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Ducati996R.net
Under-construction - Please scroll down
The Ducati 996R is
a DucatiSuperbikemotorcycle manufactured in 2001
as the special homologation model
for the World Superbike
racing series 2001 season. Based upon the Ducati 996 and using the new
998cc Testastretta engine, it was the next evolution from
the 996SPS (Sports Production Special) and the venerated
brands first ever "R" model.
Development
A new generation bike had been rumoured for years, as
it was widely known internally that Ducati had Massimo
Bordi hard at work developing a revised engine so they
would remain at the top of competition in World Superbike.
The original 916 had debuted in 1994 and had
always raced with a 955cc Desmoquattro engine until the
996cc came out in 1998. Honda
had stepped in to take the Championship
in 2000 away from Carl Fogarty who had won in
1999. It was clear that if Ducati were to take back the
title in 2001 they needed a drastic revision of their
engine. Central to this was the search for higher revs
and improved cylinder filing and combustion. 2001 would
also make the 8th production year for the Massimo Tamburini
generation Superbike, so it had many wondering if in
addition to the new engine, that a new bike design would
debut as well. As we know, that was not the case. The
reality was that Ducati didn't have the resources to
produce either an all new engine or complete motorcycle
in a short space of time.[1]
Once the formula and design parameters for the new
engine were established in early 1998, an outside
consultant was engaged to design the Desmodromic
cylinder head. Ex-F1 engineer, Angiolino Marchetti came
with over 30 years of experience and already had
previously business dealings with Ducati.[2]
Marchetti commenced on the new head design in early
1998. But unfortunately died in 1999 without seeing the
project completed. During 1999 three examples of the 998
were produced, and early in 2000, Luca Cadalora tested the
Testastretta on the track. Although this engine had the
new crank-case and shorter stroke, it still didn't
feature the Testastretta cylinder heads.[1]
Great effort was put into keeping the new bike secret
down to every detail. In reference to a supposedly
leaked image which a press outlet had reacted negatively
to, Pierre Terblanche had
this to say about it at Intermot:
"iets gemeen uit de ogen kijkend (looking something
mean in the eye), that was from MCN or somebody. But I
can tell you it's absolute rubbish! The bike... a lot
of people in the company have never seen the bike.
Definitely no dealer has seen the bike at all. The
bike they saw is the one that has been launched. They
saw the 996R like it is today. There are people in
Ducati's management that haven't even seen the new
bike. The whole idea is that nobody knows!"[3]
Public
Launch
The 996R was first teased to the industry at the Intermot show in Monaco, however Ducati officially
"debuted" the new Testastretta engine and the 996R at
the MunichInternational Motorcycle Show
(Intermot) in Germany the week of 11th September
2000. The public would have seen it in the 2001 model
line brochure in very early Sept (they were printed in
Aug). It then went up on the newly redesigned Ducati.com
around the same time with an online pre-order date of 12
Sept announced. No doubt all this hype contributed to
the online pre-order allocations selling out so quickly
as this all coincided at the same time after several
months of rumours and anticipation. The 996R was shown
again at the NEC Motorbike Show in Birmingham in
November of 2000.
The 996R has the distinction of being the first ever
"R" version Ducati in its Superbike line-up. The 996R was
the race homologation
special for the all new Testastretta (meaning “compact
head”)[4]
998cc engine that Ducati was campaigning in World Superbike
for the 2001 season.
Troy Bayliss swept the
championship that year on a 998 F01 (the factory race
version of the 996R) in his debut season after Fogarty had to retire in late
2000 due to an injury. In addition to the new 998cc
engine, the 996R also set the design language for what
the upcoming 998 and 748 model line-up would look
like for 2002. It also led to the 998R and 748R in 2002.
Here is a quote from a MotorBox interview at Intermot
2000: Pierre Terblanche, "The performance gap that the
Desmoquattro created between itself and the competition
has gradually narrowed. Despite the endless evolutions,
this engine was beginning to feel the weight of the
years. It was time to put an end to it. Or perhaps it
would be better to say the word beginning. Yes, because
the new "Testastretta" is not a more or less profound
evolution of the previous engine but opens a completely
new chapter. The changes are such and many that they
deserve an in-depth technical analysis. Here we limit
ourselves to summarising the work of the Ducati
technicians and a very short series of figures is enough
to do it.."[5]
The 996R made its motorcycle journalist test rider
debut 7 March 2001 at the Circuit de Valencia
race track in Valencia, Spain. Select
motorcycle journalists were invited to learn more and
ride the new 996R. Ben Bostrom and Ruben Xaus were on hand with Troy Bayliss also showing up
later in the event.[6]
For the occasion, the 996Rs were set up with the
"upgrade kit" which includes free carbon 50mm Termignoni
exhaust cans and a reprogrammed control unit (all
included in the purchase price of the bike). The power
rises to 141 horsepower.[5][1]
Through the Ducati Performance catalogue via dealers,
there was also full 54mm system with ECU that increased
the power to an advertised 149HP. Dealers that took the
996R racing like Pro V Twins in the UK and AMS in Texas,
USA were able to easily extract 150HP+ on the dyno just
massaging the timing on top of the full 54mm exhaust.
There was a full 57mm race-only Titanium exhaust that
required a spacer for the right rear set and a different
(or cut/modified) tail section to clear the carbon heat
shield and rear of the cans, all available via Ducati
Performance. There are no advertised HP numbers on this
as the ECU tuning was up to the customer and not covered
by warranty at this point. However, it is known than the
996RS Desmoquattro was estimated to have 168HP[1]
and the factory Testastretta F01 bikes had around 174HP[1]
and both of those bikes used the 57mm exhaust system. Of
course it goes without saying that these bikes had
numerous other serious race upgrades, but aside from F01
specific components, all of them were available via
Ducati Performance to anyone with the P/N and money. It
was much more cost effective though to just buy a
pre-built 996RS/998RS from Ducati.
