Ducati 848 Top Speed & Acceleration

The 848 does 0-60 mph in 3.20 seconds

The Ducati 848, along with bikes like the GSX-R750 and MV Agusta F3 800, occupies a unique niche in the sports bike world—a category that sits awkwardly between the 600cc Supersport and 1000cc Superbike classes.

For some, this class of motorcycle offers the best compromise between power and handling.

Motorcycles in this category are often as manageable as 600cc Supersport bikes but with enough power to compete with litre-class bikes.

Launched in 2008, a year after the Ducati 1098, the Ducati 848 was a direct replacement for the Ducati 749, featuring an extra 100cc, more power and torque, and a lighter overall package.

The engine marked a significant improvement over the Ducati 749 it replaced, a bike that many considered underpowered.

The 749, with a claimed 108 horsepower, competed fiercely in the 600cc Supersport class on both road and track but often fell short in straight-line speed compared to smaller-capacity four-cylinder machines.

The Ducati 848 addressed these issues with an all-new design that represented a substantial leap in performance.

Ducati 848 Dyno Curve

It wouldn’t be fair to call the Ducati 848 a “baby 1098,” though, much like the relationship between the Ducati 749 and 999, the 848 is essentially the same motorcycle as the Ducati 1098, with a few differences.

The main distinction lies in the smaller engine capacity and lower power output.

Despite being named the “848,” the engine actually displaces 849cc.

To achieve this smaller capacity compared to its bigger sister, the 848 features a narrower bore and shorter stroke, measuring 94mm x 61.2mm.

Claimed power and torque are significantly higher than the Ducati 749, with Ducati reporting 134 horsepower and 71.8 ft/lb of torque.

That’s about 26 horsepower less than the formidable Ducati 1098.

Accounting for transmission losses, the rear wheel delivers a respectable 119 horsepower at 10,200 rpm and 64 ft/lb of torque at 8,500 rpm.

Like the Ducati 1098, the power delivery marks a significant shift from earlier Ducatis, which were known for their strong bottom and midrange drive.

This has been replaced by a top-end power bias, sacrificing some midrange grunt. 

This change is primarily due to the fact that most big L-twin engines in Ducatis and rival superbikes before the 848 and 1098 era were typically long-stroke, narrow-bore engines.

These engines were designed to offer a broad spread of power and torque between 3,000-8,000 rpm, thanks to their narrow bores and long piston strokes.

Typically, the character of these engines emphasized mid and bottom-end torque, with top-end power levelling off after 8,000 rpm.

However, the 848, 1098, and even the latest Panigale V2 era of motorcycles pursued higher peak outputs to compete with their four-cylinder rivals.

This pursuit came at the expense of the low and midrange drivability that twin-cylinder engines are best known for.

For a 1000cc twin-cylinder engine, the cylinders are each 500cc in volume, whereas rival four-cylinder engines of equal displacement have 250cc cylinders with smaller pistons.

Other factors, such as the bore and stroke, affect the actual size and diameter of the piston head as well as the length of the connecting rod.

A 500cc piston, along with its connecting rod, is larger and heavier. Theoretically, it will always face more challenges spinning at high RPM compared to a smaller piston, primarily due to its mass.

This is why there is often a strong correlation between smaller piston sizes and higher piston counts in engines designed to rev at high rpm.

For instance, it’s uncommon to see 1000cc-plus L-twin engines revving higher than 12,000 RPM unless they are fully built race engines.

Another issue with larger cylinders, typically found in large displacement twin-cylinder engines, arises at higher RPMs.

As the engine spins faster, it becomes increasingly difficult to inject fuel, draw in air, compress it, combust it, and expel exhaust gases efficiently within the limited time of the complete cycle.

This challenge is more pronounced in larger volume cylinders compared to smaller ones – such as 500cc versus 250cc cylinders.

There are two simple ways to increase power for all engines: more displacement or higher RPMs, or both.

However, engines with large pistons are often limited in how high they can rev, as well as how efficiently they perform at those higher RPMs.

To keep Ducati engines competitive, engineers can design their L-twin engines to rev higher and be more efficient at higher RPMs to generate more power.

This is achieved by widening the bore of the cylinder and shortening the stroke.

A shorter stroke means the piston travels a shorter distance up and down compared to an equivalent longer-stroke piston.

