No More Clunky Gear Box!

[demilus]

Today I changed my oil and oil filter. I changed the oil to 10w40 yamalube and the filter to the oem yamaha filter. My gearbox now shifts smoother, especially from first to second, my bike revs smoother, and my clutch is easier to feel out. I had resigned myself to the clunky gearbox, this is great!

My bike only has 6500 miles btw.

 

[pooty]

what did you use before?

 

[demilus]

I believe (key word believe) that 10w30 was used before. This is my first oil change since I bought the bike off someone else about 180 miles ago. Correct me if I'm wrong, but 10w40 is a thicker oil than 10w30 and could account for less clunking.

 

[BranNwebster]

Oil seemed to make a difference for me as well. I think throttle finesse has made the most difference in transmission clunk.

 

[mellofelow]

I think throttle finesse has made the most difference in transmission clunk.

Umm... well, I have none... mad finesse skilz that is.

I clunk therefore I am.:surrender:

 

[GConn]

Oil seemed to make a difference for me as well. I think throttle finesse has made the most difference in transmission clunk.

I find that it's all about timing too, but I still have a loud clunk when I downshift from 3rd to 2nd, no matter what I do. I rev the engine or I let it idle, no difference...CLUNK. And changing the oil didn't help that much....

 

[edski]

Today I changed my oil and oil filter. I changed the oil to 10w40 yamalube and the filter to the oem yamaha filter. My gearbox now shifts smoother, especially from first to second, my bike revs smoother, and my clutch is easier to feel out. I had resigned myself to the clunky gearbox, this is great!

My bike only has 6500 miles btw.

When I rode my 2008 Cobalt Blue FZ6 off the showroom floor in June, it had zero miles and came with a crankcase full of Yamalube 10w40. And wow, did those gears feel clunky, the clutch was tricky and handling the throttle on-off with the fuel injection was a new experience to me.

At 600 miles, the dealer changed the oil and filter, once again putting in the Yamalube for the continuation of the break-in period.

The place is run by two brothers (for thirty years or so) who unquestionably love motorcycles. The one guy's son insisted I return with my ride at about 1500 miles to change out the oil and filter again, but this time to replace the Yamalube dino oil with Motul 5100 semi-synthetic ester blend motorcycle oil.

As I rode the FZ6 up to that mile mark, the gearbox seemed to get a little better, but still felt clunky at times, especially first to second gear. I was getting used to the clutch and the necessarily smoooth throttle input required by the fuel injection.

At almost 1600 miles, I took it in for the swap to the Motul semi-synthetic oil. The difference was discernible the instant I pulled out of the dealer's driveway. The clutch felt a LOT better. The first to second shift became a clack instead of a clunk, while the rest of the gearing was butter smooth.

I would NOT have believed that just changing the type of oil used would make such a difference. Did I mention that the engine seems to rev better also?

I highly recommend switching to Motul 5100 ester based semi-synthetic motorcycle oil. It is formulated specifically for bike engines like ours. I bought a case of it, and now are doing my own changes using Purolator PureOne PL14610 Oil filters (about $6 at NJ Pep Boys).

The clutch, gearbox and engine are a lot smoother with the Motul, and I believe their operating life will be greatly increased with continued use of Motul 5100 and regular oil/filter changes.

If you do switch to the Motul from natural dino oil, be aware that the new semi-synth oil will clean out and pick up all kinds of grunge from inside your motor, so you should plan on replacing the first batch of Motul with a second batch in about 1500 miles or so, and making sure you change the filter too. Then change regularly every 4000 miles or so.

I like the Purolator PureOne PL14610 oil filter way better than the stock Yamaha one that seems to be made like a Fram. The PL14612 will fit also, but the PL14610 has a slightly larger internal volume, which allows for all of three quarts (as opposed to the '2.96 US quarts' with stock oil filter and oil change)

And by the way, check your chain and sprocket. I clean mine with Simple Green, old toothbrush and a rag - and hose it off. Take quick ride to warm up the chain, and then spray it thoroughly with DuPont Teflon Multi-Use Dry Wax Lubricant (available at Lowe's, for one).

