Ducati Desmosedici RR
The Desmosedici RR is the first-ever road-going motorcycle to offer such a stunning wealth of performance and technology that comes directly from Ducati’s experience in MotoGP.
The dream of a true GP replica has finally come true and the Desmosedici RR is the first-ever road-going motorcycle to offer such a stunning wealth of performance and technology that comes directly from Ducati’s experience in MotoGP. The RR derives from the Ducati Corse Grand Prix racing Desmosedici GP6.
The body design and the aerodynamics faithfully reflect the Desmosedici GP6. The colour scheme, the fittings, the materials used in its construction as well as the technical features of the powerful four-cylinder desmodromic engine built by the Borgo Panigale factory engineers, leave no doubts whatsoever: the Desmosedici RR is the ultimate expression of the most extreme MotoGP racing machine today.
This is the new frontier of Ducati technological evolution, a dream come true, demonstrating once again the courage and the passion of Ducati, as well as the ability to transfer the experience of the racing world to a machine that is destined for road use.
Vehicle
The engine clearly represents the beating heart of this fantastic motorcycle, but the technological advancements also extend to the chassis: a signature tubular trellis hybrid frame, refined components, and a superb carbon fibre body. This is a motorcycle that is destined for an expert rider, someone who is always looking for extreme sporting performance, as well as being an exclusive, esoteric, reliable product that is more than capable of track racing.
The colour scheme of the Desmosedici RR was the work of Alan Jenkins, the designer and one of the men behind the Desmosedici MotoGP, who was also responsible for the aerodynamics package which is aimed at achieving maximum speed and excellent handling. The bike is totally inspired by the racing machine, the Ducati Desmosedici GP6, from which it inherits all the aggressiveness of its lines. It is fitted with a new lightweight multifunction dashboard, developed in collaboration with Ducati Corse, the same one that has been fitted to the racing machine, the Desmosedici GP7.
Desmosedici-style digital instrumentation is taken from Ducati’s MotoGP GP7 project.
This pure racing, minimalist solution has no switches or buttons to compromise its clean lines. The wide screen allows the rider to read six values at the same time and to scroll through and select from various menus by handlebar-mounted switch gear. Activating the Ducati Data Analyser (DDA) riders are able to acquire up to 2MB of data (approximately 3.5 hours).
The system records several channels of data including: vehicle speed, engine rpm, throttle opening, engine temperature, distance travelled, laps and lap times. So riders are able to compare, analyse and get an inside view of the Desmosedici RR performance. The bike’s development could not have been made possible without the significant collaboration of Vittoriano Guareschi, the official Ducati Corse tester, whose riding abilities and hundreds of hours of track time have made a fundamental contribution to the evolution of the project.
For the first time the Ducati Desmosedici RR uses a new welded tubular steel trellis hybrid frame (ALS 450) with the frame geometry that is the same as that of the Desmosedici GP6. This construction guarantees an excellent stiffness-to-weight ratio, allowing superior manoevrability and riding precision. Attached to the red frame is the rear seat support in high temperature resin type carbon fibre. This material, normally used only on racing bikes, has the characteristic of being extremely lightweight but exceptionally rigid.
The Desmosedici RR sports a new extra-long, cast, forged and pressed aluminium alloy swingarm. The geometry and the technology of this component derive directly from the MotoGP bike, and give the RR a high level of traction, and excellent weight distribution as well as a superb stiffness-to-weight ratio. In the suspension department the Ducati Desmosedici RR features the most advanced technical components.
The rear suspension geometry and layout is the same as that of the GP6, with the rear shock attached above the swingarm and to a rocker, which is hinged to the crankcase. The front suspension features 43 mm upside-down Öhlins FG353P pressurized forks (PFF), with TiN coated sliders. The forks, which come directly from competition use, as well as being pressurized thus ensuring excellent track performance, are fully adjustable in preload, rebound and compression. The rear shock is also Öhlins and has rebound, low/high speed compression adjustment and hydraulic preload adjustment.
For the first time ever, this Ducati production motorcycle features Marchesini forged and machined magnesium alloy wheels, with a 7-spoke design as on the GP6. This helps to reduce unsprung weight and inertia, all the while improving handling and suspension response. With the aim of producing the ultimate track performance, Ducati and Bridgestone have developed special tyres for the Desmosedici RR. The tread pattern, construction and profile are being specially developed and produced by the Japanese tyre manufacturer. The numerous racing components of this high-performance machine also include its Brembo brakes.
Up front the Desmosedici RR features a new pair of radial ‘monoblock’ callipers with four 34 mm pistons: monoblock technology, until now only used for racing callipers, allows calliper stiffness to be increased, thus improving braking response; the front brake system is completed by a radial master cylinder, with hinged lever and remote ‘quick’ adjuster that enables the right brake lever position to be found during the ride. The pair of front brake discs are two semi-floating 330 mm x 5 mm discs, with machined flange. The Brembo rear brakes are made up of a 240 mm fixed disc and a calliper with two 34 mm pistons.
