Hi all, having previously owned a Sportclassic 1000s which I had to sell due to the extreme riding position and having been infected with the Ducati "bug" I have bought a 749R. First ride today,having taxed it this morning! Full of trepidation "have I made a mistake". First impressions: terrible in town, keeps stalling (nearly dropped it when it stalled after setting off) but once out on the open road superb. Thing is, I have never had a bike with a dry or slipper clutch before and wondered if "they are all like that sir" or is there a problem with the clutch? I have to either rev it and slip the clutch which makes me look rather inept or risk stalling it. When I do change gear I can actually feel it through the clutch lever and if I slip the clutch, it makes a strange noise. Having not experienced this with a jap clutch my question is; is this normal? Your advice would be much appreciated.
if its the std 749r slipper then it really is a cheap basic version. properly set up you wont get the graunching noise...though when its working you will feel it through the lever.... i would say your problem with stalling nd slipping the clutch is more a set up issue.........and tps would be a place to start...... did you get it from a dealer.......a ducati dealer....or what is its history?
Thanks Andy for that. Yes it is from a dealer but has recently had a service from Sheffield motorcycles (Ducati dealer).It is an import from Italy (I know they all are, but you know what I mean). I suppose the main issue is the stalling, so is there any thing I can do with the TPS. Sorry to show my ignorance if this has been covered before.
proper dealer jobby really............could be other things like cam timing a problem on some of the other 749's... Dont know where you are but if its midlands i would get a proper service done at somewhere like jhp and or just get them to sort your problems out........is it a grey import, not that that matters?.......
Yes it could be a case of brain malfunction! Bike feels beautiful out of town, steers much nicer than the SC. Obviously don't want to go back to dealer for him to say "they all do that sir". Equally if it is faulty then don't want to wait till it's out of warranty. obviously it's early days so will give it a few days and see if I can adapt!
Stalling is not acceptable though Red. I'm no expert on 749's but I did have similar problems with my mine. I'm sure you paid a small fortune for that bike. So get back to the dealer and shout and stamp your feet ...............a bit !:smile:
If the clutch makes a squeal/whine when you are feeding it in,it may just need the plates taking out and a clean.Did it to mine and it improved quite a bit.
or if it's like mine it may have had upgraded carbon/kevlar friction plates. mine are new (in a slipper) and squeal like a virgin with lexington steel !!
not set up correctly........................that said if its the std 'slipper' (my arse) then throw it away and get a proper one!
Sheffield Motorcycles are a good dealer, I have dealings on numerous occasions, the owner is a nice chap and hes been in the game since god were a lad, he's also ducati experienced to. The stalling isn't good, this might sound really pedantic but make sure the bike is warmed up properly - my old girl protests like fu@* if i don't thoroughly warm her. you'll always get "feedback" from a dry clutch though noise wise but that doesn't answer your question i'm afraid. Q.
ball and ramp DP I could do with a lesson on setting up lol - all ears but it is very grabby and I just put it down to being designed for very high power race engines. it is a ducati genuine race kit
ALSO: Now might be a good time to familiarize yourself with this well known phrase "It's a Ducati and it's all part of owning one"
hey andyb i have a 999s the clutch plate kit fitted in mine is a genuine DP race carbon kevlar kit i think for higher power race bikes. I was telling the op I get a squeal because of the friction material. not because of the power lol lol (I wish) but your probably right my plates maybe in wrong haha
Phill, a couple of my bikes with slipper clutches made an awful noise when pulling away quickly, I switched a couple of plates for the dished ones, one dish in, one dish out and it helped a lot. When I had my 749R, it used to cut out when stopping at junctions/lights etc, it was VERY common at the time. Like Andy said, tps not set correctly was a common thing and there was also some fix for it, cannot remember if it was adjusting the mixture/fuelling or the map.
My R has the "cheap and basic" standard slipper - it works a treat. Just need to strip it and grease the ramps every couple of trackdays. Doesn't squeal and slips beautifully when banging down gears. Regarding stalling: many R's do this due to spitting back through the throttles. Can be cured sort of with TPS and increased idle (mine's at 2krpm and still does it occasionally).
will take a look at mine in the morning. I might have put the convex in the wrong place. I hope so as its real annoying I was blaming the friction material !
