Multistrada 1200

[Scuba]

I test rode a Multistrada (and an FJ-09 but not back to back) this past summer and I honestly didn't have high expectations because I rode it immediately after the Hyperstrada (which I didn't care for) but the MS blew me away. The motor is incredible, handles great and is very comfortable.
 
I've been eyeing an FJ-09 because it's just so much more cost effective but I keep thinking I might regret not getting the MS. If the FJ had cruise control, it'd be a little tougher decision. I can get a leftover 2015 MS 1200 in the $15k area vs the $8k for a 2015 FJ. Big price difference but I would not need to do anything to the MS where on the FJ I would need to add some sort of cruise control, would likely want to flash the ECU and add a pipe as well as a better seat and windscreen so add in a few thousand there plus the time to do all that. The MS comes with hard case panniers so I'd need to spend $ for that on the FJ as well. Once you factor all of that, the price difference isn't so significant. I should note that money is not a big factor for me, I can easily afford either but that doesn't mean I want to overspend.
 
However, the maintenance is likely easier and cheaper on the FJ (especially valves) and the closest Ducati dealer to me is ~1.5 hours away though there is a shop that works on them right around the corner but they obviously can't do warranty work.
 
The MS does have a lot of other electronic goodies that are a mixed back. The lean sensor for ABS and DCT is great, the rest like BT communication, keyless start, etc I could do without - more to go wrong. Duc's are probably more likely to have issues than Yamaha's so there's that. I put maybe 6k a year on a bike between commuting and one or two trips.
 
Anyway, I'm rambling. Has anyone owned both or have strong opinions one way or another that may help me make a better informed decision.
 

[DavidS]

I haven't owned the Multistrada, but one of my riding buddies does. It is a very nice bike, but costs more to buy, costs more to maintain, costs more for just about anything. It has more power than the FJ-09, but the FJ is more nimble and more fun. In the end, it is a personal choice, but my friend always wants to swap when we go riding..........

[wessie]

Do you have BMW dealer nearby? If so, test a R1200RS before making a final decision. Tracer/FJ is a great bike but if you cover big distances the R1200RS with the gadgets inc cruise control & shaft drive may tick more boxes.

[otaylor38]

Personally i wouldn't own a Multi.
 
2 of my mates have them and they're great to ride.. but they're a fortune to buy and they start going wrong quite quickly. At 3 years old one of them was getting electrical gremlins. It'd start sometimes.. when it fancied... it'd recognise the keyless fob sometimes.. then the side stand switch kept cutting the engine out randomly. The side stand switch is easy to sort.. but no Ducati cover for it and should it really happen after 3 years and 18k miles? Ducati just want to rip you off at every possible occasion.
 
Add to that the 17k service which comes in at over £800. It has to be done at a main dealer too if under warranty because the belts have codes on them and if sometimes happens and it wasnt a genuine Ducati belt, registered on their system to be installed by a proper Ducati dealer.. they just laugh at you.

[Scuba]

Do you have BMW dealer nearby? If so, test a R1200RS before making a final decision. Tracer/FJ is a great bike but if you cover big distances the R1200RS with the gadgets inc cruise control & shaft drive may tick more boxes.

 
No BMW dealers near either though that 1200RS is a more aggressive riding position that I'd want. I'd be more apt to choose the S1000XR.

[wessie]

Do you have BMW dealer nearby? If so, test a R1200RS before making a final decision. Tracer/FJ is a great bike but if you cover big distances the R1200RS with the gadgets inc cruise control & shaft drive may tick more boxes.

No BMW dealers near either though that 1200RS is a more aggressive riding position that I'd want. I'd be more apt to choose the S1000XR.

Yes, I have lowered the pegs & raised the bars on my RS. The 1200cc twin engine is a peach whereas the S1000 has far too many pistons. 

[Scuba]

Thanks...I've seen a lot reports of issues but generally on the web, you tend to hear about what goes wrong, not what goes as expected. Odds are good I'll just pick up an FJ and I can always try later the MS or whatever the next best thing out at the time. Not having a Ducati dealer near by is the biggest deal breaker for me.
I haven't seen too many used FJ's come up for sale even close to me and the few that have are asking what I can pretty much buy a new (leftover) model for.

