Ducati Monster Forum

Has anyone ventured out and brought their Ducati to someone other than a Ducati dealer for service?  Just wondering if that would that be like bringing your Maserati to a local garage? :o

I guess it would depend on what type of work you were having done.

in portland we have 2 shops (that I know of) that work on ducatis besides the dealer. one does everything euro, the other does vintage race bikes and 2v ducatis.

I hear good things about both.

dealers are good because they get reimbursed by ducati to pay for the training of their techs so you know they are up to date on everything, but many of the shops that work on ducs are ex-dealer techs.

do you have a specific shop your thinking about going to?

We are so spoiled, other than heavy machine work, we have the skills and tools to fix everything ourselves.  EVERYTHING.

And if I had to pay someone, we gots Silverback Racing, now known as Ducati Minneapolis.  Them dudes rock.

http://www.silverbackperformance.net/ (http://www.silverbackperformance.net/)

From my initial impressions of the local shops in my surrounding area, I would have to say no I wouldn't.  I would just assume pay a little extra to have a tech that is used to looking at Ducatis. 

I wish my local Ducati guy would charge a "little extra". [laugh]

I'm sure if you ask he'd be happy to accomidate you...   ;)

Hey, cough up the cash man.  If Ducati's were cheap and reliable, everybody would have one.

We're lucky in NH...

www.clubhousemotorsports.com (http://)

Trained by Bruce Meyers...reasonable rates...great guy.

i had a yamaha shop do an inspection on my ducati.   :o

All dealers are not created equal nor are all independents.  A little far for you, but, IMO, well worth the ride are these guys    http://www.europeancycleservices.com (http://www.europeancycleservices.com)    Ducati trained techs, dyno and most important, a sterling reputation.

I use a mechanic who repairs Aprilias and Moto Guzzis. He has some experience with Ducs; however, if it's something big enough I suppose I would cough up the jack and go to a Duc dealer.

I wouldn't take my bike to the local (Columbus Moto-Ohio) Ducati dealer to save my life. 


I and a few others on here take our bikes to JD Hord in Bucyrus OH.  I feel like I get ten times better service, honesty in what repairs/parts to do and work done by a guy who loves the bikes he is working on.

I recommend him to anyone I know who lives in OH.  It's really out of my way and I have to have someone follow me/take me back an hour drive and I would still take it to him if it was farther away.

It would be wonderful if Ducati would allow some incredibly good independents to do warranty work.  Better service, more sales plus competition might make the bad dealers better.

+1. I've taken the various Ducs I owned to Supermoto Italia here on Long Island. The owner is the mechanic. He's excellent, honest, a no-bs guy. Not inexpensive, but you know the work is done correctly. He will also do little things gratis. His small shop is a clubhouse, especially on Saturdays. It's the kind of place where, if a customer walks in and Joe is back in the shop, one of the regulars will turn into a salesman.

Before I found this place, I took my '97 M900 to another dealer several times and was *always* dissatisfied with the quality of the work.

Yep...http://www.metricmotorcycles.com/ (http://www.metricmotorcycles.com/)

I would DEFINITELY trust Andy at Metric Motorcycles before I'd take my bike to Eximport (Houston Ducati dealer).  I don't have any first hand experience with the service department of the other Ducati dealership in Houston, Bob Lundsford.

One thing I forgot to mention, Andy is a Ducati factory trained technician so I can see no reason not to take a bike to him.

Joe is a hell of a nice guy.  Good work too. 

I think the OP was asking about taking it to like a Triumph or BMW dealer. I would never consider any of the Japanese bike dealers to even know where to start on my Duc. I might consider a place that services a European brand, but I would do my homework to see if they had previously serviced Ducs.

I just wish there was still a Ducati dealer near Richmond, VA :(  Mixed reviews about the local option and the closest dealer.  Rave reviews for Duc Pond, which is 2.5 hours away.

I was talking about taking to a general motorcycle repair shop.  Many of the shops around by me advertise that they will work on anything but might specialize in a particular brand.  We don't have many euro bike repair shops near me.  Most of the shops here either work on Harleys or Jap bikes.  Like another poster said, I'll just pony up and have our local Duc guy do the maintenance.

Before I decided to do the Valve adjustment on my S2R, I rang a couple of local places, asking if they would do it,
most said no, not experienced with Ducati's. Found one guy and he seemed decent, He said he was experienced with
Ducati service and what was needed to do the work, claimed he had all the equipment needed I asked him about
his labour rates and he seemed to be in the ball park, then I mentioned in passing, Desmodromic valves in the
conversation, and all I got was silence.....

He had never heard of Desmodromic, he didn't know about the valve adjustment, or belt changes, yet he had been servicing
peoples Ducati's for year!!!!  :o

That's when I decided to do it myself, at least that way I knew it was done right  [thumbsup]

+1

Hmmmm... the dealer where I bought my Ducati is a bit of a drive from me(across town). They sell other brands, BMW, SUZUKI, YAMAHA. I was told before I walked out with my bike they have a Ducati Tech and that all Ducati work, he does! I have a Yamaha/KTM/SUZUKI dealership 5 minutes from me, I just don't see myself taking my bike there, my Yamaha dirtbike yes, not my Ducati. In my line of work, it has been hammered into us since basic, "right tool for the  job!"

Redline Motor in Yorktown is worth the trip...

I've only been to a Ducati dealer twice in my life - 1n 1985 to GT Motors in Lansing to pick up my 750 F1 and in 1991 to MCC in Chicago to pick up my SP3 (in the crate). Otherwise my Ducatis are taken care of by Gregg Rammel in Novi, Michigan.
http://www.autoweek.com/article/20071109/free/71109002 (http://www.autoweek.com/article/20071109/free/71109002)

Took mine to a Guzzi/Bmw shop here in North Cacalaca. no Ducati shop within a decent drive but I only bought tires and an inspection so I'm not sure that counts.