What I like/dislike about my M1100 Evo

[SunEye]

I've now had my Monster 1100 Evo for two months and have ridden over 5,000 miles on it so I thought I'd tell you what I thought of it and compare it to the 2009 M1100 that I had previously. The review on Visordown seems to be fairly accurate based on my experience http://www.visordown.com/road-tests-...o/17772-2.html so I didn't want to rewrite something very similar. Instead I'll tell you what I like and dislike about the bike.

But first, as with many Ducatis, it wouldn't be right if I hadn't done a bit of bling attachment to it to personalise it.

Changes I've Made

• Cheap Pazzo copy shorty levers. These were black, but are now bronze after two weeks in Spain.

• Cheap Rizoma Tomok copy mirrors. These were black (some parts still are), but have bronzed slightly (not as much as the levers).

• Evotech tail tidy, bar ends, crash bungs and fork sliders.

• Melotti LED indicators. These look identical to the DP LED indicators, but say Meotti on them. They are brighter and smaller than the original bulb indicators.

• Oberon foot pegs. Although the flat part of these is the same length as the original pegs overall they are slightly longer meaning that my foot is positioned about 1cm further from the bike. I find that more comfortable.

• 8" x 6" number plate.

• Philips X-tremeVision headlight bulb.

• Rizoma Sportline bar grips.

• 8mm chopped off both ends of the handlebars. This means that the Rizoma grips fit properly without me having to more everything on the bars. Also with the shorty levers and Tomok style mirrors everything still looks in proportion, so you wouldn't know by looking at the bike that the bars are narrower than standard.

• 14 tooth front sprocket.

• Dark screen. Because the one from Slingshot Racing in the USA that I had on my M1100 was poorly made and because the MRA one is silly money I decided upon the DIY option. With the help of a bit of masking tape and some matt black spray paint on the inside of the original screen I've now got me a very handsome black screen. If I had used gloss black paint I suspect the end result would have been like mirrored sunglasses.

• Bags-Connection Quick-Lock Evo Tank Ring for the attachment of a Bags-Connection Trip tank bag.

• Ducati touring seat

[SunEye]

What I Don't Like

• The Diavel style exhaust is ugly.

• There is no underseat storage because the space has been taken up by the traction control unit. That's where the tank bag comes in very handy.

• The wheels are lovely to look at, but a faff to clean, but at least they are black so you don't have to do it too often

• The fuel tank is only 13.5 litres because 1.5 litres of space is taken up by the ABS system (the non-ABS M1100 had a 15 litre tank). During normal riding this will give me a tank range of about 150 miles (110 miles when the reserve light comes on). Despite all of the changes/improvements to the engine in the Evo the fuel economy is very similar to the M1100 so I've lost a bit of tank range. As a result I do tend to overfill the tank by about 1 litre.

• Over long distances the riding position is not as comfortable as the M1100. You are sat slightly more upright which puts more weight on your backside. Even with the Ducati touring seat I start getting bum-ache after a bit more than an hour's riding. Another side effect of the higher bars (20mm higher) is that unless you are braking there is no weight on your hands so you find yourself having to consciously grip with your knees whenever you brake, which I know is technically the correct thing to do anyway. However with the lower bars on the M1100 there was always weight on my hands so the extra weight caused by braking didn't require any significant extra effort and didn't feel like such a movement of the weight of the rider.

• The 20mm higher bar riser than on the M1100 means that the silver bar clamp is reflected in the speedo which sometimes makes it difficult to read the speed. This could be resolved by angling the clocks slightly which need to be done anyway because they aren't correctly angled for where my head is when I'm riding.

• The engine is really rough below 4000 rpm in 1st and 2nd gears. Even with a 14 tooth front sprocket below 20mph really requires raising the revs and slipping the clutch to smooth things out. My M1100 had Termis and the DP ECU. It was smooth down to almost 3,000 rpm, so I assume that what I am experiencing is Ducati's stock tuning for the Evo which would be significantly improved by a DP ECU (with suitable exhaust) or by remapping.

• The sidestand on the Evo is slightly longer than the M1100 making the bike stand more upright and making you have to think a little bit more carefully about the angle of the ground you are parking on. The downside of the M1100 sidestand was that it dug a hole in soft tarmac due to so much of the bike's weight being on it.

• My right heel tends to rest on the exhaust heat shield when I have the ball of my foot on the pegs. It just means that I can't quite get my foot positioned how I want it.

