Clutch problem

After being parked over the winter I moved my 07 ST1300 out of storage and started some maintenance. When I got around to the clutch lever there was no resistance. The oil is clean and full but when I put the bike in 1st and pulled the lever in the bike would not move. I did pump the lever many times, bike not running, pushing it in 1st gear with the lever in, but the tire would not move.
Put it on the center stand and started the engine, shifted to 1st gear with the clutch lever in but the tire took off.
All was OK when parked.
Friday I will bleed the clutch fluid and see if there is oil pressure when I work the lever.

Any suggestions???

Bill

That's a common problem that a flush and bleed will fix.

--Mark

Had that exact same problem 2 years in a row. The first time i figgered 'oh no, now I've got to change the clutch master cylinder, but maybe, just in case, I'll bleed it first'. Sure enough, I bled it and voila, problem solved. Next year, same thing, except for the 'oh no' part. I just bled the clutch system and it's been fine since then, 3 winters ago. Doesn't make any sense to me at all why it does this.

Blrfl said:

That's a common problem that a flush and bleed will fix.

--Mark

Click to expand...

Thanks Mark - I was hoping that would fix the problem. That will be tomorrow's job.

Hmmmmm....odd. There must be a small air leak somewhere - I'd sure keep a close eye on the level in the master cylinder reservoir.

Hi Guys,, must be the season for clutches,, I started mine up today after a long winter's nap and same thing, no clutch action. In the fall I changed the oil with a synthetic, first time with it, Mobil 1 - 5W30.
It's -6C out and not looking to ride but wondering if it's just a bleed of the clutch or did I use a wrong oil.
Thanks for your help.
Peter

MaxPete said:

There must be a small air leak somewhere

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The only place in the closed part of the system where there's an intentional vent to the air is the slave cylinder, which has a path for fluid to leak out if the piston seal fails. The best guess I can come up with is that something happens where the seal leaks just enough to let air through but not so much that the fluid escapes. Could be something as simple as the air side of the seal drying up and shrinking.

I had the same thing happen a couple of times and now make a habit of giving the clutch lever a few squeezes a couple of times a week as I pass by in the garage. That prevented it last year; we'll see what happens when I pull it out this year.

--Mark

Blrfl said:

The only place in the closed part of the system where there's an intentional vent to the air is the slave cylinder, which has a path for fluid to leak out if the piston seal fails. The best guess I can come up with is that something happens where the seal leaks just enough to let air through but not so much that the fluid escapes. Could be something as simple as the air side of the seal drying up and shrinking.

I had the same thing happen a couple of times and now make a habit of giving the clutch lever a few squeezes a couple of times a week as I pass by in the garage. That prevented it last year; we'll see what happens when I pull it out this year.

--Mark

Click to expand...

Agreed Mark. Hydraulics were my thang when I was in industry and from my experience, there are several things that hydraulic systems do NOT like:

1) Dirt: clearances between components are extremely small and thus, tolerances are very tight - so any foreign matter in the system is bound to mess things up; (NOTE: tolerances and clearances are not the same thing at all);

2) Water: causes corrosion which leads to crap floating around - see 1) above;

3) Sitting idle for a long time: seals get hard and can leak. Sometimes they come back and sometimes they don't. It's best to exercise the system periodically even when it is out of service, just to keep things fresh. Giving your brake and clutch lever a squeeze or two during the off-season for just that reason is a good practice.

peegee5344 said:

Hi Guys,, must be the season for clutches,, I started mine up today after a long winter's nap and same thing, no clutch action. In the fall I changed the oil with a synthetic, first time with it, Mobil 1 - 5W30.
It's -6C out and not looking to ride but wondering if it's just a bleed of the clutch or did I use a wrong oil.

Click to expand...

The engine oil and hydraulic fluid in the clutch lines don't have anything to do with each other.

--Mark

Yup - totally separate systems.

However, as I understand it, some synthetic engine oils can cause your clutch to slip because like most bikes, the ST1300 has a wet clutch which actually runs in the engine oil.

So, when you say "no clutch action" - do you mean that the clutch is slipping or that pulling on the lever does not disengage the clutch?

MaxPete said:

However, as I understand it, some synthetic engine oils can cause your clutch to slip because like most bikes, the ST1300 has a wet clutch which actually runs in the engine oil.

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That's true of oil in general, dino or synthetic. The energy-conserving formulations have additives to make them slicker, and we've seen a couple of riders here get bit by that.

