And you thought Aprilia maintenace was bad.

[SteveP]

Since when has aprilia maintenance been bad?

[z06boy]

It was bad enough just changing the sparkplugs and air filter on the R6 the other weekend...screw that.

The wife came out in to the garage and saw her bike with most of the plastic off...the tank jacked up in the air...the radiator and overflow reservoir hanging loose and wondered wtf I had done to her bike. "I thought you were just changing 4 sparkplugs and putting an air filter in?" That's exactly what I was doing. I went ahead and flushed/changed the coolent and changed the oil while I was at it. I had put 4 sparkplugs and an air filter in her car just before that in about 15 minutes and she 'assumed' this would be about the same....NOT !!!

[Mudpuppy]

Originally Posted by z06boy

It was bad enough just changing the sparkplugs and air filter on the R6 the other weekend...screw that.

The wife came out in to the garage and saw her bike with most of the plastic off...the tank jacked up in the air...the radiator and overflow reservoir hanging loose and wondered wtf I had done to her bike. "I thought you were just changing 4 sparkplugs and putting an air filter in?" That's exactly what I was doing. I went ahead and flushed/changed the coolent and changed the oil while I was at it. I had put 4 sparkplugs and an air filter in her car just before that in about 15 minutes and she 'assumed' this would be about the same....NOT !!!

Don't they always assume everything is a 5 minute job? I moved 4 yards of topsoil a couple of weekends ago and after my back is broken from the first yard and maybe a 1/4 or 1/2 a yard she says are you done yet? pretty dangerous question to someone wielding a shovel that still has 2-1/2 yards of dirt to move.. good thing my back was fucked up or she would have went in the hole before i put the next couple of yards of dirt in there..

[z06boy]

Originally Posted by Mudpuppy

Don't they always assume everything is a 5 minute job? I moved 4 yards of topsoil a couple of weekends ago and after my back is broken from the first yard and maybe a 1/4 or 1/2 a yard she says are you done yet? pretty dangerous question to someone wielding a shovel that still has 2-1/2 yards of dirt to move.. good thing my back was fucked up or she would have went in the hole before i put the next couple of yards of dirt in there..

When I finished up I asked her if she wanted to go for a ride so she could check it out and she asked if I was going to do my R1 before we left and I said Fvck No !!...I'll get it next weekend.

[goof2]

Originally Posted by SteveP

Since when has aprilia maintenance been bad?

Seems like it is a general consensus that has developed, partially based on fact and partially based on fiction.

A lot of it is probably from talking to owners who follow the "intensive racing use" service schedule. Valve checks for recent Mille's are listed as every 12,500 miles for standard use, which is pretty good. For "intensive racing use" they are required every 3,125 miles, which is pretty terrible. When following that schedule Aprilia recommends changing the spark plugs and air filter on that interval as well. Talk to someone following the "intensive racing use" schedule and you would think the bike needs work all the time.

The maintenance schedule for their SXV supermotos is even worse. Digging in to the clutch every 1,800 miles and the engine/transmission every 5,500 miles (recommend piston replacement) are not things typical street riders are accustomed to.

[SteveP]

Originally Posted by goof2

Seems like it is a general consensus that has developed, partially based on fact and partially based on fiction.

A lot of it is probably from talking to owners who follow the "intensive racing use" service schedule. Valve checks for recent Mille's are listed as every 12,500 miles for standard use, which is pretty good. For "intensive racing use" they are required every 3,125 miles, which is pretty terrible. When following that schedule Aprilia recommends changing the spark plugs and air filter on that interval as well. Talk to someone following the "intensive racing use" schedule and you would think the bike needs work all the time.

The maintenance schedule for their SXV supermotos is even worse. Digging in to the clutch every 1,800 miles and the engine/transmission every 5,500 miles (recommend piston replacement) are not things typical street riders are accustomed to.

Seems like most of your info is from the SXV. I've checked my valves on my 25k Tuono every 12k and they've been in spec. This is pretty normal for the rotax 990. The job is no more involved than any other bike. As far as "intensive racing" doesn't any bike need increased maintenance when used as a track bike?

[CasterTroy]

RT's are known to go 60k plus miles before ever needing a clutch.

BTW...it's an $800 job....but so is the 24k service if you have the brakes and ABS system bled and flushed.

[goof2]

Originally Posted by SteveP

Seems like most of your info is from the SXV. I've checked my valves on my 25k Tuono every 12k and they've been in spec. This is pretty normal for the rotax 990. The job is no more involved than any other bike. As far as "intensive racing" doesn't any bike need increased maintenance when used as a track bike?

I don't know if all bikes need it, but it is a pretty good idea. My point about the "intensive racing" is the people who think they ride pretty hard so they better follow that schedule. Anyone who asks them about maintenance is going to hear 4k miles for valve adjustments. They aren't going to go to the manual to see what Aprilia actually recommends.

[fnfalman]

Originally Posted by goof2

The maintenance schedule for their SXV supermotos is even worse. Digging in to the clutch every 1,800 miles and the engine/transmission every 5,500 miles (recommend piston replacement) are not things typical street riders are accustomed to.

That's because it's a true race bike with lights instead of race replica.

[goof2]

Originally Posted by fnfalman

That's because it's a true race bike with lights instead of race replica.

I know that and you know that but the typical street rider does not. The reality is, when compared to motocross based supermotos, the SXV is a bit less maintenance intensive. That is also something the typical street rider does not understand. They didn't understand it about the Duc 916/996/998 either and its maintenance requirements have given all Ducatis a reputation as maintenance hogs.