This is a gem of a book. A must-have publication for anyone interested in the history
of the Ducati Super Sport. There are 14 chapters of wonderful insight into the life of
this incredible machine. Very well written with superb color photographs throughout.
Victor
The following is an excerpt from the publication.
Although there had been talk of a replacement Supersport for several years, financial
problems saw the project continually delayed. During 1995-96 Ducati was having enough
difficulty in supplying existing models, let alone creating new ones. The TPG (the
American Texas Pacific Group) buy-out of September 1996 immediately produced a climate
that allowed a new Supersport to proceed. However, it was not until 15 December 1996 that
the project really got under way when Massimo Bordi approached Pierre Terblanche and asked
him to coordinate the design programme. Terblanche, well known to Ducati for the
magnificent Supermono racing single of 1992, was at that stage working in nearby San
Marino at the Cagiva Research Centre with Massimo Tamburini. Sketches started immediately,
and Terblanche resigned from CRC on 19 December to concentrate fully on the new
Supersport.
Pierre Terblanche is a designer with a genuine interest in preserving the history of
Ducati. Since his boyhood days in South Africa he has been a Ducati enthusiast and proudly
displays a large photo of himself with a 1973 750 Sport in his studio. `It is my dream to
replicate those bikes,' he says. `I would like to see the engines more attractive so as to
be part of the overall aesthetic concept as they were with the older bikes. There were
some absolute styling miracles in the '70s, particularly the NCR racing bikes. My view of
the Super Sport of the future is to somehow revive the great bikes of the past - bikes
like the 750 SS and the Mike Hailwood Replica.' Bordi's brief to Terblanche was quite
specific, with immediate implementation an important element. `The original idea was that
we had to take a standard carry-over frame, existing taillight, with the bottom of the
tank also a carry-over part. This was important because the tooling for a steel fuel tank
is one of the most expensive components when creating a new model. Basically I wasn't
allowed to change too much from the Supersport concept because the Supersport customer is
very traditional. The bike still had to be comfortable, obviously not touring comfortable
but more so than a Hypersports, a two-seater, and with much the same type of riding
position as before. This was something I modified. I decided that as we had the ST2 we
could go for a slightly more sporting riding position. From research we found that we
could position the handlebars down and back slightly. They've been pulled back about 15mm
so they're closer to the rider but are still above the triple clamps. It's a little bit
more comfortable I think for the average rider. The brief was also to keep it simple,
hence we have not gone for water-cooling.
`The frame had to be almost exactly the same as before. While it may look the same, the
rear section is completely new and the steering head angle is steepened by I degree. That
has helped enormously. The footpeg position is also similar to before so the riding
position is slightly more comfortable than the 916. The exhaust we couldn't change, but we
were able to narrow some frame tubes. Although we still needed to maintain the cantilever
rear suspension, more rear wheel travel means this works much better. The rear number
plate is from the ST2, one of the ST2's nicest features. Obviously with a very short lead
time to production we tried to use as many components as we could from existing models,
but only in those areas where I felt they were good enough to be carried over. We didn't
choose anything on the bike that I didn't think was the right quality. The one thing that
has changed is that we have now fitted 916 `instruments, with new graphics. On the
original prototype they were 900 SS. Personally I still like the old ones, the Veglia
Borietti. They're very good quality but they are maybe too old now for some people.'
Other shared components were the front forks and brakes, from the ST2. The 43mm Showa
forks were new-generation, as were the Brembo brakes. The calliper mounts were wider apart
to improve rigidity, and the callipers different internally with greater fluid capacity.
Both the clutch and front brake master cylinders were also a new generation, with revised
lever ratios. The Brembo front wheel was 916, and the rear ST2. To maintain a uniformity
within the range the footpegs and controls were also from the 916. The bike was slightly
heavier than before, at 186kg, because of the stronger front forks and larger silencers.
One of the prototypes of the 900 Supersport.
`Keeping the weight down is becoming increasingly difficult,' says Terblanche. `Of
course it is possible with an unlimited budget but really not practical. We don't think
the use of titanium exhausts like the Japanese is practical because of the replacement
cost if they get damaged. We also want to keep our customers happy.
`The first 19 or 20 sketches were completed the day before Christmas 1996,' he
continues. `The difficulty was that Ducati don't really have any design facilities - all
the bikes have previously been done either at Varese, Galluzzi at Cagivaoutsi Morizone, or
Tamburini at CRC. The people I knew were in the UK so I phoned Futura Design, a modelling
company in Birmingham, and asked if they could do us a big favour by giving us a hand with
the bike. [Futura have done a lot of work for Rolls-Royce and Isuzu.]
`So from 9 January to 3 April 1997 I worked at Futura on clay mock-ups. We got a
Supersport from the British importer, changed the whole back of the frame, used new
footpeg mounts, cut the tank away except for its base, and bolted the bike down on a
modelling plate. It was all done by hand from sketches and the bike came back as It is
now. It was the quickest I have ever done.'
