Cost to Replace Cam Belts in So Cal

[Rickrides]

I have the belts.  How much should it cost to have a shop in So Cal replace them?

I've called Bert's Mega Mall in Covina twice and have been quoted $50 twice but I've heard they are the kings of "bait and switch" sales tactics.  The Ducati dealer in OC quoted me about $200 for what seems like a fairly simple job.  I'd do it myself but don't have the tool to properly "tune" the tension and if you screw that up you could have expensive issues.  For $50 it's a no brainer--Bert's on Saturday.  But for $200 I'll probably try to do it myself. 

Thanks!

[Dirty Duc]

If you have a 5mm allen wrench, you have a tool to measure tension to "good enough" and certainly more repeatably than the twanger method.  Just check the tension every oil change if you ride it in such a fashion as to make it hot.  My belts stretch sometimes.

[Buckethead]

^^^ This.

The "tuner" method only came into use with the DualSpark cylinder heads.

How many miles does the bike have? When were the valve clearances last checked? What services, specifically, were involved with the dealer service?

Maintaining your own bike is pretty easy if you know what you're doing, but sometimes it's nice to have a solid baseline to work from.

[Slide Panda]

Yeah, on a 900, the 5mm method has seen mine to 34,000 miles and still running strong.

That's $50, might just be the labor only. It's not a hard, nor long job to do. Half hour if you're hustling. But that cannnot be the total cost as belts are $40 a pop

[Rickrides]

I have the belts already.  Bought them on the internets.  If it's a half-hour job the $50 makes sense and I'd rather have a pro shop do that particular job.  Once I get more comfortable with the Ducati I may take this job on.  The bike is a 2000 with 4,700 miles on it. 

I do most of the maintenance on my bikes, including valve adjustments on my Kawi ZRX.  However, as the cams have to come out to change shims, I am NOT doing the valve adjust on my wife's Yamaha FZ-6!  It's going to the dealership for that. 

[ajw85]

+1 on DIY.
Hardest part is not losing the screws.

[JoeP]

+2 on DIY. I did mine a week after I got my first bike having ZERO experience working on a motorcycle. Then I blew up the engine heads. NAHHH!! Just kidding! It went fine and took about an hour. Second time, it took about 30 minutes start to finish, and that's on a 4V. No special tools are required, just a set of allen wrenches and a torque wrench. Maybe a guitar tuner if you want to measure tension that way. Mark everything (cam wheel positions, number of belt teeth between reference points, etc.) before taking off the belts. The marks from the factory don't line up!

BTW, on 4V testastretta engines, does the allen wrench method still work??

[Privateer]

I have the belts already.  Bought them on the internets.  If it's a half-hour job the $50 makes sense and I'd rather have a pro shop do that particular job.  Once I get more comfortable with the Ducati I may take this job on.  The bike is a 2000 with 4,700 miles on it. 

I do most of the maintenance on my bikes, including valve adjustments on my Kawi ZRX.  However, as the cams have to come out to change shims, I am NOT doing the valve adjust on my wife's Yamaha FZ-6!  It's going to the dealership for that. 

I can understand your trepidation, but it's a pretty simple job.  I watched this a few times before I did my own:


I'm surprised any shop will do it with the belt you take them.  Shop rate is like $90/hour so $200 adds up pretty quick.

[puddles]

I am in the middle of this. I have the front belt set, but i have no stand and my motor is together. I am turning the motor over by bumping the bike forward while in gear (plugs removed) Can't I just use the mark on the cover to set tdc on the vertical cylinder? Just rotate the motor (crank) 360 degrees right? Actually I don't see the point of rotating the motor to set the vertical cylinder. Is this because of the tension that the vertical cylinder cam gear?

[puddles]

Ok I figured out a way to do it. The cam gear actually rotates 180 degrees, at which point the sight glass covering the flywheel will show the mark on the flywheel aligning with the pointer inside the cover. It came out good.

[hooligan machinist]

Ok I figured out a way to do it. The cam gear actually rotates 180 degrees, at which point the sight glass covering the flywheel will show the mark on the flywheel aligning with the pointer inside the cover. It came out good.

That's great! Way to go, taking the bull by the horns.
Now take some of that money you saved and have a  .

[brad black]

you turn the engine 270 degrees (135 at the timing shaft) for vertical tdc firing from where all the marks line up.

at that point the timing shaft dot (that you line up with the case line for horizontal tdc firing) is at 3 o'clock, or pointing at the front cam if you like.

[puddles]

you turn the engine 270 degrees (135 at the timing shaft) for vertical tdc firing from where all the marks line up.

at that point the timing shaft dot (that you line up with the case line for horizontal tdc firing) is at 3 o'clock, or pointing at the front cam if you like.

Exactly! It was actually easy to rotate the motor in this manner. I also don't agree with the service interval of 7000 miles for cam belts.

[Speeddog]

~~~SNIP~~~
I also don't agree with the service interval of 7000 miles for cam belts.

Who told you that the belt service interval was 7000?

[suzyj]

7000 sounds nuts.

What is the service interval for belts, anyway? I know on my car it's 160,000km, which blows my mind.