IME a faulty CPS results in the engine completely/randomly cutting out, like hitting the kill switch on and off.
Contact Carl Harrison Motorycle Services - Welcome He's a magician when it comes to Ducatis and has over 25 years experience working with them. He's based in Harleston in Norfolk, and since you said you were at Snetterton, hopefully not too far for you to drop the bike off with him. I'm pretty confident he can fix it.
Have you tried to run it with the fuel cap loose? Just a thought. My 1098 just back from a service and it had blocked breathers on the tank. Maybe this would allow enough to rev it in neutral but not enough when under load. Worth a try Nervy, cost fek all etc.
That's a neat thought. I especially like the price. The only issue is that I'd need to drag it to the bumpy old airfield like I did before as its not road registered and run it up past 8k in 3rd with fuel sloshing over me. I suppose if I drained most of the fuel out that might minimise sloshing you think?
Thanks Top- I know Karl well (I was there last week with my other bike) and you're right he's ace. He does all my bikes, and in fact he serviced this very bike when it was last serviced. I was hoping to try a few more things myself before just sending it to him tho as money is a bit tight at the mo', and also I'm not sure how he'd be able to manifest the problem without riding it which is an issue as it's not road registered. Or could he road test it somehow do you think? Thanks for the suggestion. I really appreciate you taking the time fella.
Not sure Nervy if he could road test it. Perhaps he has trade plates that permit him to, though maybe not if the bike is not road legal. In any case it wouldn't hurt to ask him or describe the symptoms, as he might just be able to suggest something you've maybe overlooked. Failing that you could take it to BSD in Peterborough as they have full dyno facilities and might be able to sort the issue out. Since it is so specific though and not just general poor running, makes me suspect that it's an electronic as opposed to a fuelling issue. If so that could be tested using the DDA which Carl has. He also has my wife's Monster engine in pieces too, which I'm currently restoring.
Thanks Top. Would the DDA read/ find anything if it hasn't stored any error codes, or is there a second 'layer' of error codes that the dash doesn't show like on Aprilias? I'm a bit reluctant to call him at the mo' as the poor bugger has already been really kind on the phone last week about another problem I have and he's so busy this time of year. Maybe you're right tho. Maybe it's bite the bullet time? One of the things that PT suggested was replacing the internal fuel hose- is that an easy enough job do you think? Buy some internal fuel hose and some crimps and a crimping tool and try that? Of course there will be eight hundred million sizes of hose and clip, all of which I'll get wrong. I love bikes.
Top- I just looked at your website and realise we met briefly at the Whitwell bike thing towards the end of the summer last year. I was on my old MV and we had a quick chat about your bike. Lovely bike. Small world.
Aha yes I remember now. Small world indeed. Not sure what the DDA could unravel from your bike but Carl would obviously need to have it there to hook it up to. As for the fuel hose, I can't remember if it is incorporated as part of the fuel pump assembly. If so then it's quite a simple job to remove it and replace the hose. Any specialist company can supply you with the correct pressure rated hose. You will need to buy new "Norma" crimp clamps however, which are difficult to source, unless you go to a main dealer. They are a barsteward to remove and you'll need the right tool to fit them. I think I've one that will do the job if you need to borrow it. All said and done give Carl a ring and also run the fuel scenario by him before you start pulling things apart, so as to save you time and money. If you download the parts catalogue for your bike from Ducati's website, you should be able to see the internals of your tank, part numbers etc. If you can't find it, let me know and I will email you a copy. Hope you sort it out soon.
Thanks mate, that's really kind. You're totally right, I'll call Carl now. To be honest, I'm completely fed up of pulling the bike to pieces anyway so fingers crossed he'll tell me to leave it well alone and just bring it over.
