I noticed this bike in my local bike shop whilst getting an MOT on my blade and the owner mentioned it was for sale. Said I wasn't interested, then started doing some reading. What interesting bikes they are! This one is an X reg, Feb 2001, 996S. 3 previous owners including a fastidious owner from 2003-2017 who happened to paint it black. Since then the bike has been a bit neglected, and has actually only done 1000 miles in the last 5 years. Maintenance until 2017 was very good, lots of money spent on clutches, clutch slave, head gaskets, fuel filters, aluminium header tanks, new ignition (previous one melted). Regular oil changes. Valves checked at 16k miles and were OK. New chain and sprockets at the same time. Lots of history and bills until 2017. Current condition is tatty round the edges but fundamentally sound. Starts and runs. 21700 miles. Fairings need repainting back to red. Fork seal on one side leaking a bit. Oil leak from oil filter and some oil smearing up around the oil filler. Rear spring is delaminating. Under the fairings it's pretty grubby but nothing scary. All the electrics work. Disks worn but OK, pads are good. Radiator integrity OK but looks dented up. Has full termi system which sounds great. Tyres 11 years old and need changing. Obviously needs new belts DVLA says the bike is an S and I think it is - has extra hole for steering damper which I think is one way to tell? So the question is, how much is it worth? Seller wants £5500 as is. I've done the sums on getting it back to some kind of former glory and they just about add up. Am I mad? Some more pics And a couple more!
Only bike to not have the extra hole I think was the 748E. Might be worth the money / hassle but only you can decide that. An obvious thing to mention is that if you mint the bodywork, the corrosion on the engine will stand out a mile. It’s always good to have a project like this but think it through as it’s never going to be a quick fix. Good luck!
it has 2 of the items i would be looking for with a 996s- Ohlins rear shock and full 50mm exhaust including headers. the only true way to tell is either a dyno print out ( 120-125 hp+) or looking inside the motor would be a great bike for a full stripdown and clean etc, but it will cost you some time and some money for sure..
Ohlins rear. TiN forks. seems that all the important bits are OK. Might need a new radiator. And it's black
Pros: Good service record. Good price. 996 values probably bottoming out. Easy to work on. Fantastic bike to ride once project is complete. Cons: Cost and time of restoration. Unknown valve rocker condition? (although head gasket receipts indicate they may have inspected the rockers for flaking during the valve adjustment.)
Thanks for all the responses - much appreciated! The bike is in NW London, so no it's not the midlands one! The valve rocker condition is indeed a question mark - I've asked the owner if he knows if it's been checked, and he doesn't know. Couldn't find reference to it in the history, although the bike was definitely looked after until 2017. Couple of questions - What are TiN forks? And what does being a full 50mm exhaust system mean? Are some reduced diameter? Here are some pics of the relevant history (there's much more but these jumped out) View attachment 260789
TiN is a coating on the fork tubes that may or may not be an improvement on a plain chrome finish. You could get a 45mm, 45/50mm half or full 50mm exhaust system. 50mm tend to make better torque. Andy
If the bike has stood for a while electrics and loom may be an issue. If you got the Money WTF not, a true classic, and the best looking bike ever made.
Yes electrics are a worry, although I don't think there's anything shocking going on with them as it's been stored in a dry heated environment and bike did start up and everything worked. One further note is that the bike has got a dynojet map on it - apparently the previous owner put it on, said it ran much better with it. Any particular experience of this?
It is not uncommon to find something like an aftermarket UltiMap EPROM or a Power Commander fitted. Going back to OEM though is now getting a bit more challenging as it is old technology. Andy
996 engine/ pre 2005 is a bag of ferrets, Set it up like a dream at one point in the rev band, and it is as rough as a badges arse elsewhere. Key is if it starts well.
It did start on the button and idle well after 6 months ++ since last start! Until it died after about 30 seconds that is
The 996 is a lovely bit of kit, especially in "S" trim, the price seems reasonable but it all depends on how much you can do yourself as the labour for restoring her would definitely eat your wallet! The frame looks to have had some repair done with smoothrite or similar so would need stripping to repaint properly on top of the other things that need doing. Might be worth asking Nelly if he can confirm the VIN and engine numbers match up to her being an S model, I'm sure he wouldn't mind as it could save you some issues later! P.s sorry for volunteering Nelly's services, I know he's flat out!
yep i put one on my 996s and it ran much better, they have a small issue in that they use the throttle bodies but not the injection system from the sps, so its unable to control each injector like the sps is. this doesn't effect top end, but the midrange has a stumble at about 4500 if my memory serves me well.. so a power commander is a good addition ( mine made 128 at the back wheel) great bikes and i wish i hadn't sold mine to be honest
Just spoke to the owner and agreed a price - looks like the project starts here! So - here come the questions, sorry! 1) what oil does it take? Don’t want the garage to put in any old shit 2) Where best to get new belts from? Is it a Ducati specialist job or will my local garage manage without cocking anything up? 3) Where best to get new fork seals from? I assume they take regular fork oil too? 4) There’s an oil leak from the bottom of the engine around the oil filter. Is the base gasket the most likely culprit? If so is that another part to come from Ducati directly? 5) Am planning to do all fluids, gasket, fork seals/oil, belts. Anything else to do whilst I’m in there? 6) Will also get rear shock removed. Any recommendations for where to get it refurbished? Thank you all so much!
6, Ian Gardiner of IG racing is the man for your damper. He has a Öhlins franchise and is a all round top bloke. Ex F1 damper man. 01933 815133
Congrats! A project bike is a good thing especially if you can ride it between jobs. Its doubly good if its a beautiful Ducati,
1. You'll get many opinions on oil. General consensus is thicker is better. I personally use Mobil1 15W-50 car oil. 2. CA Cycleworks make great belts. @Exide may be able to help out? 3. OEM from dealer. Or All Balls. Originally Showa SS-08 fork oil. Substitute with Shell 7.5 weight? 4. I use Mahle OC-5 oil filters. May cure leak, may not. 5. Air filters (Pipercross MPX038), Fuel filter (mahle KL145), in tank fuel lines, upgrade reg/rec to mosfet for better battery health. Remove rubber blocks from air tube/airbox entry for better induction noises.
