This website is just me taking advantage of my 1st Amendment right.
There is no commercial content of any kind on this site. I offer nothing and I sell nothing.
All of the information contained herein is a true story that happened to me. Nothing is made up or exaggerated. Some names are hidden out of courtesy.
Short version:
- I bought a brand new 2021 Ducati Monster 1200S from Moto Julia (aka The Transportation Revolution New Orleans – TTRNO) in New Orleans, LA in April, 2021
- After 20 miles the rear brake failed
- Moto Julia took over a month to react to and complete the repair
- Moto Julia forced me to pay labor charges for the warranty repair, the total of which I was only able to get them to come down partially because they would not budge ($671 down to $411, but should have been $100 or less in a fair situation)
- Moto Julia performed and charged me for additional work I did not request (I had to pay this because I could not get them to believe me that I never requested it)
- Moto Julia tried to get me to sign a form which absolves Moto Julia and Ducati of treating this issue as a defect (which would absolve Ducati and Moto Julia of Lemon law liability if this issue happens again) but I refused to sign the form.
- I discovered later that during this time there was an already active recall on the rear brake and Moto Julia never informed me of it while they were trying to charge me for the work.
- After payment (for a warranty repair) was completed and after delivery was complete Moto Julia tried to make me return the bike to them when they discovered I would not sign the form
- After I refused to sign the form Moto Julia tried to trick me into signing the form by asking me to sign a different page of the same form during the post-repair delivery
- I have considered the possibility that Moto Julia may have been planning to hold my bike “hostage” when they changed the agreed upon delivery arrangement and requested that I pick up the bike in person (which I was unable to do). The plan was likely that they would hold the bike locked in their shop if I had not signed the form when arriving in person. I made sure the bike was delivered as we agreed which I think coincidentally/accidentally allowed me to avoid this possibility
- Moto Julia is removing themselves from the situation and asking Ducati to handle this directly
- After 120 miles the bike failed to start
- Took the bike to a new Ducati service center since Moto Julia cannot be trusted. The new service manager told me that the bike will not start because whomever previously worked on the bike (Moto Julia) installed the airbox incorrectly and broke some parts during the work. They have to seek Ducati’s permission to process the damage as a warranty repair.
Diary version:
April 15th, 2021
Ordered brand new 2021 Ducati Monster 1200S from Moto Julia in New Orleans, LA. Delivery scheduled for 4/22.
.April 16.April 17.April 18.April 19.April 20.April 21.
April 22nd, 2021 2:00 PM – Brand new 2021 Ducati Monster 1200S delivered by Moto Julia with 3 miles on the odometer and half a tank of fuel. Papers signed on this day. There was no follow-up from Moto Julia to make sure the bike arrived or that everything went OK. This is the first time I’ve ever purchased a new vehicle and the salesman did not follow up.
.April 23.April 24.April 25.April 26.April 27.April 28.April 29.April 30.
May 1st, 2021 10:09 AM – Service request created with the Moto Julia Ducati dealer. Over the course of two weeks since delivery I noticed the rear brake didn’t seem to do much, and the bike left a small drop of oil on the floor (thought it was oil) each day. Community feedback suggested this was all normal for Ducati, even on a new bike. The rear brake on Ducati bikes is sometimes called a “brake light switch” by the community because they apparently have lower rear braking power than most people expect. I had time for two short rides (first weekend of ownership) and confirmed the rear brake didn’t work at all. One long ride during the second weekend of ownership (15 miles) and the rear brake malfunctioned, heating the rotor to the point of bronzing it, and locked up the rear wheel. Fortunately I was near home and at neighborhood speed so there was no accident caused by the rear wheel locking up. At this point the bike was producing several drops of fluid on the floor each day and I realize now it is brake fluid. The bike has 20 miles on it. I called the MotoJulia Ducati dealer, explained the situation, and they put in the order to pick up the bike. They informed me they would normally never cover the costs of a warranty pickup or return but in this case they coordinated with sales to “do me a favor” and pay for the pickup, but not the return of the bike. Delivery fee will be $175 to return the bike once the warranty repair is complete.
.May 2.May 3.May 4.May 5.May 6.
