I'm going to try and get round to it this weekend, if the oil arrives. I'm finally going to strip down the clutch as well, while it's empty, find out why it grumbles and slips.
Bad experience with fully synth oil
Ralph
New member
Would not be surprised if you find some broken cracked or distorted friction plates.
I'm pretty much hoping I do - at least then I'd be able to easily fix it.
Should have been done under warranty, but they never looked at it despite me having returned the bike twice, for a total of 7 weeks off the road.
OK, well we all know that story . . .
I am assuming you have checked the clutch CABLE before you strip her down. Broken or frayed wires will cause the clutch to have engagement problems and is easy to check. Disconnect the cable and check it is free moving ( with the cable outer curved). Had this experience many times over the years. Only once was it the actual clutch assembly.
Having said that, considering how many people are finding loose or overtight nuts and bolts on these bikes anything is possible.
Having said that, considering how many people are finding loose or overtight nuts and bolts on these bikes anything is possible.
No, not the cable. It started when the bike had less than 3,000 miles on it.
I'm pretty sure it's a dodgy clutch plate in there. I've seen other people reporting similar problems, someone here posted a photo of a friction plate that had actually broken into pieces. I wouldn't be surprised to find one in mine.
Well, that didn't go very well.
Drained oil, and to make sure I had proper access, drained the coolant as well so I could remove the casing entirely (water pump stuff is attached to the clutch casing).
Pulled the clutch assembly, can't see anything obviously amiss, the friction plates all still have plenty of meat on them, everything is straight and there were no obvious scrapes or marks to indicate anything amiss.
So, reassembled, new oil and coolant . . . clutch now slipping like a b@5$£!. Drained oil again, pulled it apart, checked I hadn't left a hammer or something in there. All looks fine. Reassemble, oil back in . . . still slipping. Slightest throttle and it just gives up.
I think I've set the lever that the cable attaches to at the wrong angle, as the clutch feels tight as well. It must be just starting to disengage even when the lever is fully extended.
It's a pain in the butt, as I have to drain it again (just the oil, the case comes away without draining the coolant). I ran out of time so I'm on the poxy scooter this week.
Drained oil, and to make sure I had proper access, drained the coolant as well so I could remove the casing entirely (water pump stuff is attached to the clutch casing).
Pulled the clutch assembly, can't see anything obviously amiss, the friction plates all still have plenty of meat on them, everything is straight and there were no obvious scrapes or marks to indicate anything amiss.
So, reassembled, new oil and coolant . . . clutch now slipping like a b@5$£!. Drained oil again, pulled it apart, checked I hadn't left a hammer or something in there. All looks fine. Reassemble, oil back in . . . still slipping. Slightest throttle and it just gives up.
I think I've set the lever that the cable attaches to at the wrong angle, as the clutch feels tight as well. It must be just starting to disengage even when the lever is fully extended.
It's a pain in the butt, as I have to drain it again (just the oil, the case comes away without draining the coolant). I ran out of time so I'm on the poxy scooter this week.
Viking
New member
Sdrio I'm really sorry for what is happening to you. Your posts are like a real proof of Murphy's law.
Poslano sa mog LG-H500 koristeći Tapatalk
Poslano sa mog LG-H500 koristeći Tapatalk
Can't really blame the bike for this one, it's me being cack-handed.
I'm not too worried about it, it's just such a faff as each time the oil has to come out, all the bolts have to be removed / replaced, then oil back in just to test it. I'll prob try to do it one evening this week, the bike is in a warm and well lit garage so it's not that much hassle to work on.
Quick update - after messing about re-positioning the lever on the crankcase end, (3 attempts, 3 oil drains . . !), I gave up and pulled the clutch out altogether again (oil drain AND coolant drain required!).
Pulled all the friction and clutch plates out, still can't see any obvious problems, but I dunked them all in oil before reassembly, as a couple of them looked a bit dry.
This time it seems to be spot on. Very smooth, not as snatchy as it was before and no slipping at all, so far. Hopefully that's problem solved, but I still wish I could say exactly what the problem was. It might just be that the wrong oil was in it - the last change was done by Yamaha UK, the one before that by the monkeys who sold it to me. Neither time was I given any paperwork, so have no idea what they used. I put 10w40 semi synthetic in.
Pulled all the friction and clutch plates out, still can't see any obvious problems, but I dunked them all in oil before reassembly, as a couple of them looked a bit dry.
This time it seems to be spot on. Very smooth, not as snatchy as it was before and no slipping at all, so far. Hopefully that's problem solved, but I still wish I could say exactly what the problem was. It might just be that the wrong oil was in it - the last change was done by Yamaha UK, the one before that by the monkeys who sold it to me. Neither time was I given any paperwork, so have no idea what they used. I put 10w40 semi synthetic in.
Scim77
Member
Phew! What a toil you have had. I am sure that we are all relieved that, at long last, you seem to have solved the problem. I think your supposition about the oil could be correct. The JASO MA2 certification should indicate that the oil is fine for wet clutches but in my experience, not all JASO MA2 oils behave the same. The inner plates of a multi-plate clutch barely separate when you pull the clutch lever. Most of the disengagement is achieved via the outer plates. So the lack of correct oil on the inner plates could well have been your problem, causing tackiness and keeping them stuck together. Maybe we should should all consider stripping the plates out every few years and doing what you have done. Thanks for keeping us up-to-date with this issue - it has been an interesting post. If you have found an oil that works for you, STAY WITH IT!
I was thinking the same thing. Stripping and rebuilding the clutch is actually only about half an hours work if the oil is already drained out.
It wouldn't be that much extra work to do it at the same time as an oil change, and I have to say, the clutch on mine is now smooth as butter, better than it has ever been on that bike.
MentaLMinD
New member
I am from greece and i am using Castrol 15w50 (codename CASTP1GPS50) from Octomber/2015 until today and everything works great.