Why I'd never buy a Ducati | Page 3 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Why I'd never buy a Ducati

Mad Mike said:
The thing about public forums is they can raise the punching power of user and consumers to match bigger companies. These conversations are good, if the manufacturer or their deputized supply chain isn't serving the consumer well, then too bad -- they are often the ones who should be expected to 'suck it up'.
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LOL, im sure the executives at ducati are reading this thread right now thinking, Geee, maybe we should put some mustard on getting that harness to a ten year old recalled Monster in the GTA. The present owner of the recalled Duc, isnt even the original customer.

But Ill agree with your point. When my car first started burning a liter of oil a week, the audi forums all over the globe were talking about the same issue. It was that punching power that had a class action lawsuit started and make Audi start a recall on the issue.
 
Newer Honda and Yamaha models have complex fairings; you can take out every screw you can see and be no closer to having it off the bike. The OEM bodywork on my R3 was a jigsaw puzzle.

At least Kawasaki attempts to minimise the number of styles of fasteners used to hold the fairings on ... usually only a few styles of fasteners and there's a somewhat predictable pattern to which ones go where. (All the screws used to attach adjacent panels together are the same style and length, all the screws used to attach fairing panels to underlying frames are the same style and length, etc) The R3 was not like that ...
 
Mad Mike said:
Wow! If you can promise to do Ducati valve checkfor $150, I might just buy one!
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Belts can be had from the USA.The only tools you must have are a set of feeler guages,a micrometer and a vernier caliper.There are other special tools that make it easier,but are not absolutely necessary.A pencil and paper and your arithmetic in sharp tune and you are good to go.
{Out of Stock Estimated Restock 8/1/19} Ca Cycleworks ExactFit™ Timing Belt for Ducati Scrambler, 796, 696 (each)
 
Baggsy said:
You need a different Honda if that's the case. My old Magna was pretty much a dream to work on.
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Yes.The Goldwing is on the extreme end of pia to work on.The one thing that really had me frustrated was fuel injector failure.If a fuel injector stops pulsing or fails completely,the ecu gets a FI code which shuts it down completely.There is no limping home on 5 cylinders.You are done.And a Honda dealer will charge 7.5 hours labour to re and re an injector.Stupid! An alternator is almost as bad.5.5 hours and $550 for the part.
 
Wingboy said:
Yes.The Goldwing is on the extreme end of pia to work on.The one thing that really had me frustrated was fuel injector failure.If a fuel injector stops pulsing or fails completely,the ecu gets a FI code which shuts it down completely.There is no limping home on 5 cylinders.You are done.And a Honda dealer will charge 7.5 hours labour to re and re an injector.Stupid! An alternator is almost as bad.5.5 hours and $550 for the part.
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Ouch! My Wing is carbed, she's had a carb act silly but never had to push her home. She has a kick start that I actually had to use once -- not fun -- but it worked!
 
I had a brand new S2R100 in 2007.Ducati tanks made of platic were swelling due to ethanol in gas. When mine swelled in 2012, took it to the dealer I bought it from and they said its all BS and no there is no problem. I joined the US - class action law suit - went back to the dealer and whamo - new tank 2 weeks later installed. FCUK Ducati.
 
Mad Mike said:
Personally I don't get why Duc doesn't dump desmo. Historically it is significant, a novel way to overcome the redline limitations of primitive valve springs. That problem got solved 50 years ago with better metallurgy, unfortunately in those days Ducati lacked the engineering and financial resources to re-engineer their motor to modern standards. Instead they fiddled with Desmo until around 2010 when instead of redesigning with valve springs, they again tweaked desmo for better service intervals. Unfortunately this saved a little time, but not cost -- it's still crazy expensive to maintain.

I'm pretty sure Desmo is to Ducati what Potato-Potato-Potato is to HD -- nostalgia that is baked into the brand. The 24K/30K servicing of timing belts and desmo shimming runs $1000 to $2200 plus parts depending on the model. I spoke to a fellow a few weeks ago who just had the 24K service on a '14 Diavel -- it cost $2400 at GP. It's not like a Jap bike that will rarely needs reshimming and almost never needs rockers or cams replaced as normal wear items.
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Timing belt replacement and valve adjustment on my 998 was about $800, which also included asking Ken to remove the left case cover and check the flywheel nut, which drove an extra hundred or so in Motul oil and Ducati filter which I would have done myself for about $40.
 
TK4 said:
"Ducati had a recall, big deal, so they identified a known problem and provided a solution to fix it. Very poor reason to never want to buy their products."
They didn't provide due diligence, the problem wasn't fixed in a timely fashion (for whatever reason) and getting them to own up and do the appropriate repair now has been like pulling teeth. I think this is a very good reason to avoid them. Were this a Japanese bike we wouldn't even be discussing it.
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There's only one reason the problem wasn't fixed in a timely fashion - the original owner chose not to do it (for whatever reason). How can you blame the manufacturer for that? First thing I do on any motorcycle I buy is check the service history and recall history, including TSB's.

Is it fair to expect a low-volume manufacturer to have a complete wiring harness in stock ready to ship after 10 years? Your friend has chosen to wait for the replacement harness, but she could have requested them to find the problem and fix it so she could ride it until the new harness arrives. Cheaper than buying a new bike.
 
