Hi, New to the forum and in need of some advice, knowledge and contacts. I took my 848 Evo to a Ducati Service agent for an annual service and belts - Whilst the belts were off the tech noticed excessive play in the bottom tensioner/pulley. Investigating further on the other side of the engine, when he took the casings off he came across terminal damage to the crankshaft just outside the main bearing - horrible news to hear. So to cut a long story short the options I think I have at the moment are: 1. find a Crankshaft and rods then have a rebuild carried out. 2. find a suitable donor engine to swap out for. The tech said he would probably sway towards finding a crankshaft and rods if at all possible at a reasonable price. Where I could you some help is in how to source these parts, or indeed where I could find a whole evo engine? has anyone come across this before or dealt with the same issue? Any help or contacts would be appreciated. Thanks, Nik.
This fella knows all about it as do a few more... http://ducatiforum.co.uk/threads/ducati-848-black-2010.49936/
I was faced with the concept not too long ago of needing a new 1198 engine (different problem but a pant staining moment all the same) and i then spoke to Ducati John, who put it all in context, worked his magic and it is as good as new. At that time i needed various other parts (starter, sprag clutch etc) which John had in his workshop from a Hyper engine. Might be worth giving him a call for his thoughts on the matter and maybe by a stroke of luck he will have the parts you need - Ducati Engine Overhauls
I second that for Ducati John. I went up from London all the way to Leeds to get my engine done by him. The parts cost far more than the labour, which was a very good. He may even be able to help sorce some parts in the process.
That's a good call: find an independent who may be able to source used good parts he's happy to fit. Lougi Moto Bristol Way could be another who could help and then rebuild. If you can't get help from where it is
Thanks for the replies so far. I have been in touch with Ducati John and will give him a call to discuss. In terms of a ball park figure (if you don't mind me asking) what where his rates for a rebuild? Other than him does anyone else have experience with some of the other firms who could carry this out? Also any decent breakers who might be able to source an Evo motor or the parts? As for the bike itself it's a 2010, 12k miles, bought and serviced at St. Neots who up until 2015 were a Ducati dealer and service agent. They now market themselves as an independent Ducati specialist alongside the Suzuki dealership. P.S based in Scotland but happy to travel or ship the motor wherever will get it fixed correctly! Thanks! Nik.
Hi Nik I sent my bike to John using Shiply as I'm in South Herts, was £90 i seem to remember. The thing that is great about Ducati John is if he can save you money he will. My bill involved machine work, a steady hand and a large set of balls which thankfully John was in possesion of all three (my local garage said it was a million to one shot of being able to drill out my engine casing in exactly the correct spot - John did it). I was having horrid thoughts the week before of spending 3k ish on a new lump then all the consumables to go with it so my bill was (to me) very positive (i did also have new brake discs, starter motor, sprag clutch and various other odds and sods).
Mine was £1400 of which £900 was parts. As above no parts replaced just for the sake of it, mine needed new main bearings and new big end bearings. Needless to say new belts were fitted and everything else was checked over as part of the charge. Included was also an oil filter and an oil filter tool, shop around and see who potentially comes up with the best rough figure. The good thing about an engine rebuild means that it does keep the bike more original and everything will look better in the "log" book.
I'm interested, what exactly is the 'terminal damage to the crankshaft just outside the main bearing'? Ducati will replace rather than fix remember. If it's outside the main bearing it could be a key slot that could be opened out and a wider key fitted. I've done that on a couple of outboard engines where the flywheel has come loose and in moving about has widened the slot in the crankshaft and flywheel. In one case I had enough room to get it in my milling machine without even splitting the cases. Obviously the flywheel also has to be accurately machined to match the new key. Or the damage could be a knackered thread, and there is various ways around them too. For example a thicker washer can put a new nut on an undamaged bit of thread. Nasher.
Thought i'd put a pic up to help show the damage. There is a hairline crack and a fair old chunk missing!
That's really odd, it looks like the side of the woodruff key slot has broken away. Did he say if the key was intact when the gear was removed? Or if he'd found the bits? Unfortunately I'd have to agree that the crank needs replacing. You could take a chance on it, but I'd be worried there was some issue with the heat treatment of it, and that a crack could generate from the damage. Nasher.
