Hey guys,
New to the boards and ducati's in general. My ducati is burning a little oil and I'm thinking maybe its the valve seals, but I wanted to run it by some of you experts before I start doing anything about it.
So I bought this ducati used and it was only running on one cylinder. The guy who owned the bike dropped it 2 weeks after buying it (slight dent in the tank) and didn't ride it much since then in the 5 years he owned it. I got it with less than 3k miles on it. I'm thinking since it sat up alot that theres a good chance that some of the seals dried out?
Anyway, I pull the sparkplug on the front cylinder and the plug is oiled fouled and has a thin covering of oil all around it. So, I get a new plug and after install she fires up just fine and seems to be running smooth. However, the exhaust is billowing out white smoke, which I assume is accumulated burn off. I forgot to mention that there was also some oil seeping out from where the exhaust cannisters meet the exhaust header. So after a couple trips up and down the block the bike is no longer smoking (oil has burned off). Fast forward a few weeks later and the bike is still running well and the bike does not have any noticeable white smoke while riding. However, if I let the bike sit for a week then crank it up there is some white smoke on the initial start for 1 or 2 seconds then its back to normal. Also, I will occasionally smell burning oil when I'm at a stop light but its a pretty slight odor. Someone with a lesser sense of smell might not even pick it up.
So, what do you guys think?
The only other strange thing going on is the fuel light is on 24/7.
IIRC the 620s were prone to plug fouling occasionally.
I don't think the valve seals are dried up.
I suspect the guy never really ran it hard enough to seat the rings.
Based on the bikes age it should have had the belts replaced. I'd put a set on and, if it doesn't consume a lot of oil and foul plugs, just ride it.
thanks for the tip on the belts. Ill get on that pronto.
Maybe a fresh oil change too. If the bike was misfiring for a while the oil might be diluted.