Clutch won't disengage.

[chris_wr250]

Have a ~ new wr250 with maybe 100 miles on it.
The clutch doesn't completely disengage when I pull the lever in. The yamaha service manual is pretty lean on details, it just says 'loosen the locknuts and adjust the slack'.

I tried adjusting for tons of slack, and for little slack, but still can't get it to pull free.
Is it possible that part of the clutch wasn't setup or adjusted properly at dealer assembly, or should I definitely be able to fix this with a cable adjustment?

Thx,

 

[76GMC1500]

My experience with the WRF's is that the clutch adjuster lock nut on the handle bars vibrates loose and then the adjuster starts moving around. Eventually, there will be so much slack that when you pull the clutch lever in, it wont even begin to release the clutch. Turn the adjusting nut out in order to remove slack. The rule of thumb is that you if you pull the clutch lever in until you feel the clutch start to disengage, the gap between the lever and the handlebar should be about the width of a nickel.

 

[whenfoxforks-ruled]

Gm,what the heck?who carries nickels riding?Ice cream truck maybe,who's rule of thumb?Is this another west coast thing like drifting?Chris there should be like 1/4 to 1/2 inch of free play in the end of the lever.Should be covered in your manual.A little better diagnose would help.Check the cable path,no binding,check the actuation lever where it goes into the case.Is it under a dealers responsibility to fix it,cause then its time to pop the cover and have a peek!

 

[76GMC1500]

I posted this diagnosis because I was recently riding with a friend and he stopped me because his clutch wouldn't disengage. The jam nut for the clutch adjuster had backed off and the clutch adjuster went out of adjustment. It happened several times that day, no matter how tight I made the jam nut. The bike happened to also be a 2004 WR250F. I decided that the factory jam nut sucked.

Does the clutch lever feel stiff like it's disenaging the clutch or is it easy to pull in?

 

[95xr250]

sounds like a bad clutch plate of needs to adjust it i think in the yamaha you havke to pull off the side cover if not there will be a hex bolt on the side cover

 

[chris_wr250]

Hi all, thanks for the replies,
Everything looks good, no cable routing issues, nothing was loose/bent/broken (really still a new bike with only ~ 100 miles on it) and the freeplay is right in spec.

There doesn't seem to be a sweet spot in between dragging and slipping. If I loosen the locknuts so there's more slack in the cable, the clutch won't engage - can't get it into gear. If I tighten the nuts up, the clutch drags. Can't find a middle ground, it's one or the other.

The bike is still rideable, just worried about long-term wear if the clutch isn't in spec, and these are annoying:
- bike jumps slightly when I pop it into gear
- bike wants to keep moving when I stop in gear, have to keep the brake on or go into N.
- can't roll start (I guess I could by putting it in N, then moving into gear and popping the clutch)

I called up a local yamaha dealer, guy said he's heard of this with wr250s, but he was more of a street dealer, not much exp with dirtbikes. Beyond my skills to tell if the clutch innards need adjusting, might bring her into a more knowledgeable shop tomorrow.
Will post results for the benefit of anyone searching for clutch-disengaging problems. I searched and found a ton of threads, but no resolutions.

 

[76GMC1500]

Pull the side cover and look for notches on the basket. If you lay the bike over on its side, you don't even need to drain the oil.

 

[Ol'89r]

If the bike only has 100 miles on it, there won't be wear notches in the basket.

You may have a warped or bent clutch plate or something in between the clutch plates causing them not to completely disengage.

This should be a warranty item but, if your dealer won't help you, remove the right side cover and remove the bolts holding the springs on the clutch pressure plate. Then, remove the pressure plate and all of the clutch plates. Lay the plates on something flat like a piece of glass and check them for warpage. They should be completely flat. If any of the plates are warped, replace them, that's your problem.