Specifications
This is best broken down into two sections;
Upgrades/carry-overs from the 996 SPS, and what was
totally new.
Upgrades/carry-overs from the 996 SPS:
Frame - The 996R has what's known as the
"Kyalami" frame. This means the main trellis structure
has been modified for the larger carbon air-box to
accommodate the new Testastretta throttle bodies and
shower injectors. On the R it also incorporates some
slight geometry tweaks implemented on Foggy's 2000 F00
he wanted carried over to the F01[2].
The tubular trellis frame is constructed out of
TIG-welded chrome-molybdenum
and saw thicker 12mm engine mounts and upgraded 2mm
walled tubing implemented for the R.[2]
An aluminium rear subframe was also standard as the R
was not offered in anything but Monoposto.
Öhlins - The front forks and rear shock and
spring remained unchanged from the SPS. The
upside-down forks (treated with titanium nitrate) and
the rear shock absorber, which works on a single-sided
swingarm, offer the possibility of any type of
regulation.
Exhaust - The R carried over the full 50mm
exhaust system from the SPS but it was modified to
accommodate the new cylinder heads and wrap around the
engines new deep sump oil pan. The new Testastretta
cylinder heads were 4-bolts for the exhaust flange vs.
a 3-bolt pattern on the old Desmoquattro.
Carbon-Fibre - The R carried over the carbon
air-box, front fender, oil cooler surround, rear
number plate holder, under-tail section, chain guard,
and exhaust heat shield from the SPS. The nose and
tail are still plastic on the 996R.
Colour - The SPS and bikes previous to it
(Varese red excluded) are painted "Rosso Ducati" (PPG
473.101). The 996R and 998R are painted "Anniversary
Ducati" (PPG 487.111) for the 75th anniversary of
Ducati. Anniversary is a brighter shade of red
compared to the old Rosso. The frame kept the gloss
"Grigio Metallic Ducati" (PPG 291.601) which came out
just the year prior on the 2000 SPS which was a
welcome change from the matte bronze previously used.
Marchesini wheels - Ducati marketed the 996R
as having lightweight Marchesini wheels. Marchesini
(a subsidiary of Brembo) are well known for their
forged aluminium and magnesium racing wheels. The
wheels on the 996R are not that, they are standard
cast aluminium. These 5-spoke wheels have Brembo
cast into them and a Marchesini decal on the outer
rim. These were not special for the 996R, in fact,
they were a carry-over. Having P/N 50210221AA, these
wheels were on the 996S, 996SPS, 996R, 998, 998S
(Bayliss & Bostrom), and 998R. In the case of
the 998R, there has been some confusion as Ducati
advertised the 998R as having "lighter weight"
wheels, stating 400g less in the front and 800g less
in the rear. This was a misunderstanding however as
the 998R received the identical wheels as the 996R
had. Ducati did in fact ship a truly lighter version
of these wheels, P/N 50210231AA, but they were only
included on the 2001 and 2002 748R and 748RS. This
was due to the WSBK "Supersport" class rules
requiring bikes to run OEM wheels. The WSBK
"Superbike" class rules did not have this
requirement. Visually, the wheel spokes are slightly
different, appearing as if the top and bottom were
ground smooth. The standard 5-spokes had a
noticeable ridge on these top/bottom spoke faces
from the casting mould. Even these wheels are cast
aluminium and not forged.
Totally new for the 996R:
Engine - The new Testastretta engine has a
100mm bore x 63.5mm, 11.4:1 compressions ratio, and
put out 135hp @10,200RPM (at rear sprocket) and
77lb/ft (105nm) @8,000RPM. Verified to dyno at 132 at
the rear tyre. Previous valve angle had been 40
degrees. Marchetti and Bordi settled on a 25 degree
included valve angle allowing for more of a direct
path for the air to the intake valve.[2]
Testastretta, means narrower - and slimmer as in diet
– head[2].
The Testastretta opening valve rockers were positioned
outside the camshafts, enabling the cams to be closer
together. Improvement were also made to the camshaft
construction & specification, and larger valves
were of course employed.[1]
The 996R intake ports were larger to match and the
throttle bodies were increased to 54mm with elliptical
chokes. The opening rockers arms were 50% lighter,
closing rockers were 20% lighter - without
compromising strength.[2]
An important development was that arrangement of the
rocker arm axes to provide symmetrical opening, always
a problem on the earlier Desmoquattro.[2]
The new arrangement optimised the side thrust on the
valves. Thanks to improved tooling, the rocker arm pad
now matched the cam continuously throughout its
rotation, resulting in considerably reduced clearance
between the valve adjusters and the rocker arms.[2]
The valve guides and seats were then machined
simultaneously for perfect valve sealing. The extreme
angle of the between the upper and lower timing belt
pulleys the Desmoquattro suffered from was also vastly
improved. The
sand cast deep sump.Titanium valves and Pankle Titanium connecting rods.
