The Ducati Scrambler Desert Sled May Look Awesome, But Changing The Oil Is Tricky! 

A couple of tricks: When you have a fancy three piece exhaust like that, you'll only need to loosen the bolts from the rear piece, then unhook the springs, and pull the mid section out. But, before you do any of that, unhook the battery. This will tell the ecu that something is going on, and if it has a sensor inside the oil gallery, as it should, that sensor will bring fresh data to the ecu when the ground cable is hooked on again. When working with aluminium, as in aluminium threads, always use either impact driver, or a tapping hammer when braking bolts loose, and a torque wrench when tightening them back up again. This will give your expensive threads a lot more cycles compared to the "traditional cast iron method".

Just did our first service on our desert sled. Honestly the removal of the exhaust added 10 minutes to the process. While an extra step I also wish wasn’t there, it certainly wasn’t a difficult oil change. Dealer reset the light in 30 seconds for no charge

It's all about perspective. I see the oil light as a reminder that I didn't get hosed at the dealership for an oil change. Brings a smile to my face every time I turn on the bike. Also anyone worried about voiding the warranty needs to read the Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act. Unless the manufacturer can prove that your repairs were the direct cause of the part needing warrantied they can kick rocks.

Thanks for having the guts to make this video. I presume other motorcycle channels are afraid to report on things like this because it might piss off the manufacturer and thus no free bikes to test or invitations to early press events. So, much respect to this channel which is by far my favorite on YT. edit: one more thing, why not include info like this in reviews. If I was comparing bikes and found out that a Honda costs two thirds less to maintain it would really sway me to choose the Honda.

Owner’s Manual: 15w50 TFL: 10w40 is good enough

Just love the Sled. It has that cool retro Can-Am or Bulltaco thing from the 70's going on.

The fact that Ducati REQUIRES the consumer to return and pay shop rates for oil changes is just one of a handful of reasons I went with the Triumph Scrambler 1200XC over the Desert Sled. Triumph places the drain plug so that you get a complete drain with the bike on the kick-stand, and a long funnel for filling is about the only thing a person might need that they don't already have in their garage. From start to finish it takes me about 15 minutes to change my oil and filter on the Triumph (and it's a 10k mile service interval as well). Those K&N filters are notorious for leaking where the nut is tack-welded onto the body of the filter if you use that feature to tighten the filter. Use that ONLY for removal.

Well done!! FYI You can use our Diagnostic Tool to Turn Off the OIL reminders and more ;-)

Thats a pretty easy job, compared to some other bikes. Some tips for the next change: You can drain the hot oil without removing anything before. After 10-15min everything is cool enough to access the oil screen (if you want to clean it). Only use 15W-50 oil on air cooled engines, 10W-40 is way to runny and not temperature stable. The motul 7100 15W50 would be a much better choice

Wrong type of oil and weight. Motul does not suggest V300 for street use for lack of proper additives. 7100 is the choice. Further, V twins are better of with 10W50 or 15W50 as indicated by Ducati itself.

Thanks for the video. Never knew what's involved in changing the oil for a Scrambler.

Any motorcycle manufacturer knows that the majority of motorcyclists do their own routine maintenance on their machines. This is just a tactic to make money by forcing you to have to bring it to the dealer anyway. They know that if people have to bring it in, they will probably just get their oil changed at the dealer. Not being able to reset the oil nanny is a no go for me.

1) 300v oil is racing oil, and therefore doesn’t have the same detergent package as a street oil. Meaning it’s meant for racing engines that get torn down every so often for a rebuild. I would go with the Motul 7100 full synthetic if you’re a Motul guy. 2) I can do my own oil but I choose not for a variety of reasons for this bike - that being said it’s a $180 (CDN) once a year service - so I’m not worried about the cost, that being said next years desmo service might induce sticker shock. Lol

Nicely done.

Good vid Alex

That sound without exhaust on ❤❤

Good job fellas!

Great video!

Thanks for the viddie! What an awesome sound with the open pipes. I wouldn't mind removing the exhaust so much to get at the screen, that's just Italian design philosophy, but the reset at the dealership would torque me I think I'll stick with my WR.

even if you do have the money for an oil change at the dealership, it's always good to participate at some point. it's informant to know the ins and outs of what you're riding :)

Looks hard but I don't think there is a harder oil change than the KTM 950/990, you have to take off the left gas tank, and half the bike, it has many oil screens, I did it alone eventually but with the laptop next to the bike religiously following the KTM Hall of Wisdom page :)

I love my scrambler, but for this exact reason, i'll probably sell it. Can't reset any lights, and needs a valve adjustment service every 7500miles which is about $1000 at the dealer. Which for me, makes ownership costs 1k+ every year.

Thanks!

