2012-2020 Ducati Owners - NHTSA Safety Investigation

[bluepig]

Hello Everyone,

For those that don't know, the 2012 to current Duc Mulitstrada series have famously terrible rear brakes. Nearly unusable for everything other than 10MPH and under parking lot maneuvers.

I came across this memo, issued by NHTSA, indicating that they are investigating the following Ducati models for "poor braking performance".

• Monster
• Multistrada
• Supersport
• Panigale
• Scrambler
• Diavel

A fellow rider over on the Duc forums reached out to the lead investigator, who said the most helpful action is if all affected riders submit a Vehicle Safety Complaint on this site.

If enough affected owners file a complaint, Ducati can be forced into a recall and repair. Per the memo, it seems like they already have a "fix" but are not proactively reaching out to affected consumers. If you are affected, please consider filing a complaint. Even if you do not want the upgraded brake line (?), your action will help inform others that a safety-related upgrade to their bike is available.

 

[budman]

Neither worked worth shit on my two multistradas.

Thanks for sharing.

 

[nakedape]

2015 1200S here. Can confirm. Even when you have a firm pedal one minute, you might not the next. None of the usual tricks apply. It’s a flawed design.

 

[Enchanter]

2015 1200S here. Can confirm. Even when you have a firm pedal one minute, you might not the next. None of the usual tricks apply. It’s a flawed design.

I don’t disagree that there is a flaw…but what is the flaw?

 

[mrzuzzo]

I used to have a 2016 Diavel Carbon and can confirm the rear brake was inconsistent and useless.

 

[budman]

I don’t disagree that there is a flaw…but what is the flaw?

The flaw is the shit don’t work.

No need to point out the engineering. The shit don’t work.

 

[sf250gto]

May be an Italian thing. The rear brake on my 2007 Aprilia RSV was rarely useful.

 

[Blankpage]

Had 2016 & 2017 Hypers and rear brake was fine on both. I know hypers were not mentioned on the list but I figured rear brakes are parts bin stuff.

 

[berth]

So you can't lock the rear wheel of a modern Ducati?

 

[HadesOmega]

Wow that bad huh

 

[bikeama]

The flaw is the shit don’t work.

No need to point out the engineering. The shit don’t work.

This! My rear brake worked at the most one week when new. Change fluid and got another week.

 

[zelig]

May be an Italian thing. The rear brake on my 2007 Aprilia RSV was rarely useful.

The Rotax V2 Apes put the rear master cylinder (or reservoir? I forget!) in a location that gets heatsoaked, and the circuit is very finicky about getting bled. I wonder if the Ducs have similar design issues -- or whether it's even known at this point.

This symptom seems to fit the above:

My rear brake worked at the most one week when new. Change fluid and got another week.

 

[bmwbob51]

My 1974 Norton Commando rear brake is braking assist

 

[N4teTheGreat]

The Rotax V2 Apes put the rear master cylinder (or reservoir? I forget!) in a location that gets heatsoaked, and the circuit is very finicky about getting bled. I wonder if the Ducs have similar design issues -- or whether it's even known at this point.

This symptom seems to fit the above:

Yeah I'm pretty sure the rear brake master on these bikes gets cooked by the exhaust. I recall people talking about their brake fluid going black only a few days after getting flushed.

 

[bluepig]

I don’t disagree that there is a flaw…but what is the flaw?

Yeah I'm pretty sure the rear brake master on these bikes gets cooked by the exhaust. I recall people talking about their brake fluid going black only a few days after getting flushed.

It seems like Ducati has identified the issue as being a banjo bolt on the rear caliper that is out of spec. Heat & use warps the bolt which allows air to enter the system.

They have a fix, but are not announcing a recall - hence the importance of forcing their hand via a NHTSA complaint.

 

[N4teTheGreat]

It seems like Ducati has identified the issue as being a banjo bolt on the rear caliper that is out of spec. Heat & use warps the bolt which allows air to enter the system.

They have a fix, but are not announcing a recall - hence the importance of forcing their hand via a NHTSA complaint.

Interesting, I'd heard some rumbling about Multi owners being able to get a fix if they complained to the dealer about the rear brake, seems rather silly for them to have not just addressed this upfront with a recall.

 

[NoobCorpse]

Wow that bad huh

Yes. Showed a friend once, on my 2014 Pikes peak - held the bike in place while in neutral on his slanted driveway with front brake and foot on rear brake, and let off the front brake - bike rolls backwards haha. Pedal makes the full extension of travel and won't hold the bike.

The flaw is the shit don’t work.

No need to point out the engineering. The shit don’t work.

Yeah I'm pretty sure the rear brake master on these bikes gets cooked by the exhaust. I recall people talking about their brake fluid going black only a few days after getting flushed.

^^^this. The prevailing theory was that the rear master cyl ran right next to the cat + exhaust and ran hot and boiled the fluid. There was a guy named ebrew on the ducati.ms forums that fabbed and sold a little heat shield - some folks said it worked like a champ, I never had any success with it, but rear brake issues were internet-subjective anyway, according to the Advrider / ducati.ms forum threads for it ("mine works fine").

Compared to KTM's 1190 R / 1290 SDGT's and BMW's R1200GS's (3 bikes I owned adjacent to / after my 2014 Multi) rear brakes, the Multi may as well have not had a rear brake. The rear brakes on those other bikes could stop the bike (albeit slower) with just the rear brake alone.

I chalked it up to Ducati "character" but never thought I'd see an NHTSA / class action, even though many folks have talked about it for years.

 

[ns3v3n]

I just got my 2018 Monster 821 rear brakes done at the dealer with their recall but apparently they cancelled it. I got a call around 4th quarter of 2020 from Ducati North America telling me that there is a recall on my bike on the rear brake. By the time I was able to bring my bike to the dealer in early March 2021, they said they cancelled the recall. Luckily the dealer took care of me and did it under their good will clause as well as fixing my fuel sensor that went out. Shout out to Dan over at California Speed Sport for making it happen and taking cared of me. My rear brake would go out and very frequently, you can press the pedal all the way down and it does not nothing. After the fix, it is much better and you can feel it grab when you press on the pedal.

 

[Maddevill]

Motorcycles have rear brakes ???

Mad

 

[bluepig]

Interesting, I'd heard some rumbling about Multi owners being able to get a fix if they complained to the dealer about the rear brake, seems rather silly for them to have not just addressed this upfront with a recall.

Agreed. But, why proactively take care of something when you can shrug responsibility to the end user and address complaints as they arise?

Check out this excerpt from the complaint (link in original post).

ODI learned Ducati released several service bulletins for the subject motorcycles that address a rear brake performance concern. One of the bulletins describes replacing the rear brake line. The campaigns instruct technicians to inspect and replace the brake line, only if necessary, following a consumer complaint. A newly designed brake line, that does not allow air to enter the braking system through the collar of a banjo-fitting, replaces the existing line on a complainants motorcycle. The updated brake line is more robust and manufactured to a different tolerance and design. In December 2020, ODI became aware of a crash and injury allegedly caused by a loss of rear braking on a motorcycle that is part of the subject population. ​