May 8th, 2021
Moto Julia begins a text exchange with me
Moto Julia 1:21 PM – Hi Sir, K******* over at Moto Julia, I just emailed the quote for the brake flushes with the Castrol SRF. Please take a look and let me know! (Invoice attached)
Me 1:21 PM – Yes that’s fine. You have my approval to go ahead. But…Whomever you get your supplies from is gouging you (and then me) by about 25%, but I figured that would be the case anyway if I couldn’t supply it myself (thanks Amazon!).
May 7th, 2021 MotoJulia Ducati dealer picks up my bike one week after the service request. I was told I would be notified when the bike arrived.
<<This is where I made my second mistake with too much trust, the first mistake being buying a brand new bike and assuming it would be inspected before delivery. My second mistake was that I read this invoice but focused too much on the price they were charging me for the brake fluid. I didn’t notice on the final page that they had added a front brake fluid flush. I never requested any work on the front of the bike. But the way the invoice is printed I didn’t notice this addition at the top of the final page. Honestly I feel like their invoice reads like an AT&T bill. I never thought to double check that they were adding things they shouldn’t be so I never noticed the line item on that final page. This same page of the invoice is where the “total” cost is eye grabbingly located and I did see that but also ignored the total because this is a warranty repair. I didn’t expect to have to pay anything out of pocket besides the return tow that I reluctantly agreed to and the brake fluid cost. Because WARRANTY>>
Moto Julia 5:02 PM – Okay, I’ll put it on order for you! Yes, it is very expensive brake fluid, we have to order from our vendors though.
Me 5:02 PM Me – I understand. It’s no problem
Moto Julia 5:02 PM – Absolutely! I’ll let you know when the fluid comes in and we get your bike up on the lift. Have a great weekend!
.May 9.May 10.May 11.May 12
May 13th, 2021 No updates yet from Moto Julia so I text at the end of the day.
Me 5:03 PM – Such a beautiful day to ride my new motorcycle! Any updates on the problem with the faulty brake on that brand new bike?
May 14th, 2021 Moto Julia begins a text exchange with me
Moto Julia 10:06 AM – Hi Sir, it’s a gorgeous day! Bike is going on the lift today, brake fluid is arriving this afternoon, so we’ll do everything at once! I’ll let you know how the diagnosis goes.
Me 10:06 AM – Thank you! I’m sure the techs realize this, but they should perform all diagnosis and repair using cheap brake fluid and only use the expensive stuff for the final flush.
Moto Julia 12:57 PM – Yes sir, they will!
Me 12:57 PM – Perfect thanks! And please call me Dave. Sir makes me feel old lol
Moto Julia 12:57 PM – Copy
3:01 PM Moto Julia calls me and reports that they started working on the bike and after disassembly they suspect the ABS module may be leaking. They need to request permission from the US Ducati rep to proceed with warranty work on a bike with only 20 miles on it. Next update scheduled for 5/18 after they meet with the rep from Ducati.
.May 15.May 16.May 17.
May 18th, 2021 No update
May 19th, 2021 No update +1
May 20th, 2021 No update +2. I begin a text exchange with my point of contact in service at Moto Julia.
Me 12:56 PM – Sorry to bother you. Any updates?
Moto Julia 2:35 PM – Hi Sir, K******* over at Moto Julia, yes we received an update from Ducati today. They will brake parts for you, which is great because warranty normally doesn’t cover wearable items, but they will do it as a goodwill warranty! Today we put parts on order, brake pads, discs, calipers and lines. Once those arrive in, we can perform this warranty work and the brake flush!
Me 2:35 PM – Would have been “interesting” to try to claim this as wear and tear. How long does it normally take the parts to arrive? I am hoping that maximum urgency is being placed on this given this is a brand new bike? This has not been going well for me.
Moto Julia 3:11 PM – Parts usually take 3-5 days to arrive in, I will update you when they arrive!
Me 3:11 PM – Thank you
.May 21.May 22.May 23.May 24.May 25.May 26.May 27.May 28.May 29.May 30.May 31.
June 1st, 2021
Moto Julia begins a text exchange with me
Moto Julia 12:21 PM – Hi Sir, K******* over at Moto Julia, parts arrived in today and my technician is working on your bike now. I will let you know when it is complete.