The Desmosedici RR’s new exhaust system has been specifically developed to deliver the best power and at the same time to ensure road riding pleasure. Significantly lighter, it has been engineered with a power-increasing 4-2-1 layout that uses 42mm diameter tubing with wall thickness of 0.8mm (.030in) AISI 309. The new exhaust system is equipped with a pass-by valve and ends with a silencer incorporated in the rear tail that features two exhaust exits to vertically release the exhaust gas.
The upper part of the rear tail combines a ceramic carbon fibre cover, the same solution as single-seater F1 cars. The Desmosedici RR is available with a special race kit that includes a 102 dB racing exhaust, a dedicated CPU, bike cover and paddock stand.
Two versions of the RR are available:
1) Desmosedici RR – painted in ‘Rosso GP’, with a white number plate on the tail section;
2) Desmosedici RR ‘Team Version’ – painted in ‘Rosso GP’, and as with the factory Corse bikes, this has a broad white stripe on the fairing.
A team sponsor decal kit will be provided with each bike. For this exclusive Ducati, a new dedicated service plan is included. Each Ducati Desmosedici RR owner can benefit from a three-year warranty and three years of scheduled maintenance, free of charge.
Engine
With a power output of 200 HP* at 13,800 rpm and a torque of 11.8 kgm* at 10,500 rpm, the new D16RR engine follows the guidelines laid down by the Ducati Corse GP engine, a masterpiece of engineering and precision. Bore and stroke measurements are the same as those on the D16GP6 – 1000 cc (86×42.56), as are the characteristic positions of the Ducati desmodromic timing system parts (camshaft rotation axis, rocker arm centre and valve centre distance), valve angle, distance between cylinder centres and pulse timing, which uses the Twin-pulse solution applied on the racing engine.
As in MotoGP, traditional Ducati desmodromic timing ensures accurate valve control even at the highest revs and blends perfectly with the modern architecture of this superb 4-cylinder engine. As is the tradition at Ducati, the 90° angle between the cylinders is maintained. This authentic copy of the GP engine is further endorsed by the use of a cassette type six-speed gearbox and hydraulically actuated dry multi-plate slipper clutch.
The aim of producing a light but reliable engine has led not only to a component design of unrivalled quality, but also to the use of exclusive, individually-made racing-derived materials. The crankcase and cylinder heads are sand-cast aluminium while the cam-drive cover and alternator casing are made of sand-cast magnesium, technologies that match the lightness of these alloys with the greater mechanical strength expected from structural components.
The oil sump, cam covers and clutch cover are made by pressure die-casting magnesium alloy, a technology that allows significant thickness reduction on non-structural components. A look inside the engine shows how the quest for high performance has led to the utilisation of racing technologies such as titanium con rods, intake and exhaust valves – again in titanium alloy with CrN (chromium nitride) coating – and precision grinding finishing to reduce friction on certain components such as rocker arms.
Even the camshafts have been drilled and cut to reduce weight. Lightened through finite-element simulation (FEM), the timing gears are arranged according to a pattern highly similar to the one used in the GP engine. The piston has the classic high-performance engine architecture, with double ribbed undercrown and a compact combustion chamber that brings the compression ratio to 13.5. The crankshaft rotates on brass bearing shells and has the crank pins offset by 70° to generate soft pulse timing (pulses at 0° – 90° – 290° – 380°).
This component is produced via complete precision machining of a single piece of forged steel. The cone-shaped end of the crank-webs maximises the use of the available space below the piston bosses and optimises crankshaft assembly balance. The sand-cast aluminium crankcases feature integral cylinder bores with Nicasil lining, and the crankcase halves’ separation layout is the same as on the GP engine. The oil pump is of the trochoidal (Gerotor) type and controls the water pump according to a cascade arrangement. Also featured are four 50mm Magneti Marelli throttle bodies with 12-hole ‘microjet’ above-throttle injectors.
A Magneti Marelli 5SM ECU control unit and high-speed CAN line electronics have been employed to manage the injection and electronic ignition of the powerful four-cylinder engine. The throttle bodies, while serving two opposing cylinder heads, lie on the same plane, resulting in a straight, plunging intake port configuration. Like its GP counterpart, the engine acts as a connector between the chassis and the rear swingarm/suspension, thus playing an essential structural and stiffening role.
This road-going MotoGP bike offers outstanding performance: when in its racing configuration, that is, with the kit consisting of the supplied racing exhaust (102 dB) and control unit, it can reach a maximum power of 200 HP. With its catalysed exhaust system, the Desmosedici RR, type-approved for on-road riding, is compliant with Euro 3 emissions standards.