No fling, no mess, and the chain actually looks clean and dry (but it's not 'dry'). Repeat every 500 miles. A clean and lubricated drive chain greatly adds to the smoothness.

Good luck with your machine!

 

[Scorphonic]

I have always used 10W40 oil but gear noise has always been present. The only way i can reduce this is to hold in the clutch before you start the engine and once started put it into gear...it goes into gear without a hint of a noise..and sure it lessens the pressure on the engine when you crank it.

Oil changes haven't helped me in any way.

 

[edski]

I find that it's all about timing too, but I still have a loud clunk when I downshift from 3rd to 2nd, no matter what I do. I rev the engine or I let it idle, no difference...CLUNK. And changing the oil didn't help that much....

I have noticed that also. I have tried downshifting with rev matching to a stop sign/red light, and also, just pulling the clutch, holding it in and downshifting to neutral while braking to a stop.

I think the third to second clunk is related to simple rolling ground speed of the FZ6.

When I hold in the clutch, braking while downshifting, 6->5->4->3 snicks into place, but I must be rolling under 20 mph for the 3->2 to go smoothly, even though the clutch has been disengaged the whole time. At rolling speeds faster than 20 mph the 3->2 downshift makes a distinct clunk.

The manual does indicate in the shifting charts - all downshifts at 14 mph (?) so they must know something...

Adapting to this: when slowing down and stopping, I now pretty much clutch/rev/downshift 6->5->4, then pull the clutch and hold while clicking down through the lower gears and using brakes only to stop.

 

[vikeme]

43k. on my 06 and several oil changes and it's still rough. Nature of the beast i guess.

Sam

 

[Scott64a]

+1 to downshifting at tolerable speeds for your gears. Once I stopped trying to force it to get into 1 at above 17mph, it stopped clunking. I bet downshifting at too high a rolling speed beats on all sorts of stuff! Expensive stuff!!!

As for oil, I noticed a big difference from regular 10-40 to Rotella-T 5W40.
Synthetic oil is great so long as it is free of "extras" that cause wet clutches to slip.

 

[Botch]

I could've sworn that the FZ originally came with Yamalube 20w40, I'll check tomorrow.
My '07 smoothed out a bit when I went to 10w40; I just turned over 12,000 and will be changing again to Mobil 1 10w40 (synthetic) tomorrow, we'll see.

 

[616ah]

And by the way, check your chain and sprocket. I clean mine with Simple Green, old toothbrush and a rag - and hose it off. Take quick ride to warm up the chain, and then spray it thoroughly with DuPont Teflon Multi-Use Dry Wax Lubricant (available at Lowe's, for one).

No fling, no mess, and the chain actually looks clean and dry (but it's not 'dry'). Repeat every 500 miles. A clean and lubricated drive chain greatly adds to the smoothness.

Good luck with your machine!

I didn't notice much difference with the yamalube 10w40, however I am glad that I'm not the only one that thinks a cared for chain makes the bike shift waaaay better.

I always clean the chain with kerosene and a brush.... :rtfm: :spank: kerosene works great and won't cause rust. Blow dry LIGHTLY with compressed air and wipe with a rag then lube.

After cleaning the chain the gear box is really slick IMO. When it starts getting clunky - time to clean the chain again. Try it! :thumbup:

 

[Apomyzitis]

Guys.. just a quick clarification for the Greeks amongst us (it's all English to me!) - by clunking you mean that painful feeling when you feel under your left foot the sprockets of the transmission missing rounds trying to fit into each other..?

Or just a loud noise (but sprockets fitting first time)?

I get both of the above two noises (about 30%-70% respectively) between 1st and 2nd gear but the first is the worrying one, and some times I get it from neutral to 1st.

Reading the bike magazine reviews I expected this to happen although I never got used to it so I've taken it to a couple of garages (are these guys making fun of us or what?) and both told me it’s normal. However, the first over-tightened my chain which made it worse and the second told me that the previous guy had over-tightened it and gave it some slack which improved the noise but not for long..