Please note that as Ducati is goodwill warranty this repair for you, they do require that you pick the bike up from us so that you can sign a goodwill warranty form and also so that the technician can go over the brake issue with you.
Me 12:21 PM – I would like the bike delivered back to my house. The technician and I can speak over the phone. I will not be able to pick up the bike myself. Thanks
Moto Julia 5:09 PM – That will be fine, I’ll have the driver bring the goodwill paperwork from Ducati that you can read over and sign. Tomorrow the bike will be completed, will there be a good time for a phone call between you and the technician?
Me 5:09 PM – Thank you. Anytime after 1pm is fine.
June 2nd, 2021
Moto Julia begins a text exchange with me
Moto Julia 2:30 PM – Hi Sir, K******* over at Moto Julia, brakes were bleeded and everything looks good but Ducati is requiring that our technician do an overnight hold test. I will call you tomorrow with the results of the hold test to set up your return tow!
Me 2:30 PM – Thank you!
Moto Julia 2:30 PM – You’re welcome! Have a great day!
June 3rd, 2021
10:05 AM – Moto Julia service advisor calls to tell me they are finishing up the bike and will be sending over the final invoice and someone will be calling me soon to schedule the return tow.
11:43 AM – Moto Julia emails the final invoice (attached). They are charging me for labor for the entire warranty repair, the return tow, and for flushing the front brakes that I never requested. This is the first time I am noticing they added the front brake flush. The initial agreement was that I would pay (reluctantly) for the return tow ($175) and for the purchase of high temp brake fluid ($98) that I requested they use for the rear brake since the reservoir is close to the exhaust system. The total should have been $273 + tax. They want $671.04 for a warranty repair. At this point I still haven’ t noticed the added charge for the front brake flush. This time I was let myself get distracted by an attached form that Moto Julia included and wants me to sign, called a “goodwill warranty” form (last page of the final invoice) that essentially absolves Ducati and Moto Julia of responsibility for this being a factory defect. I assume they are trying to avoid Lemon Law liabilities in the future in case this happens again.
1:06 PM – Moto Julia technician calls me to talk to me about the repair but instead we talk about how to use the rear brake and not to ride it. I explain that I’ve been riding for 20 years and that this was a defect on delivery, the rear brake never worked, and as a result during the 17 miles I added I rarely used the rear brake at all.
1:27 PM – Moto Julia service advisor calls me to discuss payment and schedule the tow. I am told a lower price but the service advisor never mentions anything to me about the original estimate or how they converted that to this new lower estimate. The estimate changed to a lower amount but it is still too high. This is when I find out that they did the front brake flush and they want to charge me for the rear brake flush with the reason being that even though it was part of the work anyway, because I provided my own fluid now I am responsible for the labor. I dispute the charge explaining that this is a warranty repair for the work I requested and that I never requested work on the front brake at all since there were no issues with the front brake. The service advisor replies repeatedly that there must be a miscommunication about the front brake but doesn’t want to budge since I didn’t catch the error on the earlier estimate back in May. So in the spirit of just ending this I agree to pay for the front brake flush labor that I never requested. However they are still trying to charge me labor for the rear brake flush even though that was part of the warranty repair workflow and I dispute that. Service advisor says they have to discuss this internally and will call back.
1:53 PM – Moto Julia service advisor calls me to say they have removed all labor charges except the front brake flush and half of the time for the rear brake flush. I go ahead and pay the new total, $411, down from the original $671.04. But not quite $273 + tax. The bike is scheduled for the return tow on Saturday
.June 4.
June 5, 2021
9:29 AM – Moto Julia service calls me to let me know the driver is loading up in the truck and about to leave with my bike. I remind them to include the remaining brake fluid and to also double check that the PIN was reset based on the interaction I had previously with them finding a mysterious PIN already encoded into the bike. They said if everything looked good then they would just send him on his way and I agreed.