Pistal pistons - the larger 100mm pistons were 30
grams lighter than the previous and improvements were
made to the rings to reduce blow-by oil loss. The new
Nikasil
plated cylinders were more compact due to more
efficient water passages. The cylinders were rotated
10 degrees backward to assist gravity oil scavenging
from the front cylinder.[2]
The 996R had a sand cast engine case, deep sump, and
heads due the limited production. 996R had hand built
engines being the first Testastretta.[2]
That and minor internal engine block cooling duct
mods. The crank-cases were redesigned to reduce
weight, improve lubrication, and generally
strengthened to cope with World Superbike form.[1]
The deeper sump addresses oil starvation that were
present on the earlier Desmoquattro under high-G
forces. Several other changes were made to the oiling
system as well. One of these was that the cams
received oil after the oil cooler now instead of
before, allowing also for a change from roller bearing
to modern journal bearings. The new engine weighed 3
kilos less than the previous.[2]
Front Brakes - The front braking system was
an all-new top of the line system re-engineered by
Brembo just for the 996R. Here are some quotes from a
MotorBox interview at Intermot 2000: Pierre
Terblanche, "Where the 996R is all new is in the front
braking system. Pump, calipers, discs, nothing was
spared by the Brembo technicians. The master cylinder
with piston diameter reduced from 16 to 15 mm ensures
greater pressure to the system, but the main novelty
lies in the four-pad calipers that are much stiffer
than the previous ones. The four pistons have a
diameter of 34 mm, each one acts on a pad, in this way
they double the "leading edges" or the edges that
first come into contact with the disc (area where
there is the greatest braking force). With the same
braking force, this type of caliper requires a lower
oil delivery (a fact which compensates for the smaller
diameter of the pump), the proof of the facts you
therefore get more powerful braking and less effort to
apply to the lever."[5]
"The discs also contribute to the super braking of the
996R. The braking surfaces are lower but have a
greater average radius. The reduced thickness from 5
to 4.5 mm and the use of a lightened flange then made
it possible to save almost a kilogram (910 g) in a
fundamental area for handling"[5]
"Can 910 grams change the dynamic behaviour of a
motorcycle? Yes, if those "few" grams are on the front
wheel and spinning. The 996 has never been a bike that
"falls" when cornering, not even the "R" is, but that
little weight removed from discs and flanges has led
to a perceptible increase in the speed of descent when
cornering"[5]
ECU - Ducati IAW-59M ECU made by Magneti Marelli. Replaced
the much larger P8. First CANBUS ECU. First fully
re-programmable ECU - lots of tuning software, cables.
maps and definition files. The new and much more
compact 5.9M Marelli was 80 grams lighter than the old
P8 ECU, with a new 20Mhz processor, compared to the
P8s 16Mhz. The memory was increased from 8 to 32MB and
the system provided much more efficient engine
management. Rather than the P8 system which used a
separate RPM sensor and injection timing sensor, the
new 5.9M was similar in design to the 1.6M with a
single inductive pickup. This faced the timing gear,
reading the 46 teeth and a gap equal in size to two
teeth, but still required accurate meshing of the
crankshaft and timing gears to provide perfect RPM
information.[2]
Ducati dealership service centres could purchase
updated Memory Card version 0.6 for their Tecnomotor
Mathesis diagnostic units to 5.9M compatibility. It
should be noted however that full support for the 5.9M
came with Memory Card version 0.7 which added "New
functions, such as belt tension and new control unit
error management" per the Mathesis operating
instruction manual.
Carbon-Fibre Side Fairings & Belly Pan -
ATR was the OEM for Ducati production bikes and MS
Production made the Ducati Performance (aka Corsa)
carbon-fibre components. The 996R was the first
production line Ducati to have full carbon side
fairings. Previously the SPS had only a CF front
fender and air-box. A cool effect can be seen on 996R
side fairings is the weave of the carbon printing
through due to paint shrinkage over the years - just
like a Ferrari F40. Portions of the carbon were left
unpainted such as the lower NACA duct, the top edge
where the heat vent screen is, and the lettering of
the DUCATI 996R. Then the panels were clear coated. On
the inside of the panels are heat-shields to protect
them from high heat areas.
With
the light hitting just right, you can clearly see
the weave of the carbon like on a Ferrari F40 from
standard paint shrinkage.
The coils need to be mounted outside of the main frame
rails otherwise they hit the new, larger, throttle
body setup. This was one of the reasons for the
smoother fairing design. The old duct in the side of
the older model side fairings interferes with the new
coil location otherwise. Pierre Terblanche "The air
vents on the sides have disappeared, not for an
aesthetic quirk, say the Ducati technicians, but once
again for the search for the best performance. The hot
air from the radiators now vents through two grates in
the upper part of the fairing (at knee height, to be
clear), an area in itself subject to aerodynamic
turbulence, removing it from the sides of the fairing,
an area that is critical from an aerodynamic point of
view . This apparently trivial change made it possible
to reduce the Cx x S coefficient from 0.34 to 0.33 ,
sufficient to improve the top speed by more than 5
km/h."[5]
The 996R does not have the two air vents at the rider's
knees, but has a NACA intake plus a lower one, near the
belly pan. These modifications are due to an aerodynamic
issue: the 996R has a Cx of 0.33 (while the base 996 has
0.34) and this allows it to increase the top speed by
over 5 km/h.
Lighter Weight - "The R has given itself a
diet. The engine has dropped by 3 kg (from 74 to 71),
the electronic control unit has shaved off 700 grams,
the fairings, in highly prized carbon, have dropped by
1.5 kg. Overall, 7 kg have been saved over the
previous SPS. The 996R weighs 185 kg (407 lbs) with
water, oil and petrol."[5]
Sealed Battery - New for the 996R and for the
Testastretta generation of engines were the more
compact, lightweight batteries. These required an all
new battery tray and a retrofit tray was made
available for owners of 996/748/916 bikes to fit the
new batteries into their larger battery tray.
Significant for this battery was that it was an AGM
type battery which did not require being filled with
electrolyte fluid. As such, it was also a sealed
maintenance-free battery - "Nonspillable Sealed Lead
Acid Battery". FIAMM was the supplier of these new
batteries as they were also a sponsor of the Ducati
WSBK teams.
Accessories
Original
"Accessories" box with all of its original parts
untouchedOriginal
dust cover in its bag with manuals/booklets for a UK
market bike.Rear
"display" stand. Colour matched to the frame.Any
original, never installed, FIAMM battery as it came
from the Ducati factory for domestic market bikes
(EU/UK).
As had become tradition for to Ducati to include with
their limited edition bikes, the 996R shipped with the
following components:
Display stand painted to match the frame
colour. These were shipped with the bikes are were
referred to as shipping/display stands. They could be
somewhat difficult to use and were not known for being
very stable. As such, some dealers threw them away and
the owners purchased proper rear paddock stands.
