First ride (and help query) on my new 999s
 

Picked up (in a van) my new 999s (04 model) on Saturday. On Sunday went for a 250 mile round trip to Wales and loved it! The seat is a little harder than my old 900SS (i.e.) and, surprisingly, the suspension seems 'plusher'.

Just about to set off on Sunday morning and the bike struggled to start - put it down to the battery not being fully charged. However, throughout the day the battery seemed to struggle to turn the engine over. Voltmeter showed 14.5v when the engine was running but droped fairly quickly to 12.6 V when not. The bike did not always start first stab (poor technique?) and on those occasions the battery voltage would drop so low there wasn't enough power to turn the engine over - the 'Low' warning was displayed. Letting it rest for half a minute or so (and praying) before trying again did help but it was nerve wracking to say the least - and all in front of non Duke riders!

Is this normal - I suspect not and would welcome the benefit of your collective wisdom!

I find my 749R needs the 'choke' most times.
Also - need to get used to the 999/749 managing the start.
Press the starter and release it - you will find that the bike will continue to turn over until it starts (this is normal).

I had a vague recollection about the 'auto' start routine and, since mine doesn't do that, had assumed that it applied only to certain models (05 or 749/999Rs?). Just to make sure I have just nipped out to check it and it definiately doesn't 'manage' the start!

I was fearing that I was going to have try to bump start it yesterday (I know that was difficult, but possible, on my SS) but I did always manage to get it going.

Sounds like another duff gel battery,.....get it replaced under warranty.

All 999/749 should 'auto start'

My 749s has a history of starting problems. The batteries do not hold charge very well, especially if there is an alarm on the bike. It could well be that your's is not really fully charged so it is just on the verge and gets enough from the engine running to keep it there.

When we had a new garage put up last summer our bikes were in temporary storage in a neighbours stable. With no convenient power point I did not put Optimate on as I would normally. 4 weeks later the monster was fine (no alarm) but my 749s was totally flat. I could not even deactivate the alarm when I inadvertantly set off the motion sensor and we had to just wait for it to stop - much to the annoyance of the residents in the other stables! Battery had to be charged before I could move it.

Just my 4-pennth worth ... long winded as usual :ninja:

Thanks guys. I guess the battery must be duff because if a 250 mile trip wouldn't charge it what would!

Even at running in revs (up to 5.5k rpm) there should be enough juice coming out of the alternator to charge it. In order to ensure that it would get a good charge I was running without my lights on to help things along.

I have a Datatool System 3 alarm fitted which shouldn't make any difference to the charging but will help drain waht little charge there is in it!

Same alarm as mine. You're right that should charge it ... I still plug mine into the Optimate every time I put it away. I am a little nervous about our trip in the summer, might have to take the Optimate with me! I guess I accept it as part and parcel of Cudati ownership now, but it shouldn't be like that.

There has also been a history on here of batteries failing. The gel types are good for higher capacity in a small size but do not last well.

Page 47 of the manual - called 'servo' assisted starting.
Press the button and release - the starter then operates for a period determined by the engine temperature.
If it fails to start then wait 2 seconds before trying again.
Do not use any throttle during this operation.

I also have a japanese bike which always amazes me when it will start after several months standing with no trickle charge.
However - as a precaution I have always used an optimate on my past 3 Dukes - no matter how short the lay-off.
Never had a problem with poor charge.
I know it should n't need it BUT its only a TINY inconvenience to plug in the optimate

UKRR,
just had a look at the manual. Starting is detailed on page 47 but there is no mention of 'servo' assited starting.

what year and model is your bike?

I noticed mine doing that but I thought it was a sticking button until about a week ago when I saw it mentioned here. I've only had the bike 18 months though .....

:o

My 04 S bought 2 weeks ago is exactly the same as yours, brought it home then went to start it one week later ( no alarm fitted just the Ducati immobiliser) and it struggled to turn engine over. despite a decent run out that day and the voltage showing 14.6 when engine was running it still struggled the morning after as well. Its now on an optimate which shows green fully charged and I'll found out later this week if it'll start properly. if not I'll be asking for a battery change at first service.

I have a 999S on order to replace my virtually trouble free and brilliant 03 749. (my past ownership of Sebrings, Dianas, ss200s and Pantahs tells you what I think of Ducatis) After reading some of the posts about coils etc I hope I am doing the right thing! My dealer specifically recommended against fitting an alarm due to the sort of trouble some of you appear to be having.

There was a mod recommended for 900SS, Pantah etc to prevent batteries dying when left(no optimates then!), simply add a toggle on/off switch that ensures the battery is completely disconnected. Although with fancy electronics and gizmos these days it may not be such a smart move?

No alarm on mine (yet) and the battery is useless...

Saying that there's a quick shifter and PCIII running off it

Well, it took about 10 gos to get it started last night. Hitting starter button it does not run on, as soon as I release button the starter disengages. One thing which is weird is the speed of tick over when it does start on the choke, it pulls a load of throttle cable through and when you release choke it still runs at about 6000 RPM for a good few seconds even with choke off and throttle shut. I've owned a few italian bikes, ducatis laverdas etc and never had one like this. Ducati leeds will have a long list by the time I eventually get it in for its first service.

It's NOT a choke. It's a "fast idle" lever and should be used with caution (if at all). I only use it cranked open a tiny bit and then only once the engine is started to get it to warm up at about 1400 rpm witohut stalling.

It takes about 90 seconds (they reckon) to get oil up and around the rear cylinder starting from cold, so to start and rev to 6000 rpm is not going to do it much good at all.

My 03 749s did not have the "starting management" feature when I bought it. I'm sure of it. I had a Termi system fitted back end of last year and I noticed since then that it dosee this. Obviously the new ECU they fitted has this feature. Unfortunately I identified it as a faulty starter button until about a fortnight ago when I started to read about the "feature" on here. I guess it would have been nice to have been warned, as I was worried that it might do damage with the starter sticking on!

[Edited on 13-4-2005 by HW]

It certainly is a fast idle lever :) Bike won't start without this being used, tried with no lever, a small amount out but it only fires with it right open then screams for a few seconds until i manage to shut it down , i had to hit kil switch first time it happened, now i back choke lever off as soon as it fires. If i was closer to Ducati leeds it would be back with them to sort.

When I bought a 2nd had ST2 a few years a go it was like that. The guy even demonstrated starting it like that. When it went into the dealer for a service they set it up properly though. It really is important to start on low revs though so you'd be advised to get that sorted if you can.