2007 Ducati St3s
One thing about the Italians is that they have their priorities straight. When Ducati builds a sport-touring motorcycle, you know the emphasis is going to be heavily on "sport" and the ST3 follows this tradition to the letter.
Other manufacturers use beefy, aluminum spar frames as a foundation, but Ducati perseveres with a bright red, tubular steel trellis frame that combines light weight with amazing rigidity, not to mention being absolutely gorgeous.
If it looks somewhat spindly, consider that the 250 horsepower MotoGP bikes (which won the world championship this year) use the same type of frame.
A fully adjustable Sachs shock brings up the rear while the front Showa 43 mm upside-down forks are adjustable for preload only.
The lack of adjustability is not a problem though as the spring and damping rates were perfectly suited to the ST3's demeanour, giving a smooth ride while being adequately damped when you turn up the Sport-o-meter.
The front end feels extremely planted and gives such excellent feedback, I bet you could run over a quarter and tell whether it's heads or tails.
Steering is ultra precise, if a bit on the heavy side, and the long wheelbase means that tight turns require a bit of muscle to navigate.
On the open road, however, the ST3 behaves as if it's hard-wired directly into your cerebral cortex.
Just think of where and when you want to flick the Ducati and it's already there.
The four-pot front Brembo brakes perform as Brembos should – it's like tossing an anchor overboard.
The rear, however, requires an extremely high effort with very little reward.
The ST3 uses the three-valve (two intake and one exhaust) Desmotre version of the 992 cc traditional Ducati V-twin layout and churns out just over 100 horsepower – more than sufficient.
This Duck comes with seriously long legs as 100 km/h equates to 3500 r.p.m. in sixth gear – making for effortlessly relaxed highway cruising, and the litre power means you'll rarely need to grab a downshift to pass on two-lane roads.
Thankfully, the refined ST3 has a "wet" clutch, which is much quieter than the bucket-of-rocks dry unit found on the hypersport models.
Overall, the ST3 offers a very high level of mechanical refinement.
The fuel injection is smooth and glitch free, all controls are smooth and progressive, and the dual mufflers allow just enough of the rich, Ducati staccato to escape, enhancing the total experience.
The sexy bodywork gives much more wind and weather protection than you'd expect and the high and wide windscreen provides a huge still air pocket, adding to rider comfort over long distances.
Even though the bars are mounted above the triple clamp, it's a long reach (even for me) and the riding position has a decidedly sporting tilt with a fair bit of weight squarely on the wrists.
The seat itself is quite comfy and entirely suitable for long days.
The comprehensive instrument panel boasts a computer information centre displaying data such as average fuel consumption, consumption right now, single tripmeter, total odometer and several other functions with indecipherable displays.
At the bottom left is a surprisingly accurate fuel gauge, although I have my doubts about the calibration on the speedo. (An optimistic Italian speedo? No way!)
Seriously annoying is the typical Ducati trait of the tripmeter reverting to the total kilometres reading every time you fire up the engine.
Why must we cycle through all the functions (difficult with gloves on) to get to the tripmeter after each stop?
Final drive is by chain, which is efficient but a total pain on a sport-touring bike.
Lubing and adjusting said chain should be a breeze as the Duck comes with a centrestand.
But the only grab handle is the passenger rail on top of the tail, which gives you virtually no leverage and is awkward to use.
Plus, the muffler on the left side is tucked in so tight to the swingarm that lubing the chain without lubing the muffler and swingarm is virtually impossible.
It would be nice to have a couple of pockets in the fairing for sunglasses, extra gloves, cellphone, etc.
The seat has a bit of storage space underneath, but to get at it, you must dismount then remove said seat to get at whatever you've stored there.
Hard bags are an option, but weren't installed on my test unit.
But as the Ducatisti faithful will tell you, "All these quirks are part of the mystique and charm of owning an exotic Italian motorcycle."
Every time you fire up a Ducati, you're reminded that this is a motorcycle built for riders.
The engine has a wonderful, free-spinning feel to it and the acceleration is strong, even when fully laden.
The inspired, confident handling shines through in your favourite twisties, and the incredible drives out of the corners while heeled way over bring a smile to your face.
It's why we ride.
Source: https://www.wheels.ca/car-reviews/2007-ducati-st3-483/
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