Indoor dust cover - This was made out of a
very fragile but extremely breathable paper fibre
based fabric. It was not meant for long term use and
they simply fall apart with age. They can not be
washed and they do impart micro-marring onto the
painted surfaces. These were used as dust covers over
the bikes shipped in wooden crates as they did a
fantastic job of mitigating dust and moisture as
designed. Domestic market bikes (EU/UK) delivered via
lorry stillage saw the covers given to owners in their
plastic bag which also had the 2 keys w/tag
and owners manuals/booklets inside.
Toolkit - Under the rear tail is stored a
standard Ducati toolkit in the usual red bag.
The "Accessories" box as it was referred to,
was shipped with every 996R. In the case of the street
legal serialised bikes it included: Carbon 50mm
Termignoni slip-ons w/ECU (S10DB10), larger
exhaust clamps, an Öhlins spanner for
adjusting the rear shock, the windscreen, the
side mirrors, and a sealed FIAMM battery.
Of course the non-serialised non-road use 996Rs did
not receive the windscreen or the side mirrors.
Marketing
75 Anniversary marketing:
Ducati began celebrating their 75th anniversary via
marketing material in the summer of 2001 and it carried
over into 2002 due to print cycles. Most collateral for
the 2001 model year was printed in August 2000, so it
was the marketing collateral for the 2002 model year
that was printed in August 2001 which saw the 75
anniversary logo on the back of their catalogues, on
their posters, etc. In certain markets they released
special 75th anniversary posters and other materials to
celebrate. For example, Germany received a fold-out
poster of the 996R with the 75th anniversary logo. This
also of course extended into real life such as at WDW
2001 and the livery of Bayliss's 998 F01 at Imola.
Sony PlayStation:
Ducati World Racing Challenge 2001, Sony PlayStation 1
Duke Video:
A film crew from Duke Marketing were present at
the Valencia press launch. They created a special 10
minute DVD feature of the event titled "The Ultimate
Superbike - Ducati 996R".[6]
Superbike World Championship Review, 2001 DVD -
Released by Duke after the 2001 WSBK season and covers
all of the race highlights plus additional specials and
interviews.
Posters:
There was only 1 official marketing poster of the 996R
that was sent out to dealers. It's the one everyone
knows, looking at the front of the bike on the cover,
and having the new Testastretta engine and
specifications printed on the reverse. They were of
course different likenesses and angles of the 996R for
other marketing materials, but that was to be the only
official poster sent to dealerships and that were
available for purchase. It should be noted that the 996R
used in the poster and some promotional material was a
pre-production bike. This is because the lower NACA duct
on each side is not exposed carbon-fibre but painted red
instead, no holes in the rear brake disc, no provision
for the metal mesh air extractor along the top of the
side fairings, no rubber wiring loom straps on the
frame, no torque inspection marks, and a couple of other
minor items being slightly different.
2001 Team
Infostrada Troy Bayliss ad.
Sponsor marketing - Infostrada ad
Marketing collateral: For 2001 there was a
full-line catalogue & price sheet which was
in-depth, and there was also a much more abbreviated
fold-out brochure.
The 996R was only the 2nd ever Ducati offered for sale
via the internet. The first had been the 2000 MH900
Evolution.
Starting on the morning of September 12th, 2000 at 9AM,
Ducati began taking online deposits of €2000 Euros (or
its equivalent in your local currency) and allowing the
buyer to nominate a dealers for completing the
transaction. All available pre-order allocations sold
out within the day, some say in just hours.
The total number of allocations Ducati allowed for
online ordering was between 373 and 375 units[7].
The remaining 325 units were made available via dealers
starting January 1st, 2001.
Total (2001) price was:
GBP £17.000 | EUR €26.000
Inflation adjusted prices (2023):
GBP £30.375 | EUR €41.647
Production
Numbers
Ian Falloon's book Standard Catalogue Of Ducati
Motorcycles 1946-2005 shows the following for 996R
production numbers[8],
which has been verified by Ducati in writing as recently
as 2021.[7]
It should be noted these batches were not built in this
order:
996 R 2001 Testastretta Red Internet - 191
(included in this batch were 56 UK bikes assembled on 29
Jan 2001)
996 R 2001 Testastretta Red - 120
996 R USA 2001 Testastretta Red - 60 (all
non-serialised bikes)
996 R AUS 2001 Testastretta Red - 40
996 R JPN 2001 Testastretta Red Internet - 113
996 R JPN 2001 Testastretta Red - 50
996 R 2001 Testastretta Red Internet - 56
996 R 2001 Testastretta Red - 30
996 R France 2001 Testastretta Red Internet - 13
996 R France 2001 Testastretta Red - 25
Total: 698 worldwide
*Bikes for countries not listed above were mixed
throughout the non-country specific batches.
*The 996R engine (as well as the 998R engine) and all
of the SPS Desmoquattro engines prior, were never made
emissions compliant for the USA.
The breakdown above shows 698 units world-wide, 373 of
which were internet sales. This falls only 2 bikes short
of Ducati' March 2021 official statement which stated
375 internet bikes.[7]
It's important to understand that this production total
is worldwide because most of Ducati's limited edition
models prior were serialised based on market. For
example, there could be 1,200 SPS bikes for each USA,
Japan, and Australia markets. Each market would be
numbered 0001 through 1200 for a production total of
3,600 just between those 3 markets. This is what leads
to other models often having duplicate serials on their
triple clamp plaques. These plaques were made of 800
silver and had assay and makers marks on the bottom
right, but that didn't stop many in the past from faking
these plaques to scam buyers with lessor bikes. To make
things worse, Ducati only correlates the frame number to
the engine number. They have zero record of which frame
number received what number triple clamp plaque.
