We took the bike back to have the non existent rear brake sorted and it went from there. Replacement parts are not yet available from ducati - supply chain issues brexit/covid.
Point of interest, I had the Monster serviced at Ducati Malaga, €150, about £128 which I thought wasn’t bad. The chief tech said he’d pumped in fresh brake fluid through the whole system, via the front bakes, through the servo in the middle of the bike and out the rear. He said the air gathers in the top point at the servo making the rear brake non functional. It was definitely better but of course once the brake fluid has heated up a few times the rear will soften off again. Roll on the recall or fit your own heat insulation to the pipework. The Multi’s suffer from the same thing.
Monster 1200S 2014 here. Has anyone had the recall done and used the bike for a while to see if it has resolved this perennial Ducati rear brake problem? Like many people here and on the other forums, I have gone through a whole process of trying to bleed, reverse bleed, pressure bleed, vacuum bleed and even tried a different caliper, to end up with a rear brake that won't stop the bike rolling down an incline. I have also tried triggering the ABS by attempting to lock the rear brake in urban mode to build pressure, to no avail. I'm really hoping that the recall work will resolve this once and for all so I'd be really interested to hear from anyone either way. Couldn't find anything on the Ducati UK website so I checked on the UK.Gov website and found this below:
The only method i found that made it better was to bleed it with the calliper removed and a few pipe clips undone so that i could manoeuvre the calliper upwards with the bleed nipple at the top. But over time it went back to the soggy pedal we all know and love. Luckily MOT was still passed, something about comined braking force or something.
Yes, I did the same with the caliper raised to seat height, with the bleed nipple at the highest point, but the end result still seems to end up the same. I've also used the race spec brake fluid which seems to help for a while. The only possibilities remaining are; air accumulating in the ABS pump, or the fluid boiling through the brake hose running so close to the header pipe. I think it's the latter as even in the winter when the bike is idling the rear header glows red hot. Anyhow, waiting to hear back from Pro Twins to see if it can be done through the Ducati recall.
All a bit silly of Ducati this rear brake problem. My 939Hyper rear brake works fine - even though it's only used occasionally! I guess it's all to do with subtle differences with the exhaust & brake pipe routing - even though it's a SSSA too...
Not sure what to contribute to this thread. I am a rider from an era of British bikes where you used the front brake, the rear brake and engine braking in the hope of stopping eventually. I decided to upgrade Multistrada 1200 rear caliper as there is one between stock and the ridiculously priced race caliper. I now only use Motul 660, which I bleed through annually, routinely removing the caliper and supporting it above the ABS manifold banjo. Might appear to be a PITA but the mechanic said at one of the services, he had never seen a more effective rear brake. Right or wrong on a premium bike, it is what it is and I have found a solution that works for me. Andy
I do the same Andy, Mosul fluid made a big difference but the best thing I did was fit a Stalhbus bleed nipple on the rear caliper, makes bleeding a breeze Ped
Not used my bike much for a couple of years (m821) usual shit: covid, slipped disc, family, work etc Took it out for a bit of a blast a couple of weeks ago and the rear brake was non existent (last service had fluid change with uprated fluid). I’ve just booked in for an MOT and service, apparently there is a recall for brake lines which should fix the issue. I’m not sure if there is something similar on the 1200 - might be worth checking, apologies I should have asked..
Hi MDUBZ, I read about the recall in the States, and then in Europe, but nothing in the UK until recently. If you see the thread above; I heard nothing from Ducati so I looked up my 1200S on the DVLA database and found that it was one that was included in the recall, so I sent this information and the screengrab to Pro Twins who undertook the work and billed Ducati. I've got to say that they were great really good to deal with, very knowledgeable and helpful, and when the bike came back the chain was tensioned perfectly so I had neutral again, and they had bled the clutch at the same time. I will definitely return for any servicing or other work. That being said, the rear brake is still typical Ducati which is almost mediocre!
Used my low mileage 2019 Monster 1200S a couple of weeks ago everything was fine. Yesterday whilst I was out back brake not working at all, it just went all the way down to the exhaust pipe. It's not mentioned in the recall. So I guess I'll have to pay?
Manufacturing defect it would be a recall item if it’s ‘fair wear and tear’ it won’t, just had a notice from Mercedes for my airbag on my 10 year old supplier manufacturing defect apparently. Pain in the ass to get it fixed if I was keeping it I’d swerve it but selling it on.
Contacted Dealer, they will conduct the factory repair, seems they are doing them as and when they fail. a bit odd for a safety recall! Sadly a six week wait to get it done. So I'm missing six weeks of summer riding, at my age there aren't that many summers of riding left.
Well that’s a result, as you say it’s odd that a safety item is a maintain on failure. Did they advise you of the specific problem seal failure or such? For me I’d ask for the parts and self repair, although I doubt they’d go along with that idea. As an aside I can’t recall the last time I used a brake brake on a motorcycle, not that I’m suggesting that you copy me.
Agreed re brake, hill start maybe but even then only if it's really steep. That said, pc plod would take a dim view for sure
Will the back brake failure affect the front brake? I wouldn't have thought so but they both link to the ABS unit. I understood that the failure is internal delamination of the brake lines caused by heat from the rear cylinder exhaust. It really should be a before failure fix. Should any one have a serious accident without a back brake the manufacturer could be in serious trouble.
Not a safety recall, the brake loses pressure gradually, the safety recall was for the replacement hoses that were fitted in the update for that issue, they didnt have heat protection so could suffer from leakage so required safety recall, if your hoses haven't been upgraded you won't have that problem, the latest version are sorted
Sounds like the 916 rear brake - you'd have thought they'd have learned by now after nearly 30 years...