This is a great video. Very useful and validating as a Duc owner. Most useful for me since the Jeep JL rubicon trail series… based on which I bought my JLUR. :-)

To get rid of the flashing light, just change the date...

I don't think Roman understands the concept of a stepchild 😂

Great video! I really apprciate how easy you make it look because at the end of the day we shouldn't be nervous about changing out own oil! Can you please provide where you found the K&N Oil filter specific to our ducati scrambler?

Awesome bike. Very nice

That drain-pan design is smart.

A friend of mine has a scrambler and he says that you don't need to take off the exhaust to change oil, there is a vertical key (I don't know how to describe it) that lets you access the oil screen hex from the underside of the bike, not the most confy oil change but far from a nightmare.

Sometimes skid plates and crash bars can make oil changes difficult. This doesn't seem too bad. After the break-in oil change, I usually start doing my own. Anything recall or warranty should still be covered.

That guy is precise about the sound

My Triumph Tiger 800 had the same issue, as far as you had to get the dealer to hook up to a computer to reset oil light! 😱

For those that think this oil change is tough haven't changed the oil on a steel framed Yamaha w450. Now, that's a tedious job.

funny how everybody pipes in of what not to do and how to do, I think he did a great job. I enjoyed the video, We all work on bikes differently. Although I would like to know what the dealer said hahah

For the record, Alex, it's 3.5L or 3.8 quarts. Not the other way around.

Worcha , thanks for the video. You said based on mileage you wanted to change the oil. How often do you change yours ? I’m planning to use mine for longish trips up to 4,0000 over a few weeks in Europe…

Not sure if this will work on every model, but I had to remove the battery for another purpose after changing the oil-a couple of times-and the service light hasn't flashed every time I've turned the bike back on since then. It does tell me to update the time and date, but only 3or4 times and it's gone. This is on a 2020 Sled. As you found out, the sump screen is to keep gasket bits and sealants from reaching the oil pump. If there are engine parts in the oil that the screen will stop you're gonna hear it. And will have stopped the engine right away. I stopped going to "ABS OFF". One has to go back to ABS ON to read fuel levels, distances, etc. Rocks, sand, mud, loose surface - the ABS does what it's supposed to just fine. Stops you as quick as possible. I've mounted a 21 inch front wheel and have DOT approved knobbies on front and rear. It's delicious. Been using Buchannan's for wheel lacing since the 70's and they're outstanding. Buck n AZ

Where’s your torque wrench? You might not need one based on your experience level but it might be helpful to show beginners how to properly tighten things to the factory recommended torque specs.

Watching this because I am thinking of buying a 2017 Icon that is a pretty good price. Not being able to reset my service light may tip the scales to a Honda. Two hour drive to the Ducati dealer from where I live.

I think Ducati recommends 15w-50. What made you use the Motul 10w-40?

So did Ducati reset the oil message?

U gotta put a little oil on filters rubber seal

You can train a Chimp to change oil. Ducati is known for Screwing it's owners with oil change maintenance lights and jumping through hoops for such a simple procedure.

The Ducati ownership experience.

Just wondering a flex tool could reach back thrre

Whats the point? Usually you will go to a service center and pay for the change right?

PITA - love the bike though!

What a shamble !

It's not as bad as a fairing sportbike or worse, changing the 2-3 oils on a Harley Touring bike

You should try an oil change on the Aprilia Pegaso 650 i.e. You have to take the gas tank off!

How many miles would you use that motul 300v as it is a racing oil…? Would it be for the 9,000 miles Ducati states as inteval…?

once you get that 14mm allen and do it a few times, you can do it in about 20 min or less!

Pain on my fasthouse 2021 bike as exhaust dont split ? to get to the strainer

Bikes/cars/trucks the manufacturers don't want us to work on them, Would the bike fit diagonally in the truck bed ?

Yep you need to invest in a pit bike stand and the correct exhaust spring tool would help, I got mine from our local KTM dealer made by FEM so much easier and less chance of losing an eye, or as I heard pierce you bottom lip and crack a tooth third hand story maybe an urban myth but hell they fly off with a lot of force so yep get the right tool, my friend halves the oil change period as his Monster 600 he stuck to the manufacturer mileage from new and it chewed his cams up at 28k miles not a cheap fix.

did u manage to reset the codes?

removing the air filter on my '13 Multistrada is an even worse nightmare.

Yup. My dealer will NOT reset the service light. Pretty much told me I was a-hole for changing it.

600 bucks is a little steep but you'd break even eventually. Rexxer User w/Map & Cable $599.95 Rexxer User Thumb -Read and save ECU original data -Write the ECU with modified or return to original data -TPS Reset -Identify the ECU -Trimmer Adjustments -Provide Firmware Information -Clear Adaptive Parameters -Reset Oil Service Indicator -Perform Checksum Automatically -Read and Clear Check Engine Codes and M

Anyone know the size of that crush washer for the oil plug? and is it copper?