[Guest]

It depends what you're looking for and what you want to accept as part of the experience.  The Multi is an amazing bike, litre sportbike fast and handling as sharp as a razor.  It's really amazing.  My friend owns the Ducati dealership so I owned a '15 and now own a '16.  Had a '15 FJ-09.  My '15 was plagued by bodywork problems, every time I or for that matter the dealer touched the bike some part broke.  They replaced the gas gauge on a recall and then had to order new panels to get the bike back together because the ones from the factory were so messed up.  I adjusted the windscreen and it broke.  Couldn't take the panniers off because the mounts were known to break.  And on and on.  Except for a bad sensor that put the bike in fail safe mode at 230 miles the '16 has been great.  For the price you pay you'd expect the Multi to be more of a finished product not a work in progress.  My friend owns a '15 that again has had several minor issues but he thinks it's part of owning a Ducati and is fine with it.  The FJ-09 is a pretty great little bike.  Maybe not the fit and finish of the Multistrada but it stays together.  I enjoyed the process of tweaking the bike to be exactly what I wanted.  It may only be 90% of the performance of the Multi but in the real world its almost impossible to use that last 10%.  I think the fun factor is about even, bang for the buck goes to the FJ-09, sex appeal goes to the red Italian.  I think for long distance I would lean toward the FJ.  I ride about 15-20K a year so I figure an annual valve adjustment as part of the cost of owning the Duc.  Makes you think twice before using it to run errands.  Feel free to pm me if you have any specific questions 

[Guest]

I haven't owned the Multistrada, but one of my riding buddies does. It is a very nice bike, but costs more to buy, costs more to maintain, costs more for just about anything. It has more power than the FJ-09, but the FJ is more nimble and more fun. In the end, it is a personal choice, but my friend always wants to swap when we go riding..........

"More nimble and more fun"..... I don't think so.  Fun is subjective so I could almost give you that but more nimble, never.  Now if you want to talk about bang for the buck or cost of ownership that's a different story. 

[Scuba]

Thanks for your feedback Donk.
The weather here was actually decent today and I took the Tenere out for a spin. I had the ECU flashed a month or so ago so this is the first time I've gotten it out for a proper ride since. Made a big difference. In sport mode, the bike had so much compression braking that it was a handful in the twisties. You really had to be mindful of the shifts...so much so that many time I just switched over to tour mode. Now, it's much better and the throttle response is crisp and not jerky off the low RPM. I actually got the front wheel up on it today just rolling on in second gear which is something I never could get it to do before...it's damn heavy. It's wasn't a full on wheelie because I refrain from that but it could've been It really is a nice bike.
Still, I'd like something lighter and "sportier" for commuting and certain road trips...the FJ will probably be it.

[duhs10]

I've always like Multistradas and if money wasn't an issue I would probably have one. I have no direct experience with Ducatis. However, a couple years back I was in a dealership purchasing a used bike. As I was waiting for the paperwork to be drawn up, I was browsing the floor and admiring a Multistrada that was out there. $22k motorcycle!? Wow.. anyway I got to talking to the salesman and to be honest I don't know how they sell any of those bikes. All he would talk about was how expensive maintenance cost was on just about any kind of service and not just one or two comments... on and on about it. To be honest I still admire those bikes, but after that conversation I may not ever own one. I am sure that they are amazing to ride, but the lack of dealer networks combined with maintenance cost will probably keep me away from Ducatis (or any Italian bikes for that matter). How knows though, the emotional pull of a 150 horsepower twin might win over logic one day. For now, the CP3 in the FJ is more than enough and probably the most fun engine I've ever owned.

[Guest]

Thanks for your feedback Donk. The weather here was actually decent today and I took the Tenere out for a spin. I had the ECU flashed a month or so ago so this is the first time I've gotten it out for a proper ride since. Made a big difference. In sport mode, the bike had so much compression braking that it was a handful in the twisties. You really had to be mindful of the shifts...so much so that many time I just switched over to tour mode. Now, it's much better and the throttle response is crisp and not jerky off the low RPM. I actually got the front wheel up on it today just rolling on in second gear which is something I never could get it to do before...it's damn heavy. It's wasn't a full on wheelie because I refrain from that but it could've been It really is a nice bike.
Still, I'd like something lighter and "sportier" for commuting and certain road trips...the FJ will probably be it.

