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Ducati Monster 700cc Sept '07 (57)
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NEW MOTORBIKE REVIEW - DUCATI MONSTER 695

MONSTERS INC

* What’s It All About?
Inflation is a fact of life. It’s inescapable if you’re a biker too, with subsequent generations of bikes often becoming bigger, weightier and, consequently, more powerful. Ducati’s Monster is a case in point. The entry-level version started out life as a 600cc bike, swelled to 620 and is now a hefty 695cc. But is bigger necessarily better or is it just another way of extracting more money from your savings?

Ducati has some form here. Their 851 superbike needed to compete with the best Japan had to offer and metamorphosed into the 888, the 916 becoming the 999. The Ducati Monster hasn’t abandoned its roots quite so drastically as some of the bigger Dukes if only because the formula is a pretty basic one – it’s an unfaired, relatively unsophisticated two-valve per cylinder air-cooled twin that looks good and promises a fun time.

* What Does It Cost?
Ducati have a chi-chi reputation helped by their dribblingly delicious exotic superbikes and bolstered by a pedigree of track success. The Ducati Monster plays on this a little, although £4,995 doesn’t seem unreasonable for a brand new slice of Italian exotica residing in your garage. That’s only £600 dearer than something Japanese but broadly equivalent, such as a Suzuki SV650. Insurance is rated at NU12.

* How Does It Handle?
The Ducati Monster 695 is even easier to ride than the 620cc bike thanks to 16 per cent more torque that chimes in a tad lower down the rev-range. Long-legged riders may well find the 770mm seat height a little restrictive but it just means adopting a different riding stance to that of a typical sports bike. The wide, flat bars and the canted forward seat tuck your chest down towards the tank in such a way that cruising at 80mph is no problem, this sort of speed even giving a respectable 45mpg fuel return without too much wind blast. Sixth gear is super relaxed with a gnat’s less than 5,000rpm showing on the clock at this speed.

The Ducati Monster has always been a wheelie machine par excellence and you’ll need to be a little careful when cracking open the throttle not to stand the thing on its back Bridgestone BT56. Power has crept up from 56 to 65bhp in the engine enlarging process and this gives a useful turn of acceleration up to around 100mph when aerodynamics take over. The handling is decent, if a little ragged at the envelope when the low-mounted exhausts come into play.

* Verdict
In bringing the charisma of the Ducati brand to riders with less than £5k to throw at a bike, the Italian company must be commended. The Monster might not hang onto the tail of a well piloted Japanese bike but when it looks and feels this good, who’s counting? It makes a great bike for sunny days when you can parade around town or just go for a country-road blast for the fun of it. As long as you don’t take it too seriously and enjoy it for what it is, it’s churlish to find serious fault with the Ducati Monster 695.
Submitted by
UKBikerBoy on 04/06/2009
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Ducati Monster 700cc Apr '08 (08)
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I have just bought a Ducati Monster 696. What an awesome bike. It's the first big bike I have had and I was smiling all the way home and a long time afterwards. It's so comfy I could ride it all day. The handling is fantastic. I am a 28 inch leg and I have had it lowered but thats no problem. My other half rode it and he was impressed and he has bee riding bikes for roughly 20 yrs. I would definetly reccommend it for a first big bike and the service I have had from the Ducati dealer has been fantastic. It not only loks great but sounds great with that loud rumble of the V engine. It certainly turned a few heads. The only downside is that it doesn't have a petrol gauge as this I think should be a must because of the way it rides you will want to keep on riding and not worry about how much petrol you've got left !!










Submitted by
amethyst in Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire on 17/11/2008
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Ducati Monster 750cc Apr '00 (W)
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Lovely bike ! Very light and easy to handle, extremely economical (60+mpg). Only bug bear is no room for a passenger and having to fit new cam belts every 2-3years (approx £75).
Bought mine with 5k miles, use when weather is too foul for classics but done another 8k in 4 years. No niggles or problems - so I love it to bits.
Submitted by
Sidecar47 in Nuneaton, Leicestershire on 20/01/2008
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Ducati Monster 904cc 95/96 (N)
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I have spent a small fortune on servicing and it always seems that something needs repairing or replacing. It hates the cold, stutters & chugs if you let the revs fall too low in traffic. Gets very uncomfortable on the bum after 50 miles and the dry clutch sounds like a galvanised bucket full of spanners rolling down some concrete steps.....but boy do I love this bike.......


