3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

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VINTAGEPARTS MARCH8,2017

Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadro
EngineOverSquareDesignandHuge
Power
BYPAULCROWE

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3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

DetailshavejustbeenreleasedfortheallnewDucati1199PanigaleSuperquadroengine,areal
overachieveramong2cylinderengines,theLtwinproduces195hp@10,750rpmand98.1lbft
@9,000rpm!Therearealotoftechnicaldetails,someofwhichIvehighlightedatthestart,but
thisreallyisanallnewenginewithenormouspowerforatwinandlotsofchangessuretointerest
theDucatifolks,andeveryoneelse,forthatmatter.Thebuiltindecompressorisprettycool,the
bore/strokeratioisextremeandthepoweroutputisveryimpressive.Checkitout.

Quickoverview:

Boreandstrokeare112mmx60.8mmforaborestrokeratioof1.84:1,anultrashort
strokeoversquareconfiguration.
Thecylindershavebeenrotatedbackwardsaroundthecrankcasesby6,thefrontcylinder
is21fromhorizontalsotheengineis32mmfurtherforwardsforimprovedfront/rearweight
distribution
separatenikasilcoatedaluminiumwetlinersinsertedintothetopsofthecrankcase
aperturesenablesattachmentofthecylinderheaddirectlytothecrankcase
shellmainbearingslikethoseontheDesmosedici
Intakevalvesincreasedfrom43.5to46.8mmandexhaustvalvesfrom34.5to38.2mm.
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3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

ovalthrottlebodydimensionsincreasedfromanequivalentdiameterof63.9to67.5mm
desmodrivebeltsreplacedwithacombinedchainandgeardrivearrangement
Ontheendofeachexhaustcamdrivegearisacentrifugalflyweightwhichretractsat
speedsbelowtickovertorotateaprotrusionfromtheconcentricsectionofthecam,
creatingsufficientinletvalvelifttoactasadecompressor.ThisenablestheSuperquadro
enginetobestartedeasilywithoutusingalargerbatteryandstartermotor.Whentheengine
startsandthecamshaftsbegintorotateattickoverspeed,thecentrifugalflyweightflicksout,
retractingtheprotrusionbackintothecamandallowingcompletevalveclosureforfull
compression.
wetslipperclutch

Morefromthepressreleaseandmoreimagesbelow:

ThemostextremebenchmarkeverTheinnovativeSuperquadroengine,socalledbecauseofits
massivelyoversquareboreandstrokeratio,hasincreasedpowertoanabsoluteproductiontwin
cylindermilestoneof195hpandtorqueto98.1lbft(13.5kgm)withuserfriendlyRidingModesthat
deliverthatpowerappropriatetotheridersstyleandenvironment.Itsconstructionhasenableda

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3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

radicalreductioninoverallvehicleweightand,furtheridentifyingDucatisconstantpursuitof
performanceperfection,majorserviceshavebeenextendedto24,000km(15,000miles).

Withtheenginedesignedtobeafullystressedmemberofthechassis,itsarchitecturehasbeen
completelyrecalculatedtoprovidethebestpossiblevehicleconstructionforlayout,weight
distributionandstrength.Thecylinders,whichremainat90toeachother,havebeenrotated
backwardsaroundthecrankcasesbyafurther6,untilthefrontcylinderis21fromhorizontal.
Thishasenabledtheenginetobepositioned32mmfurtherforwardsforimprovedfront/rear
weightdistributioninadditiontoperfectlypositioningthecylinderheadattachmentpointsforthe
1199Panigalesmonocoqueframe.

Thecrankcases,whicharevacuumdiecastusingVacuraltechnologytoensureoptimalweight
saving,consistentwallthicknessandincreasedstrength,alsoincorporateintheirformtheouter
waterjacketofthecylinder,eliminatingthejointingfacethatusedtoexistatthebaseofthe
cylinders.Instead,theSuperquadrohasseparatenikasilcoatedaluminiumwetlinersinserted
intothetopsofthecrankcaseapertures.Thisdesignenablessecurefixingofthecylinderhead
directlytothecrankcase,improvedsealingandenhancedheatdissipationfromthethincylinder
linersdirectlyintothesurroundingcoolant.

