Yamaha RXS 100 not going into any gear? Please help?

[ditnu]

Hey, my first post on here, I think it's the right section, I've had a look online for info on this issue but there's so many things it could be I thought I'd try and explain it etc. and see what can be done.

Essentially this is my first bike, only had it a few weeks and already I've f**ked it

I was riding up a really steep hill, and didn't have enough speed to make it to the top, and lost power halfway up. Anyway I'm new to biking and thought this would be a great time to practice clutch control and hill starts, especially as that's something on the bike exam when I go to get my license.

I'd been trying to get this damn bike up the hill for ages, every time revving it enough, it'd take off about 5 feet up the road then lose all revs, might have been me doing something wrong but I think the main issue was it was just literally that steep. Anyway I did this about 20 times until eventually the issue occurred.

Now the bike will rev without bother, but it won't move, it's like I've got the clutch in constantly, it'll change between the first three gears or so but again it still won't move. Now the wire is definitely moving as it should be but nothing will happen on the bike, all that happens is the revs. Also when this happened (and since also) there was quite a strong smell I couldn't put my finger on, it smelled like food, and both myself and my father both agreed that we've eaten that, or at least a meal it smelled like, kinda cheesy, I thought an Italian dish but that's not too important now.

I had to be towed back from where I was at the time during which I had the engine on, it took about 10 minutes to get back & when I got home the smell was still present so I'm not sure what that means, but the engine was around 2,500 revs constantly for that time. Also I tried pushing the bike to the top of the hill (which near killed me!) and rolling it down to see if it'd go into gear then, as well as trying to put it into the higher gears but that didn't work at all, definitely should have done if it was going to.

Anyway if any of you have any info on what this could be then please let me know as it's very difficult to get to a garage to have a look at it, & the nearest one is about 35 miles from where I live

Many thanks! All I want is to get my bike back on the road for more good times & it's just wasting space atm


Oh and lastly I doubt this would have any effect whatsoever but the bike also had more oil going into it than usual. I was advised there was benefits of mixing 2 stroke with the fuel as it needs a new gasket and is leaking a bit, so was told that should help a bit in the mean time, however there was still already a bit of oil in the oil tank, also after this happened I had a look at the dipper stick for oil on the engine & it was literally full, so much so that the surface tension in the hole was equal to the rim of it if that makes sense. I've never noticed this before, and may not be correct.


Sorry about the length, cheers!

[stirlinggaz]

hi,
back to basics here then.....

you have a 2 stroke + therefore need 2 different types of oil, for 2 different purposes.
firstly & imo, the most important : 2 stroke oil, consumable, will use a fair amount (if comparing to a 4 stroke) NEVER EVER let it run empty.
this will kill your bike. dead.

other oil is gear box oil. i usually use lite gear oil made by either rock-oil or siloklene, simply because thats whats available around here.

get an owners manual + a work-shop manual. essential bit of kit ime.

there might be a number cast onto side of engine (maybe beside oil filler cap/dipstick) indicating how much oil is needed to fill it up.

who knows, you might have burnt out your clutch.
not as drastic as it sounds. might just need new friction plates + your ready to go.

as for clutch cable adjustment, the adjuster on the handlebars are just for minor adjustments. (span) there will be another adjuster at the other end of the cable, down at engine end.
look down there for some sort of adjuster.

its been over 20yrs since i last worked on an rxs + my memory aint what it used to be.

im sure theres a couple of forum members who know this bike well & will soon pop upwith all sorts of excellent advice,

cheers,
GAZ

[Pete.]

The smell indicates that you have burnt the clutch out. Very likely that you have run it short of oil in the gearbox.

You don't need a degree in mechanics to check this. Get some basic tools and remove the clutch cover. Take a photo of what you find inside.
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[ditnu]

Cheers for the replies

So I opened her up a bit today, I couldn't get into the gear box as the screws are in there too tight and it'll destroy the heads, however I opened up the other side (on the left) giving access to the chain etc

anyway in there was something interesting which I think may be causing some, if not all problems. I hope so at least because it seems very simple to resolve provided I can get the part.

When you take the metal panel off you can see the spring part which is moved by pulling the clutch, which connects to this thing that moves in/out a little, probs around .5 or so of a cm. Now when I first saw that I thought nothing of it, but when I began to use my brain a little I wondered how on earth that was effective in even working the clutch. Turns out there's a fairly long, thin metal rod that goes right through the bike to the other side, which had a little bit sticking out that looks as though it was meant to be attached to this clutch mechanism on the panel. Low and behold when you pull it out you can see clearly around .5cm of sort of light marks on the rod, obviously where it's moved. now I'm pretty sure they're meant to be attached, and I'm hoping that's the cause??

Do you think it could be, and is this the way bikes work? It's quite an old bike and it shouldn't surprise me if the tension in that rod caused it to go when it was being hill started constantly.

I still suspect the clutch is knackered also, but I'm told usually the bike would be stuck in gear if the clutch goes, not unable to get into gear? Making it at least possible to ride it to the garage to see if they can get those screws out and replace it (if using clutchless gear changes)

Anyway if you could let me know that'd be awesome, cheers guys!

[Pete.]

[ditnu]

[pdg]

[ditnu]

[Pete.]

You know, if you put your location in your profile you might find someone is close to you who can offer some good help. I am in North Kent.
____________________
a.k.a 'Geri'

132.9mph off and walked away. Gear is good, gear is good, gear is very very good

[Eddie Hitler]

Have you tried turning the bike upside down? The effect of gravity can sometimes help gear issues, it's best to leave it overnight for the most effectiveness.

[27cows]

I've used 2 stroke oil in the gearbox of mine. I know someone who put 20w/50 in the 2 stroke tank of theirs. I've done a dozen miles with no gearbox oil at all. I've slipped the clutch virtually nonstop for about ten minutes into a 70mph gale once. And never managed to completely fry an RXS clutch, so congratulations

Someone needs to whip your clutch cover off and have a look at it. Could be something as simple as the adjuster nut has come loose. Could be something as serious as you having inflicted major mechanical destruction on assorted engine components.
____________________
The RXS100: vehicle of choice for Chuck Norris

[ditnu]

Hey I thought I'd do a little follow up, idk if anyone who posted here will see this but I'd just like to say thanks for your help!

It was the clutch, and has since been replaced & works better than before.

As for the guy who said oil being above the dipper level is bad, I think it's because when I looked at it the bike was on a slight slope. Out of interest how far up the dipper should the oil go?