Really in need of some second opinions with a problem thats developed mainly over the last week or so , the bike starts fine but while riiding will suddenly stall and the engine bog down. This is now happening so frequently that its not rideable and on the way back home today must have cut out 20-30 times usually when the throttles holding constant revs or is closed and in any gear like the ignitions been cut and the engine loses rpm till i either stop and restart it or restart it on the move with the clutch pulled in. It fires back up absolutely fine with maybe a little backfire which is to be expected with cylinders full of mixture and in neutral at a stand still revs cleanly without any sign of a problem , ive take the left hand fairing off suspecting a sidestand switch issue and found the previous owner had already disabled it by cutting the wires and taping them [see pic] so maybe theres some water got into the tape binding the wires or theyve moved and are creating false signals? Hoping for ideas or confirmation of my train of thought as if its not this i think ill have to get the bike to Ducati Coventry for a good check over and fault finding session , it was washed yesterday but not used till today so water ingress somewhere is a prime suspect.
First chip....id say fueling....if it was electrical it would just cut out, dead (usually)....get the tank off and give the thing a good clean, pull the throttle bodies and clean them up, check the spark plugs also (thatll give a good indication of the current engine state)....
Could be - people never change them cos its a pain in the arse (tis on my hyper but i do it all the same)!!
There is a nagging thought in the depths of my mind about fuelling , it was very mild at first more like a hole in the power band at around 7000rpm when it started a week ago and its got worse and worse culminating in cutting out at 60-70 mph in heavy traffic today which was scary , theres no obvious oil leaks or water leaks , engine temp was on the high side in traffic today but soon dropped on clear stretches , ive run the bike on 99 octane v power since owning it and was at about half tank when i got back. Just really trying not to think the worst but all sorts goes through your head until you know what it is.
I think to get fault codes of a duc from that age youll need to plug it in to a laptop....i think - just about to buy the cabling to hook mine up...
Think you are spot on sir , even if it does turn out to be something simple the previous owner doesnt look to have been too fastidious and she needs some tlc , was intending to do a lot of work over the winter but looks like it cant wait.
Ah - stand corrected - (still buying the cabling so i can clear codes etc etc) - always handy to have stuff like that!!
You could also have a look at the fuel tank breather under the fuel cap. These get blocked up from time to time.
So to update , im still under warranty from the dealer and as im moving house imminently shes being picked up by them early next week for rectification , weight off my mind and hopefully i can pick her up all good as new after the moves complete so my new neighbours can be super impressed with the beautifull Ducati soundtrack lolol , gratefull for all the suggestions in the meantime though , promise pics of my new bins when im settled as a thank you.
I went through all this with my Morini Granpasso which shares very many components with Ducati, this is what I've done to not cure it! As you close the throttle, if the revs hit 1400 or less, the engine cuts out irrespective of speed, or gear. I've been to the current importer, the previous importer and to two highly qualified Ducati specialists... Drained fuel tank to remove water (a teaspoonful) Replaced fuel filter Replaced in-tank hoses (Demon Tweaks for a fraction of Ducati price) Replaced spark plugs Replaced one coil stick that was occasionally throwing up an error code Replaced TPS (@Exige) Replaced stepper motor (thanks @final_edition & Amore Moto), no difference Swapped out ECU Swapped mapping from tuned to standard, no change, so back again Performed leak down test Swapped fuel tanks, no difference Swapped dash (apparently dash holds some temperature info) Checked loom to stepper - all OK The bike worked perfectly throughout its entire operation, I put it away for several weeks last year and it has been like this ever since. By process of elimination, I believe it has to be a sensor (possibly picked up a speck of corrosion in storage) that is feeding the ecu with pure fiction, based on which, the ecu is then telling the stepper motor a pack of lies. Now pondering which sensor it might be.. (any suggestions, pleeeeeese!) I'd be very interested to find out what your fault turns out to be. Do you recall whether you may have been throttling off? If so, we may be suffering a similar problem. Can you eliminate that it happens on a steady, open throttle? The stepper controls tickover, so if it happens when you enter the stepper's range, there's your suspect...
Happens mainly but not exclusively on a closed throttle when slowing or on a constant throttle when maintaining speed , wide open it doesnt seem to happen at all but that may be because the revs are higher and climbing , its almost like running into the rev limiter in that you can feel the engine braking kick in and once it happens as the revs drop to idle the engine just stalls , i was very very lucky that the battery lasted on the last trip home , it died on me 15-20 times in heavy fast traffic on a dual carriageway , scared me to death as with no brake warning light and sudden speed loss following drivers had no way of anticipating it and nor did i.
I rode mine like that to Madrid and back, via the 10,000 bends and hairpins of the Picos, can't tell you focused it kept me and how impressed I was with the clutch and starter motor!! Hahahaha. If yours turns out to be a stepper motor issue, with great thanks to @final_edition, I can send you one if you need it (£680.00 from Ducati)
