Very true,my vw Transporter is due a service now,asked my local garage for a quote £189inc vat,phoned up main dealer £156inc vat with a courtesy van.
You genuinely believe that a dealer would hand your bike back to you having done nothing to it, but charging you for hundreds of pounds worth of work. That's fraud and I'd be reporting that to the police, Ducati UK and naming them on here ! As you are local to me, I'm curious as to who this is so that I can avoid them like you do. The technician in the main dealer that serviced my Desmo had the largest,most organised, fullest and cleanest Snap-On tool chest I've ever seen. he showed me the dedicated Desmosedici tool cabinet, so no problems there. I didn't see a torque wrench calibration certificate though, very remiss of me. Where I work, the wrenches have to be calibrated every 3 months, impressive that you do that as a private individual. Oh, and the price of the service was about £270. How much would an un-serviced Desmo be worth compared to one with a full history. Probably considerablly less than 10 services.
I know of a few car and bike mechanics I wouldn't trust with a lego set. Doesn't alter the fact your bike's worth less without the stamps, though. Either do it yourself and accept the hit, or find a decent mechanic with a service stamp...
I bet they are all at independent garages though. Main dealers have a strict retraining and accreditation programme
100% wrong, I'm afraid. I was thinking in particular of two Vauxhall mechanics at a main dealer who'd struggle to tie their shoelaces unsupervised (they're both experienced mechanics, not trainees) and two blokes who used to work at Motorcycle City/Carnell, whatever it's called now, who told me stories of unthinkable things they did to customers' bikes. You really don't want to know.
The thing with a main dealer is that of they do screw something up you have comeback. I had the cam belt changed on my alfa 166 by an 'excellent' mechanic who somehow managed to incorrectly tension the belt, destroying the engine on the way home. Had that been done by either an alfa specialist or main dealer it would have been put right. As it was I ended up selling the car with a damaged engine, thousands of pounds out of pocket. I didn't change the belt myself as the alfa V6 needs some expensive special tools to do the job properly. It's also a standard practice for a main dealer to plug the bike or car in and check for any software updates, something anyone outside the network cannot do, as well as check for any recalls (and register their completion on the manufacturers data base) On this alone it's possible to argue that it is impossible to properly and completely service any modern vehicle at home. With a modern vehicle the mechanical side is only part of the service. It's also quite common to get 12 months breakdown cover with a service, so that needs to be factored in as well. Add to the recipe that with cars in particular the annual body inspection needs to be done by a main dealer to validate the anti corrosion warranty and there becomes a clear difference between the main dealer service and the DIY one, no matter how competently it's done.
The worrying thing for me here in Guernsey is that there is no main dealer , being a small island its obviously unviable. There is however a franchised dealer, the trouble being these small independents have other marques ,this one includes Harley, Suzuki , Triumph and a couple of scooter concessions as well. This particular garage has only picked up the Ducati contract in the last 3/4 yrs , before that it was elsewhere , but that one went into receivership. The mechanics that dealt with Ducati's at the now defunct garage didn't all suddenly go to the new garage as they had their own mechanics , one or two now do something else. So when this happened 3/4 yrs ago , I bet the franchise that took over didn't turn down anybody's Ducati taken for a service ,even though they didn't have Ducati authorised trained mechanics. They probably have now but back then I bet it was trial and error till they had "done the knowledge. I service my own bike , basic stuff like fluid ,filter changes and belts , I'm not into mileage or year based clearance maintenance yet ,I shall have to decide whether to do myself ,or bite the bullet and chance this local garage , or bring it over to the mainland. However my bike will never be sold and is not now worth a great deal (05 999 ) so it's not an imperative decision .
Not being funny Peter, but what the hell is the point of having a Ducati on Guernsey? There surely can't be enough tarmac for you to get out of second gear, never mind give a thoroughbred sportsbike it's head?
I compete and get away on track every now and then :wink: , what do you want me to own one of their pit scoots :biggrin: And you can look cool at 35mph as much as 70.
