08 clutch problems

[dean33]

Anyone with an 08 have the infamous clutch problems. Mine is showing the symtoms, clunking hard into first gear, and hard downshifts.

They seem to have the issues as the 07 like mine. There are many posts on the subject. You can do it yourself. Take the right side clutch cover off(first get a new gasket, 10.00)break the plates free, clean them i used gas, soak in engine oil overnight, clean basket,i used a big screwdriver and rag dipped in said gas. then reassemble. just watch how they come out. The first out is last in, last out is first in.they are differnt then the others so just watch. i also read about it for days, had the same issues . the hole thing will take about an hour altogether, half one night ,half the next .

Dean :clapping:

 

[vabrzn]

With the engine off you might perform a simple test on the clutch by putting the transmission in 1st gear, pulling in the clutch lever and rolling the bike back and forth to determine just how much drag the clutch offers when disengaged.

This is a good test to determine if the the plates are sticking. The bike should move, cold, in first gear with a no more than a slight push. If it won't move, start the bike cold , pull in the clutch, and listen for a muted rumbling sound. If you here this sound, it is a good indication the plates are sticking. The sound will stop after a minute or so when the plates break loose.

 

[Zolton]

What does one do to "soak the plates"?thx

The 'normal' method is dis-assembly and soaking the individual friction plates in an oil-bath.

If you're uncomfortable with that: an alternative (which may work?) is -- disengage the clutch, pull the lever in to the h/bar, whenever possible. For instance, if you habitually let the engine 'warm-up' for a brief period of time? -- keep the clutch dis-engaged during that time (maybe, wrap a small bungee-cord around it?). Running the engine with the clutch dis-engaged will allow, as much as possible, oil to enter the clutch baskets and coat the plates.

Not to start an 'oil-thread' -- but, you may want to try a different engine oil (just might flow in there better?).

These are what may work -- without dis-assembly.

There's also some discussion of modified clutch baskets (new Yamaha part numbers?) -- I think I read it here....? Traditionally, manufacturers add more holes in the clutch baskets to facilitate oil introduction.

Y'r Wlcm....

I'd just like to make what may be an obvious point. Most everyone tells you to soak the clutch plates. Well... like Charismaticmegafauna mentions above, you have to soak the FRICTION plates. The friction plates are sandwiched together with the clutch plates. Once you get the assembly apart you will see that the friction plates have small friction blocks glued to their surface and the clutch plates are bare metal. The inner most and outer most friction plates are different then the rest of them. The inner one is more narrow and both are darker in colour (as if they are made of a different material or put together using a different adhesive at least) then the rest of the plates.

Just so ya know.

 

[fattymoon]

I'm taking my "08 in tomorrow for the 600 mile service. The problems I've been experiencing the last couple hundred miles is when upshifting from 3rd to 4th and 4th to 5th (and occaisionally downshifting same gears) is that it refuses to shift... it simply stays in the current gear. This happened today while I was passing a car on a two-laner, and so for me it's a safety issue too.

I'm glad I found this thread because tomorrow I'll have some basic knowledge when talking with the shop guys.

Thanks!

 

[s_boy]

my 08 had just shy of 5K miles and the tranny was difficult to shift nor would it disengage (at running speeds) immediately when clutch was pulled in.

so based on advice in this thread:

while the motor was cold i strapped a large tie wrap on my clutch and handle then cinched it down - then ran the RPMs up a smidgen till the radiator kicked in - then idled down and let it run about 4 or 5 minutes. doing what i could to "soak" the plates without having to drain the oil and break access plate gaskets.

WOW - the test ride went very well - the tranny is starting to act like it should. i can shift up/down with a lot less foot effort and more important to me - upon immediate clutch engagement!

i think i'll repeat this process a few more times.

this forum has an amazing amount of knowledge and wisdom in it. which has already saved me $$ and grief more than a few times.

thanks.

 

[user 213]

S_boy - That's great that you saw some improvement, but hey, if you feel you're going to need to do it again, or multiple times, you really should take it in and have the clutch plates soaked properly. It's not going to cost you anything, you have a new bike under warranty and it should shift right. If it doesn't, speak up. You don't have to go to the dealer you bought it from, any Yamaha dealer will do the work.

edit - I should add that when the plates need this, some of them are stuck together and no amount of idling is going to get oil to the friction areas since they are tight together, even when disengaged. A tech said they sometimes look like they've been glued together! They have to pry them apart to soak them. The 'sandwich' of clutch plates and friction discs will have several stuck together, and several not so, instead of all the plates individually free inside the basket.

