Hi, I have a question. Last year, I sold my 1098 from 2007. Sometimes, I had the problem, that the engine stopped at idle, mostly at traffic lights. Starting afterwards was not a problem. I told this problem the guy, who bought the bike. As you can think, I will have a meeting at court next week. I researched about this problem in 2020 and it seemed like that this isn't really a problem, because the solving is easy. The idle rpm was at 1250, a little bit low I think. At lights, I hold it at 1400 and there were no stalling. His lawyer says, stalling is not a specific problem of this bike. They say, that there are severel other problems with the bike, especially the defect of the starter clutch. I never had any starting problems, only this stalling issue, sometimes. So my questions are: Is this stalling issue a known problem of this bike? What is the relation between the stalling issue and the defect starter clutch? Thank you!
Stalling has been an eternal problem but is easily solved by balancing the throttle bodies and getting the CO set up correctly. As for Sprag Clutch failure the usual cause is repeated failed starts of the bike. A well serviced bike that starts on the button should give sprag clutch longevity. A well charged battery and an upgrade of the starter cables also helps.
You’re being taken to court because a bike you sold stalls occasionally, a fault which you told the buyer about anyway? Seems a bit extreme but as an ex-owner of a 1098 I can tell you that this is not that uncommon. Particularly when coming to rest having run the engine for a while such as at a junction or a temporary stop. Over the years I had the bike I upgraded the starter cables put a bigger battery on it change the regulator and kept it in perfect condition and regularly serviced. It would still sometimes cut out for no apparent reason but as you say always restart it on the button afterwards. good luck sounds like you’ve got a right one there!
I am amazed that he would come after you just for that Adem, it's so petty and if you told him this at point of sale, then as it's his word against yours, I would have thought "many" judges would just throw it out unless there are other mitigating details. An intermittent fault that occurs rarely is often the worst one to try and find, and as said, a thorough inspection of settings is a good start followed by the laborious area of looking for wear, replacing ignition components and checking loom and connectors etc, etc. I am long out of it now, but connecting to a read-out device while engine running, and constantly checking if fault codes are produced is another approach.
Different countries have different attitudes and laws regarding the sale and purchase of used vehicles of course, and I believe Germany leans a little more towards the seller taking responsibility for what they are selling. The stalling issue could be as simple as a TPS reset. A few minutes with JPDiag sorted it out on my 1000SS immediately after the previous owner had put it through a couple of independent 'Specialists' who'd simply swapped the fuel pump relays several times to no effect.
My 1098 had a propensity to stall at traffic lights etc until @nelly balanced the throttle bodies and generally did his magic. It was ok after that.
Yes, exactly. My mistake was, that I didn't write it in the contract, because it is a known problem, solving is easy and I thaught, telling him is enough in this case. He said 'is ok' and took it. But now he says, that I didn't tell him about. The joke is, they say, the starter clutch was not ok and had to be replaced, same with the radiator and ECU. The ECU does not fit to the bike, but I don't know, how I could drive the bike for 4 years with a wrong ECU. I never replaced this thing. Same like I never had any starting problems. But they want me to pay for. No, there are no other details. Only what I wrote before. This is right, when you're a commercial seller. Then you have to pay for any broken parts within the following 12 months, but not as a private seller. Only when he can prove, that you knew about any issues before selling and didn't tell the buyer.
And in this case he knows that you were aware of the issue because you told him about it. It sort of encourages you to be a little dishonest and deny you knew anything about it.
Yes, but he bought the bike with the knowledge about this issue and then it is not my problem anymore. There is no reason for being dishonest, because I didn't anything wrong, in my oppinion. Ducati doesn't want to give me an official information about the stalling issue, because they fear to be taken to court, too I had a phone call with Bologna a few minutes ago. She said, I should go to a Ducati dealer. The Dealer said, that he won't give me any information on paper.
Your best course of action regarding evidence of the stalling issue is to gather posts from forums and social media that mention it. Ducati is never going to admit to having a problem.
I had this problem for 12 years on my 1098 with many attempts from different ducati specialist who tried to fix it with no success. The last time I had the bike in the shop because the stalling got so bad it would cut out 3 times in one minute, this shop had my bike for almost 3 months and only got it a little better but it still stalled at idle. Not long after getting my bike back from the shop I did a oil change and removed the pick up screen only to find some copper colored flakes from a spun big end connecting rod bearing. I had the crank and rods sent to a ducati race mechanic and he polished the crank and set the rod clearances to looser race spec , then I reassembled the engine and broke it in carefully. Since then the bike stalling is completely gone and it runs fine , I asked the engine builder about this and he said that ducatis are typically built too tight in the connecting rod clearance and main bearing preload and that this was most likely the cause of stalling all these years. If balancing the throttle bodies and adjusting the mixture has not helped this may be something to consider.
I had the same issue with both my 1198 and my 1299s. Both were resolved. One via removal of exup valve and remap and the latter with throttle spacer. My sprag also went at 17k on my 1198. Simple repair.
The onus is on the complainant, on the balance of probabilities, to prove his case. There is no need for you to go to extensive trouble in your defence. At base, it is a matter of caveat emptor for the buyer, especially given the age of the bike. If he has no evidence of substantial misrepresentation he has no hope whatever.
I expect the fact that you rode it for 4 years should help so long as you can prove it. Can you provide documentation from when the bike was getting serviced that the mileage was increasing? Even better if the proof all comes from the same garage/shop particularly as it may support your claim re: the ECU having never changed. i.e. you can see all the work done at the same shop and you're claiming I had the ECU replaced - immediately prior to sale - somewhere else? Long shot but every hopefully little bit of evidence will help you prove this guy is a clown and just needs a slap.
I had a strange episode last year riding my bike at the national speed limit (honest guv) when quite suddenly, it stalled and the dash lights all went out so I engaged the starter on the move and nothing happened and as I was coasting to a stop, it fired up of it's own accord. Freaked me out but no sign of it since. Odd.
I've had similar on my 1198S a few times - no warning, just cuts out. After coasting to a stop, it usually starts straight up. As you say, most disconcerting. Does nothing for your confidence in the bike.
