23 V4R Loosing Oil…… Some Oil Found in Airbox

Paul G said:

I tend to agree on the 1103 being a better all round engine but guess it depends, the R is a different experience for those who dont mind paying to play.

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I prefer my R - not sure I can put my finger on exactly what. It maybe feels a bit more nimble - could be in my mind of course. If I don’t have my bike back in time for the next track event then I’ll be able to make a comparison as I’ll have to use my SP2. I should take it out soon - haven’t ridden it this year.

Another point to filling the oil is ensuring the bike is level - having it on the kickstand will give the sight gauge a false reading. I've had to dial in oil and found using the pitbull stand on the rear keeps a level gauge

The bike was absolutely not overfilled with oil and has been run in as per Ducati’s approved guidelines.

It’s going in for inspection a week Wednesday

KA77 said:

The bike was absolutely not overfilled with oil and has been run in as per Ducati’s approved guidelines.

It’s going in for inspection a week Wednesday

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I totally get your point. There are some fanboys here who always end up saying oil was overfilled when instead its a blowby or some other leak.

KA77 said:

The bike was absolutely not overfilled with oil and has been run in as per Ducati’s approved guidelines.

It’s going in for inspection a week Wednesday

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Keep us posted, there is such a drama on this forum

I would think there's an amount of blow by which is acceptable as Ducati included a drain line from the airbox.

If it's to the point where it starts fouling plugs, or noticeably depleting the oil level, it's likely too much.

If one were to loose two, maybe three engines due to excessive blowby, I'd be looking for an external cause be it environmental, human, operating conditions or perhaps a combination of all three.

bp_SFV4 said:

I would think there's an amount of blow by which is acceptable as Ducati included a drain line from the airbox.

If it's to the point where it starts fouling plugs, or noticeably depleting the oil level, it's likely too much.

If one were to loose two, maybe three engines due to excessive blowby, I'd be looking for an external cause be it environmental, human, operating conditions or perhaps a combination of all three.

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I don’t disagree, it’s not uncommon to see a a bit of oil on the airbox on some race bikes. But, as the bike is under warranty, and it’s using a little more oil than I would like, it won’t hurt to get it checked.

Agreed, especially if it's under warranty.

In the very least, pull the air filter and scope the airbox. If you see oil, I think the next step would be a leak down test on each cylinder.

Don’t get bent over by your dealer or Ducati.

Get this 100 ml/day oil consumption in writing. That seems like a lot and if that’s expected Ducati should make owners aware of this. High performance engines should only consume less than 1% (over a thousand miles) and they’re quoting it at twice that in a shorter timeframe. The dealer needs to do either a compression or leak-down test to verify that the rings are good bc this sounds a lot like ring failure. Also request there to be video evidence of this test. If they can establish that the engine is sound, then no need to worry about it.

If they don’t do as you ask, make them aware of the UK’s Consumer Rights Act and that you’ll be filing a claim if this doesn’t get resolved asap. Light a fire under their ..... and do everything in writing for posterity.

Then again, if the bike has been modified in anyway that they could void the warranty (i.e. non-DP exhaust/tune, not using specified oil, no documentation on servicing) you may be SOL.

bp_SFV4 said:

But. none of these bikes are running 300V during bed in. They are most certainly on whatever the factory filled them with.

I suspect the real issue is the oil drain back delay and dealer mechanics using vacuum extractors thinking they'll cheat the system.

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Its a plausible explanation, time and space are money in a busy workshop. These recent complaints where owners have had multiple new bikes implode tend to point to a common factor which is either the owner is abusing the bike and not telling the whole story or the places where they are being serviced are sub par. Ducati are not building hand grenades or it would a very well known problem by now and its not. Furthermore the V4 platform is less stressed than the twin (which had a great reputation btw) and has been in production since 2018- its proven in other words.

SuperDomestique said:

Don’t get bent over by your dealer or Ducati.

Get this 100 ml/day oil consumption in writing. That seems like a lot and if that’s expected Ducati should make owners aware of this. High performance engines should only consume less than 1% (over a thousand miles) and they’re quoting it at twice that in a shorter timeframe. The dealer needs to do either a compression or leak-down test to verify that the rings are good bc this sounds a lot like ring failure. Also request there to be video evidence of this test. If they can establish that the engine is sound, then no need to worry about it.

If they don’t do as you ask, make them aware of the UK’s Consumer Rights Act and that you’ll be filing a claim if this doesn’t get resolved asap. Light a fire under their ..... and do everything in writing for posterity.

Then again, if the bike has been modified in anyway that they could void the warranty (i.e. non-DP exhaust/tune, not using specified oil, no documentation on servicing) you may be SOL.

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Or just ride the ....... thing.

So bike’s been inspected by a Ducati dealer today. Got a call from the apprentice worksop admin lad 11:00 this morning ‘No fault found, must have been over filled with oil, there’s no other way oil can get in the air filter’ Despite there being no evidence to suggest this. No mention or explanation as to why it’s using oil, must be my fault.

