cuskoski
Junior Member
Okay, I'm sorry if this question has been asked a thousand times already, but I'm pretty new to motorcycles and mechanical repair in general so I have to ask this in case my bike is about to explode when I'm doing 70 on the freeway.
I've had my '07 FZ6 SHG for about two years now. Within the last year, the bike has started making an unexpected noise. It is somewhere between a knock and a pop and sounds to be coming from low on the left side. I can feel the sound through my left foot rest. It is starts when I hit the gas and gains in volume and frequency when I go uphill and also gains frequency with increasing velocity (not RPMs). Between 20 and 30 miles per hour, the frequency picks up, the volume reduces, and by the time I'm at about 35 mph, the sound and the feeling through the foot rest seem to be gone.
I've heard a few explanations on why this might be occurring. There's the mysterious Yamaha Knock that all Yamahas seem to get. When I took the bike into a mechanic, he said it was probably gas in the oil, but the tech who changed the oil didn't mention any gas smell (I tried taking a whiff of the dip stick, but wasn't sure if that was gas or oil I was smelling). I've heard mention that knocking or popping can be a function of the valves and that servicing them will fix the problem. I've also read that the chain could be the issue (I run that chain pretty dry, so I'm leaning in that direction) or possibly the arm that holds the chain in place (blanking on the name right now).
Are there any possibilities I've missed? Do the symptoms jump out as having a particular cause? Is there something else I should be looking for? Thanks for any help that can be provided!
- Chad "Exploding Transmission" Uskoski
I've had my '07 FZ6 SHG for about two years now. Within the last year, the bike has started making an unexpected noise. It is somewhere between a knock and a pop and sounds to be coming from low on the left side. I can feel the sound through my left foot rest. It is starts when I hit the gas and gains in volume and frequency when I go uphill and also gains frequency with increasing velocity (not RPMs). Between 20 and 30 miles per hour, the frequency picks up, the volume reduces, and by the time I'm at about 35 mph, the sound and the feeling through the foot rest seem to be gone.
I've heard a few explanations on why this might be occurring. There's the mysterious Yamaha Knock that all Yamahas seem to get. When I took the bike into a mechanic, he said it was probably gas in the oil, but the tech who changed the oil didn't mention any gas smell (I tried taking a whiff of the dip stick, but wasn't sure if that was gas or oil I was smelling). I've heard mention that knocking or popping can be a function of the valves and that servicing them will fix the problem. I've also read that the chain could be the issue (I run that chain pretty dry, so I'm leaning in that direction) or possibly the arm that holds the chain in place (blanking on the name right now).
Are there any possibilities I've missed? Do the symptoms jump out as having a particular cause? Is there something else I should be looking for? Thanks for any help that can be provided!
- Chad "Exploding Transmission" Uskoski