Hello everyone

I'm a new enthusiast (to motorcycling and pasos as well) and want to have my first real bike be a paso. I had thought to look for a 907 ie as they *seem* to be less problematic since I would'nt have to deal with a carbeurator but was curious as to your thoughts on that.

Mostly what I would like to ask for is advice on what to look for in buying a paso so that hopefully I dont get ripped off or buy a lemon due to sheer ignorance.

Thanks for all your helpful advice and comments in advance!

One of the best ways is to just browse the posts here to understand what owners of the bike are concerned about. The FAQ section is always good.

The best way is to bring a friend who knows what a Paso is, or at least a Ducati. Where are located? Maybe one of us on list can help you out.

Cheers,

Sadly I am the person who knows the most about motorcycles that I know. I've been reading up on bikes and duc's pretty heavily. I don't really know anyone else who rides, much less a ducati.

I have been browsing, but that's a lot of information all at once

As for location, I'm in Louisiane, US. Sadly, most of y'all seem to be in the UK.

Plenty of us here in the states. Don't know of anyone from that far down south tho.

I think any older bike -- or car or truck for that matter -- will need attention and work performed either by you or by a qualified tech ($80 per hour at dealers in these parts). To feed my own addiction I have both old bikes, and new ones with 2-year warranties. I ride the new ones more, and fix the old ones more. Old or new, I spend $$$$$ on them

the difficulty with a Paso is it's fully covered and hard to see the condition of things without taking the fairing off..

at least lift the seat and look for signs of re-wiring and corrosion around the battery.

look in the petrol tank and check for corrosion...many tanks develop leaks around the triangular base part where the fairings attach...look for bubbles on tank paintwork here.

most 907ie's idle perfectly but don't like to be driven below 3,000 RPM
start the bike and let it warm up at least 5 minutes before moving...oil leaks will accumulate on the exhaust and if it's smokey you know the casings need attention

check the compression - seems a lot to ask but if they're confident the bike is good they should allow it.

see if they have a receipt from the last belt change for the valve drives...and if new belts were fitted.

ask what chip it has in the ECU..and if it matches the exhaust,

a problem that 907s have is the radiator coolant tank / filler splits...take a torch and look to see if there is coolant in the tank and check for signs of repairs

check the swing arm where the rear sprocket passes...sometimes the sprocket bolts gouge a groove in the alloy (which is very soft)
while you're at it check sprocket and chain condition.

check for spongey brakes (is the bike sold with a roadworthy certificate?)

try to take the bike for a spin on a flat road and cruise at 100kmh (60 miles/hr) - make sure the cruise is smooth.

Ah, thank you! That's a simple little list to bring with me inspecting!

would add to Laddie's excellent list:

remove front sprocket cover to see whether cases have been damaged/repaired after throwing a chain

There are other threads on this forum about buying a used paso, for example:
viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2816&hilit=+desmotimes

As part of your research before buying, along with browsing the forum, maybe download the factory manuals and parts book (links are here somewhere). I like the desmotimes.com "Maintenance and Modification Guide" -- $30 well spent. He's in Florida.

I think Elton gets a gold star for that post,excellent covered all the bases

Send us a link to any bike you are looking at and we will critique it for you. Good pictures will allow us to see 100's of flaws!

I'll keep that in mind

except to all 907ie specific stuff you should generally always look for marks and scratches on fork legs/footpegs/exhaust/brake & clutch levers, colour mismatch of body parts, if the stickers are covered by a clear coat and any other detail that may indicate the bike was crashed and rebuild/repainted.
Take a look also at the steering stops which are positioned above the lower triple clamp and if the adjusting screws are still the original. If you can see a crack at one of the two steering stops or if an adjusting screw was replaced by a longer one that will indicate a crash.

G.

I'd add the dents on the swingarm say that the bike fell down and the exhaust bolts dented the swingarm.
Ciao