It needed to be done quickly as the Supersport would be the only major new Ducati for
1998. `What we need to do now is move on technology wise and start doing everything with
three-dimensional computers to speed up development time. In the future we will use
mathematical surfaces and it is an area where bikes are lagging behind cars. It can be
very slow the old fashioned way. This bike, from the first sketch on paper through to the
production bike, took about 15 months using some mathematical surfaces. By Ducati
standards that is pretty quick. It has also been a very difficult project. A full
Hypersports bike is easier to design in many ways because there are fewer road bike
compromises. With a low front and high rear it is much easier to get a bike to look
purposeful and complete. Here we have a road bike rather than a racer, and to get this to
look sporting and coordinated is not so easy. Also I have tried to maintain similar lines
between the creases in the tank and seat, much as I did with the Supermono, but with steel
instead of carbon-fibre this is more difficult. The bike is not at its best viewed from
underneath as it was on display in the motorcycle shows.'
There were a number of significant alterations to the engine, notably the use of Weber
Marelli electronic fuel injection. To complement the injection there are new camshafts
(with new valve timing - see Appendix), the engine running more cleanly, and with an
increase of about 5bhp, under 3,000rpm. Ducati now have a sophisticated computer program
to develop new camshafts and this has contributed to the smoother running. Unlike
aftermarket or racing camshafts, emission and noise levels are a major consideration with
a production bike. The new camshafts and injection system meant that there was no need for
a high-inertia flywheel, and a lighter one could be used. As Terblanche says, `This bike
still has about 30bhp more than most people can handle. Ducatis have always offered a
balance between power and on- the-road performance and this Supersport is no different.'
The Weber Marelli fuel injection ECU, code-named the `l.5', was the third generation to
be used by Ducati. The first generation `P8' of the 851 of 1988 was originally intended
for cars with multi-point injection, and still used on those engines with twin injectors
per cylinder (916 SPS) ten years later. In 1995 there was a second-generation ECU, the
`1.6', specifically designed for single-point injection, and this was used on engines with
single injectors. It had fewer channels and was smaller and cheaper than the P8. Finally,
there was the `1.5', the first Marelli processor designed for a motorcycle application.
Not only was it cheaper and smaller again, but it could also be adapted for multi-point
and be used for twin injectors, although the Supersport only used a single injector per
cylinder. Incorporating the absolute air pressure sensor inside the ECU, it promised
better reliability, eventually finding its way to the entire Ducati lineup. With the
injection system came a new 10-litre airbox.
Other engine changes for 1998 were new cylinders (Tecnol), pistons (Asso), and piston
rings (NPR) in place of the previous Mondial items. The redesigned cylinders incorporated
the oil return inside, making external oil lines unnecessary. There were also new intake
manifolds and a new 520-watt alternator. Finally the troublesome 31/62 primary drive
became the 32/59 (1.84:1) of the ST2 and 916 SPS. While many observers expected the new
Supersport to grow in size to 944cc like the ST2, marginal cooling of the oil/air-cooled
rear cylinder forbade this, and there was new ducting to the rear cylinder. For those
wishing for more displacement and horse- power, Ducati Performance was established in 1997
as a 50/50 joint venture with Gia.Ca.Moto in Bologna. A full range of
performance-enhancing options was avail- able for those wishing to either customize or
hot-rod their Supersport.
Styling is one thing, but the soul of the Supersport is in the way it relates to the
rider. It has always been a tribute to Ducati's development department that just about
every Ducati has been one that communicates directly with the rider. Ing. Andrea Forni has
been responsible for the development of all new motorcycles since 1988, and is an expert
rider himself. The nearby Apennines have always been an ideal testing ground and Fomi is
particularly enthusiastic about the latest Supersport. `I have done 10,000 kilometers on
mountain roads and this new bike is the best handling in the range. On a par with the 748
and better than the 916.
`We started with three mules, basically fuel-Injected 1997 Supersports, and progressed
from there. Several camshaft profiles were tested, as well as injection programs, but
while we started with the old-style forks we worked hard on the chassis to bring it more
up to date.' A total of 30,000 kilometers was racked up on various prototypes before the
frame specifications were finalized.
We steepened the steering head to 24 degrees and tested front fork steering offset
between 35mm and 32.5mm before settling on 30mm,' says Fomi. `We plan to do a Superlight
version with a totally redesigned seat unit,' says Pierre Terbianche. `The choice was made
to keep it what it is, either a two-seater or single-seater, nothing in between that does
neither as well.'
With production beginning in March 1998, the fuel-lnjected Supersport became available
in Europe during May, and in the United States in July. Production was scheduled for 4,585
units during the year. While the Supersport is primarily sold as a street bike, racing has
always been associated with Ducati and the 1998 Supersport took to the Italian circuits in
the `Supersport Cup'. Prepared by Techna Racing in Rome, these specially prepared
solo-seat Supersports were allocated by lot over a six-race series, similar to the
arrangement for the `Ducati Monster Cup' during 1997.
By combining innovative styling, electronic fuel injection and modern running gear with
the traditional desmodromic two-valve twin-cylinder engine, trellis frame and cantilever
rear suspension, Ducati have united the best of both worlds with the Supersport. While
undoubtedly a motorcycle to take the Supersport concept into the next century, Ducati have
managed to retain the soul that made the Super Sport a classic back in 1974.
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