USA Production: It's *believed* that the 60
units shipped to the US to be sold for "non-road use"
were all non-serialised. I say *believed* because there
are 2 units so far in the registry which are serialised
claiming to be US bikes. The US sold bikes we know did
have proper MPH only speedometers and a Fahrenheit
temperature gauge. The UK bikes for example had MPH
speedometers which also had KPH indicated on them in
red. Most other countries received proper KPH only
speedometers. These 2 serialised so-called USA market
bikes are considered to be fake, at least in so much as
someone took a serial plaque from a wrecked bike or made
a fake plaque for them. They are real 996Rs in all other
terms. Very notable on US market bikes were many extra
warning stickers (windscreen, mirrors, exhaust, etc.),
decals (fuel tank, helmet holder, etc.), and emissions
label specific to the US stating "operation on public
streets, roads and highways is illegal". They also
lacked the several usual DOT reflectors compared to road
compliant US bikes.
The plaque
of 996R #0496 as proof there were at a minimum, 500
serialised bikes produced.
For years online there had been perpetuated the
incorrect information that 500 of the 996R had been made
in total. Many had said 350 serialised (which were all
sold out online) and another 150 non-serialised sold
after. This was based on many factors such as Ducati
themselves putting on their website and telling the
media that 500 would be made - and while true, that did
NOT include the additional 200 non-serialised bikes they
decided to produce on top of that for privateer racers.
This was further misunderstood due to the misinformation
that "all 350 had been sold out online the first day"
which had been repeated so much that even a couple of
magazines printed this, so it was repeated on online
forums for years since. The fact is that until Ducati
cleared this up in writing in 2021[7]
that ~375 bikes had deposits taken for them on 12 Sept
2000. Additionally, the entire time, the exact numbers
had been published by Ian Falloon in one of his books[8].
There have also been a number of people over the years
who tracked the serial numbers of all the bikes which
popped up on the internet. This immediately proves that
500 serialised bikes were made because there are dozens
upon dozens of bikes after 350 right up to 496 that have
been documented. A 996R serialised above 500 has never
been found so it's simply presumed the remaining 198-200
were non-serialised. Overall a very Italian thing to do,
and something Ferrari is famous for.
Production &
Delivery Dates
"Late 2000" is the earliest documented date we know of
that production bikes were fully assembled at the
factory. Most take this to mean November and certainly
December. Prior to this it had only been prototypes (for
marketing collateral and shows) and assembly validation
bikes. At some point several bikes were built to be
their motorcycle journalist test fleet (used in March
2001), most of which were denoted by the serial 000N on
the triple clamp. It's known that 2 of these blew their
engines during the press event at Valencia.
Customer deliveries did not begin until June and went
on throughout the summer into Autumn. September is
thought to be the last month any production took place
based on authenticity plaques.
It's been mentioned by some that there was an issue
with the brand new generation Testastretta engine, which
had become evident at the press event. It's believed
that the half a year delay in the first serialised
customer deliveries from when the production started was
to account for updates Ducati incorporated into the
bikes prior to them leaving the factory. A few original
owners on forums over the years have mentioned that many
were held by dealers prior to customer delivery for the
updates to be done, but no proof of that has been found.
It appears the bikes were held back at the factory.
Serialised Vs.
Non-serialised
Serial
plaque from a press fleet 996R
There had been a long-standing rumour that the
non-serialised bikes were all "held back" for race
teams, but that's simply not the reality. Actual race
teams would have bought the 996RS (14 were made but had
Desmoquattro engines) straight from Ducati rather than a
street bike, have to strip it all down, and then pay for
all of the racing parts independently. The Ducati
factory teams riders on the other hand were issued what
were known as F01 bikes, F for factory and 01 for the
year. These were very special bikes that were at least a
year ahead in development compared to the RS bikes
Ducati sold to the public. - All of that said however,
most of the non-serialised bikes were expected to be
purchased by small privateer teams and individual racers
who didn't have the budget for an RS. It's also known
that there were several race teams who did buy
non-serialised 996Rs and did go to the extra time and
expense to strip them down and build them up to RS spec
just to have the next generation Testastretta engine.
Ducati knew there was a huge "grey market" demand for
their WSBK homologation bikes in countries like the USA
where they were not legal. The non-serialised 996R, just
like the 998R after and the SPS bikes prior, were sold
to USA customers for "non-road use" only. The dealers
had the buyers sign a piece of paper which acknowledged
this, but of course many ignored it and could get them
registered depending on their state laws. The NHTSA was
catching onto this and that's why the 996R and later
998R bikes that made their way to the USA lacked many
parts which were required for them to be street legal:
Tail-lights (had red tape covering holes)
Number plate holder
Rear turn signals
Front turn signals
Kick stand
Headlight assembly (housing, bulbs, rubber caps)
- the wiring harness was the same and Ducati simply
places a hard plastic insert to fill the nose fairing
Choke switch on left clip-on
Mirrors
They came with the street exhaust installed and the
carbon slip-ons in a box just like the serialised street
versions. They also shipped with a display stand like
the street versions. Notably the non-serialised version
had the same wiring harness so many opted to purchase
all of the missing items from their Ducati dealership to
make the bike more street legal in appearance. It's of
note as well that the VIN decal locations were different
on the non-serialised bikes with the decal being on the
right side of the removable rear subframe partially
under the seat. For the USA models they were on the same
diagonal frame tube as the emissions warning label
stating off-road use only.
Dozens upon dozens of these non-serialised bike had
remained unsold. Ducati required many of their dealers
to accept them in an attempt to move the inventory out
of the factory in Bologna. As a marketing tactic Ducati
recommended to its dealers that they upgrade the bike
with all of the carbon-fibre parts from the Performance
Accessories catalogue in order to be rolling show pieces
for their customers and to make the sale price more
attractive. Australia was an example of a market where
the 996R was seen as a failure due to lack of sales, and
as a consequence, only less than a dozen of the 998R
were imported.
Authenticity/Display
Plaques
Note the
plaque does not mention the bike's serial number on
the triple clamp, only last digits of the frame/engine
number.
Not to be confused with the serial number plaque on the
triple clamp which is the number of the bike in the
series. These did not leave the factory with every bike.