 

[billfjr]

Hi,

I posted an article on sticky clutches under Technical Disscussion, Feb 8, 09 (2008 FJR clutch soaking).

Ask the dealer to soak your clutches, this will probably fix most of your problems. I have not followed up my original

post with my road test results, but soaking the clutches fixed all of my trans and clutch concerns. A DEALER IN SE MICH WOULD NOT

SOAK MY CLUTCHES UNDER WARRANTY, they called Yamaha and were told there are NO CLUTCH PROBLEMS. The dealer did

road test my FJR in the parking lot and "there is nothing wrong". That is when I decided to do my own repair. And yes I did buy

the extended warranty.

Good luck

Bill

 

[petey]

OC is absolutely correct, I had the same problem with my '08 with only 2k miles. Had the dealer soak the plates (some were stuck together) and the bike shifts like it should....smooooth. :yahoo:

 

[s_boy]

S_boy - That's great that you saw some improvement, but hey, if you feel you're going to need to do it again, or multiple times, you really should take it in and have the clutch plates soaked properly. It's not going to cost you anything, you have a new bike under warranty and it should shift right. If it doesn't, speak up. You don't have to go to the dealer you bought it from, any Yamaha dealer will do the work.
edit - I should add that when the plates need this, some of them are stuck together and no amount of idling is going to get oil to the friction areas since they are tight together, even when disengaged. A tech said they sometimes look like they've been glued together! They have to pry them apart to soak them. The 'sandwich' of clutch plates and friction discs will have several stuck together, and several not so, instead of all the plates individually free inside the basket.

roger that - i won't fool with it much more. i did one more idle run-in today in the garage - but it has rained all weekend here so i can't assess the shifting until this week.

in the mean time i'll contact my dealer to see if they are aware of the issue and if "yes" - would they be willing to do the job (if needed).

thanks all/ al

 

[SockMonkey]

My was clunky sometimes until after about 6-8k miles. Smooth as silk now.

+1

 

[n1acguy]

Anyone with an 08 have the infamous clutch problems. Mine is showing the symtoms, clunking hard into first gear, and hard downshifts.

I have the hard shifting and the dragging clutch. Glad I found this thread. I guess I'll find out how good my dealer is when I go to have the ignition switch recall done and mention the clutch problem.

 

[FJRocketMan]

I have an 07 and started off with the same issue. I was worried as hell that I would have to deal with that hard upshift and not being able to downshift but it all went away after about 5k miles. Give it time and she will loosen up.

 

[NMRoadRunner]

The problem was first noticed on the 07's. Clutch plates sticking together. Try when you down shift to blip the throttle and the plates will free up. To fix it with out disassembly" burn the assembly grease off the plates" Be aggressive with the throttle and slip the clutch a little, it will clear up pretty quickly. Then change the oil, your done! "Ride it hard it, can take it" :yahoo:

 

[s_boy]

S_boy - That's great that you saw some improvement, but hey, if you feel you're going to need to do it again, or multiple times, you really should take it in and have the clutch plates soaked properly. It's not going to cost you anything, you have a new bike under warranty and it should shift right. If it doesn't, speak up. You don't have to go to the dealer you bought it from, any Yamaha dealer will do the work.
edit - I should add that when the plates need this, some of them are stuck together and no amount of idling is going to get oil to the friction areas since they are tight together, even when disengaged. A tech said they sometimes look like they've been glued together! They have to pry them apart to soak them. The 'sandwich' of clutch plates and friction discs will have several stuck together, and several not so, instead of all the plates individually free inside the basket.

roger that - i won't fool with it much more. i did one more idle run-in today in the garage - but it has rained all weekend here so i can't assess the shifting until this week.

in the mean time i'll contact my dealer to see if they are aware of the issue and if "yes" - would they be willing to do the job (if needed).

thanks all/ al

still not satisfied it is shifting as smoothy as this high tech machine should - so i'm soaking mine tonight - doing it myself. here is a good set of instructions with pictures