Current MTS owner, considering moving to HS

Hello all, Brad here. I currently own a 2013 MTS 1200S with about 5000 miles on it and I have to say I'm not impressed. It handles well enough, is plenty fast but I'm not anywhere close to as in love with this bike as I was with my 999 that I had to sell when I moved to the flat lands of Florida for work (now live in NJ). The MTS is too tall, too heavy and maintenance is way too expensive for me to gush over it like everyone else on the planet seems to (although it seems like I may have found a few more people who can look at something more objectively here). I get that it can do highway well and have ridden it on the highway quite a bit but I really feel like it's a huge waste of the bike, I feel like I'd rather do it on something that is easier on the wallet maintenance and tire wise, which is another reason I'm not a huge fan of the Multi. The fuel sensor issue is unacceptable to me for the price tag of this bike. While I can handle most maintenance on an MX bike or Japanese bike, I have no desire to open up the Multi for a few reasons. Number one is I don't feel I should be monkeying around in the motor of an almost $20k bike.

I love supermoto and everything about it. I know the Hypermotard is basically just styled to be a supermoto but I think it still captures the spirit nicely. The Hyperstrada seems like a great mix of that spirit with comfort. Have any of you gone from an MTS to a Hyperstrada? Or have thoughts, observations, or opinions you care to share? Would a move from the Multi to the HyperS be about the same as far as cost of ownership is in the maintenance department, essentially ruling out the Hyper too?

Right now I'm considering a wide swathe of options to replace my Multi with ranging from a Hyperstrada, to an SV650S or a VFR800 (6th gen, yes, I know boo VTEC). I want something I can ride without any worry about service costs and is comfortable (or can be made comfortable with some easy mods) for several hours in the saddle with breaks every 100ish miles. I have a few weekend/3 day plus trips planned for 2016 so 400 mile days consecutively are in the near future.

Servicing the hypers is straightforward -you will still have the 18,000 mile desmo valve adjust. That's not something I feel confident doing myself.

From what I hear, servicing the honda v4 valves is no piece of cake - I'd check it out.

The strada/motard is a raw bike compared to the MTS - try and get a test ride.

3 bikes that I'd look at if i was in the market are the fj-07, fj-09, and the new ktm 690 duke. All small and light .

The duke is truly minimalist elegance. A big single is an interesting proposition and not everyones cup of tea. I test rode one a couple of years ago and it was too viby for me - the new one has a second counterbalancer and a broader powerband. It weighs between 300-350lbs nad pumps out about 70hp with all the mod cons (abs etc). If I could have 2 bikes, this would be 1. The versatility of the strada wins out for me though - still small, fairly light, and I like long trips.

I've never been a fan of the Dukes aside from the 1290, but 1290 is not the direction I want to go. Maybe the GT a few years down the road if I can't get a handle on my moto ADD. I've got a 690 SMC, love that bike but the Duke doesn't catch my eye.

I figured it probably still had the desmo valve service, I'll have to read about it more but I think that's going to rule it out for me at least for now. I hear the VFR valve service can be a bit pricey and is about the same interval (16k I believe?). So torn, I feel like I just keep going in circles. Some days I wish I could design my own bike to suit my needs but I know that's never going to happen and motorcycles are about compromise.

I have both a 14 Multi and a 14 Hyper. Maintenance wise they are about the same. Valves on the Multi at 15K and on the Hyper at 18K. Oil, Tires, all the rest is the same noodle.

They Hyper is much lighter but they are both about the same seat height. You can get low seats for both of them.

The Multi has much better low end torque and still runs great when the RRRRs come up. The Hyper needs a few more RPM to feel happy.

StraydogEOD said:

I've never been a fan of the Dukes aside from the 1290, but 1290 is not the direction I want to go. Maybe the GT a few years down the road if I can't get a handle on my moto ADD. I've got a 690 SMC, love that bike but the Duke doesn't catch my eye.

I figured it probably still had the desmo valve service, I'll have to read about it more but I think that's going to rule it out for me at least for now. I hear the VFR valve service can be a bit pricey and is about the same interval (16k I believe?). So torn, I feel like I just keep going in circles. Some days I wish I could design my own bike to suit my needs but I know that's never going to happen and motorcycles are about compromise.

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Maybe test a yamaha fj-09 - it really looks like a nice machine.

The 690 smc sound pretty great.

I have been reading up on those FZ09s, that triple sounds like an awesome motor. As far as the FJ, after owning this Multi and spending a lot of time researching them, I don't think "adventure" styled bikes are my thing. I don't like the aesthetics on the majority of them for one and the height is an annoyance I'd rather avoid if possible for two. If they were under 400 lbs than the height wouldn't be nearly as much of an issue to me.


The 690 SMC is the most fun I've had on a street legal motorcycle period, I love that bike. It's also the bike that's so far that has had the longest stay in my garage despite my motorcycle ADD, I don't think I'll ever be able let it go.

I had a multi 1200 and now a hyper.