It's not known the exact date that Ducati started to
include them or what other reasoning there was behind if
a bike got one or not, but very few of the serialised
bikes towards the very end of the production received
them. A couple of bikes known to have been produced in
August and September for example are known to have
received them.
It's possible the factory held onto nearly all of them,
or perhaps they were very late in getting them produced.
An example would be many of the 999R bikes. Hundreds of
those were not sent out with the bikes and around 2013
999R FILA and 998S Bostrom plaques showed up online for
sale. They were came included in a large batch of
surplus parts that Ducati sold in a set of six sea
trains that Audi asked them to clear out.[9]
It's known that some 998R bikes received these but not
how many of them did % wise.
This is all sort of a mystery to this day and often
simply attributed to "eh, it's an Italian thing" by many
in the owner communities.
Engine
Cold Testing
Ducati utilised a technique called "cold testing" where
they would spin the engine for everything to set in a
little bit with a machine and oil system hooked up.[10]
Afterwards, a final valve adjustment would be completed
and then the engine sent on to be installed into a bike.[11]
It's of note that starting around 2003, Ducati began
"hot testing" bikes by running them through the gears on
a dyno at the end of the assembly line.
UK market
NOS speedo showing calibration mileage on the
odometer.
Odometer confusion:
A common misconception is that the miles shown on the
odometer on still "brand new" or "zero mile" bikes are
test miles. This is not always the case in bikes of this
vintage. From new, you can expect to see anything from
just under 1 mile and most commonly 2 or 3 showing. This
is from the calibration process at the speedometer
manufacturer's factory prior to them shipping out to
Ducati for assembly. Some speedometers simply needed
more calibration than others so they all have varying
miles/kms on the odometer. Remember, this is before
fully electronic units, these were full mechanical. If a
bike is showing 3 or more however, it's likely due to
having gone through the PDI process which we will cover
next.
Pre-Delivery
Inspection (PDI)
Upon receipt of the bikes from the factory, it was the
dealers job to A) assemble the bike (per the
white assembly booklet included) and B) conduct
a Pre-Delivery Inspection (PDI). The PDI meant adding
fuel to start the bike, checking everything over for
safety, and performing a road test. Ducati required this
for the warranty period to begin and be valid. It was
only after the PDI that the dealer would provide a
warranty and service booklet. Buyers were also presented
with the PDI sheet from the dealership. In 2001 this was
a carbon triplicate form completed by hand and stamped
by the dealership containing the PDI checklist on the
bottom half.
Many items were checked over during the PDI such as
inspection all fasteners for proper torque marking,
fully charging the battery, removing all stickers and
tags, wiping the protective oil off the brake discs,
adjusting/lubricating the chain as necessary, tyre
pressure, checking the function of all components for
proper operation, etc. It serviced as a final QC to
ensure each bike is delivered to the customer in the
best condition possible. Sometimes paintwork needed to
be touched up or corrected as well.
At this point, most dealerships handled collection of
local taxes and registration fees ensuring the bike was
legally registered for customer pickup. It should be
noted that in some countries it may been law that a PDI
must be completed prior to handing over a vehicle to a
customer for road safety reasons. In late 2001, a TSB
was sent to dealers asking them to ensure they are doing
a concise job of the PDI checklist and suggested putting
up to several miles on the bike during the road test.
Recalls/TSBs
& Known Issues:
A never
installed TSB replacement clutch slave as given to an
original owner by a dealer.
Its been rumoured by some
original buyers that bikes produced between December and
May were held back at the factory to address issues which
arose during testing, such as the 2 bikes that failed at
the Valencia press event. But even after bikes were
delivered to customers starting at the end of May and
beginning of June, there were formal recalls and Technical
Service Bulletins (TSB) sent out to dealers.
The first
of these was issued by Ducati to dealers on 7 June 2001,
Ducati reference number 555. "Function-Related Recall
Campaign" for the 996R, it required dealers to replace the
closing rockers either at the time of PDI prior to delivery,
or at the first service. It stated this first batch of
rockers arms may break causing severe damage. Note that this
was not the same as the flaky chrome issue that plagued the
Desmoquattro engine, the Testastretta rockers never had that
problem.
Another
example is the TSB related to the clutch slave cylinder that
was issued to dealers on 1 March 2002, Ducati reference
number 563. It advised about a "Potential loss of clutch
control" stating "The clutch slave cylinder may leak
resulting in loss of hydraulic fluid and clutch control. "
and they were instructed to install a "Replace clutch slave
cylinder with a quality assured unit." replacement they
would be provided with from Italy.
The foam that the air filters are made out of are well
known to simply disintegrate over time no matter what
the conditions. These should be considered a time
sensitive replacement item and not based on mileage.
Failure to do so could cause irreparable engine damage
from ingestion of the foam remains.
The clutch slave cylinders are known to begin leaking
after 10 to 15 years. The brake fluid will of course
destroy all paint and carbon/plastics it comes into
contact with. This has been the fate of many low mileage
examples in collection and museums that are left to sit.
The plastic that the upper and lower chain sliders on
the swing arm are made out of tend to darken and brittle
significantly over time no matter what the conditions.
Front brake reservoir cap corrosion. The fluid these
bikes came with and are spec'd for is hygroscopic,
meaning it will absorb moisture from the atmosphere.
This leads to corrosion from the inside out of the
reservoir cap. The amount will of course vary on the
humidity in which the bike has been stored and this is a
good indicator of how well a bike has been taken care
of. Of course if the fluid is never changed, even a bike
stored in less than 40% humidity its entire life will
still lead to corrosion of the cap.
Galvanic corrosion. This is a type of corrosion that
occurs due to dissimilar metals being in direct contact
with each other. It's is triggered and exacerbated by
the flow of current/electrons through these metals. A
bike that is going to be stored for any moderate length
of time should have it's battery removed and stored on a
tender for this reason. This is the reason for every
fastener being plated in the appropriate type based on
its metallurgy and what it will be in contact with,
however these of course are microscopically thin and
degrade for a multitude of reasons. So the plating can
not be relied upon to protect the bike from Galvanic
corrosion. This is also why a bike must never be stored
without first having a comprehensive wash and details.
