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WITH its new superbike engine on the verge of production, Ducati is now looking at shifting its current range-topping motor into the ST4 sports tourer.
Expect this engine to give the ST-4 extra poke
Insiders claim the firm is preparing a version of the ST4 using the engine from the 996 superbike for a launch late this year.
This will coincide with rumoured plans to put the all-new 999cc engine into the 996. The 999cc engine has been developed for the 996\'s successor, but it now looks likely to be fitted to the current bike to improve its race performances against Honda\'s SP-1.
The new sports tourer is said to be going under the name \"STS\" at the factory - a combination of ST4 and SPS. The high state of tune and extra capacity of the fuel-injected motor means the bike should make around 120bhp, compared to the 105bhp of the current 916cc ST4.
That should help it compete with rival sports tourers such as Aprilia\'s forthcoming ST1000. The bike, along with the ST2 and ST4, is also expected to have revised styling and tweaks to the suspension and brakes.
Ducati\'s engine-swopping plans don\'t stop at the STS. Also scheduled for launch at the Munich Show in September is a new range of Monsters - which will also inherit the firm\'s water-cooled, four-valves-per-cylinder superbike motors to replace the ageing air-cooled units of the current bikes.
However, the future of Ducati\'s most long-awaited model is still unclear. The 999 superbike, which will replace the 996, could be delayed - amid rumours that top management haven\'t approved the styling.
