I’m new to the forum, so hope this really warrants a separate topic, apologies if not.
I’ve had my V100 for a few days, it’s my first Guzzi and I’m not entirely sure what to expect. It’s only done 250 miles and I’m running it in carefully, per the manual.
I did a 140 mile ride into the Dales today, continuing the running in process. The issue I’m encountering is that, when downshifting for an approaching bend, there is a significant delay between me releasing the clutch lever and the clutch actually releasing and the gear engaging.
This is happening at modest revs (I’m keeping below 4,500 rpm at all times). I’m not dropping cogs as a substitute for braking: I’ve planned the corner, reduced revs in a higher gear and when the revs are low enough, I’m pulling in the clutch lever, engaging the lower gear and releasing the clutch lever……and waiting, waiting, waiting for the lower gear to actually engage. Given the delay I’m finding myself having to use the brakes when engine braking would have been entirely sufficient in normal circumstances. It feels entirely like a weird delay in the clutch rather than a gear problem, the gears are fine, albeit a little reluctant to downshift from 5-4 without a firm press of the lever.
Could this be the same issue as addressed in the ‘Stelvio clutch…’ thread? Is it ‘normal’ for MGs? Is it a problem that needs to be raised prior to the running in service? Any advice or insights welcome please.
BTW I’m not at all technical….I rely entirely on properly trained and qualified people to actually fettle the bike!
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No idea if its a “thing” other than my V100S doesn’t have this issue. Whether I use the quickshifter or manually change gear it works quite positively and quickly.
Just to check - are you absolutely certain that the clutch is not engaging? So you close the throttle, the engine drops down to idle speed, and then suddenly speeds up again with a jerk when the clutch eventually engages??
If you open the throttle when in this state, do the revs suddenly climb right up high?
I’m asking these i order to establish exactly what is happening.
Steve, the revs don’t climb with a jerk after I’ve downshifted, they climb smoothly.
Possibly the best way to imagine it is that when downshifting, the clutch behaves as if I’ve released it about one or two seconds after I actually have let go of the lever. When it releases, it does so as smoothly as I have done.
The delay means I don’t have the same level of engine braking as I’d wanted and so have to resort to the brakes more often approaching corners as the bike is not letting me engage the correct gear for the bend quickly enough.
It only does this downshifting. It’s absolutely fine going up the gears. I’ve really only noticed it on the approach to bends when I prepare for the bend early enough that I wouldn’t normally need to brake.
I haven’t tried revving the engine during this delay (in response to your question) and would rather not experiment with this on the approach to a corner purely as a safety issue in case the bike accelerates just as I need to slow down.
How interesting. It’s almost as if it’s a slipper clutch, and the slipper bit is hyperactive.
I’m afraid I don’t know what could be going on, except to say that mine definitely doesn’t do it. I bought mine early this year, so it was probably built in 2023.
There are a couple of things I’m really struggling with which put me off the bike, and yet they are trivial and nobody else seems bothered by them: I hate the loud bang and jerk forwards when engaging 1st gear from standstill, and the loud bangs from the transmission at every gear change. The only silent gear changes are when using the quick shifter. The other thing I dislike is the idle speed. It’s supposed to be 1400 +/- 100rpm, and mine reads 1500rpm when idling, so it’s correct, but I wish it were slower.
Sorry! Thread drift.
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No never heard of this. could it be flywheel inertia, which is a Guzzi ‘thing’, and you’ve never experienced it before? Again I don’t know much of anything about the V100 flywheel and how it might compare to older models. But I have experienced situations, on the old ‘big block’ Tonti frame bikes, where engine braking ‘is not happening quick enough’.
I went to the MG Club meet at Wetwang yesterday evening and interestingly the clutch (and everything else) behaved impeccably on the 50 mile round trip. It was a straighter road than the Dales route I took the other day that highlighted the issue, so perhaps its either a teething issue that will settle down or an intermittent thing that only happens in certain conditions. I’ll keep an eye on it and report back as run-in progresses.
On the V100 there is virtually no noticeable flywheel inertia, which is why it has to have such an absurdly fast idle. Also, any bike designed for a quick shifter must have an extra-light flywheel because the engine rpm has to change almost instantly.
The effect of a heavier flywheel is simulated by keeping the throttle cracked open a tiny amount when you close the twistgrip. This is all done for you by the ECU and the fly-by-wire throttle, and it is so you don’t get a nasty shunt when closing the “throttle” (twistgrip). Also it allows the revs to fall more gently when you are doing a manual gear change, thus making it easier to be smooth.*
It seems unlikely, but certainly possible, that @Mike_H is feeling the delayed engine braking and mistakenly thinking it’s clutch slip (or delayed engagement).
*There is another reason: exhaust emissions tend to be particularly bad on a closed throttle overrun, so giving the throttle a “soft close” can sometimes form part of the emission control regime.
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I agree . My v100s clutch clonks so loud in first it wakes the neighbours. The dealer told me it would improve with use. Two thousand miles and still no better. They now tell me there is a recall to do with the clutch hydraulic seals and I should have been notified by Piaggio.
The recall won’t improve the issue, because it is a preventative measure, not curative. Mine’s been done and it behaves exactly the same.
The fundamental problem is clutch drag: even when fully actuated, the clutch drags a lot. MG know about it because they have completely re-engineered the clutch for the V100 Stelvio. I strongly suspect the new clutch will be fitted to the Mandello when it receives its first model refresh in a year or two.
Meanwhile we early adopters have to put up with gear changes that sound like gunshots and a first gear engagement that sounds and feels like you’ve been rear-ended by a 40-tonner.
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Thanks for the info. It’s a shame because apart from the clutch mine is a great bike. PIAGGIO should modify our bikes and fit the stelvio clutch system.
It sounds as if it’s a real problem for some Mandellos, but apart from the intermittent clutch delay and a slight reluctance to downshift from 5th (which needs a bit of encouragement), my gearbox is at least as smooth if not better than the GS I traded in. Still, I’ve only put 300 miles on it in a week of ownership, so very early days.
Having been overseas for a few months im now back and collected my V100S from where it had been stored in my absence. I rode it from South London to near Gloucester mainly on A roads - Pangbourne, Wantage, Fairford, Lechlade, Cirencester and home. The clutch and gear change was as sweet as a nut. The quickshifter worked well changing upand i dont use it going down.
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Not had a really modern bike for some time now so wonder if this could be some form of fancy electronics working alongside the traction control to ensure down-shifts are engaged really smoothly without the risk of the rear locking up for a fraction of a second?