Very serious question

Ok. Here is what happened.

I went and had my first service yesterday. Oil service, no big deal... right? Unless someone ..... it up. Which is exactly what happened. Took it to the dealer, had the first service done. They did the oil and stuff, did their checks, took it for a test ride. Came back, put it back on the stands????????? I said "Why you guys putting it back on the stands?" He said, "Oh, I think he spilled a little oil on the pipes and stuff and he's blowing it off" I asked "Should I be concerned?" He said, "No, He'll have you out of here in just a minute"... Rode 50 miles to my house, let the bike sit overnight, noticed a little bit of smoke coming up from underneath the bike, no biggie, probably just a little oil still burning. Took it out today to go meet my friend to go for a ride, was coming through the backroads back up to my house when I noticed I lost half my engine power after a little while of riding, pulled over, bike was smoking from underneath and it sounded like only one cylinder was firing. So we were attempting to take it back to his house which was a much shorter distance away and just go easy on it. He rode the bike because he is a motorcycle tech and wanted to check a few things out, we came to a stop, I noticed a lot of smoke coming up from underneath now, I told him to pull over to the corner. He got off the bike and left it running and thats when my bike burst flames up from underneath where the two exhausts meet. I told him "SHUT IT OFF, SHUT IT OFF!!!" The fire was gradually getting larger, we threw dirt on it because neither of us had water, we got some water from people nearby shortly after my fairing caught fire. Luckily we put it out before the plastic started to go up, that would have made it very difficult to put out. We called the police and had them make a report. Got my bike towed to a place nearby. Now I have to take it back over to the dealer to look at to see what the problem was. Even though I believe I already know what the problem was but I need a mechanic to tell me logically how this works... The oil that spilled underneath my bike onto whatever it got on, stayed there, and the smoke I started seeing gradually growing over each time I stopped was actually the oil that was pilled on whatever... anyways, the oil that was burning underneath intensified enough to heat up a gasket or some other material to cause damage to the internal lower cylinder, from there it got even hotter and eventually caught fire. I am almost 100% sure this is exactly what happened. Whatever oil they got it on near the oil filter caused smoke, enough so that when they did their test ride, it caused them to come back and try to blow some of it off. Possibly a crossthreaded oil filter? Either way, when I stopped there was no oil leak, but riding the oil pressure increased and the heat from what it was still on caused the fire as well. Please help with any advice! I am sure that it was a mistake that was made during the oil service, there is no way it was a coincidence that it just so happened to have an oil fire the DAY AFTER THE SERVICE. I want the Tech's ... fired. This could have been much worse... especially if it had happened going down the highway with 70 mph winds igniting the flames. Bike is covered under warranty, but I want more than just them fixing or replacing the bike. I AM FURIOUS AT WHAT HAS HAPPENED HERE. Not sure exactly what to do but maybe take it over to the other Ducati dealer and get a second opinion and statement on what happened, cause the other dealer really doesnt give a .... about the other one, so if they find it was the Tech's fault, they're gonna make a report and have him fired for sure. These guys could easily be looking at a lawsuit. Neglect for proper maintenance resulting in damage to the machine and almost causing mine or my friends injury. What would you do if this happened to you? Is the big question.

lifecycle?!???

Man, I'm really sorry to see that.

This is a sad situation and I'm sorry you have to deal with this.

Here is what I can tell you. I do all my own work on my bikes, just did my first service. I can't even comprehend how stupid you would have to be to .... this up; this bad.

On your bike there is no screw on oil filter, you have to remove a cover and replace a filter eliminate. I used a piece on tin foil so ZERO oil drain from the cover opening into my exhaust.

When I was finished I had ZERO spilled oil any where, ZERO smoke etc.

I don't believe this is some odd coincidence. However I'm not sure what exactly happened. I don't remember there being a space that would hold enough oil to pool and then later catch fire.

Unbelievable, I hate incompetent mechanics, hence why i do my own work.

Don't take it back if you have a choice, take it to a different place to have it diagnosed.

Good luck

spinkick said:

lifecycle?!???

Man, I'm really sorry to see that.

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Yeah LifeCycle. I dont want to deal with them anymore. This is unbelievable and Im going to see to it that that tech is fired. I will probably be suing

The more I look at that picture the more it seem maybe your fairing caught on fire because it was rubbing on your exhaust?? Could it have been installed improperly?

Damn nice PR for Ducati as passerby's see you putting out the fire. I would fight like a MFer!!

WTF?! Really feel for you Elite!

I also suggest to photograph the damage from every angle you can BEFORE you take it in.

I would go to the same dealer but go directly to their GM or OWNER and NOT to the mechs. Make THEM make this right! In all likelihood, depending on the integrity of the place, they'll either blame you or foist it on Ducati as Warranty repair OR, they'll do the right thing and sort out and deal with it internally.

And, don't forget to add any towing or hauling costs to the repairs.

Let a cooler head prevail when you take it in. Keep us posted and good luck.

doctorj said:

The more I look at that picture the more it seem maybe your fairing caught on fire because it was rubbing on your exhaust?? Could it have been installed improperly?

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Trust me, wasnt the fairing on the exhaust at all, the fire that started BETWEEN the exhaust cans was hot enough to catch the fairing on fire. If you imagine the bike being tilted on the stand, that means the flame went slightly to the side that fairing was on, the right side.

iiiofiv said:

WTF?! Really feel for you Elite!

I also suggest to photograph the damage from every angle you can BEFORE you take it in.

I would go to the same dealer but go directly to their GM or OWNER and NOT to the mechs. Make THEM make this right! In all likelihood, depending on the integrity of the place, they'll either blame you or foist it on Ducati as Warranty repair OR, they'll do the right thing and sort out and deal with it internally.

