KLR Shifting Problems

[KLR Kid]

Hey there,

Just looking for advice as to why my bike is having difficulty going from 1st gear to 2nd gear only and not from 2nd through 5th.

The bike idles well at neutral, kicks down to first fine, runs fine off the start, then seems to get hung up again inneutral and doesn't go in to 2nd without a really firm toe lift. Like I said, the other gears from 2nd up and from 5th coming down are smooth.:?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Rob

 

[SittingDuck]

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dunno about klrs, but my zook gs was doing that... something about neutral being between 1st and second... i just started using the clutch to shift between those 2 gears and lived with it...

if you're using the clutch to shift, try not using it.

if the klr is equipped with the kwaki "positive neutral finder" that might be causing the problem... does it do it also if you shift to second at higher speed???

 

[joker650]

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NOT a KLR guy but I have herd lots of discussion about this on the KLR. Think maybe it's one of them"Things" with the KLR:spl:

 

[Pirate]

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If the clutch is not usedto change gear, the dogs on the gear selector will wear,hence the difficulty in shifting. The only way to fix the problem is to replace the gear selector......... It's surprising how many riders don't use the clutch!

 

[TG6]

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I had problems with my KLR not shifting and it turned out to be the shift lever. It was flexing when I tried to shift. Look to see if yours is getting ready to break... hopefully, that's all it is..

 

[KLR Kid]

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Interesting...I have always used the clutch to shift gears so I don't think it should be "abnormally" worn out. I'm using the after market shift lever from DualStar and it's stiff as a board so that wont be the issue either. I wonder if the gear selector is just wearing out as Pirate suggested? My KLR is a 2002 with 14,000 on the odo...not a ton of use.

I didn't know that this was one of the many "identified issues" that KLR owners live with.

I'll try those suggestions Sittingduck and get back to you.

Thanks for the info guys.

 

[Island Hopper]

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If not using already, you could try synthetic oil. My riding buddy switched to Maxima Ultra and noticed much smoother shifting on his KLR.

 

[SittingDuck]

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Pirate wrote:

If the clutch is not usedto change gear, the dogs on the gear selector will wear,hence the difficulty in shifting.

hmmm, had 7 bikes, only ever used the clutch to take off. i do the same thing in cars.

never caused any wear (and yes, i've had them apart for other reasons and checked)

it's impossible for it to wear the dogs on the gears or the selector, because they do the same thing whether you are using a clutch or not. as long as you dont have to force the shifter (and if you did, you'd bend a shift fork first, theyre the weak link)

if you do full-throttle force shifts you'll wreak it, but if done properly, its never a problem and easier on the transmission than using the clutch (especially in a car):

roll on the gas normally, and at the time when you would shift, just back off the throttle a bit (for a split-second)and click it in the next gear. backing off the throttle is SUPER important, you want to give the driveline some slack and unload the gears. make sure youre at the right rpm, youll get a feel for it, and youll be amazed how easy it is. if you have to force it, you're at the wrong speed. it should go in gear as if you were poking your toeinmelted butter. practice it with 4th and 5th first.

going down the gears is just as easy, but accelerate when doing it, or slow down and wait till your engine starts lugging before clicking the shifter down.

shifter effort is less than if you were using the clutch, a lot easier on the left hand too. and the bike never lurches from a shift done at the wrong engine speed because you're always shifting at the right speed, else it simply won't shift. oh, another benefit is your clutch will outlive your grandchildren.

note that on some bikes (80s sukis that i noticed) the tranny wont go all the way into second gear when doing this technique quickly and jump back out of second (ouch!) i've heard about it from other people too but only had it on my 750 (3 other zooks were fine) never had that one apart so maybe something was wrong inside.

 

[SittingDuck]

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Island Hopper wrote:

If not using already, you could try synthetic oil.

i was told to never use synthetic oil on a bike because they share crankcase and transmission oil and it's the best way to get your clutch to slip.

other things NEVER to use in oil on a bike or any other engine is ANY KIND OF ADDITIVE, stay super far away from teflon expecially. it'll clog your filter and deposit solid particles all over your engine. the best oil is the simplest oil, without any detergents or other s#!t added to it. the higher the viscosity, the better. DO NOT buy energy conserving oils, they're a compromise between fuel consumption and engine longevity and they lean hevily on the fuel side waaay toooo thin to give any protection in a motorcycle engine.

there are some specially formulated synths for bikes so make sure to buy those if you decide for synthetic.

