v11 le mans europe gearbox

[igor]

hi everyone

i'm from belgium and just acquired a v11 le mans from 2001 ( says on the first registration papers )

when i look at specifications for this year model , it says 6 gears

i only have 5 gears on mine , could it be an earlier version or is it possible a faulty gearbox that cant reach the 6th gear ?

thanks a lot for your replies

[docc]

Welcome, Igor!

More likely your foot shift mechanism needs adjusting and may be striking the frame side plate on the downstroke.

V11 6 speed:

Earlier 5 speed:

 

[igor]

23 minutes ago, docc said:

Welcome, Igor!

More likely your foot shift mechanism needs adjusting and may be striking the frame side plate on the downstroke.

V11 6 speed:

 

Earlier 5 speed:

 

 

hi thanks for your reply , is it possible to check with the frame number which model it is before i start fiddling around with it ?

what do you mean by the down stroke ?

[p6x]

25 minutes ago, igor said:

hi thanks for your reply , is it possible to check with the frame number which model it is before i start fiddling around with it ?

what do you mean by the down stroke ?

Manufacturing year is just before the "M" which indicates the vehicles was manufactured in Mandello Italy.

Once you have ascertained the year of production, I think that what Docc meant is to check the gear shifter does not hit a hard stop (like the chassis) when depressing it. Meaning the lever can fully reach its lowest position.

[docc]

Here is a discussion of adjusting the shift lever to find your hidden 6th gear, @igor. There were no V11 fitted with a 5speed, beginning in 1999.

 

[al_roethlisberger]

This is interesting as it is the second time in about a week that someone from Europe has mentioned having a "2001 Lemans", perhaps the same owner?

The V11 Sport was introduced in 1999, and the V11 Lemans was introduced as a 2002 model.

So I wonder a few things:

1)  Is this owner's V11 Lemans actually a 2001 or 2002?  That can be verified by the VIN information above.

2)  If this is actually a 2001 bike, did MG release the/some 2002 models earlier in 2001 in Europe?

3)  Is this actually a 2002 model, but was mis-registered as a 2001?  That happens sometimes.

The VIN will clarify.

 

 

And yes, all V11 Sport models, including the Lemans, are 6 speed transmissions.

 

 

[igor]

21 hours ago, docc said:

Here is a discussion of adjusting the shift lever to find your hidden 6th gear, @igor. There were no V11 fitted with a 5speed, beginning in 1999.

 

thanks for your reply

so it's just a gear shifter adjustement ?

small chances of having a problem in the gear box ? someone told me is almost impossible to have the 6th gear problem , happens mostly  with lower gears ?

thanks a lot

 

[docc]

2 hours ago, igor said:

thanks for your reply

so it's just a gear shifter adjustement ?

small chances of having a problem in the gear box ? someone told me is almost impossible to have the 6th gear problem , happens mostly  with lower gears ?

thanks a lot

 

This is true, "small chance of having a problem in the gear box. ". The most likely trouble is with the external shift mechanism getting loose and out of adjustment. Even something as simple as bleeding fresh fluid into the clutch and servicing the hand lever pivot could be helpful. It is notable that the V11 shift mechanism benefits from "preloading" (introducing foot pressure to the shift lever) before releasing the clutch for the gear change.

Next most likely failure of the V11 6 speed is breakage of the "pawl spring" on the shift plate (side cover). This, invariably, sticks the gear in first or second. Our illustrious member, @Chuck expertly redesigned this spring. It is available by Messaging our member @Scud.

Staying with the internal shift mechanism, esteemed member @Lucky Phil gave us this Shift Improvement tutorial along with the design for the Shift Extender:

 

[igor]

hello docc thanks for your reply . i'll try the adjustement , then eventually fresh fluid .

can you explain me what do you mean with

" It is notable that the V11 shift mechanism benefits from "preloading" (introducing foot pressure to the shift lever) before releasing the clutch for the gear change. " ?

foot pressure ?

 

[docc]

Most of us learned to shift a manual gearbox by starting with > disengage the clutch < , then move the shift lever.

The V11 does far better by applying sufficient pressure with the foot on the shift lever, in the desired direction of the shift, that when the clutch lever is pulled to disengage the clutch, the shift movement occurs spontaneously.

I would add that it is helpful to take up all of the "freeplay" in the clutch lever first, as well.

Said differently, remove all excess play in both the foot shift lever and the hand clutch lever, keeping significant pressure ("Preload") on the foot shifter, then disengage the clutch.  The foot preload will move the shift mechanism very efficiently.

[igor]

3 minutes ago, docc said:

Most of us learned to shift a manual gearbox by starting with > disengage the clutch < , then move the shift lever.

The V11 does far better by applying sufficient pressure with the foot on the shift lever, in the desired direction of the shift, that when the clutch lever is pulled to disengage the clutch, the shift movement occurs spontaneously.

I would add that it is helpful to take up all of the "freeplay" in the clutch lever first, as well.

Said differently, remove all excess play in both the foot shift lever and the hand clutch lever, keeping significant pressure ("Preload") on the foot shifter, then disengage the clutch.  The foot preload will move the shift mechanism very efficiently.

interesting

thanks

[docc]

It occurs to me that changing your shifting method and, perhaps, just fresh gear box oil might be the simplest solution . . .  

[igor]

1 minute ago, docc said:

It occurs to me that changing your shifting method and, perhaps, just fresh gear box oil might be the simplest solution . . .  

the seller told me that he changed the gear box oil . could it be a wrong oil ?

[GuzziMoto]

4 minutes ago, igor said:

the seller told me that he changed the gear box oil . could it be a wrong oil ?

It could be wrong oil, but that wouldn't likely result in a missing gear.

As mentioned, odds are the linkage just needs to be adjusted.

[igor]

16 minutes ago, GuzziMoto said:

It could be wrong oil, but that wouldn't likely result in a missing gear.

As mentioned, odds are the linkage just needs to be adjusted.

the seller told me he has put this : Castrol MTX Full Synthetic 75W140

is it recommended ?