First service Ducati dealer or independent shop?

[TWDucfan]

Time to have first 600 mi service done, will taking the bike to an independent shop void the warranty?

TIA   

[Howie]

Technically no.

http://www.impalasuperstore.com/naisso/magmoss.htm

Keep in mind, I am not a lawyer, but, n short, if you went to court the manufacturer would need to prove the non-dealer work caused the problem.  Unless your dealer is incompetent I would probably take it there

[cyberswine]

Just keep in mind that regular contact and good relations with a Duc dealer will go a long way if it comes to a borderline or courtesy warranty claim perhaps a year or two down the line.

[Howie]

Just keep in mind that regular contact and good relations with a Duc dealer will go a long way if it comes to a borderline or courtesy warranty claim perhaps a year or two down the line.

Yes.

[DarkMonster620]

Just keep in mind that regular contact and good relations with a Duc dealer will go a long way if it comes to a borderline or courtesy warranty claim perhaps a year or two down the line.

totally agree . . .

[kopfjäger]

A bottle of scotch works wonders. 

[duccarlos]

It all depends on the dealer and the independent shop. Once I move back to Atlanta I'll be ass backwards since I trust the guys at the Ducshop to do a much better job than any dealer in the general area.

[silas]

Carlos, Racing Sport Services-RSS- Chris 'Hippie' Berkle's shop is in Braselton right across the St from Road Atlanta and does excellent work. He has decades of Ducati exp , in dealers, as a race mechanic, independent shop (Zen Moto!) , and w/ his own shop for quite a few yrs now. He routinely builds & breathes on Ducati, Guzzi, and all makes of Japanese race engines. DucShop is great too, I've heard, but I have a relsp w/ Chris @ RSS and love his work.
When Ducati had issues w/ their 996 Monster and Superbike w/ inconsistent idling/ rpm control etc, Ducati N.A. hired Chris to do extensive tuning to recommend fixes.

MSP on Lawrenceville Hwy closer intown Atlanta have a lot of exp w/ Ducatis & do good work also.  I try to do my own work & have never been to a dealer. I'm sure BMW Ducati Husky of Atlanta on 41 do good work also-always heard good about'em.

[polivo]

I could be wrong  here.. I thought only the dealers had the ducati  computers to turn off/reset the maintenance icon you get on the lcd when its due for service?

[DarkMonster620]

I could be wrong  here.. I thought only the dealers had the ducati  computers to turn off/reset the maintenance icon you get on the lcd when its due for service?

There is software out there that can do it . .  . Altought, DDS2.0 is the ONLY that can perform SW updates to the various ECUs the bikes have

[duccarlos]

There is software out there that can do it . .  . Altought, DDS2.0 is the ONLY that can perform SW updates to the various ECUs the bikes have

More reason to take it to the dealer for the big service. make sure that it gets the SW update.

[TWDucfan]

Umm! This sounds more complicated than I thought.  

Thanks for the replies.  

[DarkMonster620]

A bottle of scotch works wonders. 

got an 18yr rum one, 2 bourbon, a 12yr rum, scotch and 3 bottle wine case . . .ALL when I left the dealer

[SDRider]

Just keep in mind that regular contact and good relations with a Duc dealer will go a long way if it comes to a borderline or courtesy warranty claim perhaps a year or two down the line.

The first service is very important for the break in of the motorcycle and for safety.  Plus, it isn't that expensive so I've always taken mine in to the dealer for this service.

Another consideration, does your independent shop have the tools to reset the service reminder on the dash?

[clubhousemotorsports]

I am an independent repair shop so take this advice as my .02$

many great answers above and I agree with most.

As long as the bike is in warranty you are tied to the dealer network, we independents cannot do warranty work. Dealers are winy little ............  just kidding................. well some times. What this means for you is they have quite a bit of power over the decision to help you with warranty.

If you have a good dealer they should be working for you to take care of issues under warranty and you should support them for it. Problem is some times you have a poor dealer who does not want to do warranty work and you pay for it. If you have a good track record of service at the dealership you have a better case as there should be no excuse to deny the claim.

Legally they cannot stop you from taking the bike to a independent or doing it yourself but in reality they can make you wish you never did.

Dealerships are not oasis of genius mechanics, they can be but often they are more interested in putting out new bikes and selling the latest high tech non riding apparel. Shop around and find a Good dealership even if you need to travel for it. It will be worth the time and energy.

For bikes in Warranty I recommend service be done at the dealer, if you are happy there then stay. If you happen to be in an area with no good dealer then you have to decide the lesser of evils risking warranty issues vs quality service.

First service is a very light service it should be difficult for a dealer (or independent) to screw it up.