What A Night: Ride Review of the Next Gen Ducati Scrambler Nightshift

A notification popped up. It was Renzo, Ducati Philippines Head of Marketing. That message read: “Hey bro, we have a new bike, I wanted you to be the first one to try it out. The first 3 units of the Next Gen Scrambler Ducati are here, you’ll get to ride the Nightshift.” Like a first date, it got me excited.

I looked Scrambler Ducati Nightshift online and immediately saw the X on the headlight. I love Café Racers. My motorcycle obsession started in 2016, when custom and classic motorcycles were trending.

Ducati Scrambler Nightshift Photo by: Gian Santos

They were constantly amplified by events like Moto Builds Pilipinas, Distinguished Gentleman’s Ride and Ride PH Cafe. You’ll see a lot of them during bike nights in Ropali Classics, Motora Azul 1955 Cafe and more. I even got a 60th Anniversary Yamaha XSR700 as my personal big bike because of my fascination for retro bikes.

The Next Gen Nightshift is the latest update of café racer-inspired Scrambler Ducati, altogether with its siblings of the same platform, the Icon and Full Throttle. If there was a mother that bore three children, the Next Gen Nightshift is the sophisticated son. He is sleek, elegant and fluent. It’s that cool handsome kid leaning against a wall, suited up, with one hand in one pocket and the other one is holding up a cigar.

Ducati Katipunan is only 4.6kms away from where I live. Funny it took 3 hours to get back because I took the long way home. The Next Gen Nightshift is super easy to use, feels light and most importantly, looks so damn good.

The bike’s engine is Euro 5 compliant Desmodromic 803cc L-twin that packs a 73HP, equipped with a ride-by-wire system. It weighs 176kg dry, with a super friendly 795mm seat height. The chassis is a tubular steel Trellis. The suspension is inverted Kayaba 41mm fork with Spoked aluminum wheels equipped with Pirelli MT60 RS. The rear shock is also Kayaba, preload adjustable. The fuel capacity is claimed to be 13.5L and comfortably seats two.

The tech that’s on it makes it more comfortable, easy to use and accessible for more riders, including beginners. The Next Gen Nightshift comes with 2 riding modes (Road and Sport), Cornering ABS, 4-level adjustable Ducati Traction Control, and an easy to read 4.3″ TFT dashboard that already shows you the fuel gauge.

The bike also has a Ducati multimedia system ready, which is a simple infotainment that connects your smartphone via Bluetooth.

Unlike any bike reviews that I’ve done, I plainly took the bike all over the city. It is well understood that an 800cc bike is fast and all, but the real question is, how does your big bike fare for real life daily commute?

Scrambler Ducatis are notoriously known for engine heat. The Next Gen Nightshift is so cool, it is more tolerable than the older version. Ducati revised the twin exhaust headers, where the rear header is already directed underneath the bike connected to the catalytic converter. This revision puts all the heat below, towards the rear. Heat immediately dissipates when you start moving, it comes back when you stop. Overall, I think this new design makes it more tolerable. It has less exposed pipes that contribute to engine heat.

If you factor out engine heat, in its design class, this is close to perfection. The flat handlebar gives you a faux cafe racer attitude minus the back ache. Round bar end mirrors come as standard, and are interchangeable, rised or dropped, whether you feel more rebellious. You save a lot of black electric tape since the LED headlight is already X’ed. The color is night-lifey with Nebula Blue and a lot of dark finishes all over. It sparkes with ambient neon lights, giving it a street-glamour type of hype.

Riding it feels like sporting your new AJ1 Travis Scotts. You flaunt it with swag that people just can’t help but notice. It shines bright when the light goes out. It can be called for murder for breaking a lot of necks. It is fit like a conscious male supermodel that rakes in the bills just by good looks. It makes people stare but makes it worth their while. You make instant friends because the bike will introduce you. It will stop the show by the moment you arrive, until you go.

Now I leave you with these questions in mind. Would I trade my personal XSR700 for this Next Gen Scrambler Ducati Nightshift? For prestige and additional character value, yes. Is it good for daily commuting? Hell yes. What about the engine heat? I’d switch it off on long stops. Or maybe, I’ll ride faster than usual. Is it practical? Within the Ducati range, yes. Do I need it? No. But do I want it? Let me just tell you that there were nights that I dream about it. I still do.