12:00 PM – Moto Julia delivery driver arrives and delivers the bike. I look it over. It is raining so I can’t take it out for a proper test. But the rear brake now seems to function normally. The bike is dirty and there are cables/wires hanging out from under the seat and the seat is not installed properly. The driver tells me that the cables are a new battery tender that they installed and that they install this on all of their bikes. I tucked the wires away and plan to figure that out later. I also notice they have not cleared the PIN that they said they found on the bike and that they would reset it. I ask for the pin that is in the bike and they claim not to know it. I ignore it. The PIN feature is not a huge issue and I can deal with that later.
The delivery driver provides an invoice (an old one, not corrected to show the latest final total or actual billed work) and a form to collect my signature for the “goodwill” warranty. I say that I am refusing to sign it. The delivery driver asks me to sign a different page of the same form but I refuse to sign anything attached to anything referring to a “goodwill” warranty. The delivery driver says he needs to call the dealership and ask for next steps so I tell him I will meet him up front (we are in my garage). He walks out, I close the garage, and meet the driver up front.
The driver finishes his call and tells me that if I do not sign the “goodwill” warranty form then they cannot release the bike to me. I explain that this isn’t true and I think it would actually be illegal for them to withhold my property because I didn’t sign this form. At this point I have already paid the $411.xx that they determined the final invoice to be and the bike has been delivered to my garage. And I have been making payments on the bike throughout this process of course. The driver says he needs to call the dealership again because “now we have a problem.”
12:36 PM – I am connected with R**, the owner or manager of Moto Julia (I’m not sure). He explains nicely that Ducati needs me to sign this form or I can’t keep the bike. I explained the same thing I explained to the driver and let him know that wasn’t happening. I also went through many of the details of this experience with him to let him know how poorly this has all been handled, especially the every-changing final amount for this warranty service. He started to get a little upset about me not signing the form and kept trying to say he understood where I was coming from but I made it clear I do not think he did because at no point has there been any empathy about selling me a broken bike, quite the opposite they are trying their best to absolve themselves from responsibility and make me pay out of pocket for ridiculous charges. I explain all this and he says they need to discuss it and he will call me back in 5 minutes.
1:00 PM – About 30 minutes later R** calls me back and says that Moto Julia is a middleman in all of this and he will let Ducati deal with me directly. I reply that I have been exploring how to reach out to Ducati about this anyway and I look forward to working with them so I can let them know exactly how all of this has been going so far. I also explain that I’m not trying to put anyone in the middle of anything and that I am just trying to find the closest thing to a fair resolution even though with the amount I have paid out of pocket already that isn’t truly possible except with what I am willing to live with in the spirit of just ending this and finally beginning ownership of this bike.
The delivery driver was finally allowed by his boss to leave. Poor guy had been sitting in front of my house the whole time waiting for this to be resolved.
.June 6.
June 7
9:15 AM – I called Ducati customer service and left a voicemail explaining that we need to talk about the challenges I am having with Moto Julia.
2:00 PM – I used Ducati’s contact form and submitted the same message.
June 10 -11 Ducati has followed up with me and is compensating me for the tow charge and the labor charge I incurred. I’ve arranged to get my service from a nearby, but out of state dealer from now on.
(Time passes)
July 5, 2021 – The bike has 120 miles on it now and this morning it will not start. It fires but stalls on every attempt. From here, it takes me two months to arrange and have the bike transported to the a new authorized Ducati service center since Moto Julia cannot be trusted.
September 3, 2021 – My bike arrives at the new service center and they immediately diagnose the startup issue to a loose airbox. They indicate that whomever worked on the bike last (Moto Julia) must have installed it incorrectly. I also learned that the rear brake replacement performed by Moto Julia was actually meant to be reaction to an active recall (this is the work they made me pay for the first time). This means that Moto Julia sold me a defective bike knowing there was an active recall on the very part that was defective, the rear brake, which is a fundamental safety feature.
September 7, 2021 – The new service center calls to tell me there is more damage around the airbox and intake ports than they originally noticed. They have to open up a request with Ducati for Ducati to decide if this will qualify as a warranty repair.
September 8, 2021 – The new service center has confirmed that Ducati will warranty the damage caused by Moto Julia. I have now traded the 2021 Ducati Monster 1200S with 120 miles on it for a brand new 2021 BMW S1000RR.
The end