cheers harv - i actually already have a 600ss and hence the question

if it is a rareish issue i am firmly in the dont give a toss camp tbh - if its a regular issue then thats different

i drive a lotus and anyone who knows anything about them knows that the 'dont give a toss' mentality is a must in the lotus camp too!

I would regard it as a highly likely eventuality that a year 2001 748 with only 2000 miles on it will at some point need rockers, its highly likely the bike has been left to stand for long periods of time and maybe started and run every now and then, that would mean that in most instances the rockers wouldnt just be thin on oil, but bone dry .... and if it wasn't warmed properley then you will have troube.

I'd haggle the price but be fairly certain it will need them, if it doesn't, then you've had a result, if it does, then you were expecting it .....

And I speak from experience ..... all bar one of mine has been replaced .... and I still worry ...

It wouldn't stop me buying another 996 .....

I concur with Dibs - you are likely to have to replace some at some point. I replaced 8 and had a cam lobe polished because I didn't find this club until AFTER I bought the bike. Still, it was a great bike!

If you're desperately keen to avoid it - get a 749 is my suggestion. You'll need a bit more cash than your £5k but I've heard suggestions on this board recently that you can get a 749 for around £5.5k - £6k.

This issue affected all desmoquattro engines so includes those fitted to the ST4; ST4s; S4; S4R; all 748 variants; all 916 variants, all 996 variants apart from the 996R. The 996R has the testastretta engine as does all the superbike range built from then on.

Or you could buy anything with a DesmoDue engine - such as the entire SS range, the Monster range excluding the S4 and S4R.

Still plenty of good bikes to choose from. I would still buy a bike with a desmoquattro engine though - they have a character that you don't find in the testastretta engine IMO. And I have a testastretta engine ....

ok so the big question - what is a 748s 2001 with 2000 miles worth? 5k?

As others have said it's all down to how it's been looked after. If you ensure it's warmed properly before riding (allow 90+ secs before revving), then it should be less likely that you'll hit rocker problems, some have had many need replacing, others have had none.

I would say it should be worth more than 5K, if you can get it for 5K then it's either a bargin or there's something seriously wrong with it.

My 748e with 6500 miles on it was £4750. Really depends on condition as well.

The rocker issue has been pretty well covered in the above replies. It's also been mullered on the board. Try a search.
there have been several part revisions on the rockers, mostly involv improving the plating on them. It's this that fails.
new rockers are now over the £100 mark.
Regardless of mileage, it should have been serviced annually. Check the history to see if this is so and if there have been any rockers replaced.
At 2000 miles, i'd doubt there have been any replaced, but if it's been started and thrashed from cold then they'll wear just as quick as the next bike. The tip about watching what the owner does when he starts the bike is a good indicator. If he revs it hard from cold, then be wary.
IMO, £5k isn't bad money, but it's a buyers market at the moment. Ducati seem to be fetching whatever the buyer thinks it's worth. as mentioned above, £5k ish could get you a 749. The older bikes aren't falling in value too much as they are still revered by some as a "classic" but try and bargain...........you may just save yourself some £'s to spend on bling...........or rockers ;)

I've just been shopping with 5-ish K and I can confirm I've had a look at two 749S's, one at £5500 and one at £5800 before any haggling took place.

Bought an 888 in the end. It might have rocker problems too, although I'm told that T8's don't suffer with this as much. Heart over head ya see!

Could dukess1999 (or anyone else) elaborate on this, please?

This is what I posted previously:

"Much cheaper to buy in the US - getting on for £90 here, $54 per rocker at Section8superbike, $59 at Ducati Seattle. VAT and import duty works out at around £7 per rocker (if you're lucky the vendor may mark them as low value items),postage $75 with Section8, an amazing $13 with Seattle."

I found Section8 a little iffy to deal with (though others swear by them), Ducati Seattle very good. There does seem to be something strange about paying much less for items exported to the US from Europe than if they were purchased within the EU.

where did you look and find these bikes ? any tips on best place to look? i am currently using mcn, autotrader and ebay?