TK4 said:
Were this a Japanese bike we wouldn't even be discussing it.
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You mean like poor Arogal?
www.gtamotorcycle.com

Backfiring, stalling, and throatier than usual

On my ride Tuesday night I noticed my 09 zx6r was performing quite strange once the bike reached operating temp. This was the first ride of the year the bike has reached operating temp 85+ because its been so chilly out so far this spring. It sounded a lot throatier than usual. Best way to...
www.gtamotorcycle.com www.gtamotorcycle.com
 
"Is it fair to expect a low-volume manufacturer to have a complete wiring harness in stock ready to ship after 10 years?"
Why not ?

"Your friend has chosen to wait for the replacement harness, but she could have requested them to find the problem and fix it so she could ride it until the new harness arrives. Cheaper than buying a new bike."

Its irrepairable at this point, and why would DNA pay for the job twice ?
 
Brian P said:
Newer Honda and Yamaha models have complex fairings; you can take out every screw you can see and be no closer to having it off the bike. The OEM bodywork on my R3 was a jigsaw puzzle.

At least Kawasaki attempts to minimise the number of styles of fasteners used to hold the fairings on ... usually only a few styles of fasteners and there's a somewhat predictable pattern to which ones go where. (All the screws used to attach adjacent panels together are the same style and length, all the screws used to attach fairing panels to underlying frames are the same style and length, etc) The R3 was not like that ...
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I was surprised at how complicated fairing removal was on the 2011 CBR125R. I had to consult the shop manual so as not to break any tabs. That bike was less than a year old and had a short in the wiring harness just under the seat panel. Only way I found it was to trace the smoke! Unless I'm mistaken, it was a known issue, but no recall!
 
Maybe we should all meet on our chosen ride and go. Go west to the Pacific, go south to the Gulf, go west to the Atlantic, then north to James bay. Let's see who's the last man standing. Let's also take bets!
 
TK4 said:
"Is it fair to expect a low-volume manufacturer to have a complete wiring harness in stock ready to ship after 10 years?"
Why not ?
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I'm just asking, because I've experience parts "unavailability" for many of my bikes, but they're mostly limited production models or very old bikes.

TK4 said:
"Your friend has chosen to wait for the replacement harness, but she could have requested them to find the problem and fix it so she could ride it until the new harness arrives. Cheaper than buying a new bike."

Its irrepairable at this point, and why would DNA pay for the job twice ?
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Sorry, I hadn't read up to the point where you said it was irreparable. However, my point was that if it were, she could have opted to pay out of pocket for the repair vs buying another bike. No, she shouldn't have had to, but that would be the mitigation of having her bike in the garage for so long. Finally, you can only blame the dealer for setting her job at the lowest priority. I seriously would like to know which one treats their customers this way, because as much as I CAN work on my own bikes, there are times when I don't have the time or inclination to, and of course warranty work.
 
I miss my 2002 Ducati SS.I could have the bodywork off and the tank up (one rubber strap and a hinge with built in tank prop) in five minutes to get it ready for valve check.
My arthritic wrists couldn't handle the ergos,so i sold it and bought a 2009 Hyper 1100S.The next owner of my SS put a bunch of km's on it till he hit a bear in NY state.The next owner rode some trackdays with it and moved out west to Calgary.Had 60,000km on it last i heard and had only needed 3 shims and regular belt changes.My neighbours don't miss it's Gia ca Moto carbon cans and dry "McClutch" tho.Lol.
 
Mad Mike said:
Maybe we should all meet on our chosen ride and go. Go west to the Pacific, go south to the Gulf, go west to the Atlantic, then north to James bay. Let's see who's the last man standing. Let's also take bets!
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To be completely transparent, I was planning on taking the Hyperstrada to Deal's Gap next weekend, and just 2 days ago I developed a problem with it going into limp home mode on the highway. It looks to be either an O2 sensor or the throttle position sensor. I was too lazy to get the TPS replaced under recall because I wasn't experiencing any problems, but now I've potentially shot myself in the foot. Nobody to blame but myself if that's the cause.
 
Relax said:
To be completely transparent, I was planning on taking the Hyperstrada to Deal's Gap next weekend, and just 2 days ago I developed a problem with it going into limp home mode on the highway. It looks to be either an O2 sensor or the throttle position sensor. I was too lazy to get the TPS replaced under recall because I wasn't experiencing any problems, but now I've potentially shot myself in the foot. Nobody to blame but myself if that's the cause.
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I guess you're out.
 
Mad Mike said:
I guess you're out.
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Not so fast! Long story short, it appears to be nothing more than a loose battery terminal. Previous owner wired in some LED "mood lighting" that I never use, and while I had the seat off looking for the rear O2 sensor connector, I noticed his crappy spade terminal came off, leaving some play in the battery post. Tightened it up and rides like normal now, so false alarm.

Not only had I planned to ride this down to the Gap, I was also thinking of riding it to either BC, California, or both, and have no concerns at all about taking it. Maybe I'll even get the recall done before I go...
 
At this point in time I'd just ask for the bike back, do a quick splice on the wire harness and then ride until they can fit me in.
 
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