So I asked how we proceed from here? He then said, I need to pay them to replace the oil, they would be weighing the new stuff in, then do 1000 miles on the road and report back. FFS

Ask them to do a compression and leakdown test. It should tell you where the oil is coming from. My svc told the same thing to me that everything is fine as per their diagnostic toolkit, but compression test showed low compression o 2 cylinders, and then leakdown test showed bas piston rings. So I got a new engine for free. Zero expense of mine. But this whole thing took 1.5 months to verify. So check that out.

KA77 said:

So bike’s been inspected by a Ducati dealer today. Got a call from the apprentice worksop admin lad 11:00 this morning ‘No fault found, must have been over filled with oil, there’s no other way oil can get in the air filter’ Despite there being no evidence to suggest this. No mention or explanation as to why it’s using oil, must be my fault.

So I asked how we He then said, I need to pay them to replace the oil, they would be weighing the new stuff in, then do 1000 road miles on the road and report back. FFS

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which dealer is that ?

v4rretard said:

Ask them to do a compression and leakdown test. It should tell you where the oil is coming from. My svc told the same thing to me that everything is fine as per their diagnostic toolkit, but compression test showed low compression o 2 cylinders, and then leakdown test showed bas piston rings. So I got a new engine for free. Zero expense of mine. But this whole thing took 1.5 months to verify. So check that out.

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I asked them if they would consider doing a leak down or compression test (while the bike is stripped) and they said no, that’s not Ducati’s SOP. Weigh the oil in and ride it 1000 miles on the road, or p**s off was the attitude.

KA77 said:

I asked them if they would consider doing a leak down or compression test (while the bike is stripped) and they said no, that’s not Ducati’s SOP. Weigh the oil in and ride it 1000 miles on the road, or p**s off was the attitude.

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Thats a pretty .... attitude from their end. Unnecessary clogging miles on the motorcycle is stupid. They do this because some people take a lot of time to complete the 1k mile, and some might end up losing their warranty by then. I would suggest writing an email to Ducati Italy DMH. I had similar issues when i reported my oil leak. After sending an email to DMH with dealer in cc, they gotback to me quickly and did the compression test.

panibadboy said:

which dealer is that ?

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Despite the fact I am seriously annoyed by this dealers attitude, it’s not in my nature to name and shame. I have since spoken to the guys at MotoRapido, and they have been a breath of fresh air. The chap I spoke to was knowledgeable and came across like they genuinely wanted to help, so I’m taking it there, and hopefully they will at least try to establish what’s going on. They will likely get all my business in the future. It’s a bit of a trek (3 hours each way). A lot of Trackday guys speak very highly of them.

I’m happy knowing my local dealer will never make another penny out of me.

KA77 said:

Despite the fact I am seriously annoyed by this dealers attitude, it’s not in my nature to name and shame. I have since spoken to the guys at MotoRapido, and they have been a breath of fresh air. The chap I spoke to was knowledgeable and came across like they genuinely wanted to help, so I’m taking it there, and hopefully they will at least try to establish what’s going on. They will likely get all my business in the future. It’s a bit of a trek (3 hours each way). A lot of Trackday guys speak very highly of them.

I’m happy knowing my local dealer will never make another penny out of me.

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comment #2



motorapido are good guys as well, they also run/support bsb team


Glad you're making progress.

panibadboy said:

comment #2

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motorapido are good guys as well, they also run/support bsb team


Glad you're making progress.

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You and plenty of others have recommended JHP / Ducati Coventry. It was a coin toss tbh and MR are about 30 mins closer

In my mind a compression and leak down test are a must for this sort of scenario. I'd fork out of my pocket to have a reputable shop carry this out for you for your own security and piece of mind. Quick story about my partners 21 RSV4. Always used oil from 4k kms onwards. Aprilia say normal to use xx ml / 1000km. At 20k kms (still in warranty period) the bike is now using 1L / 1000km. We start documenting all oil top ups with photos of mileage on dash and oil top up amounts etc. Carry this out for 4k kms and present to dealer, who are very helpful with us. They present to Australian importer who requests a 1000km oil usage test. Dropped the bike to the dealer, they do an oil and filter change and seal the engine up. We do a solid pace road trip and drop it back. I gather it used well over 1L with the smoke it was blowing from burning oil by the end. Long story short, dealer carries out leak down test and 2 cylinders show fail percentages. Importer says no warranty because has a tune (tune file is a well know file that is a cleaned up Aprilia race map). They state saying the bores have been washed with fuel. Leak down test also did not reveal cylinder leakage from ring area. We put a bore scope down there and record video and pictures of perfect cylinder walls. Send a heap of info to the importer backing our claim that the tune is not responsible. They realise they're not dealing with dummies and agree to assess the engine after we pay for removal and strip down. Ends up that were lucky it didn't drop several valves. Intake valve guides (yes intake more than exhaust) are flogged out hard. Everything reported by dealer to importer who agree to pay the majority of parts (crankcases, new complete heads less cams, gaskets etc etc) and we pay labour. Fair deal considering the bike now has 30k kms on it and was " tuned".

Moral of the story is don't just take findings and direction on face value. Even if you have to fork out a bit from your own pocket, at least you are armed with non biased, correct information.