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Something Is Bugging Me

15K views 48 replies 29 participants last post by  CBRpilot 
#1 ·
Okay, i'm going to get flamed for this, but I feel I need to say something.
Perhaps it's just me. Perhaps it's just my R3. I don't really know at this point.

I have owned and ridden many motorcycles over the years.
Dirtbikes, motocross bikes, quads, and street bikes.

Sadly... my R3 has the WORST shifting transmission I have ever felt in my life.
It's just total junk. It hangs up between gears, false-neutrals, vague inconsistent feedback. Every once in awhile... it snicks right in. But that's about 50% of the time. 50/50 is not a good ratio.

I thought it might be me. I thought it might need to break-in a little bit.
So I gave it time. 1,200 miles.

If I baby it.... it works better. Shift it slowly, at lower rpm's. It does okay.
I did not buy the R3 to baby it. LoL

Everytime I shift it, I wonder if it's going to actually shift or not.
It's all I think about when I ride it. Which is stupid. I shouldn't be thinking about the transmission at all.

SO.... i'm probably going to sell it. Hopefully. If I can find someone who wants it.
If I had known the transmission was such a piece of crap, I never would have bought this thing.

I feel sad about it. But what can I do? :(
 
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#2 ·
First thing I'd check is that your chain tension is within spec. That's been the cause of the majority of my transmission issues and unexplained false neutrals over the years (taking into account the occasional first to second gear change laziness on my part) . In my case adjusting the chain tension usually caused the problem to go away.

Sent from my SM-G900I using Tapatalk
 
#3 ·
Both suggestions above.
I too experience the false neutrals and an occasional miss shift. But, that's mostly when riding mild. Aggressive riding makes all those go away, at least for me. After going full synthetic, I immediately noticed easier clutching and less effort needed at the shift lever. Check for both 90 degree angles at shift lever/rod and rod/shift arm.

Yep, an over tightened or overly loose chain could cause some shifting issues.
 
#4 ·
Everybody who has ridden my R3 has said the opposite, that it shifts like absolute butter compared to their bikes. I was just saying the other day that after my second service (I did it early, about 2400mi) I noticed a HUGE improvement in my shifts.

Definitely try these suggestions. If that doesn't help things, maybe it just wasn't the right bike for you.
 
#5 ·
Definitely try these suggestions. If that doesn't help things, maybe it just wasn't the right bike for you.
It's not anything suggested. It's not the chain, or the lever, or the oil, or anything like that.
It's INSIDE the transmission. The way it is designed. It's junk. Built to a price-point.

I don't really know what I am going to do. I like everything else about the bike. I just don't like the way it shifts.
:|
 
#6 ·
Ive only ridden 5 or 6 different bikes long enough to have a solid impression, but this is probably the smoothest gearbox I've seen, especially after switching to synthetic. It just ticks right in, never misses neutral, each gear has a solid "place" to it. Up, down, Rev match with or without the clutch it just pops in.

I do have aftermarket rearsets though, which I feel help a ton. The stock foot controls are cheap steel and have a clumsy feel which could be part of the problem for you, especially compared to the cbr with much better components
 
#7 ·
Hmmm...I have only ridden two other bikes and I'd have to agree with you. I don't think its junk (but my only reference points are a CBR125 and a Ninja 250) but I also find that I'm hitting neutral a lot and that I feel like I have to 'ram it' into gears sometimes. Other times, it just goes right in. Weird, thought it was just me. Maybe someone can chime in on how we can check and adjust the chain / rod or whatever?
 
#8 ·
I spent quite a bit of time adjusting the lever when I put on my aftermarket rearsets, to get it set up for my natural foot position and range of movement. I think the bike needs a very positive change, and without the right movement it can miss. I've had 1 miss in about 700 miles, and that was me rushing the shift.

It's also quite a noisy change as well, you know when it's found the next gear as you can hear the click.

I would try adjusting the rod and lever position before you decide to sell, you might find it does enough for you...you've nothing to lose trying it ;)
 
#10 ·
If you're still in warranty it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have a talk with the dealership. This is a very well sorted tranny in my experience. It's definitely at its smoothest when you're shifting in the powerband. Occasionally I will miss 2nd, but only when I'm "scootering" at low revs and fail to give the shift lever an authoritative poke.
 
#12 ·
If you're still in warranty it probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have a talk with the dealership.
This. There may be something wrong with your bike.

