6th gen loud rattle / clacking noise at idle from cam chain slap

Hi, I figured I'd post this thread to help anyone else who might be having this problem. This video should explain the sound fairly well. Loud ticking/clacking noise in 6th gen VFR cylinder - YouTube
If you take a long socket extension and press your ear to the open end and the other end against the cylinder, you can tell the noise is coming from inside and not from the exhaust headers, which was one of the first things we thought the problem might be (a leaky exhaust). The previous owner said he took the bike to multiple different shops, and no one could tell him what was causing the noise!

Well, I thought it sounded like cam chain slap, and it turns out I was right. The automatic cam chain tensioners had failed, and weren't taking up the slack properly. Now, rather than replace with new tensioners from Honda, we decided to go with a manual tensioner assembly (my own experience with other bikes as well as the consensus online as researched by my roommates seemed to show that the automatic ones were prone to failure). I don't have the link to it at the moment, but I'm sure I could grab it if someone wants it. It was basically a kit designed for the CBRs. Disregarding the manual and various installation guides, you can get to the upper tensioner using a socket and extension without removing the throttle body assembly. Just make sure you have small hands and a short wrench or a crow's foot to tighten down the lock nut after adjusting the manual tensioner. The manual adjusters we got were imperial. It's as 'easy' as pulling off the tank and airbox, popping out the tensioner, dropping in the manual replacement, adjusting it, and throwing it all back together. Can be done in an hour if you're properly prepared for the job (we weren't.) Rattling went away completely, and now there's just the whirr of the cam chain over the guides. It's almost whisper quiet.

There's some pictures over on this thread, since we didn't take any. Cam Chain Tensioner Replacement, Vtec - Motorcycle Maintenance - VFR Discussion

 

Good story,Thanks. :biggrin: But the same thing's been posted thousands of times on thousands of bike forums, mostly Honda. Honda camchain tensioners have sucked forever.

If it's actually as "whisper quiet" as you claim, it's relaxing, tame, and unobtrusive,;but that's not why we ride ! Decibels below the more special gear-driven models know to frighten dogs, the perfection of your 6th gen is a modern miracle of some damn perfection. Ride your imported refrigerator, ride your GE garbage disposal that hasn't broken for 25 years, ride your Volvo taking your kids to private academies, ride your no-touch, self-cleaning electronic cooktop of virgin carbonfibre.....it's boring !! Give me a bike that breaks down sometimes, so i can live simply and learn about mechanics or usually electrics, and makes gear noises just like a blinkin RC30, be Goud !

 

Oh, I definitely prefer the loud TBR pipes and cam whine of my gear-driven 5th gen over this 6th gen

I started this thread here because I didn't see one on VFRworld, and I thought that needed fixing. Any bike with automatic tensioners likes to have this problem, not just Hondas. I had a similar problem on my old Yamaha. I don't really see the point in automatic tensioners, since in all my experience they need replacing about as often as manual ones need adjusting. They're all spring driven rather than hydraulic like a belt on a car, and tend to stop doing their job before long.

 

Does the stock cct need to be keyed to get out; or just undo bolts and remove. To set the new Manual unit did you run the motor and adjust?
Thank you for any help.
Wayne

 

replacing the auto tensioner with a manual one, can easy over tighten the chain and cause more problems.

 

cct for manual

Yes but I've seen the manual one adjusted while running. Turn back a pinch by fingers and cam chain noise turn forward a pinch at a time till noise gone, then quarter turn more and lock it off. Want I need to know is "do you have to key the unit to take it out...or not.
Thank you though.

 

manual adj is just adding another thing that could go wrong on a long trip, auto adj is for peace of mind. I like to fix things but not again and again. Fix it once and do it right and move on. nothing worse than being stuck with a broken bike in the summer time. I only have one bike to ride and it has to go perfect or at least able to ride. I went though this with my Yamaha-stayed with auto-one less thing to worry about. Manual adj is for race track bikes not vfr's. I think of the vfr as the endurance sport bike. And everything so far I have seen the 2006 and up vfr have the least problems.:banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana::banana:

 

Yeah your right. For a hundred bucks probably well worth it: if in there anyway. Thank you again. It's only there for one stop after riding 5 minutes then gone. I'm going to leave it alone till it gets worse. Doesn't happen in warm weather either. Must be on the verge. One long trip planned for a week from now. Hmmmm.

 

I need to do mine. This thread on VFRD states that you do indeed need to key it to remove it. http://www.vfrdiscussion.com/forum/index.php/topic/38619-cam-chain-tensioner-replacement-vtec/