| Front tire | 120/70-17 |
| Rear tire | 190/55-17 |
| Ground clearance | 8.5 in (215 mm) |
| Front travel | 6.7 in (170 mm) |
| Rear travel | 6.7 in (170 mm) |
| Seat height | 33.1 in (840 mm) |
| Wet weight | 529 lb (240 kg) |
| Fuel capacity | 5.8 gal (22 L) |
| Fuel economy | 36 mpg (US) |
Equipment check
Chassis
Comfort
Connectivity
Drivetrain
Lighting
Safety
The named systems that set this bike apart — and what each one does for you.
Braking
Exhaust
Rider aids
Wheels
Getting aboard is the first honest moment. At 33.1 inches the seat has you on tiptoes if you are average height, and 529 pounds wet wants a deliberate shove backwards out of a parking space. Once you are rolling, the mass seems to sink into the wheels and stop bothering you. The Akrapovič turns intake noise into a hard, hollow bark under load, deep enough that you feel it through the tank rather than just hear it. There is a fine buzz through the pegs at light loads that cleans up the harder you ride. The bar position is wide and upright, wrists neutral, knees with somewhere to go on a four-hour day. Those forged wheels make the steering feel unusually light in your hands, and the bike changes direction with less effort than the weight figure suggests.
Engine oil leaks from water pump and spark plug seals
Some early V4 engines suffer from oil weeping at the water pump seal or a pinned spark plug well o-ring, which can dump oil onto the left side of the bike and rear tire. The water pump issue may involve coolant contamination and has been addressed with a revised seal in later production.
Where this Ducati Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak pulls ahead of — or falls behind — its rivals on the numbers, and the typical bike in its class on character.
Power
Torque
Displacement
Wet weight
Seat height
Forget spec-sheet bragging. Here's who the Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak is actually built for.
Straight answer: no. The 17-inch front wheel, 6.7 inches of travel, and 529 pounds are wrong for slickrock and sand. Buy this and you will spend Moab wishing you were on something else.
Made for Bar M / Kane Creek · Imperial Sand Dunes · Johnson Valley OHV Area
This is your bike. Two hundred to four hundred miles of Blue Ridge or Highway 1 in a day, upright and comfortable, with enough engine and suspension range that the good sections never feel wasted.
Made for Black Hills · Blue Ridge Parkway · Cherohala Skyway
It covers big distances well and adaptive cruise takes the sting out of interstate days. Budget for luggage and heated grips as extras, and factor 36 mpg from a 5.8 gallon tank into your fuel stops.
Made for Beartooth Highway · Blue Ridge Parkway · Going-to-the-Sun Road
If this one isn't quite the fit, these are the bikes worth riding back-to-back against it.
Any price note compares both bikes at the same age — the youngest age both have on the used market — against this Ducati Multistrada V4 Pikes Peak. “cheaper/pricier” is what that bike costs second-hand, not how worn it is.