Its small & light and it's handling is superb, the Brembo brakes are a bit harsh but they stop the bike fast from any speed. its a great town & country bike but suffers a bit on motorways because of the upright riding position and wide bars.


Its worth owning one of these just for the pleasure of the mid range grunt that the ledgendary Desmo v twin puts out. and although this older model is well dated now it still looks great and you can pick one up for a reasonable price and if your an half decent rider you will be able to surprise some of the big jap sports bikes....at least for a while.


Parts are expensive but hey its a Duc....magic!
Submitted by
paulo6000 in St. Helens, Merseyside on 09/12/2007
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Ducati Monster 900cc 94/95 (M)
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Ask me 3 years ago, and I would have given it a 10. Today it's an 8 because I've experienced better. After years of in-line 4s, the M9 was my first big 4-stroke twin - almost like a second chance at a first love.. sob.. BIG low-end torque, wheelies, stoppies, predictable handling - and chicks dig it's sexy lines and euro appeal (or maybe it was just me - ha ha) I practically slaughtered the beast every time I rode it and it refused to succomb to my punishment - can somebody say bullet-proof ? On the flip side - it was just a tad short for my 6 foot frame, Low Tech by today's standards. Reason for selling: not enough space in the garage to keep the M9 and my new steed - an Aprilia Caponord
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 14/06/2004
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Ducati Monster 900cc 95/96 (N)
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Handles beautifully, I've had no maintenance troubles other than carburettors clogging because I did'nt ride it enough. With a K&N air-flter, Dyno-jet stage II kit and 2 Art-Pro carbon pipes the engines sounds and runs beautifully up to the mid-rpms, minimal top rpm pull, but great torque at low-mid rpms. Sound has too be heard to be believed :) Clutch can be snatchy at times and heavy relative to a Jap bike. Payoff is the precision and feel. Another pain is the wide turning circle :(< >Build-quality is pretty OK but not great, many details could be better executed but in the important things like welding, material quality and design the bike shines. Bike is easy to work on too!!< >Desmo valve complexity is over-rated .. just change the belts every 20-30K Kms and have the valves checked once a year to make sure they are OK. Once the bike is run in the valves pretty much hold their spec and all mechanics have told me that Duc used top-quality internal engine components.< > All in all a great run-about bike with load of charisma
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 14/04/2002
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Ducati Monster 900cc 94/95 (M)
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First Ducati after years of big Jap bikes, this has to be the best bike I have ever owned. Loud, punchy and a great looker. Not a great lover of the cold though
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 01/12/2001
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Ducati Monster 600cc 96/97 (P)
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For an entry level bike around town what better than the throb of this twin for turning heads. The power though is very on/off and the clutch bites a bit too hard.Yellow looks awesome for a classy Duke
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 01/12/2001
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Ducati Monster 600cc Sept '05 (55)
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This is my first bike. I spent ages looking at all the Jap look alikes but the Duke stood out a mile. It has style, good handling, loads of grunt, torque and gives you massive smile factor every time you throw your leg over and go for a blast. OK, its not the fastest but when it looks/sounds as good as it does who cares. Plus, if you get one just see how hard it is to stop smiling when you tell a non believer you ride a Ducati !!!!!
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 30/07/2005
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Ducati Monster 600cc Sept '02 (52)
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My first bike and universally acknowledged by my friends to be a great choice. Easy to ride, great to look at, loads of torque and power at the bottom end, and it's cheap! I have the Dark model which means I lose a brake disc (not a problem, I have discovered) and have a plastic tank (which looks great, although you can't attach a magnetic tank bag to it) but it is
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UKBike Archive in Hassocks, West Sussex on 10/05/2002
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