the reason the shifting is easier with "those" oils is they're thinner (which means less clutch drag and unfortunately also means less engine protection).

you could also make sure your clutch basket is ok and all the plates are releasing (you're really unloading only the first one with the lever, the others might be binding from junk in between them)

the klr is a high volume low pressure sort of oiling system, just like my beloved suzuki gs. i always use 20w50 oil, and never waste the money on synthetic, i'll be flushing it out in a month anyways.

i've learnt the hard way to never buy a used vehicle that was run on synthetic oil. the p.o. of one of my cars thought synth was soooo good he needed to change the oil only every 50,000kms... i could measure the gap between the crank and the connrods with a regular ruler, lol.

 

[TG6]

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I have been using Amsol full synthetic oil in mine for about 15,000 k's now and it works great...

 

[FixerDave]

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Well, by request, here are my opinions on this:

1. Look for the obvious first. The shifter has to travel farther on the 1-2 transition so look for things that are stopping it, like the shifter hitting the case. I had to make some custom bends in my shifter because it was hitting the skid plate mounting tab on the 2-1 shift.
2. Shifter position helps. I find the stock shifter location way too high and this can make shifting up difficult, expecially for us taller riders when we're sitting down. Going one spline down, some custom bends, or both can help.
3. If it's not external, then I suggest living with it until you can't stand it anymore. That way, when you do open up the case, at least the problem will be more obvious.
4. As for oil, yes - avoid additives. Anything that makes the oil slipperier will make your clutch slip better too, maybe too much. I'll defer to the experts on synthetic oil as I've never bothered.
5. As for power shifting (no clutch), I do about 1/2 the time - depending on circumstances. On the road, I rarely us the clutch while up-shifting - usually because I'm hand-signaling at the same time. (I hate it when I realise I've been riding for 10 minutes with the turn signal on - it's really hard to forget my arm is sticking out) Before I installed my hydraulic clutch, I used to power shift quite a lot on the trails, mostly because my clutch hand was too tired and wouldn't work anymore. Now, I power shift or not, depending on what's going on. No big deal either way.
6. I suggest you learn to power shift. It will improve your timing as you have to be a lot more precise. If nothing else, this timing will also improve your clutch-shifts and make the 1-2 shift easier.

In general, the KLR shifting is rather notchy, at least compared to the Hondas I grew up with. When I get tired, I'm still prone to blowing the 1-2 shift. On the other hand, I've brutalised my shifter and clutch more than most KLR owners, since 1991, and it's never let me down.

Hope this helps, and good luck with your KLR,

David...

 

[Norm]

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Mobile One and Rotella Synthetic work very well in the KLR and both seem to improve the shifting on mine although any difference is quite subtle. Many multi-gradeoils shear down to base stock viscosity according to oil analysis too quickly in motorcycles but Mobile One and Rotella work very well in the KLR and for that reason should work well in any bike.

There is so much mythology regarding oils that most of us with expertise become weary with trying to convince nay-sayers and don't bother.

Your KLR shifting problem, as someone said, is likely flexing in a shifter about to break. The stock shifters have a poor reputation so many of us have switched to an IMS which also is needed with many after-market pegs like my IMS Super Stocks.

If not flexing in the shifter, check to see if the shifter is bent, contacting the frame, loose on the shaft (very nasty as it will wear the splines!), alever saver cable sometimes gets pulled out of position and limits shifter movement witch gives the same symptoms. The KLR transmission/shifter is trouble free so I doubt that the problem is internal but let us know how you make out.

If you have occasion to pull the clutch side cover to check the shifter linkage, you may wish to take the opportunity to clean the bits of silicone gasket sealer out of the oil pump pick-up screen. The amount found there is often a shock but isn't a problem, just a "nice to do". (IMO)



Norm

 

[klr jason]

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I experienced the exact same thing on mine when I moved the shifter ONE NOTCH down. I thought I would create more room/access for my boots.

Went into neutral fine, down to first fine, but itwould not shift past neutral then into second.

Remedy, had to move the shifter back to it's original notch.

Couldn't figure out why it wouldn't go into 2nd, the shifter moved normally.One of those things........

 

[KLR Kid]

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klr jason wrote:

I experienced the exact same thing on mine when I moved the shifter ONE NOTCH down. I thought I would create more room/access for my boots.

Went into neutral fine, down to first fine, but itwould not shift past neutral then into second.