I'm new to the forum and don't actually have an R3, but I won't let that stop me from expressing an opinion! Ive ridden bikes for 40 years and recently crashed my GSXR. I'll probably replace that bike with a an R3 set up for fast street and track riding. I did a test ride of an R3 and was surprised by how silky smooth the transmission was. I'm surprised how stoked I am about this little bike!
 
#11 ·
Mine is still brand new with under 150 miles on it but I consider mine to be very smooth and easy to use. I've had no misses or hangups and comparing it to other bikes I've been on, this is by far one of the easiest I've changed gears on.
Again, it's still new but so far, I like mine. Hopefully, it doesn't degrade over time.
 
#16 ·
...Perhaps it's just my R3...
I will surmise that it is "just your R3", and that something is out of adjustment or out of spec. Many others, including myself when I twice test rode the R3, have found the R3's transmission to be very smooth.

... I don't really know at this point... But what can I do?
You can take it to the dealer, if it is still under warranty.
You can take it to a trusted mechanic, if it is not under warranty.
You can try adjusting the clutch, the cables, the levers, the shifters, etc., etc., to Yamaha specs, if you are mechanically inclined.
You can trade the bike in for something else, if you don't want to deal with the problem.
 
#19 ·
Thanks for all the feedback. Some great comments in there. I'm not ready to give up yet.
Someone mentioned taking it to the dealer to have it checked out.
Yes, it's still under warranty, but I don't think a dealer will do anything about it. They will
most likely just tell me that's the way it is, and there is nothing wrong with it.

Some of you mentioned adjusting things. It's not about that. Everything is adjusted perfectly.
It's the "feeling" inside the transmission. Sometimes it works great. But too many times it doesn't.
Maybe it's just me. I don't really know. I tried shifting it many different ways.
I was trying to see if I was doing something wrong. But in the end, it seems more random.
Sometimes it is okay, sometimes it's a piece of crap.

Oh well.... nothing is perfect in this world. If the situation changes, i'll post an update.
 
#26 ·
Hey. I know how you feel. I have the same problem. there is 50/50 chance my shift will go wrong. Sometimes I shift in to third and it shows on the dash that it is in third but after 10 sec (ish) it drops back into second. Or after I shift into third or fourth my shift rod becomes loose and I have to drop the throttle to fix the problem. I tried everything mentioned above and it didn't work. It seems that when I ride I concentrate more on shifting rather than on driving the bike. The last hope I have is changing the rearsets and maybe changing it to GP shifting as I think it has something to do with my big foot (11 size).
 
#27 ·
Do they make a factory pro shift kit for these? I'm sure it'ld sort out your problems for $150 (or whatever they cost) and 1/2hr labor.
That being said, I have no problems with mine at all, shifts gears with the slightest touch and always at full rev's
 
#36 ·
I had all the same issues as you, but eventually they went away. I don't think it was break in or tune ups, and I didn't adjust anything. I think it was mainly me. Being my first bike, I immediately blamed myself, so I started pressing harder on the shift lever when shifting up/down. That seemed to immediately stop the issue. Especially shifting from 2nd to 3rd, it used to pop out of 3rd if I was accelerating briskly, almost as if it never "fully" shifted into 3rd.

At first it was annoying to have to use so much more force when shifting, but now I'm used to it, to the point of not even thinking about it, and I haven't had a shift problem for months now.

Sent from my SM-G928V using Tapatalk
 
#37 ·
I had all the same issues as you, but eventually they went away. I don't think it was break in or tune ups, and I didn't adjust anything. I think it was mainly me.
I am wondering the same thing. It could be me, and not the R3.
I rode the Fireblade tonight, but tomorrow night I will be on the R3.
I am going to let my friend with the FZ-09 ride my R3. See what he thinks about it.

He says his FZ-09 sometimes does the same thing my R3 is doing.
He said he used to ride an R6 that did the same thing. He thinks it's just the way Yamaha transmissions are.
Could be, I suppose.
 
#42 ·
UPDATE:

FZ-09 guy rode my R3 tonight.
No problems. Everything was normal.
Then I rode it.
One false-neutral between 1st and 2nd, but other than that, it did fine.

SO.... in conclusion:
Either it's ME.... or..... my R3 is MOODY!
Sometimes it is in a bad mood. Sometimes it cooperates with me.
I guess I need to pet it more, and talk nice to it.
:laugh:
 
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