Any other 696's on the board?

[Amlethae]

I was hoping to hear from other 696ers that ride through Manhattan and other congested areas a lot.  My 696 is my first bike and I realize that my lust to be cool with a Ducati (what I've always wanted) overshadowed my better senses of getting a water-cooled bike for the traffic.  As a result my bike runs so hot especially when I'm in traffic... like one or two bars from max on the oil temp constantly.  I went by the dealership in midtown wondering if this was a problem and they didn't seem phased by the idea... was wondering if anyone else has a 696 and what your oil temps are like?

[Howie]

I'm not a 696 rider, but it is possible you have the improperly wired coil wire issue.  For more info, search this board.  What dealer did you buy the bike from?  They should know about the problem. 

[Pakhan]

My 620 has reached temps of 300-320F in traffic, don't get too worried but you should still make sure it's ok.

[tommys67]

Aircooled bikes get HOT in city traffic. 

My 695 went up over 300 when sitting in traffic.

When I was learning to ride, I would run up the west side highway, cut across central park, then come down 2nd avenue.  I NEVER got down 2nd Ave with the temps below 290.

Just be sure to keep the oil fresh and keep to the maintenance schedule!

[Binary]

I have a Dark M696. Riding in traffic gets the bike hot but I'm use to it now. I'll enjoy it in the colder months.

[Amlethae]

I'm not a 696 rider, but it is possible you have the improperly wired coil wire issue.  For more info, search this board.  What dealer did you buy the bike from?  They should know about the problem. 

Got it from Ducati/Triumph/KTM in midtown on Spring.  I took it by there about the coil issue -- cause I'm fairly convinced myself that I have the problem -- and they didn't seem worried about it.... "We've never had one with that problem here"... so what?  All they told me is that I need to let the revs go higher... into the 5-5.5k area to solve the lurching problem... I guess that's working but the bike doesn't seem to happy up in those ranges when I'm cruising.  Still having trouble starting it and as you know, definitely running hot.  According to the owners manual, my oil temps are constantly in the 348 F (176C) to 374 F (190C) range with occasional hikes up to 396 F (200C)

I've been asking on the forum how I can check/fix the problem myself... shouldn't be too hard, but I haven't gotten any responses except to PM Shadowchaser but he hasn't gotten back to me either.  *sigh*

[Pakhan]

You can always purchase the oil cooler kit.  I know they had one for the 620 and I assume it's the same or there is one available for the 696.  It isn't a hard install and I have heard people say it has made their bike run cooler.  You can also not get stuck in traffic and lane split, just watch out for the ticketmaster.

As far as the lurch I would agree that if you rev higher you won't get that feeling.  When your cruising you should be in lower revs since you're cruising.

[Amlethae]

You can always purchase the oil cooler kit.  I know they had one for the 620 and I assume it's the same or there is one available for the 696.  It isn't a hard install and I have heard people say it has made their bike run cooler.  You can also not get stuck in traffic and lane split, just watch out for the ticketmaster.

As far as the lurch I would agree that if you rev higher you won't get that feeling.  When your cruising you should be in lower revs since you're cruising.

atm I'm too much of a newbie wuss to lane split a whole lot... though I'm getting more and more comfortable with the idea.  I think they're still developing an oil cooler kit for the 696 and I'll definitely get it when it comes out.  I just checked my wiring according to the owners manual diagram and the coils seem to be hooked up correctly so it's possible that all this is still the engine getting broken in and the ECU learning.  I'm going to get the CF Termis with the new ECU and air intake when I have the money and that should help richen up the mixture a bit and cool things off as well.  Thanks for the tips everyone!

[relapse]

Crazy idea, but why not wire up a switched 12v fan in back of the cooler?  If the problem is no air flow then make some.

800 gets warm in traffic in summer, but if I were really concerned I'd try to rig up something silly like that.