Ducati India will be launching the 959 Panigale Corse variant in our market soon. The track-focused supersport motorcycle is expected to have an ex-showroom, India, price of around Rs 16 lakh, with a booking amount of Rs 2 lakh. The standard 959 Panigale (in red colour) retails for Rs 14.53 lakh (ex-showroom, India).
The 959 Panigale Corse was first unveiled at the Ducati World Premiere back in November 2017. The highlight feature on this middleweight supersport motorcycle is its suspension, which comprises a fully-adjustable Ohlins NI30 43mm fork and a TTX36 monoshock and an adjustable Ohlins steering damper.
Helping reduce the overall weight by 2.26kg is the new Akrapovič exhaust and a lithium-ion battery. And of course, like the 848 Corse models before it, the 959 Corse arrives with a special racing red and white colour scheme that adds to its visual appeal. Power figures remain unchanged for the Corse, and it continues to make 150hp at 10,500rpm and 102Nm of torque at 9,000rpm from its 955cc engine.
A few dealers have hinted at a price tag of around Rs 1.5 lakh more than the standard bike which equates to around Rs 16 lakh ex-showroom. Considering the suspension, exhaust and battery tech on offer, this is a fair increment.
In terms of displacement, the bike doesn’t have any direct competitors. However, the premium pricing, positions it directly against full-blown and much more powerful litre-bikes like the Kawasaki Ninja ZX-10R (Rs 12.80 lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi) and the Honda CBR1000RR (Rs 16.79 lakh, ex-showroom, Delhi).
Ved Janve
Vishal Venugopal
Dinshaw Magol
