How often is the Ducati service manual wrong?

Alf · Jun 12, 2023

I noticed that the V4 S service manual under "reftting the front sprocket" says:

The screws in the pic are labeled "1", not "A".

The Ducati Performance instructions for installing the carbon fiber front sprocket cover say to torque the screws to 10 NM, not 4 NM as in the pic above.

10 NM is 2.5 times more than 4 NM. I hate stripping threads, especially when the parts are connected to the engine cases.

Since the pic is making incorrect references to the parts in the pic, I assume the 4 NM figure is incorrect and I should go with 10 NM.

I bought a torque wrench to stop myself from being OCD and over-torqueing parts but what do I do when Ducati provides conflicting numbers?

BP PanigaleV4S · Jun 12, 2023

Re-torquing is not the same as torquing because fasteners and threads stretch. Very critical values are measured with an end gauge to measure precisely how much the bolt is stretching.

I would go with the newer (aftermarket) values provided with the understanding that the difference between 4 Nm and 10 Nm is largely minuscule. With those numbers, I'd hand tighten it with the small end of an allen (hex) wrench and not think more about it.

The only concern with carbon is that over torque can damage the clear coat on the carbon part. Don't go full retard and I think you'll be fine.

On a side note, thread repair is a great skill to have. You can very easily helicoil (or time sert if you have money to burn) those threads and have more clamping force than the original threads could provide.

Alf · Jun 12, 2023

Thanks. I was thinking that 4 NM or 10 NM (being at the light end of the spectrum) shouldn't make much difference. I had already torqued it down to 10 NM (per the Ducati Performance install instructions) but later came across the 4 NM figure in the V4S manual.

I wanted to just hand tighten the sprocket cover since the two bolts only hold the lightweight cover in place, but I've stopped going by feel since I inherently like to overtighten things. I prefer exact measurements and the use of a torque wrench whenever the info is available.

It just erodes my confidence in Ducati's instructions about anything if they make mistakes like this.

BP PanigaleV4S · Jun 13, 2023

I don't understand why you think it's a mistake.

Alf · Jun 13, 2023

bp_SFV4 said:
I don't understand why you think it's a mistake.

cuz the pic above is referencing parts not showing (typo?) and the instructions for the DP part for reinstalling the cover indicates 10 nm. one of those must be a mistake.

BP PanigaleV4S · Jun 13, 2023

The only service manual out in the wild I’m aware of is from 2018 and since it’s not in Italian I’m presuming it’s a translated version. I’d be interested to see what revisions have been made to the service manual over the years.

I’d go with the DP instructions since they’re likely newer.

How often is the Ducati service manual wrong?

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