R out....

Had a great day yesterday here at The Ridge. This am skipped session 1. Warmed bike up for 5" prior to session 2 and went out. Died on outlap, top of 13. Coasted to exit. Bike started after a couple tries so I rode through the hot pit Accelerating down entry clicked into 3rd and heard a horrible loud clacking noise. Shut down and coasted off track. ..... Gonna get bike to Motocorsa tonight...will let you guys know. Bike warmed up...oil level good...no lights. Thankfully got the Tri to ride....

Mine did this last week. Apparently big end bearing seized. Bad for motor. I hope you have better luck than me

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Well, dealers and DNA have always been fair with me so here's hoping! What happened with yours?

MMC said:

Had a great day yesterday here at The Ridge. This am skipped session 1. Warmed bike up for 5" prior to session 2 and went out. Died on outlap, top of 13. Coasted to exit. Bike started after a couple tries so I rode through the hot pit Accelerating down entry clicked into 3rd and heard a horrible loud clacking noise. Shut down and coasted off track. ..... Gonna get bike to Motocorsa tonight...will let you guys know. Bike warmed up...oil level good...no lights. Thankfully got the Tri to ride....

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Keep us updated!

Ouch, hope the news isn't too bad.

Does not sound good.

Hope it gets sorted

Sorry to hear that MMC. Good thing you had the Tri for backup. Hopefully the guys n gals @ MotoCorsa get you all fixed up.

EEPS. Still breaking in my 15R. 13R still running like a champ which is what I'm using at the track so far. I almost went to the Ridge but waited too late. I originally didn't plan to come because I've have spent too much money but didn't want to miss out on the fun out there you had. I see a bunch of people went; I know the intermediate group was sold out for Monday.

MMC said:

Had a great day yesterday here at The Ridge. This am skipped session 1. Warmed bike up for 5" prior to session 2 and went out. Died on outlap, top of 13. Coasted to exit. Bike started after a couple tries so I rode through the hot pit Accelerating down entry clicked into 3rd and heard a horrible loud clacking noise. Shut down and coasted off track. ..... Gonna get bike to Motocorsa tonight...will let you guys know. Bike warmed up...oil level good...no lights. Thankfully got the Tri to ride....

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Heck, you could even take your Pikes Peak out there and embarrass a few riders.....

Here's some more bad thoughts...perhaps you dropped a rod? The motor was recently rebuilt, right?

New cylinder sleeves, rings and pistons...yea. Apparently she's a high-maintenance hottie....

By the by...spent 20" listening to a buddy from Pendleton talk about having to get an attorney as after his R1 blew at PIR Yamaha and his dealer are coming up with every excuse, even flat-out lying...to deny warranty coverage.

So your dealer is willing to warranty your work even though it was tracked?

Looks like my dealer was blowing smoke up my ass!


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Putting it on the track doesn't void the warranty. Racing does.

timwu12 said:

So your dealer is willing to warranty your work even though it was tracked?

Looks like my dealer was blowing smoke up my ass!


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which dealer are you talking about in NorCal?

Don't know yet....

But, they warrantied the engine work earlier in the year...knowing it was track-only. I was warned however that DNA's using a phrase in the warranty that says something like "race use...or similar" voids warranty. I think dealer makes a "yuuuj" difference though-

Exclusions to the Limited Warranty
The following are excluded from the coverage of the terms and conditions of the limited warranty:
1) All off-road and competition designated model Ducati motorcycles;
2) Any Ducati motorcycle that is engaged in competitive racing or related use;
3) Any Ducati motorcycle that is rented for use or utilized for any rental purposes;
4) Defects or damage caused by alterations to the motorcycle outside of Ducati factory specifications;
5) Total loss, salvage, junk, or scrap motorcycles, defined as follows:
A) The vehicle is declared to be a total loss by a financial or insurance company; or
B) The vehicle is rebuilt after being declared to be a total loss by a financial or insurance company; or
C) The vehicle is issued a certificate of title, salvage title, or similar title indicating that the motorcycle is designated as “salvage,”
“junk,” “rebuilt,” “scrap,” or the equivalent thereof

I'd be pretty upset if a dealer denied a claim because I put the bike on the track. My dealer isn't the greatest, but I'm positive that they wouldn't deny a claim for that reason alone. All of their demo Panigales get taken to COTA regularly, then sold once they hit around 1000 miles. However, you don't get the full two year warranty. It starts once they label it a demo.

youngR said:

which dealer are you talking about in NorCal?

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The motor cafe in Sunnyvale


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Yeah, but these are track bikes - specifically built for the track with street capabilities. MMC, I know who that was; I talked to him also (Mike). He's not the only one. Yamaha needs to understand why it happened because as good as it is, if it doesn't hold up well under track usage then potential customers will start staying away from it. Yamaha has a rep for reliability but that....puts doubt in my mind.

MMC, the reason I mentioned your rebuild because possibly during the rebuild process something wasn't done right during assembly and it would still be a warranty issue but more by the dealer who put it back together. There are painstaking tolerances and assembly procedures to be followed in rebuilding a motor like this.

The only excuses I can understand from the manufacturers is over-revving (or opposite, lugging) the motor or improper oil level which I'm sure wasn't done in either case.

Well...update.

"Technician found horizontal connection rod bearing to have failed. This caused massive damage to entire engine. The parts quote reflects replacement of all parts however it may be possible to repair the crankshaft by sending it to Ben Fox at Fox Performance but we would have to have him inspect the crankshaft before he can determine if it is repairable. If the crankshaft is repairable we will need to order the new connecting rods, bearings and bolts to be sized and installed on repaired crankshaft.
Technician notes that Ducati cranks, con rods and cases are classified by size. Each size has a class A, B or C – however the cases for the Panigale R only have one size. This means that the cases will have to be ordered first before we can determine the size of the plain bearings.
Technician also recommends sending the oil cooler out to be flushed, as the cooler may have trapped bearing material inside of it and could cause further damage after the rebuild."

All for only...$23,664.41. Right.

If they deny coverage b/c it's "track only," which is what the initial signals are...I'm sending it to Boulder Motorsports and having Brian build me a reliable track engine. "R for Racing,"...or not.

Damnnn!

For that price, I'd buy the ebay 2015R for $22k, part out your current R or keep it for spare parts. Hope they cover those fees for ya. That would suck if they don't.

MMC said:

Well...update.

"Technician found horizontal connection rod bearing to have failed. This caused massive damage to entire engine. The parts quote reflects replacement of all parts however it may be possible to repair the crankshaft by sending it to Ben Fox at Fox Performance but we would have to have him inspect the crankshaft before he can determine if it is repairable. If the crankshaft is repairable we will need to order the new connecting rods, bearings and bolts to be sized and installed on repaired crankshaft.
Technician notes that Ducati cranks, con rods and cases are classified by size. Each size has a class A, B or C – however the cases for the Panigale R only have one size. This means that the cases will have to be ordered first before we can determine the size of the plain bearings.
Technician also recommends sending the oil cooler out to be flushed, as the cooler may have trapped bearing material inside of it and could cause further damage after the rebuild."

All for only...$23,664.41. Right.

If they deny coverage b/c it's "track only," which is what the initial signals are...I'm sending it to Boulder Motorsports and having Brian build me a reliable track engine. "R for Racing,"...or not.

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One of the reasons I rebuilt my engine with 8k plus track miles. Although I didnt have any issues, I felt the need to rebuild before I had any issues. Good luck with the rebuild