[JohnR]

So what did you buy after all that research?

[Rclark]

Nothing yet. Decided to start building a stereo first . Almost done.

I've already had four sportbikes.

[doug s.]

It's pretty common knowledge that any Duc pre '09 at least requires a very expensive maintenance schedule, and it's also pretty common knowledge that the bikes run rough unless you spring for the factory upgrades.  Hence, my three previous bikes were Hondas.

completely incorrect.  not even close.  not sure what koolaid you have been drinking.  it is pretty common knowledge that most any ducati since the late 80's runs smooth in stock form, and is reliable and not too maintenance intensive.  w/the exception of the 916 motors which can be more maintenance intensive than the average bike.

sure, computer/carb/exhaust mods will improve any bike.  which is why many folks do these mods.  not yust to ducati's.  all my bikes have these mods (no computer, they're all carb'd.  not one has stock carb or exhaust; one also has modified ignition box.)

enjoy your hondas!   

doug s.

[Rclark]

 Oh come on Doug .  I used to get every single bike mag in existence delivered, I used to live with 4 other guys who all had bikes, we all did. I lived and breathed it. You know you aren't right here, the Duc's, at least the 2000's models, were all maintenance hogs, big prima donnas for rich guys, and they weren't as fast.

 I'm sure you're well aware of the first few servicings that could cost shy of $1000. I know they've gotten better lately.

 They had to advertise that maintenence is less costly now!  Has Honda ever had to use that as a selling point?

 And I've seen so many official magazing reviews that lambasted the rough running nature of the bikes and decried their in house Termignoni as a mandatory upgrade.

[doug s.]

Oh come on Doug .  I used to get every single bike mag in existence delivered, I used to live with 4 other guys who all had bikes, we all did. I lived and breathed it. You know you aren't right here, the Duc's, at least the 2000's models, were all maintenance hogs, big prima donnas for rich guys, and they weren't as fast.

 I'm sure you're well aware of the first few servicings that could cost shy of $1000. I know they've gotten better lately.

 They had to advertise that maintenence is less costly now!  Has Honda ever had to use that as a selling point?

 And I've seen so many official magazing reviews that lambasted the rough running nature of the bikes and decried their in house Termignoni as a mandatory upgrade.

sorry, except for the 916, it yust ain't so.  i know quite a few folks w/early-mid 90's ducs, and they were reliable, and not wery maintenance intensive.  certainly not as fast as comparably priced japanese bikes - in a straight line.     but way fast enough to land you in jail. and, they're a simple joy to ride, much more so than any japanese sport bike of the era, even if the jap bikes are faster.  a mid-90's ss/sp is still on my must-have list.  yust not enough room now, and not willing to sell my darmah to make room...

i had an '83 honda intercepter, bought 6 months old w/3k miles on it.  it had cam issues - mine were concave at 7k miles.  the dealer refused to do anything about it, unless i wanted to pay.  a coupla years later, (the bike now had 13k on it), i discovered this was a known issue w/the interceptors - the dealer had told me nothing about this known issue earlier at 7k, when i first found out about the cam problem.  i complained to honda that this was a known issue, nothing was done when i had the bike at the dealers earlier, and i wanted new cams.  honda actually accused me of making up the story, and trying to "steal" new cams from them.  i had proof the bike was at a honda dealer for service!?!  i got my buell and my darmah, sold the interceptor and i have never owned a honda since.  never will either. and the only reason there is a honda car in the family is that it came w/the girlfriend who is now the wife.  when it's gone, (soon, now that i am working again), there will not be another replacing it, either.  i had an opportunity to ride a modern interceptor recently.  smooth, fast, handles well.  no soul whatsoever.  even the relatively soul-less vstrom had more soul than the interceptor.  even if honda didn't piss me off, i would pass.  i wouldn't mind trying a suzuki sv650 or sv1000.  they might be nice - after they had new ecu and exhaust...   

ymmv,

doug s.

[Berndt]

I was a Honda tech back in the interceptor 500 era. Talk about pain.
Replaced a lot of engines. Honda told us to tell the customers to sell their bikes if they didn't like it. Honda v4's left a really bad taste in my mouth.

[SteveFord]

You missed the recent Gold Wing frame replacement recall, that must have been fun.
Regarding the Ducs, a buddy of mine has owned the rubber band models for years and I forwarded the bit about high maintenance and associated costs to him.
Here's his reply:

Regarding ducs, there are elements of truth in there, but overall, I don't think that Ducs are that much more expensive to maintain than any other high performance machine. They are also much improved in terms of reliability and build quality, and even rate higher than BMW in Europe now.

I certainly wouldn't be afraid to ride cross-country on mine. In fact, there's a guy in Texas with over 120k miles on his older multistrada with only routine maintenance. They do make good commuters.

The watercooled engined bikes are definitely more finicky and maintenance intensive, but I think most problems stem from lack of use. Those that use them on a regular basis and rack up the miles have fewer problems, and now they have much greater service intervals. The air cooled bikes are as reliable as anything out there, but you can't skimp on the maintenance, unlike Japanese bikes which can withstand more neglect and abuse.

Certainly over the last few years, all things duc have improved, and since they've now been bought by Audi, things will probably improve further.
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My Ducati experience is limited to the old bevel drive Singles and Twins so wouldn't be of much use to this thread.
If you have a shop manual and do your own maintenance like I do the only real issues are parts costs and time spent.
The comment about Audi wanting Ducati's technology made me think of what Dr. John Wittner said about Ducati when he was campaigning a Guzzi Le Mans in the Endurance Racing Series: Ducati, those guys just never stop testing...