The 1098 that was released by Ducati in 2007 and replaced the 999 model has been highly acclaimed as solid and fashionable bike; indeed it won several awards including Best Sportsbike and Best Design from the Motorcycle Design Association as well as Bike of the year in 2007 by 3 separate magazines. Performance wise it has come in for acclaim and criticism alike; with, in a strictly driving sense it has been widely praise for its performance, it did kick start the controversy with the WSBK and the issue over concessions relating to the number of cylinders each bike had. However, for purely personal use, the 1098 was and is highly popular. In saying that, many have commented on a particular design flaw of the bike - the high beam. Many have commented on the fact that, rather than simply lighting up the road, the beam on the 1098 instead is more aimed at the tree tops and road signs as opposed to the road itself. There is a cutoff plate in the projection headlight housing that is there to stop the beam from shining directly at oncoming traffic however the fact that the angle of the beam is set upwards instead of on the actual road is a pretty big design flaw. Not to worry however, we are going to give you a very short and simple guide on how this can be modified by removing the high beam blocker. This isn't something that you need to take to your local mechanic and it is only going to eat up about 20 minutes or so of your time. That being said, if you have never undertaken any work like this before or modified your bike in anyway then it might be a good idea to get someone to do it for you but if you are comfortable with doing it yourself then here are 7 steps to fix the high beam problem. 1. OK, so when you are sitting on the 1098, the high beam can be found to your left. The first then you need to do is turn the bars full lock to the left. 2. When you release the tab on the top this will allow you to easily remove the bulb cover. Simply fold it out and down and the cover should come right off. 3. You should not see the bulb socket. Turn it clockwise, around a quarter turn and then pull it straight back - although when you pull it make sure you do it fairly gently. Make sure that you do not touch the glass at all and you will also need to bend the socket wire so that it is not in the way. 4. Turn your bars a full lock to the right. 5. A good tip here is to get a hold of a mirror and a torch and examine the bulb hole. You can dive straight into the next step if you want but it is good to get to know what is what and where it is before you do so. Essentially you should take note of two things: the sheet metal cuttoff plate and the screw that secures it. 6. Now for the tricky bit. You need a #2 Phillips screwdriver and this part requires you to feel instead of see; the screwdriver is going to pretty much block your view. So, put the screw driver into the socket and try to feel the top edge of the blocker; the edge of the blocker is a good way to guide your screwdriver into the screw and work it out. A good tip is to use a magnetic screwdriver here, it makes things so much easier. Once you have the screw and the blocker out, turn the plate length wise and ensure that it is correctly lined up with the bulb socket slots. 7. Screw and put it all back into place - minus the blocker obviously. You're finished. Easy enough isn't it? With this simple modification you will have a much better angle on your high beam and, unless you decide to point it directly into the view of oncoming traffic, then you shouldn't have any problems with it obscuring the view of any of vehicles on the road.