Get the service done by an approved service agent or main agent.tryining to sell a Ducati without full service history could prove to be very problematic!it
On all the new bikes I've owned I've had the services done at the main dealer but only because they were still under 2 years old when I sold them. I bought a 916 a couple of months ago, it had a lot of receipt history for belts, valve clearances and general work with the last 10 MOT's but the original service book was missing. I phoned some of the dealers up on the receipts to confirm the history and I was happy. The bike is in many bits having parts re plated and replaced, I will be doing the servicing myself, keeping the receipts for the parts but sending it into JHP every 2 years for belts/general check up. Everyone will have a different opinion on it tbh and I agree that on the older bikes a fully stamped service book is harder to find. However if I was buying anything 5 years old or newer I would want a fully stamped service book. Just seems wrong for a new bike not to be serviced by a Ducati technician.
I can see you haven't been to a dealer in 7 years but which one was it where you experienced them charging you and not doing any work ? Personally I've not seen a Ducati centre that doesn't have the tools you mention or know how to set the TPS, perhaps you should have walked away when you saw the lack of tools and they wouldn't have took your money for doing nothing ? Personally the service centre I use keep all the consumables they change and you can have them back if you want them
While I'd generally agree with the theory that good mechanics use good tools, you can buy good tools in halfords these days. I do know one person (I'd not describe him as a friend) who has one of the most extensively and expensively stocked tool boxes I've ever seen, but I've seen him in action and wouldn't let him loose with a can opener - definitely "all the gear and no idea" just a rich kid with a tool catalogue and a credit card. Knowing where special tools are required is a sign of a good mechanic (as is knowing when to consult the manual). Some (like the afore mentioned clutch holding tool) are totally essential for some jobs, while others like the engine turning tool (when changing cam belts on dry clutch two valve motors) are just a convenience - the engine can be turned just as accurately with the plugs out just by manually turning the clutch.
Are the bikes worth less with no stamps in the book ?? if so how much less ?? The bikes worth whats its worth , having service history makes it a more desirable buy only . So you see an add for a bike ........any bike it doesnt matter , so its mint ,really well looked after , some good modifications but the owner has done all his servicing himself and has all receipts of parts he has fitted but not a stamp in the book . You see another add for the same bike similar miles , bit grotty , bit rough been out in all weather...... rain , shine salt the lot .......but this one has full dealer service history and all receipts of work done So which bike are you buying ????
I think on a new bike it's kind of a given that it should have a service history. I always buy on the condition of the bike and as the bike gets older the regular visits to the dealer become far less important. If I were buying a classic, it's 100% about the condition and the feeling I get about the bike. An A4 folder stuffed with evidence of the owner looking after his pride and joy counts for a lot in my book. If I was looking at a 3 year old bike that the owner has been servicing themselves, I'd more than likely walk away.
It's an assurance of a standard. To be a Ducati technician you have to train and pass certain exams, stamping the book is an assurance (within reason) that the correct work has been done with the correct tools and in the correct way. There are many people who are competent (I'd like to think of myself as one at least to a degree) and who are capable of servicing a bike every bit as well as a dealer. I've restored a bike to show winning standard and have a few people who will not allow anyone else to touch their bikes. Buying a bike from me i'd like to think you will find evidence of careful maintenance such as copper greased stainless fasteners everywhere (when appropriate), and clean electrical connections, properly adjusted and lubed chains and correctly greased bearings. Problem is, without those stamps in the book you only have my word, and your careful eye to distinguish between a well maintained bike and a hanging death trap. I may be able to show you a clean garage with ample tools, and lots of receipts for the parts, but you have absolutely no way of knowing if I've over tightened the plugs, or under tensioned the cam belts. On a £2500 bike, especially a simple one like an SS it's not quite so critical, but on ten grands worth of 18 month old panigale it's a big gamble.
I know a ducati trained technician that left a dealership for refusing to sign to say he had done it when he had not. I said that a person servicing his own bikes should have all these tools as would a Ducati center . The tools are part of the service and if you haven't got them then you haven't done it properly. keeping old belts and filters is great , but at a ducati service center do you not think that they could just have more than one set of old service items . How do you know they were off your bike AND if there were no suspicion why would they keep them.
You are looking at two 848's with a view to buying one; one has a full service history and stamped service book, the other has none; they're both mint and both selling for the same price - which one do you choose..? The answer's so glaring obvious I'm surprised the question was ever asked.
