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SCMP Reporter

THE Italian motorcycle manufacturer, Ducati, has followed up its world beating V-twin racing bikes with a revolutionary single-cylinder cycle called the Supermono.

  Early testing indicates the superbly styled new Italian is set to dominate single-cylinder racing in the same way as its big brother rules in the super-bike division.

  The reason is the lay-out of the motor and the benefits that have been reaped from the revolutionary system.

  The Ducati Supermono features a new engine design which overcomes the problem of destructive vibration, the Achilles' heal of the single-cylinder motor.

  The new Ducati engine gives the smoothness of a more complex 90-degree V-twin, allowing higher engine revolutions and greater power than other singles.

  Conventional single-cylinder engines are afflicted with severe vibration problems due to the starting and stopping of the piston.

  In multi-cylinder engines, the forces generated by individual pistons almost cancel each other out, leaving only an acceptable level of vibration.

  But when there is only the one cylinder, the motion of the piston affects the whole motor and this vibration is transmitted to the rest of the bike and the rider.

  Unless the cycle parts are reinforced, the vibration loosens bolts, froths fuel, and will, eventually, damage or break other parts of the machine.

  The benefits of the single-cylinder engine - simplicity and lightness - have led many motorcycle manufacturers to pursue this avenue of development, but none, until now, have completely overcome the problems of singles.

  Most have resorted to complex balance weights to smooth the cycle of the motor, but the results are only partially successful and add more complexity and weight - cancelling much of the advantage of the single-cylinder engine.

  Even the smoother examples of the breed need rubber mountings for the engine to prevent vibrations playing havoc with the electrics and fuel system.

  Ducati's solution, designed by Massimo Bordi, Ducati's chief engineer, is elegantly simple.

  A dummy connecting rod is fitted alongside the actual piston conrod, and attaches to a lever which exerts a force similar to the workings of another cylinder.

  The system, dubbed ''Doppia Bielletta'', or double connecting rods, balances the engine's firing pulses in the same way as a second piston, leaving the engine smooth and free from destructive vibration.

  This means that the rest of the Supermono can be made lighter and less complex because it has less vibration to resist, and the engine itself can rev higher and have a larger capacity without shaking itself apart.

  Ducati was also able to rigidly bolt the motor into the frame without the need for rubber mountings, thus saving weight and adding strength to the frame.

  Not only is the design effective, it is economical for the small Italian factory to manufacture.

  The extra pieces which make up the Doppia Bielletta are not expensive to make and the crankcase can be machined on the tooling as part of Ducati's production-line V-twins. This represents a major saving for a company too small to indulge in costly re-tooling.

  The complete engine looks like a water-cooled Ducati V-twin with the upper cylinder blanked off, only a lump in the casing shows where the dummy piston resides. This horizontal lay-out means that the engine is not only lighter than a V-twin, but the centre of gravity is kept low, leading to a motorcycle with better weight distribution.

  Perhaps just as striking as the clever engineering is the bold styling from the pen of Pierre Terblanche. The Supermono's looks owe nothing to any motorcycle that has gone before and resemble no other Ducati.

  It is a minimalist style, just enough to clothe the machine and make a smooth hole through the air. But what little carbon-fibre body there is has caused a sensation wherever the motorcycle has been displayed.

  Just 30 Supermonos will be built this year and all of them will go straight to the race track. The high magnesium and carbon-fibre content pushes the price to US$30,000, but larger scale production will bring the cost down as plastic and aluminium are substituted for more exotic materials in the road versions of the Supermono.



Ride a king-sized duke