Poor low speed running - fixed

As a relatively new Multi owner I've read all the advice on here as to the best way to solve the (very) poor low speed running of Multistrada 1200 and I thought I'd share my experiences to date.

The issue for me was the, what seemed to me, poor fuelling from tickover to around 3,500rpm which made things very difficult in traffic, filtering on the M25, etc.

My bike is a 2011 S Touring with standard exhaust and no mods.

First thing I did was fit a set of FatDucs that I picked up second hand from a member on this forum. These made a big difference. The engine now pulls cleanly away from 2,000rpm out of roundabouts, etc. making the bike much more civilised.

It wasn't perfect though. At a constant throttle opening anywhere between 2,000 and 4,000 the bike was still very jerky - some have called it surging - either way, it was still hard to ride at a constant speed. Reading here suggested that it would be the exhaust valve so I disconnected it and purchased a small spring and cable clamp for the sum total of £1.50 to fool the ECU into thinking that it was still connected to the valve. For the moment, I've re-routed the cable and then put it inside a smooth tube to stop it getting caught on anything as it operates 'out in the open'.

With this in place the Multi is now smooth on a constant throttle making it so much easier to ride in traffic.

So, with the FatDucs and the Exhaust Valve disconnected, is it perfect? No. Is it nearly perfect? Yes.

As this is my first Ducati, is it quite possibly as good as it gets? Probably! :wink:

As it is now nearly perfect I will most probably get the Duc.EE electronic gadget to do away with the valve wiring, valve control unit thing, etc. as this will get rid of the cable/spring frig completely - I worry that the spring bodge will break/rust, etc. so reckon it isn't a long term solution.

I'll likely get a decat system later in the year and depending on how the fuelling is with it fitted may well go for a full remap in an effort to get it properly perfect, but right now I'm very happy with it as I finally have the bike that I originally wanted!!

Off to France on Thursday for a week, and with the bike now working so well I'm doubly looking forward to it! :biggrin:

 

Hi Rivets,

Hard to tell you exactly what to get to be honest - I went it to a nearby 'old-fashioned' hardware shop and asked for a compression spring - they showed me what they had and since they were about 20p each I bought five different ones in the hope that one was right - which it was! You can see from the photos below what sort of diameter it was - big enough to get it over the clamp on the end of the cable. It was about 40mm long or thereabouts.

The other thing you'll need (following my method at least!) is a pinch bolt. My local hardware store also had bicycle accessories and I bought a pinch bolt meant for use on a bicycle brake cable. As you can hopefully see from the pictures, I had to hacksaw the slot open to get the exhaust cable in, then it was a simple process to clamp it in place. This cost £1.25.

When I first did it I had the pinch bolt right at the end of the exhaust cable, but with it there I was still getting the EXVL error message. I think this was because the cable was moving too far and the ECU was confused. I moved the pinch bolt further along the exhaust valve cable to where you can see it is now, and the error message no longer appears.

Once I had that working I then re-routed the cable away from the exhaust as I didn't want it catching on the valve or anything. It now sits on top of the swing arm where I've put it inside a bit of tubing that I had lying around. I cable tied the whole lot to the swing arm and it ensures that the cable won't get caught on anything as it is operating. I'll probably now try and find a plug of some description to shut the end of the tube to hide the cable just to pretty it up a bit.

I know, it's all a bit heath robinson and I'm clearly no engineer, but it is working and I'm happy. I was after quickly proving it worked really. As it does I'm probably going to get the Duc.EE to eliminate it fully and get rid of the cable, etc. And of course, it is only a couple of bicycle accessories so perhaps won't last too long on the Multi?

Anyway, hope this, and the following photos, help.

Regards

Steve

First pic shows the right sort of diameter for the spring. This isn't the spring I used - I used one that was around 40mm uncompressed.


This picture shows the spring and pinch bolt in place. Note the cut in the pinch bolt that was needed to get the cable in. It is positioned on top of the swing arm.


The whole thing in the tube as it looks from the side.


The tube from behind. Must find a plug for the end....

 

We are off Thursday night - the overnight ferry from Portsmouth, landing Caen Friday morning. Just a quick trip, so heading to the Loire for a few days. We are basing ourselves in Saumur, so not too far from Tours, but I think you'll be down near Spain by then!! We are back home on next Tuesday.

I'll be on my red 2011 S Touring, and my wife will be on her BMW F800R. Really looking forward to it!!