Guys, as some of you know a couple of days ago I was talking about a little jerking at low rpm (it's hard to go 20 mph in first gear).
I'm on a trip through the French Pyrenees, and to the low rpm jerks, now I have to add another new noise...the gearbox.
The bike works fine, but in these last few miles something happens to me that sounds broken.
When I put it in third gear and accelerate, at low speed, (not always) the bike sounds broken, literally. The sound is similar to breaking a dry branch or stomping on a plastic toy.
I am riding in very hot weather (37 celsius). The only change in the last weeks is put synthetic oil on engine (ecstar 7000).
The sound is very very unpleasant, I hope I don't stall on the road.
No, is Ecstar 7000 full synthetic.. oil for Suzuki motorbikes.. in theory, is perfect.
But if I could go back in time I don't think I would have done anything.
I changed the oil because according to the manufacturer it has to be changed every 12,000 km and it seemed too much. I thought a change at 8,000 would be better for the engine.
It's hard to make a correct diagnosis from so far away but you are about 70km from Pamplona, maximum one hour drive. There is a suzuki dealer open on monday. This is a possible solution and you will know if you can continue your trip with peace of mind...to enjoy the trip.
Thanks for the advice, man. However, even though Pamplona is half an hour away, deviating from the route might mean changing hotel reservations (I don't know how long it will take to check the bike, 2 hours or a whole day) and other things.
I'm a perfectionist with my bikes, and I only enjoy the trip when I know that my machine is perfect, but I'm going to be practical this time.
The bike is under warranty and if something serious happens, let Suzuki fix it. As long as the bike allows me to travel and something really serious doesn't happen, I'll keep going. I will try to think positive. Wish me luck.
Thanks for the advice, man. However, even though Pamplona is half an hour away, deviating from the route might mean changing hotel reservations (I don't know how long it will take to check the bike, 2 hours or a whole day) and other things.
I'm a perfectionist with my bikes, and I only enjoy the trip when I know that my machine is perfect, but I'm going to be practical this time.
The bike is under warranty and if something serious happens, let Suzuki fix it. As long as the bike allows me to travel and something really serious doesn't happen, I'll keep going. I will try to think positive. Wish me luck.
Thinking positive has been known to reverse mechanical failures. I say ride it until it stops dead along the side of the road then hitchhike to you next hotel and don't forget to post how Suzuki let you down. No sense taking a 1/2 hour out of you trip to ride to the nearest dealership and have them diagnose/correct the problem.
Well guys, another 400 km without incidence or strange noises ... only the slight jerks at low speed, sometimes at 2000 rpm other times at 2500-3000 ... but no trace of that noise of "broken" when I change gears.
I really appreciate your interest guys, and I know that many of you don't agree with me to continue the trip, and it's logical, I understand it, it's my responsibility and I'm going to play with it.
Not having had any news of that noise, makes me think that maybe the horrible heat (40 degrees in the south of France is a LOT of heat) made the brake pad make a strange contact with the disc and hence the noise. When I bought the bike, and until a few days ago, when braking, the rear brake squealed. Maybe that's it.
I may also have been so unlucky that a few stones have hit the underside of the bike, twice, and just when I squeezed the clutch and engaged a gear. I'm in the Pyrenees and it could be possible (too many rocks).... Why not?
The bike accelerates great and climbs very well in rpm, does not heat up and does not lose oil.
Safe travels... beautiful area. We have a sister company in Pau and I have been there four times.
This is at the boarder of Spain and France in the Pyrenees.
RPMs. In my experience the with six of these motors you need to be above 3000 if your going to put the engine under high load. They run fine below 3k at light throttle openings. The stock gearing 15/45 has yielded the best performance loaded or not.
MY 2C
HI Hugo,,,had the same problem, it ended up being the front sprocket was loose from the factory, it was not correctly tightened and the sprocket would catch, let go, bind up the chain, snatch,,,so maybe pull off the front sprocket cover, wiggle the sprocket and if any play, simple fix is to just tighten it up, or longer term, pull out bolts, apply blue loctite and put back in and tighten..............good luck, Mike in San Diego
Guys, everything is going reasonably well and the bike is behaving well, lots of mountain road at high altitude, rain and fog. But it's a nice rain, I'm dry right away. Mind you, I am PHYSICALLY DEAD. I've been riding for about 2000 km (must be about 1300 miles) and I still have to go back, about 1500 km more.