I had a '14 Super Tenere ES. Loved that bike, never should have sold it. Rode it everywhere.  I used to joke that what it lacked in horsepower it made up for in weight!  I had no trouble keeping up with anyone in the twisties including bikes like my friends S1000XR.  Still the most smiles per mile I've ever owned.   Just a great bike and the reflash does make a big improvement.  Which brings me to my next question, why does every Yamaha need a reflash?  My Triumphs are great out of the box and so is the Multi.

[Guest]

I've always like Multistradas and if money wasn't an issue I would probably have one. I have no direct experience with Ducatis. However, a couple years back I was in a dealership purchasing a used bike. As I was waiting for the paperwork to be drawn up, I was browsing the floor and admiring a Multistrada that was out there. $22k motorcycle!? Wow.. anyway I got to talking to the salesman and to be honest I don't know how they sell any of those bikes. All he would talk about was how expensive maintenance cost was on just about any kind of service and not just one or two comments... on and on about it. To be honest I still admire those bikes, but after that conversation I may not ever own one. I am sure that they are amazing to ride, but the lack of dealer networks combined with maintenance cost will probably keep me away from Ducatis (or any Italian bikes for that matter). How knows though, the emotional pull of a 150 horsepower twin might win over logic one day. For now, the CP3 in the FJ is more than enough and probably the most fun engine I've ever owned.

New Ducaatis are not expensive to own as everything is done under warranty.  They do require more trips to the dealer for little pain in the butt stuff.  If I actually added up the cost of tweaking the FJ-09 into the equation cost of ownership isn't all that different but I also got my Ducatis at close to dealer cost.  I'm partial to triples and after an 8 hour day of riding any twin, except the boxer is going to be more fatiguing than the triple.  Bang for the buck the FJ-09 is tough to beat.  It would be near perfect if Yamaha would put cruise on it.  My next complaint, the FJ-09 and FZ/MT-10 both use the same switch gear as the FJR and Super Tenere both of which have cruise and heated grips.  The FJ-09 gets the grips but no cruise, the FZ-10 gets the cruise but no heated grips.  What's with that?  Come on Yamaha is that too easy to get right? 

[1moreroad]

I'll chime in and say that the best sport touring bike I've ever ridden was my buddy's Ducati ST4S. Excellent seat, wind protection, and hard bags AND Ohlins and a fantastic motor.
 
It all comes down to cost, I think. If you've got almost 2x as much money available, will the Duc be more satisfying for you? Fortunately there are options. The Ducati Multi 950 comes out this year (http://www.ducati.com/bikes/multistrada/950/index.do). Maybe wait 2 years to find a leftover 950.
 
As far as the FJ, you'll spend < $4000 to upgrade the ECU, cruise control, windshield, seat, and suspension on the FJ. You might even fit a pipe in that budget, although IMO the FJ doesn't need it. Luggage is extra on the base Multi and on the FJ (I think based on what I read, but I could be wrong) and about the same price (again, I think). You're still looking at a more affordable bike in the FJ. @donk probably has the most long term experience with both bikes. I agree with him about Yamaha's weird option combinations, but you're looking at bikes that are available right now.
 
It seems to me to come down to price and emotion. Both bikes are very good. What bike are you willing to spend money on? What bike excites you when you walk into your garage? Does the Duc excite you 2x as much? For me, the downside of owning a Duc far outweigh the benefits of owning the FJ even considering some of the drawbacks. But then again, I am posting this on an FJ website.

[Scuba]

I've not had as much seat time on the FJ as I've had on the MS - about 1/2 hour on the MS and 10 mins on the FJ but both were demo rides and the Ducati ride leaders were much more less restricted than the Yammy ones. One of my "neighbors" a few blocks away has an FJ and when the weather breaks, we are going to swap rides as he wants to try the Tenere.
 
My only guess on the lack of grip heaters and cruise on the FJ is cost control...they can be more competitive at a lower price point. As a touring bike however, they are glaring omissions.