Clutch problem

[Wilko]

Okay folks, try this.

Being a proud owner of my TTSE, having owned it for exactly a week now. I took it out last Sunday with the wife, great, the bike has stood all week, that work thing has to be done, I went out for a ride this morning, all's well, washed the bike this afternoon, then I decided to go to fill it up this evening as I'm off out tomorrow on it.....right then, my drive is on a slope, the bike was in first gear, stationary, I pulled the clutch in, side stand up and start the bike, pulling off the drive onto the road in first, clutch in for second gear, no chance, it would not disengage from first, in fact I had to stall the bike to stop it.

It seemed to sort it's self out stationary, going through the gears, anyway, petrol bought, then it did it again at a set of traffic lights, had to stall it as it would not disengage, again, it sorted its self out and no problem after on the return home.

So, I'm wondering if water has got in somehow, just a hosepipe wash off, it doesn't like being "parked" on a down hill slope in gear, or it just doesn't like being washed  , I'll try it again tomorrow as I'm off to meet the Birmingham IAM bunch at the National Motorbike Museum for a ride out to Bromyard........hopefully  .........I will add, the bike has run fantastic up till now.   

[KaliforniaKook]

I assume it is a new bike. When mine was new, it required a bit of force to shift - especially in the lower gears. When working on it in the garage, I frequently had to go put on shoes to get out of first. But now I have almost 30k miles on it, and the shifting is so smooth I only use the clutch for first and second gear, and it is smooth and easy. I do shift (in the garage) while barefoot, despite old injuries to that area of my foot.
It is a 'wear' thing. I rode a buddy's SE last weekend, with half the mileage, and was caught off guard by how much force I had to use to shift. In no case has my shifting been so bad I had to kill the engine, though. As I have read elsewhere in this forum about riders breaking the shift lever off, I don't like to use a lot of force. I would expect this problem will go away pretty quickly.

-Kook

[KaliforniaKook]

Another obvious possibility - the clutch is not engaging. An adjustment may be needed. Does it drag at all when clutched and in gear? You should hear a difference in the transmission noise, and a jerk as you shift, but RPMs should be unaffected.

-Kook

[Coconut]

Hi Wilko,

I doubt whether washing the bike, or water ingress would cause such a problem.

It sounds to me more like either the clutch plates sticking together,
or more likely a leak in the hydraulic circuit, resulting in reduced pressure
that may not be sufficient to fully disengage the clutch,
or air in the system causing the same loss of pressure.

Some members have previously reported leaking Clutch Slave cylinder seals.

Keep a close eye on the fluid level in the Clutch Master Cylinder Reservoir
( the one on the Handlebars by the clutch lever ), and if there is any obvious drop
in the level, this indicates a leak.

The Clutch Slave cylinder is located behind a cover on the right side of the engine -
the one below the Engine Oil filler - accessible by removing the 5 bolts.
( The Service Manual says those bolts should be discarded and replaced
with new ones if they are undone ).  See Image below.

Check for leaks at the Banjo type pipe union, which might be an easy fix
if the nut can be "nipped up", or from the Bleed nipple.

Bleeding any air out of the system is fairly straightforward -
keep the handlebars straight when the reservoir cover is removed,
and guard against any spillage by packing cloths etc around the areas being worked on.
Hydraulic Fluid coming into contact with painted surfaces will strip the paint off !

If there's no air in the system, and no signs of leakage from the Banjo Union or Bleed screw,
but the Hydraulic fluid level drops with use of the clutch, then the Slave cylinder is probably leaking, most likely from the internal seals. 

A repair kit is available here : Sprint Manufacturing for £23.00.

Note also that any hydraulic fluid leaking from the Clutch Slave Cylinder can find it's way
down to contaminate the engine oil which would need to be drained and replaced with new oil.

Let me know if you need any further information,
though I suspect this will be something for CMC Coleshill
to sort out for you under their warranty.

Cheers,

[Wilko]

Cheers Coconut, I'll have a look tomorrow, where it's parked the area is dry, it's a bit of an odd one, it was absolutely fine this morning, and no sign's of it happening last weekend.

I'll keep you updated.

Wilko.

[Wilko]

 Right then, update, I'm now sitting by the side of the road waiting for the rac recovery, fortunately I was in a group, so they helped. On closer inspection, there's no hydraulic oil in the Reservoir, plus none in the front brake one either, I can only blame myself for not checking correctly, but also, and I've just phoned CMC motorcycles that their pdi checks are crap, want else have they not checked. I'm very reluctant to take the bike to them for servicing, but to keep the life time warranty I have to.

[Coconut]

Hi Paul,

Sorry to hear of this - could have been VERY nasty if air had got into the front brake
Master Cylinder as it would have seriously affected the braking performance.
( Lesson to learn that we are probably all guilty of at times - Pre Ride Checks ! ).

In addition to the loss of Clutch Fluid, the reason WHY it has run low needs to be investigated -
it could be just worn Brake Pads, and topping up will be OK, unless the Pads are so worn
that they need changing ( all eight of them ! ).

It's worth noting that due to the Linked brake system, AND the Anti-Lock brakes,
that the only way to properly bleed all of the brake system, is with a device that allows
the ABS modulator valves to be opened.

Triumph Dealers obviously have the tools to do this, and there is an After Market device
( DealerTool ) that can also perform this, and other maintenance tasks,
so check CMC's capabilities in this respect.

What Diagnostic equipment do they have that actually works on the Trophy ?

I would check the wording of the Lifetime warranty they sold you -
Are you really tied to them for the Warranty,
or can you have it done ny a Triumph Dealer ?
If you're tied to them, - do they have all of the Setvice tools,
knowledge and expertise to carry out all of the required servicing items ?

I would also ask them what their intention would be if something that is covered
by their Lifetime warranty cannot be carried out by them, for whateber reason -
Does the warranty then cover having such repairs carried out by a Triumph Dealer ?

As always, let me know if I can help with anything else 

[Michel1960]

You say you've owned it for a week but fail to mention if it's new or an used one that you bought last week. If its an used bike maybe calling the last owner could be helpfull, it could be a problem he faced before ...   If it's a brand new bike, no question bring it back to a dealer let them sort it out!!

Also for future reference, when you post and ask for help its good to mention what model year you have and the millage!! Helps people help you .