X Diavel S Dismantling procedure?

Hello....

I'm new here, so please forgive my etiquette, if I'm lacking....

I'm about to change the cam belts on my newly acquired 2016 X Diavel S.

A cursory look at the seemingly widely exposed belt covers would lead one to believe that popping those covers off to access the belts should be a piece of cake - particularly because the designer's/ engineers knew the belts behind those covers require moderately frequent access But, we Italians know better. Half the bike must come apart to get to one screw. A closer look at the situation confirms it. And, of course, there's no youtube vid - yet. So, knowing the nature of Italian bikes, there is a procedure that must be followed (according to the factory), and the workarounds techs have discovered, to access these pesky belts that last only five years. Does anyone know, or can direct me to, a rundown on how I get to the point where I can actually change the belts? I'm a well seasoned mechanic/ fabricator and have the requisite Ducati tools for the job. I just need to know what goes where and when and how much of a pain in the ... it's going to be so I can set my attitude accordingly before I walk over to the shop. I'm already prepared to remove the tank, instruments, body panels, right footpeg, maybe unbolt the cooling system and lean it forward? I'm sure there's a ton more and a specific order to follow - the smaller the thing you need to access is inversely proportional the the amount of parts that have to come off. I downloaded the shop manual, but I can't seem to find a disassembly procedure. That probably doesn't mean there isn't one. It's a 1500 page PDF and the search feature is rubbish, you'd think for 19 bucks...... I also searched this forum and couldn't find much - but that could be my fault because of how I'm wording it? Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thank You!

baggerman said:

I went back and looked at this he scallops a cover before reassembly to be able to replace and adjust one of the moveable (belt adjustment) pulleys. Not much else of note. He does say look for the cover bolt that is under the emblem. Other than that seems like normal ducati BS. He does outline what he does relative to not mistiming the DVT. Good luck.

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Thanks for the reply. I'll check it out

cmh210 said:

I changed the belts on my DVT Multistrada, same motor different bike. If I can be of any help, just shout out.

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Hi... Thank you for the reply and your offer of help. I got everything out of the way and have full access to the belts. My only question: According to the only vid out there, I must find top dead center for the horizontal cylinder and lock everything up in order to change the belt. But, the vertical one has to go on first, also at top dead center? That's not possible without unlocking everything and rotating the crank 270 degrees. or is TDC on each cylinder only necessary for tensioning the belts? The way it looks to me, I'd lock up the crank at TDC on the horizontal cylinder, change both belts, then tension each cylinder at TDC after both belts are changed?

cmh210 said:

IIRC after both belts are on, the horizontal cyl. tension is set first. Then rotate the engine 270 to get the vertical cyl. at TDC to set that one. Like Baggers said though, it may not matter. And the fuji nuts that hold the pulleys are one time use. California Cycleworks should have new ones, they weren't expensive.

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Thanks Guys..... I'm moving forward. One last niggle....
Ok. I very carefully marked the new belts against the old belts, with the horizontal cylinder at TDC and the crank locked with the locking tool. I counted the teeth between the timing marks, marked the belts and made 2,000% sure both new and old belts were marked exactly the same. New belts and old belts are all 94 teeth (not 93). The vertical cylinder was really difficult to get the marks I made on the belt to line up with the timing marks on the cams and the crank. I had to take off not only the tensioner pulley, but also the idler pulley. With the forward cam under load, it was a little difficult to line up everything because it rotates about 1/6th of a turn, but I did finally get it right - marks on the belt I made and timing marks on the pulleys all line up. The horizontal cylinder will not line up. I can either have the marks I made on the belt line up like the old belt, or line up the timing marks on the pulleys, but not both. With the timing marks on the pulleys lined up with the notches on the case, the belt seems too short by about two teeth.
So, here's my question, All the vids on youtube fall into two groups: those who mark the new belts against the old belts and seemingly slide them on with zero difficulty. And, those who do not mark the belts and just make sure the timing marls are all in the right place, and the belt goes on with even less difficulty. Why don't mine line up? Do I try stretching the new belt? Or, not worry about the marks on the belt and just make sure all the timing marks are where they're supposed to be? I would think the timing mark positions are far more important than how many teeth are between them.

SuperDomestique said:

Here’s the manual. Good luck

Download Ducati Diavel Workshop Manual | ManualsLib

www.manualslib.com

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Thank You!

baggerman said:

I'm a little confused about what you're saying. You marked the all pulleys with the front at TDC and the belts adjusted as they were delivered to you correct? If you marked the pulleys against some static reference on the heads then put the new ones on. The new belts will be somewhat tighter cause they've not been run. I've never marked a belt. What you want is when the belt is replaced and appropriately adjusted all the timing marks line up. You have to consider the effects of the belt adjustment that's yet undone when you put the belt on. The adjustment will move the timing. Sometimes if you don't consider that you end up a tooth off when adjusted. Regardless the marks you made when you took the belt off need to be lined up when you're done. If you did not make a reference mark on the heads but only marked the pulleys and belts I not quite sure what to say. If all else fails pull the valve cover, put an dial indicator on the intake valve, bolt a degree wheel onto the crank, find TDC accurately, set the degree wheel and then time it as the manual describes at a mm of lift. Do not be trying to stretch the belt or some such. Asolutely not necessary and probably destructive. Put some pictures up on what you've done with the marks as maybe all is ok and we're having a communication problem.

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I finally got it done. A bike mechanic friend of mine came over and went through it with me. It's all good. You are 100% correct! go by the timing marks, NOT the marks you make on the belt. I'm never marking a belt again. Total problem maker. I was 1 - 2 teeth off trying to line up my marks I made on the belt