Ducati could be considering a naked version of its V4 Panigale along the lines of this sexy custom V4 Penta by italian design company Officine GP Design.
Only nine of these V4 Penta models will be made and they start at an eye-watering €100,000 (about $A157,000, $US114,500, £87,300).
This ridiculous promo video seems to show that its purpose in life is to be a thing of beauty to be displayed by the pool, rather than actually ridden!
However, Ducati has a history of collaborating with design houses and other institutions to design custom motorcycles that end up being the inspiration for production models.
So there is every chance that the V4 could shed its fairing and become a naked model the Hypermotard or the axed Streetfighter model.
V4 Penta
However, designer Luca Pozzato has been a little too adventurous for this to translate faithfully into a production model.
For a start, it features expensive and heavy girder forks. Ducati is unlikely to follow suit.
Girder forks have been around for a while and were famously used in the Kiwi-designed Britten V1000 and Ariel Ace.
They have also featured in many recent custom and electric motorcycles, including the expensive Curtiss Zeus electric bikes.
The Penta V4 F-Girder forks were made in collaboration with FG Racing and feature a “parallelogram mode of operation”.
Luca has also added plenty of expensive bronze powder coating and standard equipment:
- Jonich SX spoked wheels which cost about €1400 (about $A2200) per wheel;
- Hand-stitched leather seat by exclusive leatherwoods company Foglizzo;
- Fuel tank, fuel cap, levers and footrests provided by official Ducati partner Rizoma; and
- Premium Ohlins suspension.
Penta V4 bike will come with a special gift box and there will be a range of V4 Penta-branded accessories available only for owners.