--Mark

Correct me if I am wrong, but did you say you used 5w-30 oil?
That would be the wrong oil! If you look at the bottle see if it says energy or resource conserving etc. If so get it out of there asap to save your clutch.

Blrfl said:

The only place in the closed part of the system where there's an intentional vent to the air is the slave cylinder, which has a path for fluid to leak out if the piston seal fails. The best guess I can come up with is that something happens where the seal leaks just enough to let air through but not so much that the fluid escapes. Could be something as simple as the air side of the seal drying up and shrinking.

I had the same thing happen a couple of times and now make a habit of giving the clutch lever a few squeezes a couple of times a week as I pass by in the garage. That prevented it last year; we'll see what happens when I pull it out this year.

--Mark

Click to expand...

There is another source for air to enter the system...both master cylinders have vent holes in their caps, and while this is above the rubber diaphragm, moisture can collect on the top of the rubber and it can be sucked down into the housing enough to leak air around the edges.
.02

Igofar said:

There is another source for air to enter the system...both master cylinders have vent holes in their caps, and while this is above the rubber diaphragm, moisture can collect on the top of the rubber and it can be sucked down into the housing enough to leak air around the edges.

Click to expand...

True, although the only failure there that would suck air into the closed part of the system is loss of enough fluid to uncover the hole at the bottom of the reservoir.

I suppose it's also possible for the piston seals at the master cylinder to leak some air if they shrink, too.

--Mark

Igofar said:

Correct me if I am wrong, but did you say you used 5w-30 oil?
That would be the wrong oil! If you look at the bottle see if it says energy or resource conserving etc. If so get it out of there asap to save your clutch.

peegee5344 said:

Hi Guys,, must be the season for clutches,, I started mine up today after a long winter's nap and same thing, no clutch action. In the fall I changed the oil with a synthetic, first time with it, Mobil 1 - 5W30. Peter

Click to expand...

Click to expand...

Ohh.. good call Larry.

Yes, 5W30 is Resource Conserving. This is not wet-clutch compatible oil. Look at the API Service Symbol (aka the doughnout) on the back of the bottle. Bottom part of the circle is what you don't want to see.

T_C said:

Ohh.. good call Larry.

Yes, 5W30 is Resource Conserving. This is not wet-clutch compatible oil. Look at the API Service Symbol (aka the doughnout) on the back of the bottle. Bottom part of the circle is what you don't want to see.

Click to expand...

Arrrgghh,, Thank you gentlemen,, it does say exactly that,, Resource Conserving!
So,, if I drain it out and replace with non RC oil will it have any residual effect or will it go back to normal??
Geeeez,, try and save the world and ..........


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I'd change it with Dino oil, run it a while, change it again.

Sounds good, kinda thought that would work. I'll report back. Had to tuck her back away yesterday, snowed again here. She won't see the sun for a couple of weeks. Hopefully April warms up!
Thanks again for all the help.


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Blrfl said:

True, although the only failure there that would suck air into the closed part of the system is loss of enough fluid to uncover the hole at the bottom of the reservoir.

I suppose it's also possible for the piston seals at the master cylinder to leak some air if they shrink, too.

--Mark

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I don't think I explained it very well (tired) When the black rubber starts getting sucked down inside the master cylinder housing (we've all found that at least once before) the moisture contaminates the fluid and allows the moisture to enter the system. This could be how the SMC and the PCV end up with air and crap inside them so often.

peegee5344 said:

Arrrgghh,, Thank you gentlemen,, it does say exactly that,, Resource Conserving!
So,, if I drain it out and replace with non RC oil will it have any residual effect or will it go back to normal??
Geeeez,, try and save the world and ..........


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

Click to expand...

I would pick up some (Dino) diesel oil in 15w-40 wt. any brand (shell Rotell T, Chevron delo 400LE, Mobil Delvac 1300) etc. and change out the RC oil right away ( don't let it sit for a few weeks) You don't want your clutch plates soaking in that oil, as it will absorb into the clutch discs and cause them to swell and get slippery. Run the bike to get the bike hot, then strap the clutch lever down, this will open the plates and allow more oil to drain, then drain the oil and replace the filter, then fill it with the diesel oil. Run the bike a while then do this again. The diesel oil has alot of detergents and stuff in it, and will do a good job at cleaning everything out.