Hello from Thailand

[Dogbolter59]

My name is Alan and I have lived in Thailand for the last decade.

In a few days time I take delivery of a new Monster 795.  Many of you will know that the Monster 795 is assembled here in Thailand.  It is, in essence, a 796 engine in a 696 chassis.

The Monster 795 costs about US$12,800 at today’s exchange rate which makes it something of a bargain in this market.  The reason for the relatively low price is local assembly here.  By contrast the Panigale, which is imported fully built up from Italy, starts at US$45,000.

Ducati seem to have stolen something of a march on their Japanese competitors by setting up an assembly plant for big bikes here.  Honda, Yamaha and Suzuki do not assemble big bikes in Thailand.  Kawasaki do but what they have to offer is a bit dreary.  The 795 has been selling like hot cakes.  These days there are plenty of people here who can pull the asking price out of their pockets.  I have had to wait three months for delivery.

The test ride sold the bike to me.  The 795 was the first fuel injected bike I have ridden and the power delivery was beautifully smooth and glitch free.  The brakes were very impressive.  The exhaust made a pleasant burble but it’s a bit quiet for my tastes.  The silencers look essentially the same as those on a 796 but I think they are one of the few parts manufactured in Thailand.  The silencer bodies are stamped to show that they comply with Thai standards. 

Not everything was positive though.  I hated the mirrors.  I also found that I had to take a good stare at the dash to work out what it was telling me.  I would much rather have a big analogue tacho and a few warning lights.  The bars don’t feel quite right for me either.  My initial impression was that they were a bit too wide but I will give it more miles before I decide what, if anything, to do.

I am no stranger to Ducati ownership so I have an idea what I am letting myself in for.

In the 1970s I raced a 250 Mark 3 bevel drive single in the UK.  The bodywork on that bike was copied from the works racers.  I raced it against Aermacchi 350s in classic racing.  The well heeled old biffers (as I saw them at the time) didn’t want to bend their precious 350s whereas I was young and had a limited understanding of mortality so I did OK.  I sold that bike for US$300 after a bad crash at Cadwell Park.

Shortly after that I had a bevel drive 900ss which was the fastest production bike in the world at the time.  I loved that bike but looking back now it gave me a lot of grief in 16,000 miles of ownership.  First the kick start broke.  Bump starting a 900 twin is no fun.  Then the bolted up cush drive assembly sheared off the rear wheel.  Repairs and dowelling the cush drive to the rear wheel cured that.  All the decals fell off the bodywork.  And then finally the crank failed.  Upon strip down I found that pretty much everything else was worn out too.  The gears were breaking up.  The pistons and liners were worn out.  The absence of air filters on the 900ss doubtless contributed to the latter.

Naturally I have higher hopes for the 795 but even prior to delivery there is a strong whiff of Bolognese sauce to it.  I like the parts book which gives country codes for variants.  Germany, Italy and the UK, where the 795 is not sold, are in the list.  But none of the countries where the 795 is sold merit inclusion in the list!   

[herm]

welcome to the board!