Ducati Hypermotard 848 spied

The Ducati Hypermotard could be getting some water-cooled love, similar to the beating heart of the Streetfighter 848 if this new spy photo from Italy is anything to go by.

Seen on the il Ducatista.com website, the spy photo shows a developmental Hypermotard fitted with what appears to be the water-cooled 849cc engine, an engine that is used on a handful of other Ducati models such as the 848 Evo, Monster and Streetfighter.

The image shows several new chassis elements surrounding water-cooled V-twin engine, which is part of a model range that until now has been powered exclusively by air-cooled units.

The Hypermotard in questions shows off a pre-production exhaust and polished fuel tankbut overall the motorcycle looks fairly tidy, suggesting development has been ongoing.

As well as providing the Hypermotard with a little more performance, the 849cc water cooled engine - good for more than 130hp (96kW) - would inject a little more interest in the bike. Whether it replaces the Hypermotard 796 or joins it in the line-up remains to be seen.

The decisions to flesh out the Hypermotard range would have been made long ago, but as the Audi takeover of Ducati begins to sink in, the motorcycle company is expected to embark upon a new research and development push beyond the current crop of bikes.

Though we aren't likely to see the fruits of this new product push for another few years at least (which is rumoured to include a small capacity bike) you can guarantee the Italian company will be given an edict by its new German masters - build profitable bikes.