• The headlight is pants - it was on the M1100. It does not have an even beam. There are brighter areas and darker areas. Adjusting it to throw slightly longer just means that even less light hits the road in-front of the bike. Even with a decent bulb it's not very good. The headlight I have for my bicycle has a more even beam and is almost as bright. Full beam is hilarious because it manages to have a 180 degree wide beam, so that you can see what is at the side of the road in line with the front axle. Even if I was walking I'm not sure I'd need a headlight beam that wide.

• Because Ducati have designed a lovely rear wheel with spokes that are offset from the centre it has enabled them to put the brake disc on the same side of the spokes as the chain. Whilst this does mean that from one side you see the wheel in its full glory (albeit partly obscured by the exhaust) it does mean that you do have to use a chain lube with absolutely no fling. Otherwise you'll find that your rear brake doesn't do anything as I found out after using the Michelin chain lube that I found in a French supermarket - at least they stock chain lube, when have you seen that in Tesco?

[J.P]

Originally Posted by SunEye

What I Don't Like

• The 20mm higher bar riser than on the M1100 means that the silver bar clamp is reflected in the speedo which sometimes makes it difficult to read the speed. This could be resolved by angling the clocks slightly which need to be done anyway because they aren't correctly angled for where my head is when I'm riding.

• The engine is really rough below 4000 rpm in 1st and 2nd gears. Even with a 14 tooth front sprocket below 20mph really requires raising the revs and slipping the clutch to smooth things out. My M1100 had Termis and the DP ECU. It was smooth down to almost 3,000 rpm, so I assume that what I am experiencing is Ducati's stock tuning for the Evo which would be significantly improved by a DP ECU (with suitable exhaust) or by remapping.

I use a bit of black tape on the back of the bar clamp so the reflection isn't as bad.

My EVO having changed the exhaust and had it remapped is as smooth as a baby bottom the whole way through the range.

[SunEye]

Originally Posted by J.P

I use a bit of black tape on the back of the bar clamp so the reflection isn't as bad.

My EVO having changed the exhaust and had it remapped is as smooth as a baby bottom the whole way through the range.

If I wasn't going to change the riser for a lower one I would paint the rear of the clamp black.

My current plan is for a change of exhaust and a remap. Currently I'm working on how to make the exhaust I want fit. It's not a straight-forward bolt on can

Originally Posted by SunEye

What I Don't Like

...you'll find that your rear brake doesn't do anything as I found out after using the Michelin chain lube...

Rear brake? What's that? Never used it.

Very interesting post.
I'm waiting with interest to see how you find it with the 'bars in some lower risers.

My problem is I'm 6'5". I've rotated the 'bars forward in the clamps to give a bit more reach but I would also like to rotate the levers further on the 'bars. I've tried it already but it means that the stock mirrors are then about as much use as t!ts on a bull.
The lenses won't tilt enough in the housings. If I keep the Evo, I'll probably fit some Rizoma's as I believe the stems rotate in the adaptors.

Otherwise, great bike. I had a pair of SportSmarts fitted when the bike had it's wheel re-call, only done about 250 miles on them so far though.


Took this out for a morning a few weeks ago, loved it!

[SunEye]

Originally Posted by RickyX

Rear brake? What's that? Never used it.

I tend to use the rear brake when doing slow manoeuvres. I find it a bit tricky trying to slip the clutch balance the throttle and drag the front brake. I also use the rear brake when I'm "making progress" on a twisty road.

Originally Posted by SunEye

What I Don't Like

I'm not a fan of the stock exhaust can, but don't hate it either.

I actually wish the riding position was more upright! I guess this all depends on height. I'm 5'10".

My engine is lumpy below 3k rpm (evidenced by the dancing fluid resevoirs), but anything above 3.5k rpm is fine.

I don't tend to ride at night, so the Osram Nightbreaker bulbs I've put in are perfectly adequate for me.

Hoorah for Wurth Dry Chain Lube. Not had any issues with lube on my rear disc, and the rear brake works brilliantly on mine.

I agree with everything else.

[SunEye]

Originally Posted by neilo

I actually wish the riding position was more upright! I guess this all depends on height. I'm 5'10".

It's probably just a very personal thing and probably depends upon a lot of factors. I'm 5'10" as well and weigh 11.5 stone. Most of my riding is long distance (200 miles to 600 miles) which is when I notice the issue and why it is very important to me. The fact that the Evo is not as comfortable for me as the M1100 was a big surprise.

