Crash bar effectiveness?

The point is for the guards to take the impact, not your gas tank.

In general engine guards work well in a bike drop situation, in a crash all bets are off.

Not looking to start a philosophical discussion. Hoping for some real world experience and pics. If there isn't any...there isn't any.

I put the Ducati crash bars on mine and have dropped the bike about 6-7 times now. Mostly soft sand and one ridiculously muddy hill that took the wind out of me. Each time, the crash bars took the brunt of the hit and has spared all the other parts on the bike from being damaged. If you're considering taking your DDX offroad, I'd highly recommend the bars.

And to protect that giant radiator.... this is an excellent example of what I would say is basically a real world situation...as said before, in a crash all bets are off for sure

That was very helpful. Ty.

Here is video of the damage after a drop on a trail; video should start at 21:25. Add speed and pointy rocks, things only accelerate from there. I guess you can categorize the choice as "to guard or not to guard, is the question" but I would say it is intuitive.

CagivaEric said:

Wondering how many people have gone down on their DDX with all the crash bars...how did it all work? Looks like the bars could bend at the mounts. I'm on the fence about installing them.

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Ive dropped my bike twice. Slow speed (less than 5kph) on soft dirt. Bent the bars against the tank and front panel. 2nd time in a carpark. Again bars were left resting against the tank. I’m considering alternatives. They’re rubbish.

See this is what I was afraid of.

Which basrs?

kjrodger1 said:

Ive dropped my bike twice. Slow speed (less than 5kph) on soft dirt. Bent the bars against the tank and front panel. 2nd time in a carpark. Again bars were left resting against the tank. I’m considering alternatives. They’re rubbish.

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That's interesting. Are those the OEM ones?
I've dropped mine probably a dozen times by now (mostly dirt and gravel) and nothing is bent at all. However, I also have bags mounted on them...

CagivaEric said:

Wondering how many people have gone down on their DDX with all the crash bars...how did it all work?

Click to expand...

Adding to the personal experience above: The demo bike of my lokal dealer received an "involuntary test" for the OEM crash bars last week.
Customer dropped the bike bike at around 30 mph on asphalt. The crash bars look a bit rough now, but did their job really well.
The only thing that broke was the clutch lever (which was to be expected, given the flimsy hand guard mounts).

I write from Italy.
Exceptional bike, a tank, today I killed it on km and km of large and bad stone, it "ate up" everything, really impressive ...... like the crash bars, impressive as far as they FUCK! Two small falls, even accompanied on soft and muddy ground, no big deal, yet on the way back, checking the structure well, it moved about half a centimeter, reaching the hulls in some points ...... I dare not imagine the damage in case of a hard fall!!!! Truly some APOCALYPTIC SHIT on a great car. DUCATI LICENSE WHO CREATED THESE BARS!!!!!
I'm seriously thinking of taking everything apart and putting the Outbacks back together, at least there are real and visual testimonials of those that hold well and don't deform! If you wanted real data my friend you got it!

Three drops of the DDX on rocky trails and in a stream. The third drop dented the tank on the lower right just after the crash bars ended. The crash guards don't go far enough back and leave the tank exposed... maybe Ducati should have considered a plastic tank...ha ha... If I were to do it again I would install the Outbacks, the ones shown in the video above. They are probably less expensive too!

However I do say I like the stainless steel look of the Ducati'

@CagivaEric

Here is another link I posted on the forum regarding the overall ruggedness of the DDX and my experiences with dropping the bike.

Theres a vid of a guy in Panama who collided with a Honda sedan. The right side of the bike took the hit and wrecked the car fender and hood. So the bars seem to work in most scenarios but obviously nothing will always work in all situations. I have yet to drop mine, keep those days for the 2 stroke on gnarly single track and step ups.

CagivaEric said:

Wondering how many people have gone down on their DDX with all the crash bars...how did it all work? Looks like the bars could bend at the mounts. I'm on the fence about installing them.

Click to expand...

The oem are great, I’ve felt on asphalt and save my bike, that touratech steel is really great

se interessa: ho inviato una mail a Ducati tramite il loro sito; si trattava ovviamente di un reclamo per i danni alle sbarre dopo una caduta molto soffice nel fango. Ho notizie di altri eventi simili qui in Italia. Mi hanno contattato dopo una giornata dicendomi che sono interessati al caso e invitandomi a portare la moto presso l'officina autorizzata dove l'ho acquistata per farla visionare e, se necessario, aprire una pratica con un perito! Invito quindi tutti coloro che hanno avuto problemi con le barre, soprattutto in caso di semplici cadute che hanno riportato danni esagerati, a rivolgersi all'assistenza Ducati!

sorry....re-post
if it's of interest: I sent an email to Ducati via their website; it was obviously a complaint about the damage to the bars after a very soft fall into mud. I have news of other similar events here in Italy. They contacted me after a day saying that they are interested in the case and inviting me to take the bike to the authorized workshop where I bought it to have it viewed and, if necessary, open a case with an inspector! I therefore invite all those who have had problems with the bars, especially in the case of simple falls that have reported exaggerated damage, to contact Ducati assistance!