Friend is looking at 916s, what should he be looking closely at?

[MAGNUM636]

A friend of mine is currently looking at 916s. He met the seller and test rode his first today. I didn't go with him, but he had a lot of good things to say about the bike. I'm already a little concerned because I know he wants the bike for its looks, he says he doesn't even like cornering that much. His last bike was an 00 ZX6 that he crushed the fork seals on from wheelies-- if he does this shit on this new Duc, he'll be paying out the ass. I keep telling him if he wants to screw around, to get a bulletproof big four liter.

Regardless, what should we be looking for? What is notoriously fragile and expensive to replace (I know, the whole thing is) on this bike? Cosmetically, the bike looks nice but I'm a little worried about the few aftermarket bits on there, may be cheap cover-ups. Ducati experts chime in!!

[madman748]

First, he must like to wrench on a bike if he plans of getting a Duc. It's not that they ar bad, they're just tempermental. What afermarket parts? Check out the crankcase breather. If there is lots of oil, then the bike bike may have a blow-buy problem.

[tks]

Ducatis are not the best wheelie bikes, at least I've found. I've got a 916, and the performance is in its cornering capabilities. I think he will be disappointed if he is just looking for speed.

If you drop a ducati, the repair bill will be expensive. Buying new plastics is really pricey. It's kinda hard to say if there is a problem with the bike. Most problems occur in the engine itself. Probably some other people here know more about engine problems and how to identify them.

[madman748]

Originally Posted by MAGNUM636

A friend of mine is currently looking at 916s.

What year?

[916desmo]

from what i have found so far, i have owned 2 ducks one being a 97 916. the main thing with the 916's are the electrical systems. the voltage regs fry if you sit in traffic in high heat. also the yellow wires going into the stator are too small and deteriorate and cause the volt regs to fail also. i had this happen right after i got my bike. i sent the stator to rick's electric and had larger wires put on and i got an electrix volt reg. and have had no problems with the bike at all since. have him check the rubber bushings in the rear sproket, they go bad with age and will eat up a swing arm or cause a crash. they are cheap to replace though. the clutch push rod seals leak on most of the 916's but is not really an issue. there are many after market fixes for this. Some bikes did have flaking rocker issues mostly the 748's. the 916 is not a drag bike or a stunt bike at all. it is more at home in the twisties or an art gallery. the bikes must be properly maintained. i love my 916 and would not consider anything else for my riding style but if i were going to stunt i would go with a gsxr1000 or a zx10. the 916 is a great bike but it does take some comitment to own and enjoy.

[MAGNUM636]

Thanks a lot for everyone's input. I'll ask what year he's looking at. If anyone else has things to look at, please let us know!

[999Duc]

make sure the seller has paperwork for all services performed , who performed them , what they did and when.

Make sure he knows the maintenance schedule:

every 6000 miles -> Valve adjustments $600 service give or take.
every 12,000 miles -> Valve adjustments AND belt replacement $1000 give or take.

From the little that you have said , I dont think a 916 is the right bike for your friend.

[MAGNUM636]

From the little that you have said , I dont think a 916 is the right bike for your friend.

I agree. I'd love it as a second bike, I'd hate to see my friend run such as nice bike into the ground. $1K every 12,000 miles is nuts, if he does get the bike, he'll be knocking on my door for service. I'd like to do his adjustments-- I'd love to tear into one of those.

[crankcase]

buy a 998.