HeronB

Ok thanks I just use a small funnel and my dip stick i just push the upper cowl to the side.



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jmrk

Been working with this for a little while. Even took it back to the dealer for a look and they couldn't see the level, either! Removing the right side fairing is a real pain in the butt. I suppose after doing it a few times, it gets better, but Ducati has provided a window that you can't see through. I have a black light in a pen that works great with everything I've tried it on except this tank! I also have a flexi-light, but haven't broken the code with it yet. Hopefully, someone will. Don't want to find out about warranty coverage for a cooked engine and a window that doesn't work.

jmrk

There are quite a few folks who have or are dealing with this issue. I didn't count authors from this forum or those from the Ducati.org forum, but there are a few. To try and help anyone who wants to know their 1299's coolant level, here you go! After reading nearly every message I could find on the topic, I am finally able to see the coolant through the radiator's coolant tank window! You don't need to remove the side panels or track down a black light flashlight. There is no trick to it, just a certain amount of brightness from your flashlight. All I did was buy a Quantum QFL-588 fairly small flashlight. It's about 1" in diameter and 5 - 6" long (it spreads the beam when compressed and provides a focused beam when extended). It has something that I didn't consider earlier - a pretty powerful light - 588 lumens. When the flashlight, my 1299S, and I met, all I did was center the front wheel, shine the focused beam on the reservoir gauge (touching), and watch the gauge while wiggling the left clip-on and presto - the fluid level jumped off of the gauge! I'm really happy as it was the first time I could say "by George, this is it!" It works great! The days of being uncertain about my radiator coolant level are over! I hope this helps you all, too - good luck and have fun!

DStyleNZL

I was going to install some fittings and tube to make an external sight glass, but ended up replacing the Rad to Res hose with a Temp rated clear silicon one.

Desmophile

My method FWIW:

Take off the side fairing.
use a Dremel tool with a round burr.
grind a 1/4" hole in the nose fairing lip right over the filler cap,
keeping enough away from the edge of the lip so it doesn't crack.
filler cap can be removed with a little bit of bending of the fairing, but not bad.
now you can run a 1/4" x 12'' long poly tube scrounged from somewhere down into the tank without difficulty as it is a pretty straight shot.
get a 50-60cc syringe, Toomey, Amazon, and suck up some coolant and squirt it into the tank. or use a small funnel connected to the tube
fill until it runs out the overflow, commonly about 100-150cc above perfect level.
when you run the bike the first time, the coolant expands, goes out the overflow tube, and when it cools, it is at the perfect level. the next time you run the bike, the coolant expands but only to the point of about to run out again.
When I ran the 1199s on the street, I checked it every 500 miles or so, and it never seemed to loose much. Now it is a track bike only and I check it after each track day.

jr1050

Why couldn't you replace the black rubber hose that goes from the radiator fill to the bottom of the expansion tank with a clear one? Bernoulli's principle should come into effect and the level of coolant you see in the clear tube should match what's in the expansion tank. Do what someone else did and measure the min and max lines and transfer that to the outboard side of the expansion tank with a grease pen, or mark the tubing with a sharpie so you then have the level on the outboard side.

Can anyone verify if this would work, or has anyone tried it? I'm thinking of doing it but not sure when I'll get to it at this point.

stealthblack

People still trying to figure out how to see the coolant level?

1. Turn the lights off in your garage or park somewhere dark.
2. Shine a bright flashlight pen at the very top of the coolant reservoir window.
3. That’s it.

No need to use a blacklight or to remove fairings.

007

While were on cooling...

What is the highest level temperature your bike should run before you start to worry?

realnuts

A good rule of thumb for temperatures:

Warming Up: Up to 130F / 55C
Operating Range: 130F / 55C to 220F / 104C

Anything above 220F is "worryful"

007

Stuck in city traffic i have seen as high as 104c..
I'll keep it in mind, thanks for that.