Now I've had Ducati's for 15 years or more so know kinda what to expect, but never owned anything newer than a 996. I'm now looking for a 999 as a possible replacement daily ride for my TL1000 and was wondering if there's anything model specific i should look out for on them. Ideally an ohlins bike with the newer (post 2005 i think) swingarm. Or, should i work a bit harder and get a 1098? Whatever it is will get abused all weathers, hardly cleaned, treated like a cheap commuter, a stunt bike and a fast road blaster at every opportunity. It will however get every pound necessary required to keep it mechanically fit. Ultimate speed is not a worry, I'd rather something that can take a bit of a knob as a owner and not fall apart around me. My pockets aren't very deep but overtime's always available for the odd big bill.
Not sure if 999 is a good fit for a daily ride. I own 748 and 749 now and used to own TL1000R (10months, and done 3000miles on it). TL1000R is quite bulletproof but I would not like to rely on my 749 for commuting. On my 749 I have done several mods to improve it's day-to-day usability, such as heavy gauge starter leads+extra ground cable, waterproofed headlight fuse block, starter relay and fuel pump relay. Also rubber grease around ignition stick coil boot. As far as I know 749/999 are not bad weather friendly and gives all sorts of troubles if wet. But don't get me wrong, there are many positives about 749/999 models.I do like the bike. I love the looks (I like stacked headlights, nice seat position and huge fairings... I guess I will get crucifed here for saying that it looks better than the 748/916 series and also any later models. Raise the pitchfork now folks!) I can't objectively say, but in my opinion the 848 models and up are much more reliable. I did not own multiple ducati era bikes to known better, there are plenty of other guys with ownership of 5+ different models. Sometimes I think that I done the wrong thing to sell TL1000R. I should keep it as a commuting bike and leave 749/748 as a weekend blast/show off.
Done over 25K on my old 999s and it never missed a beat in all sorts of bad weather . Burnt the clutch out on my 9R but it still got me home from nurburgring , slowly , keep on top of things and there as reliable as any bike .
I do love my tl1000s, and I know and I'm getting old saying this, but it's too scary when trying to commit to a corner and I'd rather put the money towards another bike instead of trying to fix it. Scary might be too strong, more like you spend too much brain wondering what it's going to do instead of enjoying the ride. I'd not honestly thought 848 but it's gotta worth a look now you mention it. I just remember how narrow and comfortable a 999 was when I rode one years ago.
Ah main bearings. That brings up my other thoughts. Buy cheaper, strip it and have it built properly knowing then it should be safe for a while, or get the best I can and hope for no surprises. Certainly seems to have fewer issues than the 748-996 range I'm used to. Cue someone with a list of 999 faults to scare me off the idea.
I rode to Germany this year on my 999 without fairing(don't ask!) through a monsoon no probs. 24,000 trouble free miles on it. 2005 base model, better electrics than 03/04 bikes apparently. It gets hot in traffic if the suns out.
To be honest that's the biggest problem. Buy one and if it does not go pop the fine but if it does then rebuild. If it aint broke don't fix it blah blah blah
I can't see why the 999 engine would be more prone to main bearing failure than any number of other Ducati engines. What was so special about the 999 bottom end? Isn't it essentially the same motor as in the 998? They must have had bottom ends designed from years ago. Or am I completely wrong and should be expecting my 43'000 kms 999 to go pop at any time?
Does 749 share same gearbox with 999 ? If so, would that mean the bearings are less stressed in 749 than in 999 and thus we can expect more mileage from 749? I have 749 with around 40 000 km and wonder what sort of mileage can I get assuming I do follow maintanence and ride only on street.
Yeah I've been a bit blinkered. If i can't afford it i don't worry about what problems it might have. Guess I'll keep just looking at 999s even though I hear good things about 848s, until today :Nailbiting:
Joking really, Terblance did put a lot of thought into the design tho, it takes seconds to take the fairing sides off. 999 are rarer unique and instantly recognisable compared to 1098 series which is why I like them, plus the racing heritage with NH, JT and TB winning WSB with them. 848 probably are a better bike, I haven't ridden one so can't say. If I was looking to buy a superbike I would be torn between 999 and 848, evo probably.
I've had my 03 999S for nearly 3 years, not done much mileage on it but then i don't commute on bikes at the moment (due to storage concerns at both ends of the equation). Mine has been great, did a 4 hour ride to MotoRapido for a remap in the pissing rain and it never missed a beat. Mechanically the bike's been great. It's bad on my wrists but i'm a big heavy lad and i think the bars are not in the best place (i'm broad with it). I've had a subframe snap, an alloy mono one (just in front of the lower exhaust mounts for the pipework, not the can) and my current exhaust can is falling to bits (Ti Storm system). I love my 999, it's looks have aged much better than other models, and the 848/1098/1198 just seem a bit bland and not what i'd expect from Ducati (although the 1198 motor is supposed to be a torque monster ). I look after my bike and now it has a good aftermarket battery (Yuasa) i would have no hesitation using it everyday.