Is something wrong?

[jasonanderson1]

hi everyone. Recently when i havebeen riding lately my 400ex and shift once in awhile either from 1st to 2nd or 2nd to 3rd i go into neutral. Could this be a cluth or bottom end problem? please ehlp i dont know much about these symptoms. My 400 was purchased in august brandnew off the floor.

[slightlybent47]

No you are just not shifting it correctly. Mine dose that to, on my ex and on my KLX250.
I took the 250 to the dealer and they could never get it to go into a false neutral. I can jump on it and get it into a false neutral almost every time if I want.

Just make sure you’re shifting correctly and you should have no problems.
Sometimes with ridding boots it’s hard to shift correctly.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
No you are just not shifting it correctly. Mine dose that to, on my ex and on my KLX250.
I took the 250 to the dealer and they could never get it to go into a false neutral. I can jump on it and get it into a false neutral almost every time if I want.

Just make sure you’re shifting correctly and you should have no problems.
Sometimes with ridding boots it’s hard to shift correctly.

ok thanx...because it happen quite a few time when i was riding it. It just goes in. Its also hard to shift sometimes. Like if im down shifting i have apply some force to get out of reverse once in awhile.

[slightlybent47]

Check the free play in the lever and adjust it. That might help a bit.
What kind of oil are you using? Some synthetic oil's can make the clutch not work right.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
Check the free play in the lever and adjust it. That might help a bit.

ok why could i have been shifting without the clutch if theyre not enough free play or what could the deal be?... like i thought it locked up on me but it had just been really hard to get it out. thanx for anmswering my questions.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
Check the free play in the lever and adjust it. That might help a bit.
What kind of oil are you using? Some synthetic oil's can make the clutch not work right.

and im running castrol 10w-40 i bought at walmart. Is that ok?

[slightlybent47]

Is it a synthetic oil?

[slightlybent47]

As long as it non synthetic it should be ok.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
Is it a synthetic oil?

The bottle says nothing about being synthetic or not. Its a 5 quart bottle of castrol gtx 10w-40 anti-sludge motor oil from wal mart.

[slightlybent47]

If it’s time for a oil change go ahead and do that and see if it still shifts hard.
How old is the bike? It could be the clutch but I would do the lever adjustments and change the oil if it needs it, first before I look at the clutch. You may need to ride it a bit with the new oil for it to make a change.

I hope that helps.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
If it’s time for a oil change go ahead and do that and see if it still shifts hard.
How old is the bike? It could be the clutch but I would do the lever adjustments and change the oil if it needs it, first before I look at the clutch. You may need to ride it a bit with the new oil for it to make a change.

I hope that helps.

yea thanx well mi changes the oil last weeka nd rode it 3 times since the bike has only been rode for 5 months since i bought it brandnew off the floor in august. It only shifted hard once tho like once...could i just be a fluke that it happened?...and the clutch adjsutments seem fine when i pull it in it rolls loose fine. Could it be the wether ive been riding it in? Ive been riding in below freezing wether everything is frozen and water freezes in my tread and i go on some ice.

[slightlybent47]

If it just dose it when it’s cold and stops after it warms up then it mite be just that.
Even if it’s real cold I would think after it warmed up it would be ok. But then again I’m a Texan and we don’t have that kind of cold weather down here. You might be on to something though.
If it’s that cold I’d go with a lighter oil say 10w 30 or 10w 20. surly someone that rides in cold weather would be better at answering that.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
If it just dose it when it’s cold and stops after it warms up then it mite be just that.
Even if it’s real cold I would think after it warmed up it would be ok. But then again I’m a Texan and we don’t have that kind of cold weather down here. You might be on to something though.
If it’s that cold I’d go with a lighter oil say 10w 30 or 10w 20. surly someone that rides in cold weather would be better at answering that.

ok welll thaqnx for all your help. You really think i couldve blown my clutch only after 4 - 5 months??

[slightlybent47]

No I highly doubt it, not unless it had a defect. I have a 07 that I raced for a year and then had it built and have been racing it with the stock clutch in it for the last year and it still works fine ”so far”. One of them “yanks” :eek: (no offence) will have to recommend a cold weather oil for you.

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by slightlybent47
No I highly doubt it, not unless it had a defect. I have a 07 that I raced for a year and then had it built and have been racing it with the stock clutch in it for the last year and it still works fine ”so far”. One of them “yanks” :eek: (no offence) will have to recommend a cold weather oil for you.

ok i dont get the "one of them yanks" part tho haha thanx tho.

[exrider12]

You cant use car oil in a quad... It has special friction modifiers in it for cars. I would reccomend draining it ASAP and putting quad oil in.

[slightlybent47]

No lawnmower oil is the best; I’d go with a 5w80 with goober smucher inhibitors in it.:eek: :eek: :eek: :eek:

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by exrider12
You cant use car oil in a quad... It has special friction modifiers in it for cars. I would reccomend draining it ASAP and putting quad oil in.

its 10w-40 exactly what the manual says to use...so wat do i use? everyone says to got walmart and buy that.

[slightlybent47]

Originally posted by jasonanderson1
its 10w-40 exactly what the manual says to use...so wat do i use? everyone says to got walmart and buy that.

He is yankin your chain.

Just about any 10w 40 non synthetic motor oil will work, any brand you wish.
The key to long engine life is frequent oil and filter changes. Remember the bike only holds 2 quarts and it has to use that to both cool and lubricate the motor. And oil will degrade even if you don’t ride it. Once you ride it for even a few hours and then park it the oil will break down because of the carbon that’s in the oil from riding it.

There are many threads on this try a search and see what you can find.

[fishnfergie]

No just because its non synthetic does not mean its ok for wet clutch engines. (which is what your atv is) Look on the seal on the back of the oil bottle and make sure it does NOT say energy conserving.

Any way that would not make the clutch hard it would make it slip and you would get no power to the ground...

My guess is you are not shifting correctly, don't take this the wrong way but is this your first atv?

[jasonanderson1]

Originally posted by fishnfergie
No just because its non synthetic does not mean its ok for wet clutch engines. (which is what your atv is) Look on the seal on the back of the oil bottle and make sure it does NOT say energy conserving.

Any way that would not make the clutch hard it would make it slip and you would get no power to the ground...

My guess is you are not shifting correctly, don't take this the wrong way but is this your first atv?

well i had a yz-85 before this...if that counts.

[fishnfergie]

Yeah so you know how to shift I was just wandering if this was the first hand clutch/foot shift you have owned.

I got my first ATV a couple of summers ago and I always fell into neutral if I had to do a 1-2 or a 2-1 shift, but It has not happened after the first couple of times I rode so I figured it was just me.