clutch problems on 2000 v11 sport

[Guest d.starling]

hi all, first let me thank carl and the others who posted the info, on the inner rear wheel bearings going south. i just returned from a 2000 mile trip to deals gap, i checked and had to replace them at 13,700 miles, before the trip. thanks ! now for the clutch problem. upon arriving at deals gap i of course removed luggage and "ran the gap" I ride hard but don't bang the clutch and gears, well half way through the 11 mile run i thought i was having throttle problems because of an abrupt on off quality. when i got back i realized that it in fact it was the clutch,, making a horrible grinding nose when i let it out in first and seeming to grab and slip both within one clutch release. now for the strange ( for me at least ) within the 700 or so miles back of gentle highway use it started to act better and with the last 100 miles or so seemed to act and sound in a more normal fashion. diagnosis ?

[jrt]

Weird,

This same kind of thing just happened recently on my Eldorado on a long trip. Real grabby as you release the clutch- basically had to dump it into gear. Coincidence? Conspiracy? Ok, so it wasn't at Deal's gap, but northern Minnesota, but maybe the bikes were harmonically connected.

In my case I think I had some oil on the clutch, coupled with the fact that the bike was hot (fully loaded luggage). After a few hundred miles I think I burned the oil off, and now it works pretty much like it always had. So...check the oil in your bike- do you have a leak into the bell housing?

 

Cheers,

Jason

[callison]

You can break the spider of one clutch plate and the bike will keep working. THe clutch will sound and feel different. If it's the plate closest to the engine, when you stop the engine, you'll hear a rattleing sound as the broken spider rattles around and chews on the end of the main seal housing. It sounds a bit like a roulette wheel. If you have this sound I would suggest getting if fixed before the main seal area gets chewed up much. It may be less of an issue if it's the other plate except that at some point, that one will fail as well and you'll be pushing instead of riding. It might be oiling up as Jason suggests, but my take on bad noises is that something bad is happening and it's time to check it out. FWIW, I rode my California several thousand miles with one bad clutch plate before changing it out. The plates aren't cheap either - ~$100 each and you need two, with a 6-10 week lead time for ordering them via the normal MGNA supply chain. If you need one pronto, you'll probably want to call around to the dealers that actually stock parts - Moto International, MG Cylces, Guzzi Classics etc.

[Guest d.starling]

i just returned from a short ride. driveline lash is very bad, at say 3,000 rpm's in 3rd the bike" feels" like serious slop in the u-joint,both when appling throttle or cutting back, such a slap/clunk in the drive train, rather like the abrupt on/ off of a throttle cable 1/2" to slack. could this be a separate problem or could this an entirely different problem?...... i ought to mention that my trip to the blueridge parkway was wonderful. it's not my first time. i keep going back year after year. it seems this time of year is perfect,between late summer and early fall. i left nyc monday and returned friday. very little traffic. i was able to run threw the parkway at a rate the was both exhilerating and safe, even if it was slightly illegal. there is a magic and satisfing rhythm to riding the parkway, serious time there will make you a better more precise rider. one of the places i stayed deserves mention and that is big lynn lodge in little switzerland food was included and about 50% of the people were motorcyclists. i don't need to mention to this group the visceral joy of a v11/lemans running between 4000 and say 6000 mistrals singing, the dance like flow of movement and the connection with both the enviroment and a remarkably affecting motorcycle.

[jrt]

It seems to me that the V11 sport has an inherently large amount of drive lash- two ujoints and a sliding spline add up I guess. It certainly has more (and has since day one) lash than any of my other Guzzis. I think it feels weird when I coast between throttle and no throttle as well. Has the amount of lash increased or are you just noticing it now?

Carl is right, though- if it's making weird banging or grinding noises- have it checked out. I'm pretty sure my problem was oil on the plates since the clutch action is back to normal for the Eldo. I didn't have any grinding noises, but I could feel and hear the gears in the drivetrain slap. Not really a good sound, I have to say.

After reading your description again, it matches what Carl is saying more closely than what I was experiencing. On the plus side- if you do the work yourself, it's pretty easy to get the cases apart.

 

cheers,

Jason

[RichMaund]

Something to keep in mind here is that your bikes needs a cush drive to work properly and absorb these transient loads.

 

So... You say your bike has one, do you?

 

Won't do you much good if it isn't working.

 

Remember Guzzi's famous build quality? They never lube anything at the factory! Afterall, that would involve possibly getting your hands dirty. <_>

 

I have found all but one of my Guzzi's that I recieved in factory serviced condition to have no grease on the cush drive mechanism. Two have been found to be seized up completely! They won't do you any good if they don't work. If they don't work, the loads will cause other parts to wear. They need to be disassembled first. You need a large set of snap ring pliers (Not easy to find.) and some simple hand tools to do it. Good idea to put silicone grease on the rubber wedges upon reassembly too. When dry, they tend to stick and bind to the plates that engage them. The hub of the cush drive has a beautifully machined spiral groove to hold grease there. Too bad Guzzi so rarely uses it. Use #2 lithium grease there. If that hub can't turn, it isn't a cush drive!

 

I serviced mine when the bike was nearly new. On my V11S, the factory has used red loctite on the bolts and no grease on the hub assembly. I found a light coat of machine oil, possibly left over for the machining process. So they basically sealed it shut dry! The bolts got ruined removing them. (Cheap Allen headed bolts.) I put new grade 5 hex head bolts in to replace them. (Just like Guzzi used to use.) While doing this maintenance, it's a good time to grease the drive shaft, perhaps drop the swing arm and grease the arm pivot bolts. (They come dry from the factory as well.) and bleed the clutch to flush it. Just a suggestion.

 

If your cush drive is working and the wear on the splines is OK, you won't notice the lash problem nearly as badly as when the cush drive is disabled by poor factory assembly practices.

 

Rode the bike to my welding class at the community college today. It rips! I don't plan to change a thing for now. I just want to enjoy it. A well maintained Guzzi is a thing of joy and beauty. Too bad the assembly workers do so little to get the bike there!