'13 GRiSO needs new clutch at 4K Miles?

Once it's off, & you're looking at it end on, try operating it. You'll find out how little movement is involved. It's next to nothing. So with no audible or tactile feedback, it's just a knack. And gets easier with practice.

Hello good folk,

As it turns out I can't find the space to work on this, and with two young kids and no summer camp I can't find the time either....!

But I need this GRiSO up and running!!!

Any advice on shops in the NYC area (I live in Sunnyside Queens) which could do this work?

1: Gaskets replaced
2: Oil pressure sensor replaced
3: Clutch tweaked

My mechanic who works on my '80 doesn't like working on newer stuff, and its hard to find a small shop that works on Guzzi's... the brooklyn Guzzi shop won't fit it in until September....

Thanks!
Richard

Have you considered outside of the city a bit?

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Jim Hamlin is [many superlatives deleted to save space ] a super tech.

Bill

Wow, that guy and his shop looks super awesome, but it is a bit out of the way for me... unless he could do the work on the spot...?

Any other suggestions??

r.

whyrichard wrote:

Wow, that guy and his shop looks super awesome, but it is a bit out of the way for me... unless he could do the work on the spot...?

Any other suggestions??

r.

"On the spot," meaning "while you wait?"  Ask him.

Your needs don't sound especially daunting, but not sure what gaskets you mean.

And, looks to be only 65 miles or so from you -- next door by Guzzi-dealer standards -- but I don't know your logistical and other constraints.

You might even call and ask Jim about him coming to get it.  Might sound far-fetched, but he launched a trailer on a 1200-mile r/t to pick up a newly sold V7 that had just left his shop the day before and had a failed fuel filter.  My point is that he is a high-end guy.  

Unlike the new buyer, might (understandably) cost you a fee, but it beats doing what you can't to do.

If that's undoable on your end, I am, regrettably, all out of ideas.

Good luck.

Bill

Bill Hagan wrote:

whyrichard wrote:

Wow, that guy and his shop looks super awesome, but it is a bit out of the way for me... unless he could do the work on the spot...?

Any other suggestions??

r.

"On the spot," meaning "while you wait?"  Ask him.

Your needs don't sound especially daunting, but not sure what gaskets you mean.

And, looks to be only 65 miles or so from you -- next door by Guzzi-dealer standards -- but I don't know your logistical and other constraints.

You might even call and ask Jim about him coming to get it.  Might sound far-fetched, but he launched a trailer on a 1200-mile r/t to pick up a newly sold V7 that had just left his shop the day before and had a failed fuel filter.  My point is that he is a high-end guy.  

Unlike the new buyer, might (understandably) cost you a fee, but it beats doing what you can't to do.

If that's undoable on your end, I am, regrettably, all out of ideas.

Good luck.

Bill

Until the oil pressure fault is diagnosed it would be very unwise to ride the bike/ start the engine.

TBH, the work on the gaskets, clutch master cylinder or pressure sender is not a ‘new’ guzzi type repair. It’s a careful hand with the right tools- no need for electronics or diagnostic fault code readers.
A good old school guzzi engineer would do a far better job than a crap new type guzzi cowboy.

The GRiSO is at Jim's shop!

Thank you all for your advice and guidance on this! I am relieved... and very happy to have a new guzzi shop a stones throw away.

Will be in touch about results...

can't wait to have this GRiSO up and running fully!

r.

Hey,

So I took the GRiSO to Hamlin Cycles. Here is what he tells me:

... the clutch master cylinder and slave cylinder were faulty causing the clutch plate to not fully disengage. This caused premature wear and slippage. This was probably caused by neglect and corrosion. The clutch circuit contains much less fluid as compared to the braking circuits and the fluid is prone to absorb moisture over time and needs to be replaced at least every two years regardless of miles ridden. The fluid in your bike appeared to be original and possibly 7 years old (2013). Clutch replacement in the GRiSO is a motor out job and runs around $2500 for parts and labor.

Yikes.

So, question for you all... should I get the work done on the bike... the clutch hydrolics replacement and the gasket costs a total of $1200 (and this is already done) as well as the clutch replacement $2500?

Should I offer to my friend to buy the bike for the costs of all these repairs? Do you think that makes sense?

I asked Jim for an appraisal of the bike, and he said if it were in great condition it would be $5200. Considering the corrosion on the bike (I think Jim has laser eyes and is a perfectionist, the bike didn't look that bad to me) said it could be maybe $3500 (!). Knock off the work on the bike and we have a bike worth very little... so sad!

What are your impressions?

Thanks,
Richard

Jim has an excellent reputation but I have to say I find this diagnosis I bit odd.

If the clutch had been slipping terribly it may well of cooked the friction plate but a complete failure of both the master and slave cylinders??? Was any attemp made to 'Tune' the plunger in the lever? The fact that the system worked, albeit improperly, would indicate to me that both master and slave were working. It is true that CARC bikes are murder on their clutch fluid, (V11's are as well.) but since it was working I'm rather confused as to the terminal nature of the damage.

Clutch replacement is a big job. Complete clutch is $760-ish US so $2K + might be reasonable.

I'd really want to check everything before going down that route. Check pushrod length etc.

Hey Pete!

More details on Jim’s diagnosis...

At first he thought it was the master cylinder. I asked about the plunger and he said rebuilding it wasn’t worth the time compared to a new part. He changed the master cylinder and said it seems to actually be the clutch itself. He said there was a fifteen percent chance that it swapping out the slave cylinder would solve it. I said lets try that but alas it didn’t solve the issue.

He quoted two thousand five hundred for the clutch replacement....

Does this jive now?

R.

Adjusting the plunger doesn't involve rebuilding anything. It's a fifteen minute adjustment.

Swapping the master should of solved it, unless the new master was used with the old, unadjusted, lever in which case the problem would persist.

Was the clutch slipping at any point? If not I'm having a hard time seeing it as being the clutch itself. But I'm not there and don't have the bike in front of me.

Oz1200Guzzi wrote:

Disconnecting the quick-connect is actually quite easy:
- Disconnect the fuel pump connector
- Try and start your bike (it won't, no fuel pressure, though it might catch a bit)
- Disconnect the quick-connect - it will easily as there is no longer any fuel pressure inside it

As they say in Francais - Voila!

I find that this step is critical to avoid breaking connector or plastic fuel line. Found out the hard way and trashed the pricey hardened plastic fuel line/connector. Getting pissed off and yanking it to firmly can also cause blindness.....