Not fit for purpose
OK, in pure dynamics, the 'Strada might beat the GS. However, without a set of knobblies on, while neither bike would particularly great crossing a damp lawn, the GS wins because you can drop it with relative impunity, especially if you have raided the Touratech, Wunderlich or Hornig catalogues. LED indicators in the mirrors? What are Ducati thinking of? How much to replace them?
Talking of Touratech etc, will these bolt-on-goody companies even bother with the Ducati? I think not. The reason that the BMW is so successful, is the "King", is because it is an evolutionary product. The worldwide spares availability is legendary, so when you break down in Timbuctu, you'll get spares. (OK, an exageration, but you know what I mean). Because the basic architecture of the bike, frame and engine have remained unchanged for years, it's possible to transfer a lot of your Touratech gear from bike to bike. I suspect that this won't be the case for the Ducati. I also suspect that, good as it undeniably is, the Ducati will be a fashion buy, and short term. If they are still flying out of the showrooms in three or four years time, then I guess I'll have to eat my words, but I suspect not.
That's not to say that I wouldn't have one like a shot, because I actually like it. We'll see if BMW can learn a thing or two from it, and maybe we'll see variable engine mapping on next year's GS and Adventure. Give them the full power HP2 engine, with mapping to allow low end torque and reduced BHP for offroading, then things can only get better. I'm sure that there's still room on the bars for another couple of buttons!
As for price, my 2009 GS Adventure was £12250, including Adventure Panniers, ABS, Heated Grips, ESA, Tyre Pressure Monitor and On Board Computer. New.