Even if stored in low humidity and the battery removed,
basic minerals in road grime (think hard water) and
salts will etch through it no time. Anodising tends to
hold up well on the aluminium bits, however the use of
non-compatible cleaners by owners over the years can
trigger it's premature failure.
Swing arm pivot bolt. The bolt that goes all the way
through the frame and attached the swing arms came
thoroughly greased from Ducati. However it quickly
washed away and moisture could easily seep past each
end. These bikes are absolutely notorious for the pivot
seizing and the bolt not being able to be removed
without a copious amount of heat and penetrating oil. As
such, it's advised that every so often one should remove
their bolt, clean and grease it. It was save a ton of
frustration later on and can even avoid a safety hazard
should the swing arm loose its travel.
The headlights are known to fog up or haze after a few
years. This is caused by off-gassing of the materials
inside the headlight assemblies. It's easily cleaned off
the inside surface of the glass when the headlight is
removed and taken apart. Note that the headlight
surround is painted black, this can chip very easily so
be very careful during this process.
The clear-coat on the carbon-fibre if left in the sun
excessively will oxidise. These were the day prior to
modern UV blockers being added to the resin/clear-coat.
It should clear up with proper detailing techniques
however not all of the damage can be reversed if it's
severe.
One of the highest mileage records known is over
100,000 km on a 996R by Christophe Mathis.[12]
Shipping Crates Vs.
Stillage
In 2001 these were delivered to the Europe and the UK
via stillage on lorries as Ducati Europe was having a
push on bring green. Only bikes going outside of these
markets were packaged into wooden crates for transport
to the dealers via shipping containers.
The bikes left the factory on temporary steel pallets,
loaded into lorries, and transported to a company called
SIMA in Modena. There depending on the destination
market, the bike would be packed onto either delivery
stillage racks or into a wooden crate.[11]
There was a large decal on the right headlight
indicating the destination country. Wooden crate
delivered bikes needed their handle bar clip-ons
re-positioned vs. stillage delivery that did not.
Quarks
& Random Info
Desmoquattro on the fairing?
As with earlier SPs and SPSs, the 996R kept the earlier
model designation, even though the engine displacement
was 998cc. This was an historical precedent that began
with the 851 SP2, intentionally done to retain links
with the earlier design and maintain family uniformity.
There would eventually be a designated 998R to replace
the 996R which actually had a 999cc engine.[1]
This explains why the first 998cc bike was
called the 996R, but as to why the decal on the fairing
says Desmoquattro instead of Testastretta is anyone's
guess. No doubt the marketing bike used in the poster
was made long prior to the new Testastretta engine even
being ready (as evident with all of the differences from
the production model). It's very possible that when
Ducati placed their advanced order for the hundreds of
carbon side fairings needed with their supplier ATR so
the parts could be ready in time, that Desmoquattro was
communicated somehow to them by mistake. It could simply
be the case that the person communicating this didn't
even know about the Testastretta engine going into this
bike. Most just point to it as the quintessential
"Italian" mistake.
4 Digit Serial?
4 digits on the triple plaque even though Ducati never
intended on producing 1000 or more is a little odd. We
have to remember this was a format used by prior models
whose production numbers did exceed 999. So even though
these weren't interchangeable as each one had the model
designation of the bike molded into it, that it was the
standard at the time to have 4 digit place
holders.
What's with all of the ECUs labelled 996R that are
out there?
Since the 996R was the very first of the brand new 59M
ECU and for the Testastretta, it seems that when Magneti Marelli made the
first run of them, they were all labelled 996R. Most of
them are NOT actual 996R tunes and may in fact just
contain 998, 998S, 998R, 998FE, etc. tunes saved to
them. Buyer beware.
The 2001 996R engine became the 2002 998S engine in the
RoW bikes (Rest of World, ie: non-US). Note that every
ECU has a sticker on it with what's referred to as a BIN
code - this is the code for the mask of the specific
tune that is actually saved to the EPROM (at least when
it left Magneti Marelli). Tuners
will know that the file saved to the chip is in the
format of .bin and is burned to a specific start address
on the chip.
The correct BIN code for the 996R tune that's for the
included Termignoni race silencers (50mm) is S10DB10.
These were included with every single 996R sold. So no
matter what the other labels on the 59M may say, if it
doesn't have a sticker with this code on it, it's not
correct for that application. Of course the BIN code for
the 996R stock silencer chip is different, as is the
chip for the 54mm Termi race silencers, etc. etc. - To
complicate things further, as Ducati published updates
to tunes, the BIN code changes.
If you buy a 59M ECU online and are unsure of exactly
what's on it (because you don't know what BIN codes are
what or if someone else has re-flashed it), take it to a
tuner who can flash the exact .bin file you want on it
so you are absolutely sure.
Two different cylinder heads?
It was a common rumour on internet forums that the
non-serialised 996R bikes had different cylinder heads
from the serialised bikes. This no doubt came about due
to the fact that the non-serialised bikes were intended
to be sold to privateer racers, but it gained momentum
as the revised 996R parts manual shows 2 different
cylinder head P/Ns which ended up being revised again in
even later updates.
Because the 996R were the very first Testastretta
engines, the cylinder heads are slightly different on
these early bikes with shorter studs and different
fasteners on each side of the cylinder head. The second
series had the cylinder head types as used on the 998
and 999 series. That's all. Both benefited from all of
the Testastretta design improvements equally in terms of
cooling passages, etc.
