Second Panigale Purchase - Thoughts

I think I may have the answer to the clutch hydraulic system sucking air. A few years ago I had a similar problem with the rear brake on my 1198 S. It would need a bleed every few weeks. The master cylinder was replaced, no help, then the caliper, still no help. Finally they replaced the whole system and that fixed it. I concluded it was the hydraulic brake line, most likely a weak crimp on one of the fittings. With pressure, it wouldn't leak, but when pressure was released, it would suck a small bit of air. Fireman `1251 suggested that taping the lever down when not in use would help. That suggests a leak that occurs only with negative pressure.

I suspect that when the clutch is used the pressure causes the line to swell slightly in the crimped-on ferrule and thus seal the fluid in. When pressure is released, it relaxes and allows a bit of air to be drawn in. So this type of leak would not show any fluid leaking out.

My best guess.

It blows my mind that nobody actually reads the previous answers in a thread. If you ride your bike hard and it gets hot, the clutch on a 12 AND 13 will get soft. Ducati has not and most likely will not fix this problem.

People have had good luck replacing the slave with the Cnc racing unit. I opted for the 26mm Cnc racing but have not had a chance to put it on. When I do I will report on my findings and if it fixes the issue.

If you do not currently have this issue, it is most likely you are not riding the bike hard over a long enough time period or you got use to the clutch being soft. I bleed the clutch every 300-400 miles. It has been repeatable on both my 12 and 13 as well as multiple friends bikes.

clutch fluid = brake fluid

so when your motor gets really hot very often, the problem will persist. as said above. you can try isolating your clutch line and adding a fan pointing towards the slave cylinder

Phil said:

looks like a sweet deal!!!

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Yeah, if I didn't already own one I would be buying this one.

I have this issue with my 1199 and Multistrada. I'm going to try the Brembo clutch master cylinder.

I has them install the Brembo clutch master cylinder the last time and didn't work either. I also payed for the Brembo brake lever and install ($700) just so they matched and had them put in a custom starter and replaced the factory one - I like the levers but a waste of $$$$. Let me know if you have any luck with yours. Cheers!

LArider said:

I has them install the Brembo clutch master cylinder the last time and didn't work either. I also payed for the Brembo brake lever and install ($700) just so they matched and had them put in a custom starter and replaced the factory one - I like the levers but a waste of $$$$. Let me know if you have any luck with yours. Cheers!

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That's good information. I'll take your experience and not go down that path.

As stated here the issue may indeed be the slave cylinder...

Thanks!

Tom