Possible Gearbox Issues

Sorry to post another new thread but I figured it was best to separate my threads into separate topics instead of combining a bunch of disperate questions in a single monster thread....

In regards to my new to me 2003 VFR800, 8000 miles, I am having a couple issues with the gearbox and wanted to get you guys input on it.

1) When in neutral, there is a slight sound, kind of like a soft clicking. its not very loud, I can only hear it when my shield is open, but it does NOT make this sound when the clutch lever is pulled, only when the bike is in neutral. It doesnt sound concerning but I want to make sure this is normal.

2) I am having some issues with 2nd gear, sometimes when i go into 2nd gear it feels like i am hitting in to something spinning. I can actually hear and feel it through the shifter. Its a concerning sound as I am worried its causing damage when this happens. It doesnt always happen, probably happens about 10% of the time. Usually it still goes in to 2nd gear but sometimes it kicks it out enough that i have to try again. How concerned should I be? Does this indicate an issue?

I have no idea how old the oil in the bike is or what kind they used last. I plan on changing it asap. I bought some really fancy Motul V300 Ester synthetic 10w-40 oil to put in there. The guy at the dealer said it was basically the best synthetic oil you can buy. (at $18 a liter, it damn better be! lol) Maybe this will help?

3) The clutch engages/disengages like 1/2 inch in, so basically its kind of tricky to get going in 1st as i have basically no friction zone (or very little). From what i have read in the manual it sounds like this is not adjustable, so i guess i just need to live with it? I am more used to the friction zone being a little wider and in the middle of the clutch pull on my vstrom (of course its a much different bike with a cable clutch, so i expect it to be quite different)

Thanks again guys!

PS. LOVING this bike. My poor vstrom has been sitting idle since I bought this VFR. for a 2003 bike its crazy how many looks and questions it gets! people pull up on the road and are like "that thing is awesome? what the hell is it?!??!" when they ask what size motor and i say 800 v4 VTEC their jaw drops LOL. The power of this bike is AWESOME and the VTEC makes the power band oh so fun. so glad i joined the VFR800 family!

 

Castrol rt 10-50 was $7 qt just as good as Mugal. You just wasted $11qt.:laugh::whip:

 

Where is the clutch engagement point? Near the bar or near the end of the clutch lever movement? I'd change the oil before I worried too much about hard shifting, although I'd watch it pretty closely after the oil change. If it still clunks and misses 2nd gear after the oil change you may have a more serious problem caused by abuse by the PO. Was the bike hot-rodded by the PO?

 

The clutch engagement point is at the very very end of lever movement. (as in no where near the bar)

I am going to change the oil asap.

As far as i know the bike was babied and sunday driven by the previous owner. he did 7500 miles in 11 years, did zero mods to the bike, no monster stickers etc. all he did was add a charge tender lead (probably because the bike sat so much lol)

What kind of serious problem would we be talking about? I love this bike enough I would be willing to spend some cash to fix it if its not going to break the bank.

 

Possible need to address the hydraulics in the clutch. The master cylinder has a check valve that get loaded up with gunk. You can see this stuff in the bottom of the reservoir. You may need to replace this with a rebuild kit. (the aftermarket kits are fewer pesos than the OEM) Clean the resevior and bleed and replace the hydraulic fluid.

First thing to do is adjust your clutch at the clutch lever.

Lots of info on oil here.. For the most part what is popular is Shell Rotella. By the gallon at Walmart.

Pay little attention to SOW. A known defective.

 

Welcome!

Sounds like you may have the same gearbox issue I have had for the past 10,000 miles~

Mine is better with fresh oil but still there. Does it sometimes not go into 2nd like your in a false neutral? I found that pullin up firmly on the 1st to 2nd shift works every time (moving the gear lever down a notch helped, too). I'm pretty sure the dogs were abused in a previous life on mine, but I just change the oil regularly & ride it~

Enjoy & ATGATT!

 

Hi, no I dont get a false neutral, its more like something spinning smashes into something solid. i can totally feel this in the pedal, its odd. as it spins i feel where it hits in 1 point, its like wwwww whack wwww whack wwww whack and then either it crunches into 2nd or in worst cases it flies out of 2nd back into neutral and i have to kick it up again. its not a major problem at this point but i am concerned i am doing damage. i dont know much about bike transmissions at all but could it be something like "synchros" in a manual car?

 

The more serious stuff could be bent shifter forks, rounded off shifting dogs, something along those lines. But if the PO didn't hotrod the heck out of it, I don't think I'd worry about those things. Those are usually caused by poor shifting technique when trying to change gears rapidly, and just jamming the gears.