The shorter the stroke, the lower the overall piston speed for the same RPM, compared to a piston with a longer stroke.

This is because a shorter stroke covers less distance to complete its cycle, resulting in lower overall piston speed and reduced g-forces on the piston and connecting rod.

Additionally, there’s less friction on the cylinder liner as the piston moves up and down, covering a shorter distance.

The wider bore piston head is often narrower than a piston from a longer-stroke engine.

These factors lead to reduced heat generation and lower frictional losses, resulting in more power.

A shorter stroke for any given capacity means, by default, a larger bore.

A larger bore allows for the inclusion of bigger intake and exhaust valves, which can admit more air and expel more gases after combustion, as well as larger injectors for increased fuel delivery.

All of this contributes to more efficient combustion and exhaust flow at higher RPMs.

Ultimately, this means the engine can produce more torque at higher RPMs, which translates to more power.

For those unfamiliar, power is calculated as torque multiplied by RPM. The formula is power = (torque x RPM) / 5252.

Why do longer stoke engines make more torque?

Narrower bore and longer stroke engines typically produce more torque at lower RPMs than short-stroke, wide-bore engines for various reasons.

One reason is that combustion is more efficient at lower RPMs in longer stroke engines because they generally use smaller injectors and valves.

This results in a quicker intake, combustion, and exhaust process at lower RPMs, which leads to higher torque.

In contrast, wider bore, shorter stroke engines usually have larger injectors and inlet and outlet valves, thanks to the extra space provided by the wider bore.

However, at lower RPMs, this can cause an excess of air-fuel mixture, leading the engine to choke and become less efficient.

Some of these issues can be mitigated by adjusting the engine’s fuel mixture via the ECU or by using variable valve timing (VVT).

However, it is still challenging to make very short-stroke engines produce high torque at low RPMs, especially in large-capacity twin-cylinder engines with big pistons.

What a short-stroke engine does effectively is create conditions that allow for higher peak RPMs and much more efficient combustion at these higher speeds.

This enables the engine to produce more torque at higher RPMs and maintain it for a longer duration without the torque dropping off as sharply.

Higher torque at higher RPMs translates into more power.

— Monster — 848

If we examine the Ducati 848’s dyno curve, we can see that its power and torque delivery is quite different from that of a typical L-twin engine of similar capacity.

Above is a dyno graph comparing the Ducati Monster 821 and the Ducati 848. The Monster 821 has a longer stroke engine and displays a more typical power and torque curve for a large-capacity L-twin engine.

While the engines are not directly comparable – since the 821 has a 22cc disadvantage and isn’t a Supersport engine  – it does accurately represent a typical L-twin’s power and torque delivery.

In any case, you can observe that although the 848 gets off to a good start at very low RPMs, and experiences a noticeable dip in power and torque between 5,000 and 7,000 RPMs, losing out to the Ducati Monster 821.

The Monster 821 generates significantly more torque than the Ducati 848 in this range, despite the 848 having a larger engine capacity.

If the 821 had the same displacement as the 848, the comparison would look even more unfavourable for the 848.

Beyond this midrange dip, the 848’s power and torque surge like a two-stroke engine, pulling very strongly and continuing to do so through 8,000 RPM, where longer-stroke twins typically start to lose momentum and struggle to pick up RPM as quickly.

To be fair to the 848, some of this midrange dip can be attributed to noise and emissions regulations.

However, if you upgrade to an Akrapovic full system and have your ECU flashed, while you will see gains, the dip in power and torque will never be completely eliminated.

Ducati 848 Thrust Curve

In real-world riding, the Ducati 848 engine requires a fair amount of effort to get the most out of it.

The gear ratios are quite long, and except for first gear, they are even longer than those on a current Yamaha YZF-R1.

However, the 848 sacrifices 150cc, about 60-70 horsepower, and nearly 20 ft/lb of peak torque compared to the R1.

Ducati could have potentially optimized the 848’s gearing better for road use, as the current setup is definitely more suited to a fast race track.

The dip in midrange torque is certainly noticeable, especially due to the long gearing.

While it’s not as apparent in first gear, where the lower ratio provides decent response and you quickly move past it at around 35 mph, the issue becomes more pronounced in second gear.

If you’re cruising at 30-40 mph in second gear, there’s not a lot of acceleration available.

