MOTOFOODIE

The Ducati Hyperstrada 821 is a unique crossover motorcycle that combines the lean, athletic design of a supermoto with the proficiency of real-world touring – in essence, a touring version of the famous Hypermotard.

Powered by a 821-cc L-twin, the 2015 Hyperstrada is smeared with all the touring goodies such as semi-hard 50-liter nylon/plastic composite side bags, windshield, Scorpion Trail rubber, ABS, DTC (Ducati Traction Control) combined with Ducati Safety Pack, wider grab rail for passenger and two 12-volt outlets one on each side below the rider’s seat and three riding modes to control power and torque:

• Sport (110 hp with ‘High’ torque)
• Touring (110 hp with progressive ‘Medium’ torque)
• Urban (75 hp with progressive ‘Low’ torque)

Having spent some days with the 2015 Ducati Hyperstrada 821, here is my ownership experience to help you decide if this is/isn’t the motorcycle you want to live with.

City Commute

Remove the side bags and the addictive low-end torque delivered by the L-twin ensures a wonderful ride to putter around in city and despite the heat from the engine in bumper-to-bumper traffic it makes you smile when you knock-everyone out at the traffic-light GPs.

Pillion Comfort

A broad seat and wider grab rail for the pillion works wonders for the rear passenger, only if the rider is of small-to-medium built – courtesy, the lean design derived from the Hypermotard.

Touring

Tarmac touring is where the Hyperstrada shines, taking the medium-to-bad tarmac and light-dirt roads in good stride, however hard-core off-roading is definitely not its forte.

• Fuel – The Hyperstrada can happily binge on regular 91-octane Indian fuel without any complaints, although the manual says 95-RON. Expect a full-tank range of 240 kms
• Suspension – Non-adjustable front suspension is a let-down for a touring motorcycle and gets unsettled when you hit those flyover-joints and mid-road bumps. The rear suspension with preload and rebound adjustment-only works reasonably well
• Tyres – The Pirelli Scorpion Trail tyres provide brilliant traction in wet and dry weather tarmac

Looks

I just couldn’t resist talking about it!! The Ducati Hyperstrada is a stellar-example of ‘Form Aiding Function’. Ducati really knows how to build such simple and beautiful-looking motorcycles.

The Hyperstrada looks best from the ‘front with the side-bags’ and from the ‘side with the center-stand on’. The single-side swing-arm looks haute, but gets shadowed by the exhaust and the side bags.

Things I love about the Ducati Hyperstrada 821:

• Torque, Torque, Torque – delicious torque laced linearly throughout the rev range
• Build Quality and Looks – the build quality with respect to panels, weld-joints and switches are top-notch.
• Side bags – The side bags are water resistant (not water proof), Ducati provides an aqua-pack waterproof dry-bag to keep the luggage within the side bags.
• Center Stand – a super convenient aid for short-riders to mount the bike with the side bags-on, easy to clean the motorcycle and lube the chain while touring

Niggles:

• The windshield is fixed and non-adjustable
• Riding in rain – water from the tyres get sprayed onto the back of the pillion and reach as far as the back of the helmet of the rider
• Mirror – visibility with two-up riding is useless
• Front suspension unsettles into a mid-corner bump and those shabby flyover-joints

Between being part street bike and part supermoto with touring abilities, the Ducati Hyperstrada provides an all-around motorcycle experience.