03 VFR clatter in drivetrain, off throttle

Hi folks,

First time post here - I've had my 03 VFR for about two years it has ~25k miles. My bike has a new noise that I'm hoping you can help me identify. Here are the conditions:

-In gear
-At temperature (and cold too)
-Off throttle/coasting
-Variable with speed (more noise, but not necessarily faster)

I first noticed it at highway speeds when I let off the throttle. It goes away if I gave it enough throttle to cruise or accelerate. I attached a video on the center stand, idling in 6th gear. If I pull in the clutch, the noise stops (with wheel spinning). I'm a gearhead but relatively new to bikes. My gut says "major transmission problem!" But I'm hoping one of you might be able to shed some light.

Thanks!!

[video]https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B8v61r-3BhtnUEZBOGtQWldvdXc[/video]

 

Hopefully it's just the cam chain tensioners starting to go, mine lasted a little longer than yours. I first noticed it if I was sitting idling in traffic, get on the gas and it goes away let off the throttle and it would usually come back. It wasn't a big deal to change them and there are more than a few write-ups on how to do it. Some involve lots of work but there is a way to do it without having to remove too much and get it done in a few hours. Some have had luck trying different oil as well. This is the short post from doing mine.
http://vfrworld.com/forums/showthread.php/48342-Cam-chain-tensioner?highlight=chain+tensioner

 

Somewhere between 10 and 15 seconds into the video I see in the left corner of the video screen what seems to be your chain slapping up and down a bit. Have you ruled that out as a source of the noise?

 

My first thought was chain too, as deceleration tends to reverse the load on the chain (as I understand it) and if the chain is loose or worn out, will make a clatter. Could be the CCT, but check your chain and sprockets first.

 

Check your chain slack as mention above. If all good then CCT would be next.

 

What about at idle in neutral. Does it make the noise. If so what happens if your engage / pull in the clutch. Its more than likely one of three things. Cam chain tensioners, drive chain,( after almost 9 yrs the one thorn in my side about this bike is the chain maint. Of course I ride at least 10 miles of dirt roads daily. The grunge will pack up in front of the front sprocket due to the wax/grease sling. Remove the clutch piston and clean the cover and area behind it well. If you don't cleaning the chain and sprockets is useless). Or the clutch basket. I replaced the clutch basket and clutch at 35,000. Nothing wrong with the clutchplates or friction discs, just the basket had gotten sloppy. It was a annoyance not anything to worry over. Along with the CCTs around 30,000. My factory chain and sprockets went 20,000 miles. After that I replaced them again at 40,000. I cleaned them twice a month. Sometimes more often due to these wet sandy roads. A bad chain will make a awful noise. Maint. Is key. These motors rarely have internal transmission issues or any major issues . Start with cleaning and lubeing the heck out your chain. Cost nothing but some time and elbow grease. I use WD40. Its fish oil and least destructive to the rubber rings on the chain. Been useing it for as long as I can rember with never a problem. Then use a good chain wax. Start with the simple things first. Keep us updated.

 

Chain slack first as it is easy to check. The noise from my bike was the same but would do it when sitting in neutral in traffic when warmed up. It would also do as you described but doing it when not moving took the chain adjustment out of the equation.

 

a worn out drive chain could be your problem, and OEM chains are almost always needing replacement by 25K miles, so you're due.

Resetting the tension on a bad chain isn't gonna help.

 

Also check that chain for tight links. If you find tight links that don't move free, again its chain and sprocket time.

 

LOL ... I'd add to this, but everyone else pretty much hit all the points I'd would have suggested.

 

Thanks everyone!!

I thought it was chain & sprockets too so I replaced them (they were due). The video was taken with new & adjusted chain. I was worried that I tightened the master link too much but if I pull in the clutch with the wheel spinning all the racket & chain slapping goes away (which is consistent with what I noticed on the road with the old chain & sprockets).

So... that leads me to believe the chain slappage in the video must be driven by lash or some kind of resistance in the engine/transmission? The noise only ever shows up when in gear, and not under throttle... and always goes away when I pull the clutch. I thought maybe CCT but all the videos/posts I've seen about that describe noise at idle. I haven't noticed anything (maybe because I've been focused on what happens in gear?), but will check tonight & try to get a video.

Are there any other CCT specific details I should pay attention to? Does that noise tend to be on left/right front/back high/low? Does it change with engine temperature? Engine speed? Idle/in gear?

Side note - if it is CCT's do I need to park it until I fix them?

I appreciate the help!

 

My CCT made noise while riding too, one time while accelerating to merge onto the highway it made so much noise I thought it was going to grenade on me. That was when I decided that it couldn't wait and had to get done.

 

2005 Honda VFR with bad CCT, before repair: https://youtu.be/C5k4mfMGztM

After repair: https://youtu.be/leL_ox6Rv9E

Does it sound like this?

 

I think it's your chain being too loose. In fact, in a very short few frames of your video, it shows your chain slapping up and down too much.

 

Thanks for the input, everyone. After some more careful listening... I'm convinced it's a CCT issue. I think there's probably enough CCT posts for me to take it from here...

 

hey, please let us know if that fixed it. Mines been doing the same thing since I bought it. That was at 14,500 miles. It now has just over 40,000 miles. Never got worst, figure if I make it to 50k then I'll change the cct's and do a valve check/adj. (ofcourse I said the same thing at 20k, 30k, 40k.....)

 

hi i have the same issue but only does it in gear , in nutral the bike is quiet abeit a bit of noise from the gearbox which goes when clutch is pulled in , please can you update us if you have been able to cure this thanks paul

 

Sorry I went quiet for a while. I hate to admit it.... but I was wrong.

I first noticed this clatter on the highway. I decided to start with chain & sprockets (since they were due anyway). Once I got the new chain on I put the bike up on the stand and put it in gear. That's when the noise in the video showed up... which I recognized as the same noise from the highway.

Anyway - once I tensioned the chain and rode the bike with the new chain... all of the noise went away. If i put it back up on the stand & put it in gear some of the noise comes back... but maybe that is normal? It was the first time I ran it on the stand & so I wasn't comparing the new chain "apples to apples".

Long story short - the new chain & sprockets seemed to fix the problem I was chasing. Is the noise on the stand another problem? Maybe.

Lesson learned: ride it first!

 

Yes the chain needs a bit of power tension to make it a bit quieter, putting it on the center stand has it no load, hence, if it's not perfectly adjusted which in this case you don't want, it would be to tight for riding, it will make that slack noise. Mine does it, no biggie, on the road nope.

 

Just remember when the bike is on the stand the chain is at a completely different angle to when you are sitting on it and there is more slack in the chain on the stand than when riding and this can also cause slapping