In this situation, many other bikes, including some 600cc models, would easily outperform the Ducati 848 despite producing less power and torque.

The same issue applies to the remaining gears.

To get good response and acceleration from the engine, you really want to avoid that midrange dip.

In sixth gear at highway speeds, the RPM hovers around the 4,000-4,500 range, where there’s a noticeable torque bulge, so the initial response is decent. However, as you accelerate past 70 mph in top gear, you’d expect the engine to become more eager, but instead, the torque and thrust begin to taper off, only recovering around 100 mph.

For rapid overtakes, you should ideally be in fourth gear, though third is preferable.

Of course, second gear would be optimal, but who really wants to downshift four gears just to pass slow-moving highway traffic?

The Ducati 848 engine has a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde personality.

The soft midrange transitions into a howling top-end!

It’s much stronger at higher RPMs than the Ducati 749 and can even match the Ducati 999, despite being 150cc smaller.

However, it lacks the low-end grunt of the Ducati 999, instead relying on high RPMs to deliver power.

The Ducati 848 really comes alive above 7,000 RPM.

It’s not an engine you can short-shift through the gears and still maintain strong momentum.

A bike like the Ducati Supersport would outshine the 848 if you were limited to staying below 7,000 RPM.

If you prefer the traditional low-end torque of a twin, the 848 might not be for you.

But if you enjoy revving the engine and working through the gears, the 848’s engine is great fun and feels faster than it is, thanks to its two-stroke-like powerband.

Ducati 848 Acceleration through the gears

The Ducati 848 was often compared to the MV Agusta F3 800, Suzuki GSX-R750, and even some 600cc bikes.

Despite what some might say online, the 848 is faster than nearly all 600cc motorcycles.

Only a well-ridden, newer Yamaha R6 or Kawasaki ZX-636 could match it in terms of outright acceleration and speed.

Later versions of the GSX-R750 have a slight edge over the Ducati 848, but it’s a close race.

The 848 isn’t the easiest bike to launch, as it’s surprisingly prone to wheelies.

If you release the clutch below 50 mph and go hard on the throttle, the 848 will effortlessly lift its front wheel.

The clutch is also heavy and very grabby, making progressive slipping difficult.

However, if you manage to string everything together, the Ducati 848 can launch from 0-60 mph in 3.20 seconds and hit 0-100 km/h in 3.31 seconds, all while sounding glorious and arguably better than any of the Panigale series.

Many riders and performance testers tend to short-shift first gear when launching motorcycles hard, then drive in second gear.

This approach can work for some bikes, especially those with strong midrange power.

However, if you’re aiming for optimal 0-60 mph times on the 848, don’t short-shift.

Doing so will cause the engine to bog down and hurt your times. Instead, use all of first gear while managing the wheelies.

The gearing on the 848 is widely spaced, and because torque doesn’t drop off quickly at high RPMs, you should aim to shift at around 11,000 RPM to get the best straight-line performance, except in fifth gear, where 10,500 RPM is optimal.

Shifting any earlier will negatively affect your ETs and terminal speeds.

With a good launch and smooth gear changes, the frantic 848 engine will propel you from 0-100 mph in just 6.11 seconds and from 0-200 km/h in 9.12 seconds.

A little over a second later, the 848 will cross the quarter-mile mark in 10.76 seconds at 133.9 mph.

There’s likely another 0.2 to 0.3 seconds to be gained with perfect execution.

The 848 isn’t finished yet.

It continues to deliver exceptional acceleration beyond 130 mph, pulling as hard as many L2 Superbikes from the past, such as the TL1000R and VTR1000 RC51, and closely matches the later RSV1000.

In just over 30 seconds, the Ducati 848 will reach its top speed of 163 mph. While it can nearly max out in fifth gear, it lacks the RPM to hit the limiter, so shifting into sixth will get you those final couple of mph.

Fortunately, the 848 is a relatively long motorcycle and not as cramped as many others.

The footpegs are high, but there’s a decent stretch to the bars and enough room to slide back in the rear seat, allowing for a proper tuck.

The screen could be better, but it still provides above-average protection.

Though the 848 isn’t the fastest motorcycle, it has enough straight-line speed to leave most 600cc bikes behind and can hold its own against older liter-class fours and twins.

Ducati 848 Specifications