1999 Ducati 916 Strada

"Is the 916 sexy? Like no inanimate object has any right to be. It's cliché-ridden, but it's Italian, red, sculpted from sheer speed and Da Vinci nudes, demanding, expensive, sometimes cantankerous and it wears the soporific aphrodisiac of success effortlessly." – Bike magazine.

Although Ducati's water-cooled 8-valve v-twin had been around in its original 851 and 888 incarnations for six years and had already won three World Superbike (Riders') Championships, it was the arrival of the iconic 916 in 1994 that really captured the public's imagination. Styled by Massimo Tamburini, the 916 and its subsequent evolutions established Ducati as one of the world's foremost brand names. Universally recognised as icons of automotive art, Ducati motorcycles have been exhibited in some of the world's foremost museums, including the Guggenheim in New York and the Museum of Modern Art in San Francisco.

In developing the original 851, engineer Massimo Bordi created one of the finest motorcycle power plants ever. By the mid-1980s, Ducati's existing air-cooled 4-valve twins were approaching the end of the development, so Bordi started with a clean sheet in creating their water-cooled, 8-valve, fuel-injected successor. Ducati's trademark desmodromic valve actuation system, which closes the valves mechanically rather than relying on springs, was retained, as was the 90-degree angle between the cylinders. Wrapped around this outstanding engine was a frame consisting of an intricate trellis of straight tubes, whose design would go on to be standardised throughout the Ducati range. The integration of all these elements was the key to the 916's success; that and a brilliant on-road performance that eclipsed just about everything else around at the time. The Ducati 916 won the World Superbike Championship in its 1994 debut season and its evolutions three times after that. Enough said.

This 916 was acquired by the private vendor in 2015. A keen Ducati enthusiast and collector, our vendor intended to restore the machine to concours condition after his retirement, only for ill heath to scupper the project. According to our vendor, the machine was purchased locally, from an excellent Ducati-trained mechanic.

The Ducati is offered from the owner's private collection, all of which were ridden for no more than 2 miles following acquisition and then stored within his house on static display. The current odometer reading is 10,416 miles (at the time of cataloguing/photography).

Following a period of inactivity, this motorcycle will require re-commissioning and/or restoration to a greater or lesser extent and thus is sold strictly as viewed. Prospective purchasers must satisfy themselves with regard to this motorcycle's history, originality, authenticity, mechanical condition and completeness (or otherwise) prior to bidding.

The machine displays a tax disc that expired on 30th September 2010 and comes with the following documents: a current V5C Registration Certificate; a copy of the previous owner's V5C; a quantity of service invoices and expired MoTs; and a Ducati owner's manual and warranty booklet. It should be noted that the V5C records the frame number as 'ZDM916SWB-012879' whereas the actual number is 'ZDM916S*012879*', and omits the 'ZDM916W4' engine prefix.
Offered with key