Multi Pros / Cons
+ Electronic suspension is awesome
+ Lots of power, probably more than I needed, especially in sport mode
+ More comfortable seat
- Heavy and wide between the legs
- Crappy rear brake

Hyper Pros:
+ Smaller, lighter, more narrow, nimble
+ Front Brakes not as confidence inspiring
- Suspension is not adjustable in the front and all-around not that great
- With 100 HP, sometimes I wish I had a little more

My opinion is that, when compared to eachother, the Multi is better suited for sport touring and the hyper is better for banging around the city and canyons.

thehitman said:

I had a multi 1200 and now a hyper.

Multi Pros / Cons
+ Electronic suspension is awesome
+ Lots of power, probably more than I needed, especially in sport mode
+ More comfortable seat
- Heavy and wide between the legs
- Crappy rear brake

Hyper Pros:
+ Smaller, lighter, more narrow, nimble
+ Front Brakes not as confidence inspiring
- Suspension is not adjustable in the front and all-around not that great
- With 100 HP, sometimes I wish I had a little more

My opinion is that, when compared to eachother, the Multi is better suited for sport touring and the hyper is better for banging around the city and canyons.

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Can't tell if you're referring to the hypermotards or the hyperstradas. I use my strada almost exclusively for 3 to 5 day camping rides and it's well up to the task of long distance touring. Fully loaded it still provides thrills and chills with plenty of meaty mid-range for passing on mountain backroads.

I want to do some multiple day rides in 2016, only have one or two more than a weekend trips planned at the moment. For around town though I have my 690 so it sounds like the Hyperstrada would be a lot of overlap as well as still have the maintenance and costs that are a big part of the reason I want to unload the Multi.

StraydogEOD said:

I want to do some multiple day rides in 2016, only have one or two more than a weekend trips planned at the moment. For around town though I have my 690 so it sounds like the Hyperstrada would be a lot of overlap as well as still have the maintenance and costs that are a big part of the reason I want to unload the Multi.

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no costs than other bikes also, except the 30000km/18000 miles cam belt change

ferdi said:

no costs than other bikes also, except the 30000km/18000 miles cam belt change

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Everything I've been reading says that's about $1200. On top of that, the fuel sensor issue has me wondering what will happen after my warranty is up in May.

Your 690 SMC will be too much of an overlap with the HS. The HS probably better for longer rides and more power but for city riding, they're similar.

For multi-day touring where you're slabbing quite a bit, the HS is probably not the best tool for the job. Sure you can do it. Heck, i know a lot of people who tour on their crotch rocket.

straydogeod said:

everything i've been reading says that's about $1200. On top of that, the fuel sensor issue has me wondering what will happen after my warranty is up in may.

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$500 - 600

appliance821 said:

$500 - 600

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15000 mile service $$$ - Ducati.ms - The Ultimate Ducati Forum

In that link I see a lot more reports of 1000-1200 as well as have a buddy who used to own a Multi and was charged that for the service. I do see some in there claiming 600 but I'm thinking I'm going to have to travel pretty far to find a dealer that will do the service for that seeing as everything is f'n expensive near Philly/NYC.

Also, the built to fail fuel sensor has me concerned about continued coverage. I find putting a resistor across the sensor plug terminals to be an unacceptable solution to this problem personally. If this were a cheap, used Japanese bike like an SV650 I wouldn't care but it is not that.

StraydogEOD said:

15000 mile service $$$ - Ducati.ms - The Ultimate Ducati Forum

In that link I see a lot more reports of 1000-1200 as well as have a buddy who used to own a Multi and was charged that for the service. I do see some in there claiming 600 but I'm thinking I'm going to have to travel pretty far to find a dealer that will do the service for that seeing as everything is f'n expensive near Philly/NYC.

Also, the built to fail fuel sensor has me concerned about continued coverage. I find putting a resistor across the sensor plug terminals to be an unacceptable solution to this problem personally. If this were a cheap, used Japanese bike like an SV650 I wouldn't care but it is not that.

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boy, buy what you want. you must not argue against a Ducati in a Ducatiforum.
if you will be happy with any other bikle where servicecosts are cheaper, in your opinion, go this way. nobody is forced to drive a MS oder HS or any other Duc if he is not satisfied with its quality.

If I came across as coming to a Ducati based forum to talk trash on the brand, that wasn't my intention, my apologies.

I really want to love this bike and the brand as a whole, the performance is incredible. I'm having trouble paying the overall/long term price of admission to play is my issue.

In the end, as the ole adage goes "if it has **** or a motor it's eventually going to give you problems".

StraydogEOD said:

If I came across as coming to a Ducati based forum to talk trash on the brand, that wasn't my intention, my apologies.

I really want to love this bike and the brand as a whole, the performance is incredible. I'm having trouble paying the overall/long term price of admission to play is my issue.

In the end, as the ole adage goes "if it has **** or a motor it's eventually going to give you problems".

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your last sentence is definitly right. and maybe italian women make more problems than japanese ones. but, they are prettier and make more fun .
nothing is free of charge in life.

in my opinion, beside some troubles a Duc will give you eventually more than a japanese one, the servicecosts every 30000km (for me this is about every 4 years), should not be releavant to keep it or not.

forget the fuel sensor - i had bikes for 30 years without fuelsensors, just with a fuel switch .