Test Ducati Diavel 1260 S - You couldn't get more macho than that

Test Ducati Diavel 1260 S - You couldn't get more macho than that

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ergonomics

I like perverted motorcycles. Why? Because they have rough edges. And the Ducati Diavel 1260 S has many corners and edges. It's clear at first glance: This is not a girl's bike, but a tough bike for bearded guys with expensive watches and designer shoes. Because no matter how you twist and turn it, driving a Diavel is not a cheap hobby. The basic version starts at 22,995 euros. The S version tested costs a slim 26,595 euros. This makes a normal earner like me gasp for a moment. No matter, get in the saddle and have fun. Look, I remember the seating position differently from the first Diavel. The footrest position is reminiscent of a naked bike, the handlebars are high and feel like they are always far forward. Long arms are an advantage in the Diavel saddle. Now I'm not sitting relaxed (despite being 1.85 meters tall) like on a cruiser, but in a slight attack position, even though the front wheel feels like half a meter further forward. Wind protection? Doesn't exist. The beard is completely in the wind. Because your arms are stretched forward, you get a lot of wind pressure at highway speeds. The saddle is very comfortable and offers a lot of support when accelerating. The poor pillion passenger who has to ride on the tight, one-piece saddle. It can only be love. The two displays have become one, plus a bar with indicator lights on the fork bridge. The readability is bad. When the sun is at its zenith, you can hardly see anything on the high-resolution TFT color dashboard. With normal sunlight it works. The tank holds 17 liters - so you can travel an average of 250 kilometers to the next refueling stop - with some reserve. The seat height is pleasantly low at 780 millimeters.

Handling

The eye-catcher on the Ducati Diavel 1260 S is the 240/45 R17 rear tire. That's a fat roller - specially baked by Pirelli for the devil's bike. Splendid. But can such a wide thing even drive around a curve in an inclined position? Yes, it can. And surprisingly handy. Although handy is a tricky term with the Diavel: for the width of the rear wheel, it even goes around corners very handy. But since you sit quite far behind the front wheel, you have to turn the handlebars in tight corners to get around. This results in unfamiliar handling in the city or on narrow mountain roads. When cornering at speeds over 50 km/h, just a slight pressure on the handlebars is enough and the Diavel slides into an inclined position. In this respect, I would always describe the handling as safe, but not as neutral. The high-speed stability of the Diavel is strong, and the 1.6 meter wheelbase has a positive effect. If you drive the 1260 S in a sportier way, then I miss the feedback from the front end - despite the Öhlins chassis. Somehow I don't get a clear feeling for how much lean angle and pressure the front wheel can still handle. In this respect, I can confirm: The Diavel's footrests don't touch down nearly as early as on many other cruisers - not at all in the test, for example - but for me it's not just due to the footrest position, but above all because I felt uncomfortable at a greater incline. I suspect that it was the mixture of seating position, suspension setup (very hard) and respect that didn't give me the last bit of sportiness. It was certainly not due to the grippy Pirelli Diablo Rosso III. 

Engine/transmission

1262 cubic centimeters of displacement, just two cylinders and a compression ratio of 13.0:1 then push a huge 159 hp and 129 Newton meters of torque onto the crankshaft. That's a lot of fat. But: Compared to the first generation Diavel, the engine seems both more refined and well-behaved to me. For such a macho bike, the engine could run a little rougher and noisier. And the performance is likely to be much more dramatic. I want a blow in the neck, after all I'm sitting on the devil. But no, the Diavel 1260 S is comparatively tame and easy to control. No wonder, because the machine is completely electronically stored in magazines. Pretty much everything that Ducati has in the driver assistance system is used in the Diavel: various riding modes, ride-by-wire, cornering ABS, multi-stage, lean angle-dependent traction control, wheelie control, cruise control and even launch control. In comparison, the hands-free key system seems almost old-fashioned. But anyway, back to the engine. The big V-twin pushes very powerfully in every situation, but also has significantly more load change reactions than, for example, the new one Hypermotard 950. The quickshifter with blipper function goes very well with the Diavel. This means that the gears can be shifted up and down in no time without using the clutch. In the test, however, the Diavel made a mistake several times when upshifting without a clutch and the gear either didn't go into gear perfectly or jumped out again immediately. When the vehicle was returned, Ducati Austria was not aware of these shifting difficulties. Otherwise there was nothing to complain about with the gearbox. 

Undercarriage

Ducati traditionally relies on suspension elements from Öhlins for its sporty S models. To be honest, however, I find it unnecessary with the Diavel for two reasons. Firstly: The chassis (standard factory setting) was far too hard for me with the driver weighing a good 85-90 kilograms including equipment. If the road is not perfectly flat, you can really feel every edge and it hits you directly in your back and handlebars. Now the Diavel is a very sporty power cruiser, but the chassis is borderline tight for local country roads. Instead of absorbing bumps gently and safely, the Öhlins chassis spits every edge in your face and says: “Live with it, you wimp.” The only crux of the matter is that it makes your driving unnecessarily restless. Due to the limited test period, I was not able to adjust the chassis extensively. Normally, Öhlins components offer enough adjustment reserves to be able to become softer and harder. I should have softened up a lot. Back and front. That's why we come to the second point: The chassis costs significantly more and offers me no real added value other than the more stylish look. Because hand on heart: the Diavel is not designed for visiting racetracks or very sporty mountain passes. So why install a rock-hard racing chassis that creates more unrest than it brings performance advantages? Okay, it's still a better look, but otherwise!? I think you can save yourself the extra charge. Then it's better to use the normal version and maybe invest a few euros in a sensible fine-tuning and you'll be better off driving around the corner.

Brakes

When it comes to delay, the Diavel excels. Two Brembo M50 radial brake calipers are used at the front, each of which bites into two 320 millimeter brake discs via four pistons. Thanks to the long wheelbase and the Bosch cornering ABS, you can anchor fully at any time without worry and experience a huge delay. Braking is more spectacular than accelerating in the Diavel saddle. The front stopper is a weapon, a power, absolute racing level. The rear wheel brake can't quite keep up with this, as its dosage is a bit imprecise. The deceleration itself is good, but the feel on the brake lever is pale. Overall, the Diavel still brakes exceptionally well and, despite weighing 244 kilograms (factory specification), only needs one finger on the brake lever to come to a relaxed and safe stop. Very fine goods.

Noticed

How well-behaved the bearish engine is. How long the service intervals are now (major service only every 30,000 kilometers). How extremely well the brakes work. How much electronics are installed. 

Failed

It hurts me, but the Öhlins chassis wouldn't be worth the extra cost to me - too hard, too stubborn. I haven't warmed up to the seating position; for me it's a strange mix of naked bike and cruiser, which doesn't give me enough feeling, especially from the front wheel, to be able to ride really quickly. And the price.

Test result Ducati Diavel 1260 S, by p.bednar

More information about Ducati Diavel 1260 S

With kind support from TOTAL Austria

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