Ugh. Here we go again. Look, I'm really sorry to necro-post this again- other than I quite like typing 'necro-post'- but I'm still in need of your collective wisdom/ scorn. So, as Top' suggested, I dutifully packed the Curseducati off to the ever-excellent Carl Harrison, who found that the only thing left wrong was a slightly leaking fuel pressure regulator (replaced) and a sensor that sits behind the battery box that needed re-gapping slightly. As I feared, he couldn't test drive the bike because it's not road legal, so he asked me to give it a go and report back. So, full of beans at the prospect of never, ever, ever taking the bloody thing apart again, I took the bike to an old airfield runway near me and tried it, but sadly the problem was still there- the bike just dies away at 7k revs, as if that was the rev limit. So, I somewhat reluctantly called Carl, who by now is as sick of discussing this as you are, and he suggested removing the power commander to ensure that that wasn't the problem, which I did and then tested the bike again. The problem- for all I can safely determine, as 7k+ revs in 3rd is pretty bloody fast on a turkey-shit-slick 50 year old access road- has gone, which of course points to the problem being the PC3. Of course, it might well be that the problem still exists higher up the rev range (I could only get to 9k on the road), but I'm not in a position to test that really, and am choosing to believe it doesn't because idiot and because stubbornness and because please don't make me take the bike apart again oh please oh please. I've also spoken to the nice folks at DynoJet and they've confirmed that the map looks fine and isn't doing anything untoward, so all fingers point towards it being a PC3 that's giving up the ghost. So, here's where you come in. I'm unsure as to how lean/ rich/ shit these bikes run with full system aftermarket exhausts (plus super-stock internals (I've no idea what that means, by the way, but again like typing it)) so want to be sure before I do any damage to it by riding it. Everything that was done to the bike was all done at the same time, so I'm pretty sure they would have just put the PC3 on it then, rather than putting in an upgraded Ducati ECU to handle the changed fueling for the exhaust etc, like you would normally do if you weren't going the PC route. So, how do I check 'which' ecu I have, and whether the one that's in there will be ok with the full system? Am I ok to run on the normal ecu, or because of the engine internal work/ exhaust etc stuff that's been done, do I need either an upgraded Ducati ECU or a PC3/5? I just know this is going to mean taking the bike to pieces again. I know it. I'd be so happy if it was a case of 'turn on the ignition, the dash will say race or whatever' like it is on an Aprilia. So, what do you say, people? What to do? This has to end soon. Has to. Has to. Right?
I'll send you my kit again. This time with the USB lead so you can use TuneECU to dump and flash maps. You need to download your PC3 map to a laptop. Use a USB stick to transfer the PC3 map to my tablet. Then use my kit to dump your ECU. Then reflash the ECU with the dump and your PC3 map overlaid. You will then be able to junk the PC3 but still have the benefit of the PC3 tune.
Nervy I junked the PC3 on my 1098S after having had a few issues getting it to run as I wanted. Ended up getting a Nemesis instead which saved all the faffing around with a piggyback system and allowed a much better range of variables to fine tune the system. If you get totally stuck I can highly recommend BSD in Peterborough. They do a lot of the dyno work for Bike magazine and tune a myriad of different bikes. The guy who did my 1098 took a whole day tweaking it to perfection, and he is well versed with most aftermarket systems, including Nemesis, PC3, PC5, Yoshimura etc. Take a look here: ECU Reprogramming | BSD Performance They are only an hour or two up the road from here.
That's brilliant. Thanks Top'. You're right- I had a Nemisis system on my last 1098 which had been installed by JHP and that felt a much more resolved and rounded thing, somehow. More robust even. Can't explain that, but it's true. This bike was supposed to be a fun, cheapish project to set up and enjoy for the summer without too much endless expense but I'm already elbow deep in it now in terms of unexpected costs so I think I'll try Chris's reflash first if that's possible, and then if the bike shows itself to be a keeper then I might throw some money at it at the end of the summer once it's earned its keep a bit better. When I tried it on the access road last night it felt like an absolute belter but I need to get my confidence up with it first in terms of reliability before it steals any more money straight from my pockets. Thanks for all your advice you lot, I really appreciate it.
