Been reading a ton of threads regarding the poor reliability of the Agusta f4 sidestand. I don't want to be 1 of those owners walking out and seeing their bike on its side. Any comments?

-- Larry Nipon (vze277jp@verizon.net), May 27, 2002

Answers

My bike has lived its entire life (2+ yrs) on its sidestand. The stupid paddock stand is hell to put on, need to sand down the O.D. a bit I guess. The sidestand has help up and I have no worries of it doing otherwise.

-- mod (mvf4s@excite.com), May 28, 2002.

My sidestand on the 2000 model MV literally broken in half when I parked on a 30 degree incline.

The first thing I noticed was the sidestand extending farther forward then normal. I quickly straighten up the bike and moved to level group. About a second or two after I dismounted, it snapped in half and the bike hit the ground.

My suggestions:

1) have your side stand checked regularly; 2) never, ever park on an incline; and 3) never sit on your bike while it's resting on the sidestand.

Yes, I know, these are stupid precautions to take since sidestands should be able to handle the weight but what can we do? :(

-- Allan Gibbs (Agibbs996@aol.com), May 27, 2002.

Allan freaks me out with this talk. I'm so paranoid about my stand breaking now, but it's just the same as it was when it was stock. I also read a few other places that said the sidestand isn't up to the task. Maybe they secretly made them thicker for 2001 on?

When I know my bike is going to be sitting on the stand for a few days, I put it on that stupid paddock stand. (Pit Bull stand on the way.)

-- Andy Ruhl (quadreverb@yahoo.com), May 27, 2002.

Allen also freaks me out with the stand! Has anyone replaced their stand with a more study one?

-- (Santiago@xilinx.com), May 28, 2002.

Has MV fixed the stand issue on the newer models? I have't seen a consistency with respect to a certain year having the problem.

-- Larry Nipon (vze277jp@verizon.net), May 28, 2002.

Okay, I'm grasping at straws here but there MAY be a very SLIGHT chance Cagiva has improved the strength of the side stand when they switched from the retractible version to the current non-retractable one.

If Cagiva improved the stand, I don't think they would makes an announcement about it, since that would confirm there is a problem.

BTW, my 2002's stand doesn't look are feel any different from the 2000 model.

-- Allan Gibbs (Phoenix, Arizona) (Agibbs996@aol.com), May 28, 2002.

I agree with the general suggestion to check regularly on the side stand. I changed my Duc 916 to the MV and I can tell you that the Duc was even critical on that point. My first km was on a test bike of my dealer. the sidestand came LOOSE while riding it. My dealer put new screws in. The side stand is not at all made to keep the motor AND the driver or PASSENGER. Check the screws and the system tegularly but do not overtorque !

As to the big stand for the back wheel. This is a very cheap and poor design. I modified mine to the system of the one I had for the Duc, this is, I replaced the spindle with adapted clearence turning on 2 bearings inside the housing. I did this because (now already 30 000 km on the bike) lubrication of the chain and sprockets is critical on the MV. I lubricate the chain every 500 km/week when dry weather and each time after a rainy period.

-- patrick maes (patrick maes@electrabel.com), May 29, 2002.

Hello All My theory on these side stand failures is some of the sales agents who work in some of the motorcycle shops are doing side stand pivots in order to gain more room to stack more bikes in a show room. I have witnessed a sales agent pulling the bike over, placing the entire weight of the motorcycle on the side stand to pivot it around and squeeze them in a little tighter. I made a comment to him that I thought it was a bit hard on side stands, his comment was that he had only had one fail, an old Ducati and that it took two weeks to get the replacement!!!!! I agree that one should never sit on one while on the side stand, and of course avoid excessive lean angles while parked. Check your side stand with a 10X magnifying glass for cracks in and also around the mount area. If any cracks are found, notify your dealer ASAP. If no cracks are found, I wouldn't worry about it. Cheers, John

-- John Markis (jrmarkis@alaska.net), June 01, 2002.