About the noises... you know... when something scares you, you hear noises all over the place...
Yesterday I heard a noise but later I realized it was this.. the rattle of a cow..
P.d : I went to a dealer, and they dont see nothing bad. Anyway, the bike jerks at low speed, but this dont worry me.
From my own experience with the V-Strom 650 (2017) the sprocket carrier bearing was the first thing to fail after only 10,000km (6,000miles). The noise you're hearing is probably the friction of the seized bearing rubbing on the axle. Inspect once you're home. Easy fix if so.
You are totally screwed if you get stuck and stranded. You will not only be out on your reservations, but will be out of a bike to even continue. Common sense to take it to the dealer and adjust your trip accordingly. It will only get worse if you don’t. Yes you’ll be out of some money, but hey, you can at least continue your trip with the peace of mind not breaking down in a more inhospitable place or worse cause an accident on yourself or others. It’s a no brainer.
Understand, you’re on a motorcycle, shit happens even under the best conditions or conditions out of your control. You’ll be out of a lot more money if you breakdown. Not only will you lose all your reservations but you’ll have to make new accommodations. And if your engine seizes, you may wind up in some hospital with god knows what kind of injuries.
Bring the damn bike to the dealer as most of us have recommended
You are totally screwed if you get stuck and stranded. You will not only be out on your reservations, but will be out of a bike to even continue. Common sense to take it to the dealer and adjust your trip accordingly. It will only get worse if you don’t. Yes you’ll be out of some money, but hey, you can at least continue your trip with the peace of mind not breaking down in a more inhospitable place or worse cause an accident on yourself or others. It’s a no brainer.
Understand, you’re on a motorcycle, shit happens even under the best conditions or conditions out of your control. You’ll be out of a lot more money if you breakdown. Not only will you lose all your reservations but you’ll have to make new accommodations. And if your engine seizes, you may wind up in some hospital with god knows what kind of injuries.
Bring the damn bike to the dealer as most of us have recommended
I took the bike to the dealer as soon as I could. A mechanic tried it, tested it (did a couple of km on it) and saw absolutely nothing wrong.
Not only that, he literally told me "it's very fine". To which I replied : Not so much, it jerks at low speed, and that noise I heard worries me, but I have not heard it again.
Another official suzuki mechanic in Spain told me "Problems don't just disappear, if you have something serious, it would have appeared by now".
So, I will trust the mechanics and that everything is going reasonably well, I can't say more.
I'm a bit late to catch up with this, not sure if you figured this out yet.
What happens if you downshift to 2nd and accelerate from the same speed at higher RPM?
Sounds like you are lugging the engine to me and it's not happy under those conditions due to high temps (and probably high elevation).
Edit: Now that I read the rest of the replies, I am sure you are. Don't run the bike at 2K RPM unless you are coasting at very small throttle openings. And definitely don't give it a hand full of throttle at those engine speeds. Downshift (maybe twice) before you get back on the throttle.
About the "jerks"... it's something I'm less concerned about, and I already asked about it in another thread. Apparently, it can be a mixture of several factors (according to the stromtrooper masters, which I trust a lot )
-TPS
-Chain
-Air filter
-Spark plugs
In short... it's something that doesn't worry me much, but the sound I heard was ugly... these noises appear just when you don't pay attention to the engine, and I swear it was coming from my bike, but I can't be sure.
Anyway, I have to continue my journey and not think about this, not to turn it into an obsession. According to an official suzuki mechanic, everything is ok after testing it. I'll have to be practical and continue my journey.
Well, I only have 700 km left to get home.I am physically devastated after 2500 km.... Now I have to stop every hour, my back and shoulders are very tired and it's hard for me to enjoy but... what did I expect? With all those kilometers I could not be otherwise.
I think that, although something strange could still happen to me, after several days going up and down mountain roads in fine rain and fog, with zero visibility, in first and second gear... if nothing has happened again, it probably won't happen again.
Everything is fine, the bike has not lost any oil and the temperature is correct.
Even so, I'm still thinking about it... what the hell was that noise?
Well, as soon as I get home I have to go for a check-up, let's see what the mechanic tells me.
Yes, in the French Pyrenees it always seems to be cloudy. From the time I woke up until I slept, for 3 days, always cloudy.... But when you've been in places with temperatures over 40 degrees, believe me I prefer cloudy and cold.
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