still have downshift issues, mostly after steady ride

[kennedyted]

ok i prev posted about issues downshifting as sometimes it just feels like there no gear and im hitting something when i downshift...... took a 250 mile ride today and noticed it does it after cruising and then coming to an exit or toll booth, i can downshift from 5-4-maybe3 then 2 and 1 wont be there. the first time i started off in 3rd working the clutch/gas the 2nd time i shut it off compl turned key off rocked bike then shifted down rocked bike then shifted down till in 1st, it doesnt seem to do it just normal light to light riding, i oiled the pivots on the outside of the shift lever last week and thats not the issue, and on the outside clearances are normal, as its only sporadically that it does it, but def more on longer steady highway cruising. 2007 fz6

 

[Norbert]

chain tension ok?

 

[kennedyted]

theres no loose slack or anything, i mean the gears and everything are tight acceleration is nice its not a gear issue itself, are there springs on the inside that control the shift lever ?

 

[Norbert]

i think this is normal. when i had a fz6 it would do this. you have to let out the clutch lever a bit and it will find 1st. i think switching to a good synth oil helps.

get the service manual and make sure the chain tension is ok. there should be some slack. but yeah it's probably unrelated.

there's no spring in the lever. there's just some ball joints.
Ronayers.com Microfiche Yamaha>Motorcycle>2008>FZ6>SHIFT SHAFT

clutch freeplay ok?

it's just the nature of the bike. get a shaft driven bike next time.

 

[kennedyted]

yeah no ive tried releasing the clutch a little to find the gear, thats what im able to do sometimes when it does it in the city, but today on highway 2 and 1 were nowhere whether i released clutch a little to coax it in whether i held it in etc, i changed oil/filter 2 weeks ago but i didnt use synthetic, bike has 7k miles, i mean had i not been able to coax it from dead stop in 3rd id be on the thruway still.....

i understand a little bit of an issue is expected but this was a good 5 minutes on the side of the hiway trying to get at least 2nd

 

[Norbert]

so you shift down down down and then it's stuck? you can't shift at all?
that's potentially dangerous...

are you sure the clutch freeplay is ok?
check the service manual for specs. this will allow the clutch to fully release from the transmission.

you said you oiled the linkages....are they clean and well lubed? not gummed up?

do you have the stock levers? if not stock, then the levers may be too close to the grip.

if this happened all the time i'd say you should drain your oil and take your clutch cover off. look around for a broken spring or loose bolt.
has the bike been in a crash?

 

[kennedyted]

not that i know of crash wise, but then again i bought in end of 09 from florida 2 yrs old, it all looks stock linkage wise . i know there no spring on it, but best way i can explain is i can downshift 5-3 no problem and then i could mash lever down as far as it would go and nothing i could upshift to 4th and 5th and then back down and still the same, i dont understand it as its not a constant issue normal riding but everytime i came to stop on highway today it did it, exits toll booths etc, alas i have done no maint since i bought the bike untill recently, but if that was the issue then wouldnt it be happening all the time ?

 

[Norbert]

yes, if it happened all the time then there's something broken in your clutch assembly.

 

[kennedyted]

im getting a manual this week, but could i take the clutch side cover off or will all the oil spill out ?id like to see how it works with the case off

 

[Dave.TX]

I remember this happening to my bike one day. It didn't want to shift down below 4th. I stopped the bike and checked the linkage. Couldn't figure out what the problem was. After a short cool down it started to shift correctly. It only occurred the one time.

 

[oaks]

I've only experienced balkiness downshifting into 1st. It would manifest itself as refusing to shift into 1st from neutral or feeling like I got it in 1st but the gear wasn't really engaged. This is not so uncommon on the FZ6 as the others have said. Releasing, then reengaging, the clutch sorts it out.

After a couple oil changes, clutch cable slack and drive chain adjustment, and with more experience with the FZ6, the problem has faded. Only time I see it now is when trying to shift from neutral to 1st when the bike is at a stand still. A flick of the clutch fixes that.

