| Author | Message | ||
     Gambit |
i'm turning 40 later this year and my wife gave me the go ahead to get a bike as a gift. i ride mostly backroads, on a spirited pace at best so i'm not a fan of the superbikes and their intensive maintenance. what i'm interested in are the supersport series, 99+ with efi. i know that i'm in the wrong forum but having been a member here for quite some time (not much of a poster), i trust this community more than any other ones on the net. what i'm looking for are first hand experience in owning/maintaining said model bikes, i have a line on a low mileage 2002 900ss. what should i be looking at before i buy? thank you in advance... | ||
| Glitch |
Don't know about that model, I do know the air-cooled Ducs are really low maintenance. Shred has an Ducati 800 he races, and all he's done is normal stuff, oil changes, tires, brakes, nothing you wouldn't have to do with any bike. He's been racing it for at least 3 seasons now, still nothing you wouldn't have to do with a normal street bike. | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
You want complete service records showing scheduled maintenance done every 6,000 miles with valve checks and belts replaced by a trained Ducati tech. You need to already have a mechanic picked out to do your services (every 6k miles)- preferably an ex-dealership mechanic with all the tools who charges a reasonable amount, or a dealer who is reasonable (very rare), or get all the books, the tools, and a parts source and learn to work on it yourself. The desmodue supersport models are pretty reliable (if maintained properly), but working on them can be tricky. They handle great, have fair power, and sound awesome with a performance exhaust. Their styling (99+) was love it or hate it, but everyone agreed the ergonomics were pretty comparable to a medieval torture device. So, if you would be happy with a bike that's down on power (vs 600cc imports), is rather maintenance intensive (but not near as bad as the desmoquattro models), is very uncomfortable, and will cost more to own than most other bikes- then I say go for it. If you can, test ride it- that will answer many of your questions. | ||
| Gambit |
top end power is not my priority, that is why i own 2 buells and a BMW cruiser - i am more on the realistic side and do not care so much about spec sheets. i understand the riding position can be physically demanding more than other bikes but i believe the body can be trained to adapt, and i definitely will not use it for ironbutt rides. i just find the aural delight of a screaming L-twin with the right exhaust system very appealing and the dark gray/red wheels color scheme irresistible. my father in law is a mechanic by trade and with the proper service manual being used as a guide, i believe maintenance is doable between us two. what i would appreciate are specific concerns to watch out for (electrical, tranny) that may end up being quite expensive to fix (parts wise). thanks for your responses.. | ||
| Barker |
I had a dew-crapi 900ss in my possession for a short while. Not bad, not great. Let just say I dont aspire to own on anymore. Valve job on 2 valvers is not as bad as most make it out to be. | ||
| Redbuelljunkie |
i just find the aural delight of a screaming L-twin with the right exhaust system very appealing... That's another quirk of demso Ducatis, they are designed to rev high (for a twin) and have light flywheels- which means the power is at the top (like an I-4) as opposed to having a lot of grunt down low (like Buell). You really have to rev these bike to get to the power. It's Italian, and therefore basically hand-made, so things like bolts, electrical connectors, clutches, oil lines, gauges, headlights and mirrors need to be checked on a regular basis- if not daily. Really, the key here is maintenance history, and continued maintenance by the book. As exotics go- it's pretty reliable and relatively easy to maintain. The best way to make your decision is to ride the bike. | ||
| Slaughter |
Chris Kelly (ducatitech.com) is a SUPERB Ducati mechanic. He runs California Cycleworks out here and is also a racer at Willow Springs (though recently inactive) - he was the regional champ in the Aprilia Cup on his RS250 Aprilia. Go to Ducatitech.com and shoot him some questions - actually check the site out, tons of information there (like the video above) Ducatitech also hosts our WSMC racing website. Chris is a straight shooter. Check it out. | ||
| Doerman |
I had a 96 900SSCR. Great bike but it fell just a tad bit short. I didn't like the suspension. Friends told me I should have gotten the SSSP (fully faired) since it comes with an adjustable and upgraded suspension. I rode a friends 2001 1000SS and it was a delight compared to my 96. It compares really well to my XB9R | ||
| Hexangler |
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| Hexangler |
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| Gambit |
Hexangler - i would love to have a desmosedici in my garage, but i haven't won the lottery yet. thank you for the replies, any other insights are much welcome. | ||
| Ducbsa |
Barker I googled "Buell valve adjusting" and got no hits. Plus no mention in my shop manual. Please advise. Forgot to look in KV, though. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
The f.i. Supersports with the adjustable suspension are a real treat to ride in the twisties. Maintenance is much easier than the four valve models, and easily within the reach of any professional tech. My friend Gerry had one, it had a leak at the base of the rear cylinder. The rear cylinders usually have problems first. They don't have a cooling fan:-). There are tons of parts available on ebay, and Gerry is going to build himself a 900 with parts he got on eBay. The 999's are even better handling, with more, and very controllable power. Maintenance is more complicated and thus expensive, but the bike is pretty reliable. You can get pretty good examples for around $7500 if you look around, and I think they are worth the premium over the two valves. Matter of fact, I am giving a lot of thought to getting a 999S myself. | ||
| Capital_g |
I wanted a 900 monster myself and asked many people that were Duc owners here is what I learned. 1. Buy a bike with good maintenance history. 2. See #1 3. Be prepared to spend $$ on maintenance and service. 4. See #1 5. The power output seemed a little low for the money. 6. See #1 End result - I bought a Buell. They seemed close to the same machine but the Buell had more advantages. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
You made a good decision G. The Monsters, even though they are Ducati's biggest seller, have never really appealed to me. They are kind of cobbled together parts bin specials for the most part, and do not handle nearly as well as a Buell. I have worked on a couple of them, and went away with the feeling that part for part, the Buell was better designed, and better built. The 999's, designed by Terreblanche from the ground up to be a great bike to ride on the street are an entirely different story, in my opinion. | ||
| Court |
I like the looks of the Monster. Let clarify, I liked the looks of the Monster 5 years ago before a committee got to it.… The current crop of Monsters, in addition to the cited maintenance and handling deficiencies, are simply not good looking. A 1998 Monster was, in my opinion, a piece of visual art. But . . alas. . . the walls of the house are covered in real art (French Theatre posters that my wife collects) and I really buy a motorcycle to ride. Advantage Buell. | ||
| Dano_12s |
Slaughter,thanks for the site.Just got a salvage '07 Monster S2R 1000 that I'll be fixing up.First Duc I've owned. | ||
| Gambit |
i really would like a 749S but the maintenance for a desmoquattro (4valve) somewhat intimidates me. i may be wrong but certain years of efi supersports have adjustable suspensions until they went cheap and downgraded in the later years. btw, is anybody familiar with or has experience in buying/titling a theft recovery bike? | ||
| Glitch |
I varies by state. Your best bet is to call your local DMV Here it's easy as long as you have all the documentation, and are willing to pay for a title search. | ||
| Gambit |
guy selling says that it is already titled to his name, although the title still reflects the "theft recovery" part. i'll be looking at the bike and papers tomorrow, i'll ask for a photocopy and have it looked at the DMV.if anything looks fishy, i'm walking away. | ||
| 2kx1 |
First thing I would do is order a Desmotimes manual. The supersports Are excellent bikes and the newer the better. A 99 ss is worth anywhere from 3K to 5K. |
