2003 Rosso Corsa gearchange problem

[kenr]

Just had a call to say the bike is coming back from the shop tomorrow (and the weather forecast says it going to be sunny !!). I asked them to let me know what they had done so I could post an update and they said they have adjusted the gear selector cam and test ridden the bike over 20 miles and all seems OK. Hopefully the problem is sorted now - I will post again once I have run it for a while just to confirm. Hope this helps if anyone else has similar problems....

[kenr]

Ooooh No !!!!

 

Just been for a spin on the bike and it is STILL playing up - this is starting to not be funny anymore !!

 

The gearchange is defintely better - in fact it feels more positive changing in every gear than it did before, but if you gun it up throug the box it still wont change cleany into 3rd every time.

 

I guess its back to the shop again - the only good news is I think the bike can probably can find its own way there now ......

[kenr]

This thread is starting to feel a bit like talking to yourself , but here goes again.....

 

I just had a call from the garage to say that they had a top technical guy from Guzzi in yesterday and they beat him up to find out what the heck is wrong with my gearbox. Apparently this guy tells them that 'there are a very few bikes here in the UK that have a shaft in the gearbox which is 1mm too long and which causes a problem with the selector when changing gear under load'. They have ordered a replacement kit and the bike goes back end of next week to have it swapped out - I should have it back within a few days so here's hoping that the end is in sight ......

[antonio carroccio]

Never mind ken, we are listening to you.....don't we guys?

[robbiekb]

i had problems with missed shifts but it turned out to be the boot, occasionally my bke will find a false neutral going down the box between 4th and 3rd but thats about it

[Ralph Werner]

Has anyone had missed shifts between 5th and 6th gears (both up and down) on their 03 LeMans/Rosso? That's the only place that I have had any problem and it's very sporadic. Maybe it's just my ancient toes.

[Guest callithrix]

I'm still waiting for my bike. Sounds like I may still have a problem when I get it back. Kenr, by any chance do you have a part # for the malfunctioning part; i'd be interested in identifying the potential culprit. Thanks

[kenr]

Thanks Antonio - saved me from getting paranoid

 

 

Calithrix - I will try to find out exactly what they do and the part numbers, etc. Its interesting they didnt seem to know about this potential problem until they spoke with someone from Guzzi - until then they told me they had done everything they could think of and were planning to drop the box and take a look.

 

At least it sounds like they are onto something now - I hope so because I really want to get the bilke back and just have it working right !

[Guest callithrix]

Ditto, the weather is perfect here today in the Bay Area.

[belfastguzzi]

'there are a very few bikes here in the UK that have a shaft in the gearbox which is 1mm too long and which causes a problem with the selector when changing gear under load'. They have ordered a replacement kit and the bike goes back end of next week to have it swapped out - I should have it back within a few days so here's hoping that the end is in sight ......

37190[/snapback]

 

Some of the stuff in this thread seems a bit garbled (the dealers don't seem to have a clear picture of what is a fairly simple selector mechanism), but also perhaps a bit familiar. The 'dogbone': is that the pawl arm that has received much coverage here? The 'shaft' that is 1mm too long in some uk bikes: that sounds like the oversized boss (diameter 1 – 1.5mm too wide) that has, again had lots of comment here – and it's not just uk bikes. The repair kit is presumably the new pawl arm / with correct size boss and a new spring?

 

If, in fact, there is another part in the box / selector mechanism that is the wrong size, please be sure to report back the details.

 

Thanks.

[kenr]

Some of the stuff in this thread seems a bit garbled (the dealers don't seem to have a clear picture of what is a fairly simple selector mechanism), but also perhaps a bit familiar. The 'dogbone': is that the pawl arm that has received much coverage here? The 'shaft' that is 1mm too long in some uk bikes: that sounds like the oversized boss (diameter 1 – 1.5mm too wide) that has, again had lots of comment here – and it's not just uk bikes. The repair kit is presumably the new pawl arm / with correct size boss and a new spring?

 

If, in fact, there is another part in the box / selector mechanism that is the wrong size, please be sure to report back the details.

 

Thanks.

37308[/snapback]

 

 

Hi BFG,

 

I will see if I can find out exact details of what they do, including part numbers. The service manager definitely told me on the phone that it was a shaft that is 1mm too long that was causing a problem with the selector under load. I had a run out Saturday and noticed that the gearchange is better when the bike is cold (makes sense), and once it warmed up I redlined it thru the gearbox from a standing start (just to test the 'under load' theory you know !) - and found that I couldn't select any gears cleanly, so although it seems to be worst getting into 3rd it is evident in other gears also.

 

Can someone point me to a drawing of the selector with the part numbers so I can try to make sure I get the exact details ?

 

Thanks,

 

Ken

[kenr]

Had the bike picked up today so I took the opportunity to call the service manager to find out exactly what they plan to do. Conversation went something like...

 

MG: According to MG there is a potential problem with your bike from the frame number and we need to change out the selector shaft which is 1mm too long.

 

Me: So its defintely the selector shaft, not the pawl ?

 

MG: Probably, but we wont know for sure until we get it apart.

 

Me: Hang on, I thought you told me last week you were going to order the parts in advance - does that mean you have the parts or not ?

 

MG: Er no, we are still waiting for them. MG are going to send us all the parts that could be suspect.

 

Me: So you dont really know whats wrong, your just planning to swap out bits until you crack the problem ?

 

MG: Well we have a good idea from MG what the problem could be....

 

 

So despite what they told me beforehand they dont seem to really know and they dont have the part in either. Could be a long time before I see my Guzzi again..........

 

Ken

[Guest callithrix]

Got my bike back and the bike still does weird things; like go through all the gears 1st through 5th while the nuetral light stays on. The shifter seems to work ok upshifting, but still tends to stick on the down shift. First is difficult to engage as well. Ho hum welcome to Guzzi Land.

[belfastguzzi]

Here's the pic, though no part numbers.

 

The story about a shaft being 1mm too long still sounds fishy. I would still suspect that they may be confusing it with the 'boss'.

 

Have you looked through all the stuff in the FAQ here?

[rktman1]

Kenr,

 

First off, I don't want to imply here that there is nothing wrong with your bike. There probably is. But let me tell you a story...

 

To make the story shorter I'll just tell you that I've had 30 motorcycles over my 35 years of riding, most of them Japanese bikes. I've never had shifting problems until I bought a 2001 Hayabusa, which seemed to always have a false neutral between 5th and 6th. It was so discouraging that I sold it and bought a 2002 BMW R1150R. Same story, except I was finding false neutrals between several of the higher gears on upshifts. Sold it. Bought a 2003 Kawasak ZX12R. Started finding a false neutral between 5th and 6th. I went to the ZX12R forum and told my story and an old timer there (older than me even) told me how I shifted and I said "Yes. That's how I shift". He told me "You've been shifting wrong your entire life." Anyhow, this is how I used to upshift:

 

1) Pull in clutch

2) Lift up on shift lever

3) Release shift lever

4) Let out the clutch.

 

This is how he told me to shift:

 

1) Pull in the clutch

2) Lift up on the shift lever

3) Let out the clutch

4) Release the shift lever

 

You'll notice steps 3) and 4) are reversed. I've ignored the throttle manipulation here.

 

Anyhow, I started shifting this way ( I was very clumsy for a while) and I almost never miss an upshift anymore. I still can't shift as fast as I used to but that's not as important as it used to be.

 

This may help.

 

Tim in Tucson (an old dog can sometimes learn a new trick)

 

BTW: I currently have an 03 LeMans, an 04 ST4S-A, and an 01 CBR929RR.