Theprimarydrivecasing,clutchcasingandoutercover,sumpandcamcoversareallcastin
magnesiumalloy,ensuringalightweightenginedespiteitsincreasedstrengthasanintegralpartof
thechassis.

Inadditiontocylinderposition,thecrankcasesnowuseshellmainbearingsforthecrankshaft,
previouslyonlyusedbyDucationtheDesmosediciRRengine.Removingtherollerbearingshas
enabledanincreaseindiameterofthecrankjournalsforenhancedrigidityandanincreasethe
crankcasesectionaroundthemainbearingareaforimprovedstrengthinlinewiththe
Superquadrosextremepoweroutput.Theshellbearingsareforcefedoilfrominternaldrillings
withinthemainbearingpillarstokeepthenewcrankshaftwelllubricatedandisquicklyscavenged
backintothesumpwiththeintroductionofanewDucatifeature,ahighlyefficientMotoGPstyle
vacuumpump.

Thepumpisdrivenbythemainoilpumpshaftandeffectivelymaintainsconstantvacuuminthe
crankcaseareabelowthepistons,reducingatmosphericresistanceduringthedownstrokeofthe
pistonandcontrollingtheinternalbreathingoftheengine.

Incalculatingtheoptimumconfigurationtoachievethenextbigstepforwardinpoweroutputfor
theLtwinengine,DucatiandDucatiCorseengineersincreasedenginespeedandenhanced
breathabilitywiththeincredibleboreandstrokeof112mmx60.8mm.Theintensestudyofpower
andridabilityresultedinanoutputof195hp@10,750rpmand98.1lbft(13.5kgm)@9,000rpm.
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3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

Thenewboreandstrokeratioof1.84:1effectivelyincreasesrpmwiththeultrashortstrokeofthe
crankshaftandincreasesthecylinderareatoenableincreasedvalvesdiameters.Inletvalveshave
increasedfrom43.5to46.8mmandexhaustvalvesfrom34.5to38.2mm.

Withsuchlargeinletvalvesoperatingathigherrpm,theintenseinertialforceshavebeen
controlledbyusingtitaniuminsteadofsteel,asolutiononlypreviouslyusedonfullRmodels.The
newvalvesareactuatedbyracingderivedrockerarms,superfinishedforreducedfrictionand
fatigueandthencoatedinpolymericlikecarbon(PLC),aprocessoriginallydevelopedforthe
aerospaceindustry.

Ducati1199Panigalepistonsandcrankshaft

TheracederivedSuperquadropistonshaveadistinctivedoubleribbedundercrowntoachieve
highstrengthandreducedfrictionbyusingminimalpistonwallsurfacearea.Usingtechnology
developedbyDucatiCorse,thedesignenablesreliableoperationofthe112mmdiameterpistons
whenperformingathighrpm.

Theimprovedvolumetricefficiencyoftheincreasedinletvalvediametersisfurthercapitalisedon
byincreasingtheovalthrottlebodydimensionsfromanequivalentdiameterof63.9toamassive
andhighflowing67.5mm.TheRidebyWirethrottlebodiesfeedairacrosstwininjectorsper
cylinder,onepositionedbelowthebutterflyforenhancedflexibilityandoneaboveforoutright
power.

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Withsuchenhancedbreathing,thechallengefortheSuperquadrosDesignEngineerswasto
programperformanceoptimisedfuelmappingforasmoothercycletocycleengineoperation,
withoutcompromisingemissions.Toachievethis,Ducatiintroducedasecondaryairsystemthat
completestheoxidizationofunburnedhydrocarbonsandeffectivelyreducesHCandCOlevels.
ThesystemisactivatedwhentheengineECUrecognisesspecificconditionsintheengines
operationviathelambdaandthrottleopeningsensors.Itthenopensavalveenablingaflowof
cleanairfromthemainairboxtoareedvalvesituatedineachcylinderhead,whichenablesone
wayflowintoanairgalleryexitingintotheexhaustportclosetotheexhaustvalve.Enteringthe
hottestpointoftheexhaustgasses,thefreshchargeofairenhancestheburnenvironment,
eliminatinganyunburnedfuelthatescapesduringtheexhaustcycleundercertainconditions.

