Post Sale Update: This Elefant sold for $3,500 after 15 bids on eBay.
Ducati was sold to Cagiva in 1985, and one of the things the latter did with this infusion of bikes and technology to try and compete in the Paris-Dakar rally. They created the Elefant, which won the rally in 1990 and 1994. In the US, the bike was branded as the Ducati E900 – this may give you a hint that it used the engine and electronics from a 900SS. These bikes were well-received in Europe but they never really took off in the United States.
The engine produced 68 horsepower to motivate the 493 pound bike. You got a 19-inch front wheel and 17-inch rear wheel, and the fuel tank contained 5.3 gallons of fuel. As a sign of the times, the new Multistrada Enduro carries 8.4 gallons of fuel and weighs 560 pounds wet! The biggest weakness of the predecessor to the Multistrada was the electronic system, which is often modified by owners.
This example is said to be in great shape with less than 16,000 miles, however the seller notes that “the speedo cable broke and took out the speedo gear a couple of weeks ago.” He’ll include a good speedo cable but it sounds like you’re on your own with regards to the speedo drive gear. Everything else is said to work but you’ll want to clean the carbs. There’s a few scratches that have been hit with touch-up paint and the sale includes the manual, tool kit, and original owner’s card.
Find this Elefant for sale in Acworth, Georgia with bidding up to $3,300 and the reserve not yet met