DUCATI 900 SUPER SPORT DESMO TOKYO
La 900 SS nait en 1975, pour épauler la 750 SS dans la gamme sportive Ducati. Elle reste au catalogue jusqu'à fin 1982. Elle reprend le moteur de la 860 GT, sa distribution par couple conique et ses carters carrés caractéristiques. La boîte de vitesses est également issue de la même machine. Contrairement à ce qu'il se fait actuellement, le sélecteur se trouve au pied droit, tandis que la pédale de frein arrière a migré à gauche. Mais cette disposition posait un problème de taille. Lors du démarrage, si le kick descendait trop bas, il enclenchait la première vitesse, faisant avancer la moto. La selle était monoplace, mais une option permettait d'avoir un modèle permettant de loger un éventuel passager. Le freinage est assuré par Brembo avec des disques percés de 280 mm à l'avant et 229 à l'arrière. La fourche et l'amortisseur arrière sont fournis par Marzocchi. En 1976, l'homologation dans certains pays oblige Ducati à revoir sa copie. Les commandes de sélection et frein arrière passent respectivement au pied droit et au pied gauche. Un carburateur de 32 mm est monté en série, mais un modèle de 40 mm est disponible en option avec des silencieux Conti. Le réservoir perd 2 litres de capacité.
En 1978, face à la demande de nombreux clients potentiels, la selle biplace est de série, la monoplace devient une option. Les jantes à rayon cèdent la place à des modèles à bâtons Campagnolo ou Speedline. La production de la 900 SS s'arrête à la fin de l'année 1982. Sa remplaçante ne sortira qu'en 1989.
----------------------------------------------
The Ducati SuperSport and SS are a series of air-cooled four stroke desmodromic 2-valve 90-degree V-twin motorcycles manufactured from 1988 onwards. A limited edition SuperSport called the SuperLight was sold in 1992. The name harked back to the round case 1973 Ducati 750 Super Sport, and the 1975 square case 750 and 900 Super Sport. The later one-word spelling 'SS' was only applied to the belt drive (Pantah) based models.
In 1975, two versions of the Super Sport were made available based on the 864 cc "square-case" 90-degree twin cylinder motor; the full 864 cc version coined the 900 and a sleeved down 750. 250 versions of each were produced but the 750 and 900 are virtually identical. The 1975 Super Sport continued to use the right-side gear shift despite the 1974 U.S. regulation that all bikes have the gear shifting on the left side of the engine. Despite this a handful of right side Super Sports have made it into the United States. Most of the subsequent changes made to the Super Sport model were to comply with global legislation. Quieter mufflers, relocated shifting and rear brake and new foot pegs. The biggest improvement was the redesign of the kick-starter. On the 1975 model the kick starter would rotate around and shift the transmission into first gear. If the bike was not on the center-stand the rider could potentially have a very unpleasant surprise. Because the price of the 750 Super Sport was very similar to 900, very few 750s were produced with the majority of them being shipped to Australia, Germany or staying in Italy for racing applications.
By 1978 the bike looked identical, but several significant improvements had made their way into the motor making them more reliable and solving problems with engine cranks breaking. The electronics also improved as well as some minor timing tweaks making the bike run more efficiently. Most notable was a majorly redesigned gear shifter that made the bike a lot easier for owners to live with the bike. Most 1978 900 Super Sports also came with a dual seat and lockable tool box. The solo seat was available as an option. The 1978 model bike is considered to be the finest iteration of the bevel drive square case Super Sports. The 1978 900 and 1979 750s were the last to retain close links with the Imola racers and the last to come with the "old fashioned" spoke wheels. it was also in 1978 that the Isle of Man TT Formula 1 race was won by a 900 Super Sport.
In 1979 the Super Sports were painted black with gold accents to appeal to the British market. Cast wheels replaced the Borrani alloy rims and a Mike Hailwood Replica was made available in very limited numbers painted in lavish green and red schemes. The new changes, specifically the black and gold paint and cast wheels were very successful at making an aging design look more modern. The 1980 model stayed essentially the same with no notable changes. Essentially, the Super Sport was being transitioned into the Mike Hailwood Replica.
Into the early 1980s the fuel tank became less angular and more rounded while the tail section was revised to look more modern with a duck-tail sweep. Side covers were integrated into the tail-section and swoopy paint lines tried to connect the design together. All in all, the early 80s Super Sports were somewhat uninspiring and were met with limited success. In 1982 the Super Sport was replaced, mostly in name only, by the S2.
The Ducati SuperSport and SS are a series of air-cooled four stroke desmodromic 2-valve 90-degree V-twin motorcycles manufactured from 1988 onwards. A limited edition SuperSport called the SuperLight was sold in 1992. The name harked back to the round case 1973 Ducati 750 Super Sport, and the 1975 square case 750 and 900 Super Sport. The later one-word spelling 'SS' was only applied to the belt drive (Pantah) based models.
In 1975, two versions of the Super Sport were made available based on the 864 cc "square-case" 90-degree twin cylinder motor; the full 864 cc version coined the 900 and a sleeved down 750. 250 versions of each were produced but the 750 and 900 are virtually identical. The 1975 Super Sport continued to use the right-side gear shift despite the 1974 U.S. regulation that all bikes have the gear shifting on the left side of the engine. Despite this a handful of right side Super Sports have made it into the United States. Most of the subsequent changes made to the Super Sport model were to comply with global legislation. Quieter mufflers, relocated shifting and rear brake and new foot pegs. The biggest improvement was the redesign of the kick-starter. On the 1975 model the kick starter would rotate around and shift the transmission into first gear. If the bike was not on the center-stand the rider could potentially have a very unpleasant surprise. Because the price of the 750 Super Sport was very similar to 900, very few 750s were produced with the majority of them being shipped to Australia, Germany or staying in Italy for racing applications.
By 1978 the bike looked identical, but several significant improvements had made their way into the motor making them more reliable and solving problems with engine cranks breaking. The electronics also improved as well as some minor timing tweaks making the bike run more efficiently. Most notable was a majorly redesigned gear shifter that made the bike a lot easier for owners to live with the bike. Most 1978 900 Super Sports also came with a dual seat and lockable tool box. The solo seat was available as an option. The 1978 model bike is considered to be the finest iteration of the bevel drive square case Super Sports. The 1978 900 and 1979 750s were the last to retain close links with the Imola racers and the last to come with the "old fashioned" spoke wheels. it was also in 1978 that the Isle of Man TT Formula 1 race was won by a 900 Super Sport.
In 1979 the Super Sports were painted black with gold accents to appeal to the British market. Cast wheels replaced the Borrani alloy rims and a Mike Hailwood Replica was made available in very limited numbers painted in lavish green and red schemes. The new changes, specifically the black and gold paint and cast wheels were very successful at making an aging design look more modern. The 1980 model stayed essentially the same with no notable changes. Essentially, the Super Sport was being transitioned into the Mike Hailwood Replica.
Into the early 1980s the fuel tank became less angular and more rounded while the tail section was revised to look more modern with a duck-tail sweep. Side covers were integrated into the tail-section and swoopy paint lines tried to connect the design together. All in all, the early 80s Super Sports were somewhat uninspiring and were met with limited success. In 1982 the Super Sport was replaced, mostly in name only, by the S2.