[SunEye]

What I Like

• The ABS works very well and reasonably unobtrusively. I seem to be activating it on the front more than I would expect to leaving dashed lines of rubber around the place, so I suspect there isn't enough weight over the front of the bike (due to the riding position), the fork pre-load is set too high or the fork springs are too firm. Regardless of that it works well and has stopped the front locking up on numerous occasions.

• The engine is great and pulls all the way through the rev range. At an indicated 129mph (genuine 119mph) it is still pulling very strongly in 6th gear. I think there's a bit more life at the top of the rev range than on the M1100

• The gear changes are slick, just like they were on the M1100.

• The stock fork setup is better than on the M1100 which needed a bit of tweaking to get close to how the Evo is out of the box. It tracks the road surface very well and doesn't seem to get too upset by rough road surfaces giving me confidence to ride quite quickly on some very badly surfaced roads.

• The stock Pirelli Diablo Rosso II tyres are very good, even in the wet. They have withstood over 5,200 miles of my riding very well and are still going strong.

• The wet clutch is very light at the lever making a shorty clutch lever a viable proposition. Something that I would have never even dared to try on the M1100.

• The slipper clutch is very good. Only changing down at quite silly revs will provoke movement from the back wheel. In general you can bang it down through the gears without thinking about it. On the M1100 you had to blip the throttle on down changes if you didn't want the rear wheel hopping around as if you were the last of the late brakers in a WSB race.

• The traction control is a nice thing to have. I have it set on the most intrusive level, just to see if I can feel it working, but I've only noticed its presence a few times. This may be due to my riding style or because it works without me noticing. It seems to do a very good job and I was pleased to have it after watching my friend on his derestricted and non traction controlled Triumph Rocket III exiting a petrol station slightly enthusiastically and fishtailing the first 200m up the road. At least I know that won't happen to me.


Conclusion

Am I happy with it? Yes. It's a great bike. Would I swap it for my old M1100, probably not, but at the moment it's a close call. With the Evo there are a few too many niggles for me, but I think I can sort the most important ones out and in the process give me a bike that is almost ideal for me, albeit with slightly less tank range than I would ideally like.

[J.P]

Originally Posted by SunEye

What I Like

• The traction control is a nice thing to have. I have it set on the most intrusive level, just to see if I can feel it working, but I've only noticed its presence a few times. This may be due to my riding style or because it works without me noticing. It seems to do a very good job and I was pleased to have it after watching my friend on his derestricted and non traction controlled Triumph Rocket III exiting a petrol station slightly enthusiastically and fishtailing the first 200m up the road. At least I know that won't happen to me.

Don't rely on it too much....remember my high-side..

[Headhunter]

Excellent write up suneye!

Having ridden a 620ie for the past 7 years, I'm currently borrowing a mate's 696 and one thing I immediately noticed (minus the better brakes, suspension, acceleration etc) is that its smoothness actually made me think I was riding a Japanese bike.

Just wondered if the newer Ducati's are moving towards this style over the rawness of the old 620/900/1100 injected models. Maybe it's the lack of Termi's etc but it just doesn't feel like a Duke (that I'm used to anyway).

[SunEye]

Originally Posted by J.P

Don't rely on it too much....remember my high-side..

Hmmmm. What setting did you have the DTC on? I've left mine on 4 for now and may well keep it there. I don't intend to rely on the DTC. I ride as I always have. I have never highsided or had a tank slapper and have never felt the need for traction control. The DTC is there to hopefully help me if I accidently do something silly or unexpectedly encounter a situation where it is needed. I also don't do track days which probably eliminates some of the risk of the DTC not helping.

Originally Posted by SunEye

What I Like

What I'd like to add to this...

It looks beautiful! People stop and stare at it everywhere I go...

It's light! A whole 90kg lighter than my ZZR1400.

It handles!

It sounds great (even with the stock can).

It's rare (comparatively).

It's fun to ride! Gone are the days of periodic boredom whilst out on a long ride, and this is even whilst staying within the speed limit. The bike launches an assault on the senses everytime I start it up. It's got character!

[SunEye]

Originally Posted by neilo

What I'd like to add to this...

It looks beautiful! People stop and stare at it everywhere I go...

It's light! A whole 90kg lighter than my ZZR1400.

It handles!

It sounds great (even with the stock can).

It's rare (comparatively).

It's fun to ride! Gone are the days of periodic boredom whilst out on a long ride, and this is even whilst staying within the speed limit. The bike launches an assault on the senses everytime I start it up. It's got character!

Would have to agree with you on all those points.