I then discovered ‘chain-maintenance’ i.e. lubing it and adjusting the tension which made a heck of a difference mainly because I did it myself i.e. properly (measuring slack with a ruler and everything). This improved things slightly but can’t say I’m 100% happy..

I guess Yamaha let us down on this one but I’m willing to try oil suggestions discussed here, the question tho still stays: what do you mean by ‘clunk’?

I hope we all talk about the same thing and I haven't a ruined gearbox already (only 1800 miles on it!)

Thanks

 

[opds9091]

i get the noise from a start from 1-2 and no problems going up, but coming down from 6-2 no problem but 2-1 clunk. I have no clue If i baby it and short shift OK, but if i punch it from 1-2 i have to let off the throttle a little to avoid the clunk. I just can't figure it out.

 

[616ah]

IMO, you are always going to get some sort of a noise when shifting, that is just the nature of the design. When you think of what you are mechanically doing - it should not be a suprise. Bikes are fairly mechanically crude/simple. If you shift properly (clutch, RPM shift points, etc) and maintain your bike it should be minimized to an acceptable level. As you say, I also find chain maint. is key. :thumbup:

 

[Oscar54]

I guess Yamaha let us down on this one but I’m willing to try oil suggestions discussed here, the question tho still stays: what do you mean by ‘clunk’?

I hope we all talk about the same thing and I haven't a ruined gearbox already (only 1800 miles on it!)

Thanks

I'm had my FZ6 for around 7 months now and these are my observations.

Going from nuetral to 1st is always going to give you a "Clunk" since you are taking the spinning input shaft and engaging it to the stationary output shaft that is attached to the rear wheel via the chain. I don't see how this can be avoided. However, you should make sure your clutch is properly adjusted so that it is not dragging. I test this on my bike on the center stand by starting the engine, pull the clutch in and hold, and put it in first gear. The initial clunck will cause the rear wheel to start turning because of the inertia of the spinning input shaft, but if the clutch is adjusted properly the rear wheel will stop turning. If it does not stop, or if you stop it (while holding the clutch) and it starts turning again, then your clutch needs adjusting. If your clutch drags it makes the clunk worse, plus it reduces the service life of your clutch.

I have found that a smooth shift from 1st to 2nd is possible with practice and proper timing of clutching and shifting, though I have yet to get 100% but am improving.

I have also been convinced that oil make a difference in shifting and clutch performance. I switched from Mobil 15W-50 to Rotella 5W-40 and swear that the shifting and clutch operation was immediately smoother. From my research on this site and the web the Rotella is closest or meets the JASO-MA specification. Anyway, my opinion has changed in that the JASO-MA spec is more than marketing.

 

[jamesfz6]

If the tranny isnt clunky than you got something wrong, all yamahas should clunk.





Ok, so you may not have something wrong, i have just never ridden a yamaha that didnt clunk.

 

[bluenova]

I'm had my FZ6 for around 7 months now and these are my observations.

Going from nuetral to 1st is always going to give you a \"Clunk\" since you are taking the spinning input shaft and engaging it to the stationary output shaft that is attached to the rear wheel via the chain. I don't see how this can be avoided. However, you should make sure your clutch is properly adjusted so that it is not dragging. I test this on my bike on the center stand by starting the engine, pull the clutch in and hold, and put it in first gear. The initial clunck will cause the rear wheel to start turning because of the inertia of the spinning input shaft, but if the clutch is adjusted properly the rear wheel will stop turning. If it does not stop, or if you stop it (while holding the clutch) and it starts turning again, then your clutch needs adjusting. If your clutch drags it makes the clunk worse, plus it reduces the service life of your clutch.

I have found that a smooth shift from 1st to 2nd is possible with practice and proper timing of clutching and shifting, though I have yet to get 100% but am improving.

I find the opposite is true, that a dragging clutch is smoother by pre-loading the gear shifter and pulling the clutch to the point that the gear engages is far smoother than pulling the clutch all the way and then shifting.

 

[FZSex]

When I switched to synth, it was like a new transmission - snicks into 2nd, no more clunk. :thumbup: