OK maybe so, I was thinking it was an independent (of that name) and didn't want to see him getting stitched up.
Check the wiring harness behind the battery and make sure is turning over not to slow. The wiring from the generator is crap but is easy to replace. I bought a 916 back in November done all the bits that's been talked about , and love it to bits, buy it it's an investment.
Going to pick the bike up tomorrow evening, I'm just ordering the service items I'll need. Can someone tell me the eom spark plugs for the 996 2001 bip? Looking at some Brembo SA sintered pads front and rear.. Any suggestions on these items?
Don't buy any bike as an investment because you would have to hold on to them for 15 years or more to make a profit. Even Desmosedicis will have lost money if bought brand new. Buy it because you want to ride it.
Just do it all yourself. Id never done a ducati before, but have serviced all my other bikes and when i got my 996 last year I did a major service on it myself. All really easy and theres Youtube guides on how to do the belts. I used both the allen key method and the guitar tuner method of tensioning them. I did the belts on mine, oil, oil filter, air filters, fuel filter, brake pads, brake fluid, plugs, chain, sprockets, basically nearly everything and had no problems at all. Always a bit daunting but if you take your time its really easy. Then after all that the clutch went, so I had to fit a new clutch also. I got all my bits from ducati, so genuine stuff and I can include the invoice etc with the bikes history in case I sell it in the future. Sounds like you got it for a good price too, I paid the same for my 2000 one last year baring in mind the amount of work needed etc.
Cheers stew, could you tell me the genuine eom plugs required for the 996? As ducati want £16 exc vat each... Did you look at the valves and rockers when you did your own service? Cheers
Cheers. Got a bit carried away last night when I got her home.. Off to ducati today to get/order some genuine parts for her, fluids have been ordered elsewhere as they are stealers!! Going for Metzeler M7RR rubber and ordered Brembo SA & SP pads. Can't wait to get her on the road. Cheers guys.
Sorry mate, I cant remember which plugs I used to be honest, basically I just walked into my local Ducati and got most of the bits from there. The belts were 80quid if i remember rightly, although if you dig around on here you`ll see that they are the same belts as a renault clio (i think) uses, so you can get them cheaper elsewhere. Same with the fuel filter and plugs... theres a thread somewhere on here for cheap alternatives, but I wanted to use Ducati at least for the first service. When you do the service remember you`ll also need washers and rubber o-rings for things like the quick release fuel lines on the fuel pump and the big o-ring which seals the pump/filter into the tank. God knows why ducati decided it was a good idea to stick the fuel filter inside the tank, makes what normally is a 5 minute job into hours of work. The bits I got from Ducati were the oil (fuchs), oil filter, washers/seals, fuel filter, belts, plugs and that came to £220. The rest I got off ebay/halfrauds. I went for EBC HH pads which a lot of people dont rate, but ive found them to be good in the 996 - although ive since upgraded to the 996R P4 Brembo Calipers & Hel brake lines. The other thing id also say is that the oil filter needs to be torqued up to some ridiculous amount else oil will always leak from around it. I didnt know this initially so was amazed at how hard the old oil filter was to undo, then after I hand tightened the new one on, found I had an oil leak from around it until I googled and found out it had to be torqued up like mad. It also meant I had to buy a new oil filter spanner with 1/2inch fitting too in order to get my torque wrench on it. I didnt check the valves/rockers simply because the bike`s previous service was done by Baines Ducati @ Silverstone and they checked & replaced some of the rockers then. Had they hadnt been checked then id have taken a look myself. If you take your time over it, you`ll find it all a piece of cake. I did mine over a couple of mornings - getting up at 5am and getting 2 hours in the garage before going to work. I must have checked that id put the belts on correctly a dozen times before I dared hit the start button and even then I couldnt actually fire her up until the weekend else the noise would have woken the neighbours up. lol!
The stealers wanted £20 each spark plug! I've ended up ordering two NGK iridium plugs which people seem to rate for the 996 for £13 delivered. Just working my way through servicing her now, hopefully have the belts done tomorrow but I'm shitting myself. Ordered all the fluids online as it was way cheaper than getting them from the stealers. The oil leak has turned out to be a really mucky mating service + the M6 thread in the crankcase has been stripped, I've managed to source a slightly longer bolt which grips the last few threads that aren't stripped (.literally 2) and I'm hoping that plus the new oring will do the job. After that I'm just waiting on the postman. Booked her in for an MOT next Saturday. Even treated myself to booking up Cadwell at the end of the month on the trackbike
Really good video on u tube for doing the belts. They are a gift. When u have them in put her up on the paddock stand take the plugs out put her in gear turn the back wheel
Oil and fuel filters from Opie oils, they are a bit cheaper if you buy the 2 packs. Steve Opie Oils - car oil and motorbike oil sales and recommendations Here are the recommended products suitable for your DUCATI 748 Biposto 01/95 - 12/03 OIL FILTER: UFI oil filter 23.105.00 Discounted Price £5.16 inc VAT £4.30 ex VAT Recommended Retail Price £5.16 inc VAT £4.30 ex VAT FUEL FILTER: UFI motorcycle fuel filter 31.760.00 Discounted Price £10.31 inc VAT £8.59 ex VAT Recommended Retail Price £10.31 inc VAT £8.59 ex VAT
Great! Anyone else had problems with iridium NGK plugs? Got timing belts and oil change done today, ran sweet as a nut.
Yeah, all done with thanks to the Haynes manual. Just the wheels, brakes, forks & brake/clutch fluids to do
Just in case you didn't have it on your checklist (and I can't recall if the Haynes manual mentions it) but make sure that you rotated the tensioners anti-clockwise when setting the tension otherwise the belts will run too close together and it could end in tears.
the only comment i would make is that having seen Neil @ Cornerspeed do a proper full service, i'd be wary of buying any bike that had been home serviced if i didnt know the person or their skills. belts and plugs /filters etc was the easy bit, valve clearances /shims etc are the bits people skimp/miss and could wreck the cams/followers etc. the service also includes setting up/balancing the throttles, resetting the TPS and a mixture check, along with all the service items. i'm doing minor stuff myself inbetween but not the biggies.
