916 A Question Of Heads

Discussion in '748 / 916 / 996 / 998' started by John Ralston, Dec 3, 2019.

  1. Hi folks,
    In addition to the questions I just posted about the 916/996 swap, I wanted to see what the thoughts were concerning the engine itself. Unlike my 916 heads, which are Head.JPG covered with cast lettering - Ducati, Desmo, etc., the heads on the 996 have nothing on them (see pic). I'd heard that 916 heads that were blank were a special head, is this the case for the 996, or did Ducati decide to just stop putting on the advertising for the 996 heads?

    Thanks for the help,
    Jack
     
    #1 John Ralston, Dec 3, 2019
  2. SPS heads?
     
    #2 ducv2, Dec 3, 2019
  3. sp sps and 996 heads dont have desmo moulded in to the top
     
    #3 224stu, Dec 3, 2019
  4. my sps has 9c on the heads
     
    #4 cookster, Dec 3, 2019
  5. Hmm, as you can see from the pics, these have 9c on them as well. The dude that I got it from buys, parts and resells these bikes, he mentioned that he bought from a guy that had it stored in his basement, periodically firing it up for a ride around town, so it was running when he bought it. He said he paid a premium for the bike since it had some "corsa" bits on it. I wonder if it had an SPS motor in it, since the motor had been replaced in that bike as well.
    Cookster, your sure of the provenance of your bike being an SPS?
     
    #5 John Ralston, Dec 3, 2019
  6. Take the inspection covers off the heads and read the numbers on the cams
     
    #6 deleteduser211220, Dec 3, 2019
  7. Has it got two pickups on the flywheel?
     
    #7 RickyX, Dec 3, 2019
  8. It’s more than likely a standard 996 engine. Check for 2 pick ups / sensors on left hand side and are the crank cases smooth or rough ??? If it’s smooth it’s std if it’s rough it’s a sand cast
    2 pick ups and sand cast would be SP/SPS
    But if you. Email Ducati factory with engine numbers they will tell you
    Out of interest what colour is the clutch cover ??
     
    #8 224stu, Dec 3, 2019
  9. I'm out of town right now, but my first impression was that the case seemed rougher than my old 916 case. Pretty sure it has two pickups, but again I need to check. The clutch cover is grey, similar to the 916 engine. I'll be home tomorrow and I'll check
     
    #9 John Ralston, Dec 4, 2019
    • Like Like x 1
  10. #10 cookster, Dec 4, 2019
  11. the standard 996 clutch cover is similar to the engine colour, sps is darker, i have both models
     
    #11 224stu, Dec 4, 2019
  12. Well, the 996 engine does not have the 2nd pickup, so it was exciting while it lasted! It appears that this is a box stock 996, so now I've got to get the lump in Iron Mike so we can try and get a couple chilly rides in while the weather hangs on. Thanks everyone for supporting my fantasy for a little while!
     
    #12 John Ralston, Dec 6, 2019
  13. The 996s 2001 EU version does not have the 2 pickups but has the SPS heads and cam. The heads of my 996s look like yours
     
    #13 Goddi8, Dec 6, 2019
    • Like Like x 1
  14. You can still ride in Virginia at this time of year??
     
    #14 TNR, Dec 8, 2019
(You must log in or sign up to post here.)
Do Not Sell My Personal Information