Remedy, had to move the shifter back to it's original notch.

Couldn't figure out why it wouldn't go into 2nd, the shifter moved normally.One of those things........

I'll take the shifter offtomorrow, reposition, test and report back tomorrow.

Thanks to everyone for their detailed input on this topic.

:hb: Rob

 

[KLR Kid]

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Well gents...problem solved. :tup:

It appears that both my KLR and Jason's were built in the Bermuda Triangle before they were shipped to Canada for sale.

Like Norm, I am running the IMS Superstock pegs with a DualStar after-market shifter to give room for the boots with the wider pegs.No flex in that aluminum shifterand it was firmly attached with no slippage. I've been running Kawasaki full synthetic for the past 7,000km with no issues...slick stuff as TG6 suggested.

In the end, it was KLR Jason's similarly weird experience that led me to have the shifter off and change it's position on the splines. I had the shifter off last week for some cleaning and maintenance and had put it back on ONE NOTCH higher to, likewise, provide a bit more room for the toe of my boot. NOTHING was contacting the frame and my foot had plenty of flex left to get the lever as high as it needed to go to get into second gear from first. For whatever freakish reason.....the bike didn't like it one bit. :shoot:

I put the shifter back on again, this time ONE NOTCH lower, and it's shifting as slick as it ever was.....I can't think for the life of me why one notch would matter when there was no limitation on the upward movement of the lever? :?

No sense tying to wrap the brain around the whole thing too much...afer all, it is Friday, there is beer in the fridge, and who cares why it happens...now that itworks!

My sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread! Good to know for those of us who love the big green machine (or whatever colour your plastic is).

:clap::hb::dr:

Cheers...Rob

 

[Pee Wee]

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KLR Kid wrote:

Well gents...problem solved. :tup:

It appears that both my KLR and Jason's were built in the Bermuda Triangle before they were shipped to Canada for sale.

Like Norm, I am running the IMS Superstock pegs with a DualStar after-market shifter to give room for the boots with the wider pegs.No flex in that aluminum shifterand it was firmly attached with no slippage. I've been running Kawasaki full synthetic for the past 7,000km with no issues...slick stuff as TG6 suggested.

In the end, it was KLR Jason's similarly weird experience that led me to have the shifter off and change it's position on the splines. I had the shifter off last week for some cleaning and maintenance and had put it back on ONE NOTCH higher to, likewise, provide a bit more room for the toe of my boot. NOTHING was contacting the frame and my foot had plenty of flex left to get the lever as high as it needed to go to get into second gear from first. For whatever freakish reason.....the bike didn't like it one bit. :shoot:

I put the shifter back on again, this time ONE NOTCH lower, and it's shifting as slick as it ever was.....I can't think for the life of me why one notch would matter when there was no limitation on the upward movement of the lever? :?

No sense tying to wrap the brain around the whole thing too much...afer all, it is Friday, there is beer in the fridge, and who cares why it happens...now that itworks!

My sincere thanks to everyone who contributed to this thread! Good to know for those of us who love the big green machine (or whatever colour your plastic is).

:clap::hb::dr:

Cheers...Rob

Sent you a PM before I saw this....please ignore it...glad it was something simple !:shoot:

 

[KLR Kid]

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Sent you a PM back before I checked the thread letting you know to check the thread. :shoot::shoot:double tap for me...

 

[joker650]

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I put the shifter back on again, this time ONE NOTCH lower, and it's shifting as slick as it ever was.....I can't think for the life of me why one notch would matter when there was no limitation on the upward movement of the lever? :?

Was the shifter bolt hitting something when in the higher position?

 

[KLR Kid]

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joker650 wrote:

Was the shifter bolt hitting something when in the higher position?

NOTHING...there was no interference either at the bolt end or at the far forward reaches of the shift lever. There was plenty of room for the shift lever to keep moving upwards without interference from the engine case....it's just the strangest thing...just the same as KLR Jason experienced.

The shifter just seems to have a place where it likes to be....I guess one ought to leave it there and adjust one's riding style around it.

Very strange....:?

 

[ZED]

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FWIW - Sounds normal to me, that's how mine shifts. Takes a good hard kick!
Don't get me wrong, I think the KLR is great and in a category of it's own, but I do wish they would give it a modern gearbox.

I too have changed the lever spline position. The only difference I can tell is how my boot fits. Since I've already moved my pegs back a bit, next I'm thinking of shortening the shifter a bit to decrease the travel/shift.