It's not a big chore to change the oil, filter and clean the screen. Ducati recommend cleaning the screen every second oil change - it's in the workshop manual. Also, this stuff gets easier the more practise you get. Don't complain about saving a significant amount of $ for minimal effort. Also, buy a spring hook. It will make your life easier.

Roman needs to buy a toolkit for the TLCbike guys...

The manual of my Desert Sled 2020 says they recommend 15W50 motor oil. What's the difference between that and the 10-40 you're using?

And its even harder for us in europe, as new sleds come with e5 engine whitch has one single exhaust pipe, no connections anymore...

Fun fact: If you look at the old oil in an open top pan, the oil looks like it has brains in it. I guess that is because the Ducati engine and transmission release so much crap into the oil. I change the oil when it gets dirty, not when the manual says.

Well you haven't done an oil change on a KTM 690 Duke that has 2 cartridge filters that are different sizes and 2 oil screens and the drain plug is right next to the cat. If not removed, usually it leaves a smoky mess. This is pretty easy and straight forward. My 690 uses 15w-50 Motul 7100 also even though KTM calls for Motorex oil only.

That looked surprisingly easy actually

The problem is if you change the oil yourself, will Ducati warranty anything that goes wrong? Since the manual says MUST be performed at a dealership, my bet is that they would not warranty a motor issue. I have an Indian FTR 1200S and you can change the oil yourself; however, you need to have new sealing washers when you put the drain plugs back in. But you don't have to take the bike apart, thankfully.

Looking at buying a Scrambler. Is this a common issue for all Scramblers in general?

You can put a board in the back cut to the length needed for the wheel base. Hauled a lot of bikes like this.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Ducati deliberately designed it so you have to get them to do the oil change

Those Italians built this whole machine without a single thought for the poor tech or homegamer. I still love my sled regardless of how much I have to tear it down to perform maintenance.

If its not the short Desmo service interval, its now the oil service light. Its very discouraging to purchase a new Ducati.

$234.00 for JUST the oil/filter change at the dealer! Not checking the screen, even.

Most bikes and cars even the Japanese ones have some glitches and things that you have to deal with.

V-star 1100 says hi btw ;)

Song at 10:40 is bussin, I need plz tell.

Get or make a spring puller

How much is Ducati making in extra labor for each oil change with all those steps just to do something as frequent as oil changes? $$$$$$$$ 🤑

Why does it need a filter and a screen?

Any manyfuctures out there who allow US to basic maintenance like oil changes without voiding the warranty?

Thanks for showing what is required to do this work yourselves so we do not have to. lol Same ole tricks by manufactures with that reset switch to force you to come in anyway.

Use clean oil instead of used oil to prelube filter, and technically you should wear some nitrile gloves or similar to avoid skin contact with oil.

Sounds like a good situation for one of those oil's sucking devices that pulls it out through the top. Assuming you can feed the hose down into the bottom of the pan

No matter what the Servicing Dealers tell you, the only reason why these damned service lights have to be re-set at the Dealer is so they can make MORE MONEY from you. This is NOT only my opinion, but I was told this by a buddy of mine who was a Manager at such a Dealership,.. different brand though. I have an ATV that has this same stupid system, now the next time I buy one, I will check this BEFORE I buy.

It's not great, but that wasn't as bad as I was expecting. No worse than most cars/vans/trucks.

Why do you need to warm up the bike to drain & check the engine oil? The oil isn't a solid when cold. Don't worry about it, drain & check the engine oil with a stone cold engine, just like they do it in MotoGP.

Holy crap how many specific things can he do incorrectly? Still at least he’s trying I suppose…

I guess Ducati learned a lesson or two from BMW.

A Ducati Must Go to a Service 😇 You can't Service it by your self that isn't good for Ducati Service Shops The 2nd reason why I don't buy a desert X The First reason is i don't have 16 or 18 k

So, just the springs hold exhaust on? With no leaks?

Pffft…. Still not as bad as some sport bikes with fairings.

Wow that is too much work for an oil change. Man these awesome bikes 👍👍

The new one is even worse the exhaust is all welded so can't just remove the springs.

You dont have access and have to take the middle portion of the exhaust off? Maybe you should've let the authorized dealer change the oil!

"Not the most clever design" ?? bro, it's an extremely clever design, designed specifically so Ducati can make loads of money on maintenance from people who don't have time for the hassle of doing it themselves.

Well, pain in the ass to change the filter, and no dealer in my city. No desert sled for me....Hello Triumph

Like the bike, absolutely hate the fact they were designed to make dealers $$. That’s one of the several reasons I bought a Moto Guzzi V85TT.

Put the bike diagonally in the truck bed. The bike will fit and the corner of the bed will act like a wheel chock.