Like BB said, change the fluid, check for gunk, and do a good bleed job. Along with an oil change I'm pretty sure you'll be good to go. Let us know how it comes out.

 

SOW?

do you think the hydraulic fluid being replaced would help my weird 2nd problem or my lack of friction zone?

I will look into what it takes to do the new hydraulic fluid and rebuild kit, see if i can do it myself, i guess the hardest part would be getting all the air out of the system.

funny you mention rotella, that is also popular with the vstrom guys but whenever i tell anyone this at my local dealer, they are always like "Thats a frigan diesel engine oil! you nuts!" then again the dealer doesnt sell it i have looked at rotella, it says its JASO MA rated.....

 

+1 on the oil change first, although what SOW says has some merit, my Duc did not like other oils as much as it likes Motul, but my VFRs are a little less picky. I will say that when I got my '01 last year the PO had actually put too much oil in the motor and it was shifting very poorly and I had trouble getting it in neutral once I flushed/filled the motor with new oil (at the proper level) all was good. Speaking of flush/filling you may want to do the same with the clutch and brake lines, especially if the bike mostly sat or if the color of the fluid looks dark. Note with linked brakes this is not as simple as most other bikes but not something you cannot do yourself, if you have a decent mechanical aptitude.

As far as the clunky shifting, this can be due to a bent shift fork and would be best to have it replaced ASAP, but see what happens after the oil change. You'd be surprised as to what a difference it can make. As I mentioned about my Duc, I went back to the Motul a few weeks back and what a huge difference it made, it shifts just fine now. Viscosity also plays a role so be cognizant of that too. Not to make this an oil thread but I went with Shell Rotella T6 in my VFRs, as it's relatively inexpensive and readily available at most auto parts stores and even Walmart, and they both seem to be shifting very smoothly now. YMMV

Cheers

 

Being that you're new here...SOW = Sonofwolf. That's how we refer to him now, typing out his name in addition to reading his post became too painful

 

FYI: SOW = sonofwolf

.....a troll/dweeb/dipsh*t (take your pick) here on the forum....

 

Can we quantify some here in nannos?

 

Kind of obvious but has the shift lever been cinched up on the spline?

The OP makes a great observation about dealers talking smack about something they do not stock or sell.

 

Lets hope its not a bent shift fork :/
If it's a bent shift fork, would it affect all gears or could it just affect 2nd? Actually now that i think of it, I think it does it once in a blue moon on 5th or 6th gear too.

 

If that rez on the clutch side looks nasty, sop up (not to be confused with sow.) (but sow, may sop up stuff at the she-male bars) that nasty old DOT4 fluid with a paper towel. Be careful not to get that mug on your paint, have a spray bottle of h20 around to help. Re-fill rez and then, with the lever in, crack that bleeder nipple down on your slave. Your gona have a hose attatched to your bleeder nipple, (car guys let it puke out all over.) Do this drill till you get clear fluid going through there. I have an air assisted bleeder, which speeds chit up especially on the clutches and linked/ABS bikes.

Try putting some pressure on your shift lever just prior to pulling in the clutch. I say, "loading" the shift lever. It may help, may not. I can feel/hear the difference when I do a fresh oil change on my bikes, they are slicker but not by much. I have a factory pro shift kit in my 91, its slick as chit.

Passed a million dollar McLaren today at 145mph, just because I could ound:

 

This reminds me! I am not sure about these linked brakes, I like to trail brake a lot with my rear brake, the linked brake removes a level of control it seems. I read it had it, then forgot, then tried to trail brake in a curve and was like WTF, this is way too much braking power for rear brakes, then I rememebred about the linked brakes! lol

I am curious how all you guys feel about this....

PS. i think the fluids looked not very dark at all IIRC, I have to double check though.

 

when you say cinched up on the spline, are you talking about that round adjuster disc that is on it?

 

ahhh its that easy? much easier than i expected. i also didnt realize the clutch fluid is just dot4, but i guess that makes total sense. I will check the fluids and see what they look like. Opening the res up contaminates the fluid or something like that though right? (or am i confusing old bottles of DOT4, i think they say not to store it once opened iirc)

 

I call it "car think for bikes" I don't care for linked brakes, but other fellows on here will tell you that they are the greatest invention since sliced bread. MotoGuzzi had them years and years ago. I was riding one with linked brakes once and was doing heavy braking (I use front brake only-unless I am in petrol station or carrying a pillion) well the farking rear tyre chirpped, I said, "thats funny, never even touched the rear pedal."

IMHO, motorcycle brakes should be operated indepently, I knew a few BMW riders that removed the ABS from their K bikes in the past. I am sure you coud do it - de-link em, would be expensive. Cheers and happy and safe riding.