998s Refurb

Oops, sorry FE, and 981 Final Editions

 

A quick update.

Nothing.

Been painting the outside of the house whilst I wait for a fuel filter, some O-rings, thermal panels, seat bumpers and a spring to be delivered, some of which have to come from Italy

 

Can anyone point me in the direction of a UK supplier for BMC air filters please? Or do I just chance my arm with someone on eBay?
TIA

 

Thanks Mark, I'd found that one too but was really looking for a supplier a little closer to home* just in case there are any issues.

Your response raises another couple of questions.

a) If they've been discontinued what happens when they need replacing, or being cotton, is that never the case, just wash and go?

b) what else are people using where there's no provision in the air intake tubes (other than SpongeBob).

*I aint gonna find one here in Ireland - air filters for your 60+ year old David Brown/Massey Ferguson/Ford etc - not a problem sir, air filters for a Ducati 998S - Ha, what planet are you on!

 

Longish post so gratuitous photo's interjected.

Haven't had an opportunity to touch it for the past month due to a variety of other things (and bikes) but I thought I'd take a look at the misfire issue last week and see what it might be. Readers will recall it wouldn't start when I first tried, traced as no fuel coming out of the injectors. At that time movement of the bike off the rear axle stand and onto the side stand and opening closing the fuel tank got it started again. No it's not a blocked breather. I put a small amount of fuel in did a 50 mile trip to check it out and it started misfiring a couple of miles from home. Parked it up on the axle stand again.

About 3 weeks later try and start, again, nothing, won't fire up. Need to get it out the shed to move it to the work area side to get space to work on it, off the axle stand, wheel it out, on side stand. Out of curiosity thumb the starter and it starts and ticks over. Grab a torch, open the fuel filler, look inside, almost no fuel , don't think I've ever seen a tank so empty. No fuel light on.

Now I'm thinking maybe there's an issue with the fuel light, and it was just really really low on fuel. Perhaps, just perhaps, when on the level on the axle stand the remaining fuel is below the pick up for it, tilt it onto the side stand and the pick up is back in the fuel and thus can feed the injectors. Perhaps that's what happened last time as to why it wouldn't start then did start when I'd moved it. Perhaps I was running out of fuel as I got home - I had only put a couple of litres in - and the fact the fuel light appears faulty had tricked me to believe there was fuel it. A plausible theory perhaps I thought, so I'll leave the fuel filter change (it eventually arrived) for another day, fuel it up and ride it.

So I switch it off, chuck in another 5 litres and get suited and booted, to head off to the petrol station and fill her up and go out for a ride. Start her up, off the compound, poodle up the lane in 1st, turn onto the main road (well bigger than our lane anyway) and off we go . Get 200 mtrs down the road, BANG, a massive back fire. Hmm, . Ah well, lets just ignore that, on we go. Another 100m or so and wtf it's like the throttles have just been slammed close, then it picks up again, then BANG another backfire. Same thing another 100m or so down the road. F**k it. I'll have to take it back home. Turn around, back up the hill, back down the lane, back in the shed.

I'll get chance tomorrow to strip it down and have a look see what might be the issue. I'm now thinking two things, I still think there may be a problem with the fuel supply system so that will be stripped and checked over but I'm also now thinking, due to the backfires, there may be a spark issue, either a failing plug or coil. I'm thinking the only reason it would/could backfire is if unburnt fuel gets into the exhausts and ignites, ie it's not being ignited and/or fully burnt in the cylinder

As always, all suggestions/advice gratefully received.

 

Do you mean the valves themselves FE? ie the flat disk bit that turns when you twist the throttle?

 

Ah, OK, thanks, I'll check that whilst I'm in there

 

It was/is a wet day here so I've been in the shed fiddling around with the bike to a) see if I can find out what's causing the misfire and b) to fit a couple of parts I bought - might as well do them at the same time whilst it's in pieces.

I managed to find a set of 50mm CF Termis which arrived last week, readers will recall the bike has 45mm titanium Termis which had been pushed inside the 50mm exhaust pipes - by the supplying Ducati dealer I may add. I couldn't find a titanium 50mm set so settled for the carbon fibre ones. They just need a bit of a polish that's all.



I also bought a monoposto subframe so the plan was to fit that as well.



However, the bike has an alarm and the fitter ran part of the alarm loom through the subframe and not behind it . It's the piece wrapped in black insulating tape. I can see why he did that as there's part of the bike's loom run through there as well plus there's a rubber band to hold it in place. The problem is Ducati thought about it and put a connector there which allows the loom to be broken and passed through the subframe; the alarm fitter didn't think about it . The only way to get that out of there so the subframe can be removed is to cut it and guess what? all the wires inside the tape are black. No monoposto subframe today then.




Time to reassemble everything and move onto the original job which was to replace the fuel filter. Tank off, fuel drained, pump assembly out and check it over. With the exception the filter is dated 17.02.04 all is good in there, all the pipes are in good nick. Old filter out, fuel pump out as well and check the gauze filter underneath, not too bad (apologies for the blurry picture of that one) just a tiny bit of what looked like fluff, otherwise good. Clean the pump pick up filter, replace the fuel filter with a new one dated 10.01.20 and reassemble the assembly.




Now for reassembly back in the tank tomorrow morning. A question though. Should the large green O-ring sit on the bottom of the fuel pump flange where the no.15 is in the colour photo below, or should it sit on the shoulder above that, where the no.23 is in the photo? I can't remember what I did when I replaced the fuel filter on the 748 last year but what I do know is that when I first reassembled the 748 tank and filled it with fuel it pissed out all over the engine as I'd nicked the o-ring putting it back together. Just in case I ordered two this time round .

 

One further question. Removing the injector assembly of the throttle bodies. Having disconnected the wiring to the injectors and the union for the fuel feed pipe in the airbox, the workshop manual simply says "turn intake funnels strongly clockwise to remove from the throttle body clips" - the problem is mine only turn anti-clockwise but even then won't lift out. I don't want to force them and then break something but is the "clockwise" in the service manual a misprint? (I've found others in the past in other Ducati service manuals) and also, how far should they turn? I'm assuming about 45 degrees is all that's needed to clear the spring clips that hold them in place .