And, don't forget to add any towing or hauling costs to the repairs.

Let a cooler head prevail when you take it in. Keep us posted and good luck.

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I took photographs AND a video. I cant believe this .... happened. What a pain in the .... They should give me some Termi Slip-ons for the trouble

elitesoldier357 said:

Trust me, wasnt the fairing on the exhaust at all, the fire that started BETWEEN the exhaust cans was hot enough to catch the fairing on fire. If you imagine the bike being tilted on the stand, that means the flame went slightly to the side that fairing was on, the right side.

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sorry to hear this mate. But it sounds to me like the heat shield between the exhaust cans has melted from the heat, causing the fire. When you talked about it it loosing power and sounded like it was running on 1 cylinder, you may have fouled a plug. The excess heat from the the fuel catching on fire from the pipes caused my heat shield to melt, I would get the guys to check the plugs. I rode for about 10mins and decided to pulled over and not ride it anymore, they didn't realise I had melted the heat shield until my first service when they pulled the bike apart.

thewaxer said:

sorry to hear this mate. But it sounds to me like the heat shield between the exhaust cans has melted from the heat, causing the fire. When you talked about it it loosing power and sounded like it was running on 1 cylinder, you may have fouled a plug. The excess heat from the the fuel catching on fire from the pipes caused my heat shield to melt, I would get the guys to check the plugs. I rode for about 10mins and decided to pulled over and not ride it anymore, they didn't realise I had melted the heat shield until my first service when they pulled the bike apart.

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Yeah the oil on it could have very much caused that, but I have yet to tear my fairings off to see how the bike is mechanically put together to figure out what went wrong. But I know for sure some spilled oil had started the fire and if it had burned the plug, why wouldnt a warning indicator pop up? That's electrical. I had no warnings on my display at all, not oil pressure indicator or anything, leads me to believe that just a small leak could have caused all this and the excess heat from the oil gradually getting hotter when I rode slow, burned up something in the engine. I was going very fast at the time I lost power, i think... just like blowing on some leaves with a few hot ashes in them... that thats how the oil fire started, the oil was the leaves and the heat from the pipes or something else combined with an exponential amount of oxygen caused the oil to light. But Im not sure yet what caused the engine malfunction, I just believe that it melted something before the fire even started, not electrical but mechanically, like a head gasket or something to that nature.

That's really crappy!
Sorry for you.

But, sue? Seriously? It's an inconvenience for sure, but you DON'T know what caused it yet and if it is actually someone's fault. .... does just happen sometimes. Slow down and get it sorted.

I can't see how a poorly performed oil service could be the cause of this, but I'm really interested to see what the investigation reveals.

It's under warranty. Get it fixed and/or replaced with some sort of compensation if they're willing to offer it, and move on.

I'm also surprised your mate rode the bike if there was clearly something wrong with it.
As a tech, I'd think he'd know better.

Good luck and keep us informed.

Rhino said:

That's really crappy!
Sorry for you.

But, sue? Seriously? It's an inconvenience for sure, but you DON'T know what caused it yet and if it is actually someone's fault. .... does just happen sometimes. Slow down and get it sorted.

I can't see how a poorly performed oil service could be the cause of this, but I'm really interested to see what the investigation reveals.

It's under warranty. Get it fixed and/or replaced with some sort of compensation if they're willing to offer it, and move on.

I'm also surprised your mate rode the bike if there was clearly something wrong with it.
As a tech, I'd think he'd know better.

Good luck and keep us informed.

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He wanted to see what exactly was going on. He and I are combat vets, we've been through much worse.

Damn. I'd be furious if that happened to me.

If its their fault sue the motherfuckers. And definitely get something for your trouble.

That's awful.. I would give them a chance to make it right, and if that doesn't happen I'd think of a legal route. Going in threatening a lawsuit will only put them on the defensive and make matters worse. Just my 2cents. Good luck man!

elitesoldier357 said:

He wanted to see what exactly was going on. He and I are combat vets, we've been through much worse.

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No disrespect but what you've been through has nothing to do with it.
If something is mechanically suspect (with anything), shut it down and get it looked at!
It may have stopped it catching fire at all.

nick1199 said:

If its their fault sue the motherfuckers. And definitely get something for your trouble.

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Can someone walk me through this whole suing business please?
Since we're just not 'into' it over here.

What we would do, is have the bike replaced (I certainly wouldn't settle for any kind of repair in this instance), that's what a warranty is for.
And I'd get the dealer to throw something in for the inconvenience. (They may or may not feel obliged to depending on what caused the problem).
A service, merchandise... something.

Who would you sue? Ducati or the dealership?

Why would you sue them?

What would you sue them for, in terms of compensation (or whatever)

Suing works like this: You get an overpriced lawyer, who sues the dealership and their overpriced lawyer. You try to get them to pay for all the repairs and ask for 10.5 million dollars or so for pain and suffering. After paying several thousand dollars in legal fees, you settle out of court and you get your bike back like it never happened. I think that about sums it up.

Really sorry to hear this. Hope you can find out exactly what happened and get some decent compensation.

Before suing I'd take the bike back after tons of pictures and explain to them what you want to happen. If they disagree, then sue to make it happen. That is what suing is for.

Document the damage to the bike and get it to the dealer. Give them a fair chance to fix your bike, but politely pressure them to get it fixed ASAP - this is prime riding season for you in Lansing.

PM me if you'd like to talk. I've dealt with DNA on an issue with my own bike and I'd be happy to send a lawyer's letter for you gratis. My law offices are in NYC, Syracuse and Buffalo, but no one here is admitted in Michigan, although I can't imagine ever having to sue in this case so it really shouldn't matter.

Thanks for your service, BTW!!