Ducati Monster 900 M900 (1993-2000, Carburettor) Maintenance Schedule

This is the maintenance schedule and service intervals for the original Ducati Monster 900, a.k.a. M900, made between 1993 and mid 2000.

Here are all our Ducati Monster maintenance schedules:

The Ducati Monster 900 was the original of a series that continued for decades. There were “naked” bikes before it and after it, but so much about the M900 was unique — it was a naked roadster but with its sporty riding position it wasn’t a relaxed cruiser like the UJMs, it had a beautiful exposed trellis frame, and it had a sporty V-twin, rather than an inline four (or triple) which were more common at the time in upright bikes.

There were other similar bikes, but nothing captures the zeitgeist of 1990s naked bikes like the Monster 900.

The Ducati monster 900 is based around a 904cc air/oil-cooled 90-degree L-twin that it was also used in the Supersport 900 of the time. It has a desmodromic valvetrain, with belt-driven cams and two valves per cylinder. In base trim it made around 55 kW (74 CV/73 bhp) per the workshop manual, but different sources cite slightly different figures.

The Monster 900 was sold along a smaller Monster 750 which shares a very similar maintenance schedule.

In 2000 Ducati added fuel injection to the Ducati Monster 900 i.e. and all subsequent Monsters after that point.

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What you need to service the Ducati Monster 900

The service manual for the Monster 900 recommends “AGIP” brand fluids. This is unnecessarily specific, hard to get, and many fluids would suit.

Ducati Monster 900 Maintenance Schedule

General advice on maintaining the Ducati Monster 2-valve motorcycles

The Ducati Monster is now an icon, and a loyal following has built around it.

Because of this, legions of fans have learned a lot about what’s really necessary in maintaining the Ducati Monster.

Some general advice for maintaining the 2-valve motorcycles includes:

• Get in the habit of checking for loose bolts, hanging wires, and leaks. Do this at a minimum of every 1000 km / 600 mi check-up, but maybe even every ride. The Ducati tends to shake things loose.
• Many Ducati owners change the oil more often — twice as often.
• The valve service interval seems intense, but it’s necessary. The air-cooled engine tends to need at least one shim adjusting every service.
• Ducati recommends changing the belts every two years. Belt technology has improved since the Monster 900

Regular maintenance on the Ducati Monster 900

Every 1000 km or 620 miles OR 6 months, do the following maintenance.

Maintenance schedule for the Monster 900

Below is the maintenance schedule for the Monster 900, adapted from the service manual.

Notes on the maintenance schedule

• The break-in service is omitted from the original manual obviously.
• Standard service intervals are either every 6000 mi / 10000 km or 12 months. (The manual suggests shorter 7500 km service intervals for the smaller Monster 600 motorcycle, presumably assuming shorter distances travelled for the same engine hours.)
• Follow the earlier of the distance- or time-based service intervals, other than those marked (1).

Tyre sizes and pressures for the Ducati Monster 900

The original M900 shipped with Michelin sport tyres, tubeless variety. You can of course fit whatever you like, depending on the intended purpose.

About the Ducati Monster 900

The Ducati Monster 900 is now steeped in history — it is credited with reviving the Ducati consumer brand as well as creating the market for naked bikes in the 1990s, something which continues today.

Not much more needs to be said about the legacy of the Ducati Monster 900. But let’s talk about maintenance.

In the early manuals, Ducati called for maintenance schedules of as little as 7500 km for valve checks. Thankfully they spaced this out to 10000 km! Still, it’s one of the more involved parts of owning an air-cooled desmo Ducati.

Because the valves are desmodromically actuated, there are two shims to check and maybe adjust for each valve — the opener and the closer. There are two valves per cylinder, and two cylinders, which means eight adjustments to potentially make.

And the Ducati has a reputation for needing at least one shim adjusting every check. That’s why valve services can get expensive, costing around 4-6 hours of workshop time in total (along with a general service).

Another joy of maintaining a Ducati motorcycle with belt-driven cams is changing the timing belts. You have to change them every two years per the schedule. However, many owners know that this was in the day of less good belt materials, and that modern timing belts only need be replaced every five years (e.g. on the 2022+ Ducati Monster 937), so that’s what they opt to do.

Brakes on the Monster 900 are typical mid-range of the time — Brembo 2-piston axial-mounted brakes.

The front suspension is Showa, a 41mm inverted fork. Ducati recommends periodically replacing the fork oil (as it does on all its motorcycles). The rear shock is made by a company called Boge. It is adjustable for preload.

Maintaining the Monster 900 isn’t terribly difficult once you get past checking and adjusting the valves. And just in case you thought you could escape it — even the much more modern Ducati Scrambler 1100 needs valve adjustments on its air/oil-cooled engine, and they’re nearly as frequent.

Manual for the Monster 900

Unfortunately the manual for the Monster 900 isn’t available online any more.

The workshop manual for the Ducati Monster 600, 750, and 900 contains a maintenance schedule that’s applicable to all three. A screenshot is below. (It’s in Italian.)

But there’s some historical information about the Ducati Monster 900 here.