Yz 250 will not shift past third gear.. ???

[sodflyer]

Hey guys, I own a 2004 YZ 250 that I maintain as well and up to this point I have not had any real issues with the bike at all untill the last time I was at the track about half way through the day I noticed that I could not shift into 4th or 5th gear. It will cycle back down and up to third but thats it. I removed the clutch basket and stuff on that side and everything looks clean ( real clean ) well oiled and in place. So I am a loss here as to why it wont shift up in the last gears. Nothing came out in the oil at all as it still looked new and nothing is laying or hanging on the bottom of the case. Plus it was not making any odd noises at all when riding.

So in short if you have had this issue before and could clue me into what is going on then that would be very cool! Thanks!

 

[julien_d]

The most common cause is the shifter has slipped upwards. Once you get to third, you can't pull the shifter up high enough to hit 4th before it hits the engine case.

Sounds goofy, but check it. If it's not that then you'll likely be having to look at shift forks.

 

[sodflyer]

Oh, no... it's not the shift lever it's self as that's fine and didnt move. Checked it again and insted of a " click" when going through 1-3rd 4th is like a "thunk" but it dosent engauge the gear but the lever is traveling just as high as through 1-3rd. Gerr... I really do not feel like splitting the case but it's looking like that's whats got to happen at this point.

 

[julien_d]

I dunno. My lever has to go higher to hit the higher gears. It's just a bit, but enough so I can only use the first 2 or 3 gears if the shift lever slips upward.

If it's not in the shifter, you're most likely looking for bent shift forks, yep.