I do recall an episode of sloppy shifting at the end of a ride on a hot day, when it felt like the clutch had too much slack. That had me adjust the cable a bit. I also suspect I was just getting tired.

Only thing I can think to add here is to consider the speed at which you are downshifting. Trying to put it into 1st at too high of a speed (as when approaching a red light) seemed to trigger it for me, so I now wait until nearly stopped to drop it into 1st.

 

[kennedyted]

i use to not downshift and just do it at the light or whatever , ive started downshifting sometimes now, but not at stupid rpms or anything, it does seem to do it more often after the bike has been ridden a long time and inside components have gotten hot, ive experienced the normal issue of having to play with clutch to get into first at a light etc since ive had the bike in 09, it seems different than that and usually when the motor is warm like u said a cooldown helps, gonna try a chain/clutch adjustment

 

[SovietRobot]

Are you fully releasing the clutch and rev matching with EVERY gear? If not you should be.

If you do take the clutch cover off, yes oil will spill out unless you lay the bike on its side, and you'll have to replace the metal gasket.

 

[letsgoride]

The first day I tried my new fz6,the same thing happened to me .If you are downshifting and it does not want to get into the lower gear,just let out the clutch very slowly,at the point of friction just before selecting the lower gear.Try it it really works.

 

[kennedyted]

guys i clearly stated ive done the clutch trick numerous times, i made a mistake however asking about the clutch cover, clutch isnt my issue, what i meant was the side tranny cover where the shift lever goes into the motor, seems to be a much more constant issue , its not the lever not being adjusted or not having enough room, not the clutch/clutch cable ive adjusted them snuggly, its inside the tranny itself, even unhooked the lever and used my hand to shift and had same issues, does the transmission fluid need to be changed at any certain interval? maybe this could be the issue

 

[SovietRobot]

guys i clearly stated ive done the clutch trick numerous times, i made a mistake however asking about the clutch cover, clutch isnt my issue, what i meant was the side tranny cover where the shift lever goes into the motor, seems to be a much more constant issue , its not the lever not being adjusted or not having enough room, not the clutch/clutch cable ive adjusted them snuggly, its inside the tranny itself, even unhooked the lever and used my hand to shift and had same issues, does the transmission fluid need to be changed at any certain interval? maybe this could be the issue

The crankcase, transmission and clutch all use the same engine oil.
Old or improper oil will affect transmission and clutch performance.

Still it kinda sounds more like shifter forks inside the transmission. How many miles?

 

[iSteve]

If the shifter arm has ever been removed from the shifter shaft it may not have been placed correctly back on. Even just a spline off could contribute to this problem. Also you may need to take the shifter mechanism cover off and make sure nothing is bent, broken or worn.

 

[kennedyted]

its got 7k miles on it 07, its new oil but its not synthetic was on sale i didnt know it was that serious with the oil controlling clutch and tranny, if i take the side cover off does oil spill out, should i drain it of oil beforehand, or perhaps ill read the oil threads and figure which synthetic ill use

 

[Randomchaos]

Did you buy motorcycle grade oil or just cheap regular motor oil?

Some tips for ya.

When coming to a stop click down each gear slowly, before you come to a complete stop. Try to rev match each gear and let the clutch out fully, use the engine for a little extra braking, while still applying pressure to the brakes to light up the brake light.

I have never once experienced a downshifting issue on an FZ6, except for when I tried going from 2nd to 1st at around 40 mph, didn't realize I was in 2nd . Any bike will not like to shift down through more than a few gears once at a complete stop.

Have you taken an MSF style training course?

 

[kennedyted]

ive taken no courses, and not against it, i took shifter lever cover off all looks nice clean oiled etc of course all u see if the gear spindle that shifts and a spring/lever, gonna take the top off after gas tank see if anything is bent, i used basic motorcycle 10w40 i wanna say, the oil did smell gasy like my snowmobile, smelled it when i took the cover off as well, is this normal?