Ducati Builds 100,000th Multistrada: Confirms V4 MST for 2021

Ducati Multistrada History and V4 Confirmation

Ducati reached a landmark figure with its top-selling Multistrada.

The Borgo Panigale-based manufacturer built the 100,000th Multistrada this September, which was a Pikes Peak version.

The bike features a customized laser marking on the top yoke and was given to the man who pre-ordered the motorcycle, German Ducatista Dave Hayward, by Ducati CEO Claudio Domenicali in person.

In the same PR, Ducati had also confirmed that it would release a V4 version of the Multistrada in 2021.

Ducati changed the landscape of its sportbike offering by releasing the Panigale V4 for 2018 – the first production V4 in the company’s then 92-year history.

The Italian company will also release a Streetfighter V4 for 2020, which was raced at Pikes Peak and will be officially unveiled at EICMA Milan Motorcycle Show in November.

Speaking of the Multistrada V4, Ducati says: “Development is ongoing, and in 2021 the Multistrada family will expand to see the twin-cylinder 1260 and 950 motorcycles joined by a version with a new, specific V4 engine.”

Following is a brief history of the Multistrada from the official press release

Ducati’s dual-purpose motorcycle has always been technologically cutting-edge. In 2010 the Multistrada was the first bike to feature riding modes, the system that changes the very character of the bike. Indeed, the tagline for the advertising campaign read: “four bikes in one.”

With the D|Air version, introduced in 2014, Ducati offered the first motorcycle with a system capable of interfacing with a dedicated airbag-equipped jacket. In 2015 it became the first motorcycle to feature a variable-timing engine: the Testastretta DVT (Desmodromic Variable Timing).

As the technology evolved, so did the reliability. Even longer and stricter development tests were applied. Production processes were improved, materials enhanced, numerical simulations honed, taking the Multistrada 1260 and 950 to unprecedented levels of dependability. Today, all the engines in the family have valve play checks at 30,000 km intervals – three times that of the first version.

With no less than seven versions, today’s family has never been more complete: two 950 (113 horsepower) bikes and five 1260 (158 horsepower) ones.

Presented in 2019, the new Multistrada 950 – also available as an S version – is designed to put Multistrada performance within everyone’s reach while maximizing versatility, thanks also to the 19″ front wheel.

The most recent interpretation of the original dual-purpose sports concept, the Multistrada 1260 combines the comfort and load capacity of a dual-purpose bike with tire sizes, wheels, and brakes that are, instead, typical of sports motorcycles. Equipped with Öhlins suspension, forged wheels and a carbon fiber end pipe, the Pikes Peak model offers maximum sports performance.

For those, instead, who love adventuring, Ducati has come up with the Multistrada 1260 Enduro, designed to take on the toughest terrain and longest journeys thanks to the 30-litre tank, long-travel suspension, 19″ front rim and, of course, the hard-wearing spoked wheels.

Development is ongoing, and in 2021 the Multistrada family will expand to see the twin-cylinder 1260 and 950 motorcycles joined by a version with a new, specific V4 engine.

Multistrada Milestones

• 2003 Multistrada 1000 DS
• 2005 Multistrada 620
• 2007 Multistrada 1100
• 2010 Multistrada 1200
• 2012 Multistrada Pikes Peak
• 2015 Multistrada 1200 DVT
• 2016 Multistrada 1200 Enduro
• 2016 Multistrada 950
• 2018 Multistrada 1260
• 2019 Multistrada 1260 Enduro