Here are all of the 996R cylinder head P/Ns
historically as known today. Credit to
Ducatiforum.co.uk for sorting this out:[13]
30121031A 2001 996 R (shorter studs & different
fasteners)
30121091A 2001 996 R II (original part number,
replaced by 30121093A)
30121092A 2002 998 all models excluding R (original
part number, replaced by 30121093A)
30121093A This part number superseded the previous 2
and is now listed as the replacement part for the
996R, All 998 models (Excluding the R)
"The 996R II was the first revision of the 998
production part which then became the 999 part."[13]
Leaving us today with a parts manuals that list only
"30121031A 2001 996 R" and "30121093A 2001 996 R II".
Racing
Success
After disappointing tests at Mugello in Sept 2000, Carl Fogarty finally
announced his retirement, leaving the door open to Troy Bayliss to succeed him.[1]
Ducati Corse supported two teams in World Superbike. In
the team Ducati Infostrada, Ruben Xaus joined Bayliss,
while Ben Bostrom resumed full works status, but in a
separate L&M sponsored team, on Dunlop tyres. Both teams were
run under the instruction of Davide Tardozzi, and they
were the only teams with the Testastretta engine for
2001. 174HP@12,200RPM with 60mm throttle bodies.[1]
It's also notable that these were the very first bikes
to have radial mount front brake calipers as opposed to
axial mount. Bayliss was immediately happy with the 998
F01, and with six wins, he took the Riders'
Championship. After a slow start, Bostrom won 5 races in
succession and Ducati gained its 10th manufactures title
with 15 wins.[1]
Hodgson proved surprisingly competitive against the new
generation factory machines in the World Superbike
Championship.[1]
Bayliss's
winning F01 at the Ducati Museum, still wearing it's
commemorative livery which officially was known as
"Imola 9th September 2001" in print.
After being crowned the champion at the next to final
race in Assen, Ducati painted his
F01 bike silver for the upcoming final race in honour of
Paul Smart.[14]
It's know that 2 non-serialised production bikes
(non-RS) produced at the very end of 2000 were
sent off to be prepared for Rutter, however they were
sold off due to the cancellation of the race.[15]
Michael Rutter
- Scheduled to run and was favoured to win at the time.
There were a total of 14 998RS bike built per Ducati.
Values
& Purchasing
As of March 2023, the known world-record price for a
996R was GBP£56,000 (US$68,530) for a 2-mile example. It
was a proper serialised bike out of the UK.[16]
Known as the "Price" 996R, it's notable as having never
been assembled or dealer PDI'd.
Prior to this it had been a 7-mile example known as the
"BAT" 996R. It was the first and to this day, the only
996R sold on BaT. In June 2020 it sold for US$48,825
including buyers fee. This was for a USA non-serialised
bike for "non-road use" only.[17]
Most bikes in great condition ranging between 1,000 and
5,000 miles are valued in the US$50K range as of August
2023. Bikes with between 5K-10K miles in the US$40K-45K
range. Once you get over 20,000 miles you are in the
US$30K range. Old track and modified bikes going for
even less.
A professionally done, concours quality, fully restored
996R can have an asking price in the mid US$40K range.[18]
Generally, bikes that are serialised are more valuable,
as are bikes that still retain all of their original
accessories as they can be near impossible to find and
are very expensive. Service history is a must,
especially since these are modern bikes and many are
still being sold by their 1st or 2nd owners. Be sure to
inspect inside the fuel tank, these are notorious for
rusting very badly if not taken care of, so replacement
tanks are highly sought after.
Something to always consider is the international
transport and any customs duties/taxes that may be
involved. Due to this bikes rarity and non-availability
in some countries, these tend to trade internationally
on a consistent basis. So if you are looking for your
perfect bike, by no means limit your search to just your
country/region or you will have little to no options.
Here are some auction sources for tracking the
market:
Due to the high value and desirability of these bikes
since new, there have always been those out there
looking to make a quick buck by scamming a buyer into a
fake bike. This often manifests in the form of odometer
roll backs/speedometer replacements but can also take on
much more complicated forms.
Ex-race bikes: Many 996Rs were bought new and
converted straight away for track use. This meant
removing the speedometer, the fairings, and often other
items such as wheels, tyres, etc. As such, there have
been many old race bikes that have seen basic
restoration with their original parts put back on and
being sold as "brand new" bikes. These are usually easy
to spot if you know where to look for expected wear.
Fake serial plaques: Many people over the years
have made custom/fake serial plaques for anyone willing
to pay. Real plaques are made from 800 silver and have
maker/proof marks in the lower right corner. But another
issue is plaque swapping. As bikes were wrecked, or
their stock triple clamps replaced for race versions,
these were sold off and put onto other bikes.
There are countless ways that an expert can tell if a
bike is fake, has been restored, etc. etc. but none of
them will be discussed here because it will only inform
scammers on how to better do their job. If you are
unsure about a bike, it's always worth paying a local
expert (broker, Desmo club member, etc.) to inspect the
bike in person for you.
An owner may contact Ducati directly and after a couple
months and extensive proof of ownership, Ducati will
confirm if the bike is legitimate. As such, sellers
should obtain these in advance if anything about their
bike may be considered questionable by potential buyers.
Many countries have services where you can look up
registration, mileage, and reported accident
information. These reports usually contain the frame
number and some, the engine number too for further
verification.
The Legend
The 996R set the mould what for all Ducati R bikes
would be, right through to the present day, which is
amazing for a bike of its time. Things like always
having the following years engine upgrades, to the gold
anodised upside-down Öhlins with the blue adjusters,
steering damper, to the carbon fibre fairings and the
190 series rear tyre.
To celebrate Troy Bayliss's winning 2001 machine,
Ducati would release the 2002 998S Bayliss Edition and
the Panigale V2 Bayliss Edition in 2020 to mark the 20th
anniversary of this win because it was so historic for
Ducati. Interestingly enough, this 20th Anniversary bike
would see the return of the 955cc big twin coming full
circle right back to the original 916 racing bikes. For
perspective, even the 20th Anniversary bike in 2020 only
has 155hp, a mere 6hp more than the 996R with the full
54mm exhaust system & race ECU, and it only has 3
more Nm of torque.
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