Ducati's Scrambler Full Throttle was among the Scrambler models brushed up for the 2019 model year, and the revised version brings even more flat-track attitude to the table. The paint was spruced up a bit, along with the saddle to give the “FT” a year-specific finish. It ain't all about the looks though; new electronics and safety equipment further increases its value right along with its curb appeal.

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Design

Fans of the '18 American Super Hooligan Championship races will probably recognize the livery on the new FT as that of California racer, Frankie Garcia. The two-tone, yellow and black sheet metal comes with a white pinstripe on the 3.57-gallon fuel tank and the blank number plates on each flank. Just about every other component that can support paint comes shot in a glossy blackout finish making a connection to the custom culture as well, and it starts out at the severely bobbed front fender cut down to the limits of functionality; a move intended to reduce unsprung weight at the front axle, no doubt.

A glass lens protects the cyclops headlight and its LED DRL ring that increases your visibility to the rest of the world, even in bright ambient conditions. LED blinkers mount directly to the round headlight can on short standoffs to finish off the forward lighting. A short-rise bar leaves plenty of room for the pilot to tuck in, and it mounts an all-new set of switch controls with a single round instrument housing.

An offset, backlit LCD screen delivers all the critical metrics, including a shift prompt and numerical gear indicator to go with a ring of LED idiot lights that take care of the rest. It seems like such a minor thing, but it's difficult to overstate how much I like a clean instrument area, and this thing fits the bill perfectly. It also comes Ducati Multimedia System ready, so you can easily add a Bluetooth Control Unit to network your smartphone, helmet earpieces and Ducati's proprietary navigator system for the complete infotainment system.

The teardrop fuel tank features a new, model-specific badge, and while it looks like the steel tank comes with the same removable aluminum accent panels that let you mix and match, why would you even want to? A brand-new, flat track-inspired saddle rocks a black cover with color-matched yellow stitching and a monochrome tail fairing that covers the p-pad for that solo-racer look. Tucked up under the tail is the LED taillight and standoff turn indicators, and I'm proud to say the factory skipped the hangey-downey mudguard and went straight to the one-side hugger/plateholder to finish off the hang-on equipment.

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Chassis

The abbreviated, tubular-steel Trellis frame comes blacked out so it blends in with the rest of the innards. The 41 mm usd Kayaba forks come set at 24 degrees of rake and 4.4 inches of trail to give the FT an appropriately nimble nature that responds well to “tail steering” as you drift around the corners, flat-track style. Don't worry if that's a little too ambitious for your skill level, the FT handles nicely on the blacktop as well, but it's nice to know you have that option, right?

A new set of cast wheels round out the rolling chassis with Pirelli's MT 60 RS hoops in a 110/80-18 size up front opposite a fat, 180/55-17. These stealth-knobbies have generous street flats for civilized roads with deep grooves for traction on the softer stuff to make it a true, old school-style scrambler.

A single, 330 mm disc and four-pot caliper hauls down the front wheel with a uni-pot anchor and 245 mm disc out back. Brembo supplies the binders, and Bosch makes an appearance as well with its Cornering ABS feature that reads data from the six-axis accelerometer to calculate the available traction in the turns, and modulate its level of intervention based on same.

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Drivetrain

The beating heart is Ducati's 803 cc L-Twin – or 90-degree V-twin, if you like -- powerplant. It's a Desmodromic engine, so the two-valve heads rely on a pull-closed cam rather than springs to positively control the poppets. Yeah, it's a little more maintenance-intensive than most traditional arrangements, but it comes utterly immune to harmonic valve float so the limiting factor to how high you can rev it comes down to what the bottom-end can withstand.

The 88 mm bore and 66 mm stroke gives it a decidedly oversquare layout with an 11-to-1 compression ratio that contributes heavily to the 73 horsepower you can expect at 8,250 rpm, and the 49 pounds o' grunt that top out at 5,750. Like the rest of the Scrambler 803s, the FT will turn in a top speed around 120 mph under perfect conditions.

Hot-oxygen probes maintain the stoichiometric ratio to reduce emission, and to meet Euro 4 standards, there's a catalyst in the exhaust system to burn off any free hydrocarbons that manage to escape the combustion chamber during overlap. Since it's air cooled, there is no heavy/complicated/ugly liquid system to deal with the waste heat, and that saves a considerable amount of weight at the end of the day.

Induction control falls to the 50 mm throttle body and electronic fuel injection system, but there's nothing in the way of traction control or rider modes to fancy things up, so it's a relatively raw ride that relies entirely on rider skill.

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Pricing

MSRP on the 2020 Scrambler Full Throttle is $10,995. As usual, you can choose between three warranty packages that top out with a two-year, unlimited mileage plan.

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Competitors

Scramblers are a dime-a-dozen anymore, and it seems like just about everyone is jumping on the bandwagon with some variation thereof, but flat-trackers are a sub-genre all their own and so Duc's Full Throttle will require something special for its head-to-head comparison. With that in mind, I went shopping, and landed on another flat track-inspired machine, the FTR 1200 from Indian Motorcycle.

The “FTR” is based on a sure-enough track bike, the FTR 750, and is a shameless attempt to capitalize on the success of the racing program, as well it should. Form follows function, and even though the FTR isn't actually set up for the dirt track, it hits all the same design high points as its track-wise cousin.

Blackout paint finds a home on the FTR, and much like the Duc, it carries the achromatic treatment everywhere it can. These two bikes could almost be brothers from another mother in the looks department since the Indian ride also features a round headlight, stubby tail, upswept exhaust and a one-sided hugger out back. The flyline is also similarly low-profile with a slight tank bump and saddle scoop ahead of a non-covered p-pad area, so it doesn't try to look like a proper race bike quite as hard as the Full Throttle though you can still see plenty of track-side influence in its design.

Indian runs with inverted, cartridge-style front forks and a monoshock out back, and both ends match the same 5.9 inches of travel that the Duc claims. Indian doubles down on the front discs for an advantage in stopping power with ABS protection as well, though it doesn't seem to be the leaning sort. The biggest advantage overall goes to Indian. A 1,203 cc V-twin powers the FTR, and yeah, that's a pretty large offset, but what are ya' gonna do with such a narrow sub-genre? It is what it is, and I expect it will still appeal to the same sort of crowd with its 85 pound-feet of torque that blows the Duc away. You'll pay for that extra grunt though since the FTR 1200 rolls for $13,499, and you'll have to decide for yourself if it's worth it.

He Said

“Flat-track racing is fun to watch, and whether you fancy yourself a dirt racer, or just an enthusiast, the Ducati Full Throttle has something to offer. Honestly, it may be the most scramble-tastic Scrambler that Duc has at this time if you really think about it in terms of the old-school bikes that were basically UJM/standards with knobbies and stripped-down chassis.”

She Said

My wife and fellow motorcycle writer, Allyn Hinton, says, “Even though the bike looks very similar to when it was first introduced, there are a lot of changes that, all together, make for a next generation. The engine has more horsepower and torque and overall, it looks more put-together. New LED lighting, a flat-track-inspired seat, and 10-spoke wheels are just but a few of the updates. Ducati took one of its most popular bikes and went to the riders to find out how to make it better. I would say the strategy worked.”

Ducati Scrambler Full Throttle Specifications

Further Reading

Indian FTR 1200

See our review of the Indian FTR 1200.

Ducati

Read more Ducati news.