Withsuchanextremeengine,neverbeforehasDucatisuniqueDesmodromicsystembeenso
vitallyimportant.WiththehighenginespeedsatwhichtheSuperquadrooperatescombinedwith
suchlargevalves,itwouldbeimpossibleforthevalvesrockerarmtofollowthesteepclosure
profileofthecamlobeusingnormalvalveclosuresprings.TheDesmosystemactuatesvalve
closuremechanicallywiththesamemethodandaccuracyasitopens,enablingsteepcamprofiles,
radicalcamtimings,largevalvesandhighoperatingspeeds.Thissystemisusedoneverysingle
DucatimotorcycleandisconstantlyprovenonDucatiCorsesWorldSuperbikesandDesmosedici
MotoGPbikes.

Ducati1199Panigalechainandgeardesmodrive

ControllingsuchlargevalveswiththepreciseDesmodromicsystemalsoledengineerstoreplace
theoriginalbeltdriveconcept,usedsincetheintroductionoftheDucatiPantahin1979,witha

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3/8/2017 Ducati1199PanigaleSuperquadroEngineOverSquareDesignandHugePower

combinedchainandgeardrivearrangement.Theconventionalbushtypechainrunsfromthe
crankshafttothecylinderheadwhereasinglesprocketpositionedbetweeninletandexhaust
camshafts,isattachedbacktobacktoagearwheelmountedonitsownshort,dedicatedshaft.
Theattachedgearmeshesdirectlywithgearsontheendsofboththeinletandexhaustcamshafts,
whicharealsodesignedwith+/positionadjustmentforultraprecisecamcalibration.Thecam
chain,therefore,provideshighlyefficientpointtopointdriverouteand,tensionedautomatically,
providescontinuousreliabilityandfurtherreducingthecostofroutinemaintenance.

Ontheendofeachexhaustcamdrivegearisacentrifugalflyweightwhichretractsatspeeds
belowtickovertorotateaprotrusionfromtheconcentricsectionofthecam,thuscreating
sufficientinletvalvelifttoactasadecompressor.ThisingeniousdeviceenablestheSuperquadro
enginetobestartedeasilywithoutusingalargerbatteryandstartermotor,whichhasreduced
overallvehicleweightbyapproximately3.3kg(7.3lb).

Whentheenginestartsandthecamshaftsbegintorotateattickoverspeed,thecentrifugal
flyweightflicksout,retractingtheprotrusionbackintothecamandallowingcompletevalve
closureforfullcompression.Thisinnovativefeaturefurtherunderlinesthelengthstowhich
designersandengineershaveworkedtogetherinthesinglemindedpursuitofweightsaving.

Ducatisengineersalsocapitalisedontheopportunityoftheblankcanvasprojecttoincrease
dimensionbetweenthecentresofthesixspeedgearboxshafts,enablinglargerdiameter,stronger
gearstotransmittheenhancedpoweroutput.NewforatopoftherangeDucatiSuperbikeisa
wet,oilbathclutch.BasedverycloselyonthedesignoftheMultistradaandDiavelcomponents,
theclutchassemblyfeaturesaslipperfunctionandaprogressiveselfservomechanismthat
compressesthefrictionplateswhenunderdrivefromtheengine.Whileenhancingfrictional
efficiency,thisalsoresultsinariderfriendlylightclutchleverfeelatthehandlebar.Conversely,
whenthedriveforceisreversed(overrun),themechanismreducespressureonthefrictionplates,
enablingatrueracingslipperaction,reducingthedestabilizingeffectoftherearendunder
aggressivedownshiftingandprovideamuchsmootherfeelingwhenclosingthethrottleordown
shiftingundernormalridingconditions.

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POSTEDONOCTOBER10,2011
FILEDUNDER:ENGINES,MOTORCYCLEBUSINESS

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