2009 Ten just blew
 

Hi mate. How goes this crusade? I've not been an owner long, just bought 09 which now has 12 600km on it.....and yep, gearbox has just gone!
Can't say I noticed anything change. I was doing about 70km/h in 3rd, shifted to 4th, and it made a hell of a racket. Went bang into 1st by the feel of it (luckily I was hard on the brake and had no one behind me) and she was locked!! 35min walk later and glad my old ute started so I could go pick it up!!
Tomorrow afternoon I will PM you the bike details if that helps? I might even call Yamaha myself and see what they say...
Otherwise it's going to be a learning curve to rebuild a gearbox I guess!!
Cheers.

That’s a bit of a defeatist attitude I might say. Whilst I agree that statistically the proportion of bikes affected is tiny and getting anything out of Yamaha is going to be a long shot (which I have mentioned many times in this thread and the two other ‘bigger’ threads). In my view it’s still worth the effort. Those that don’t ask, don’t get! For your information, Yamaha have replied. Twice in fact. Admittedly the response is just that “we are looking into it.” Read into that what you will.

The common factors, as you describe them, have all been covered on the forum for everyone to see/read in this thread and Niek’s original gearbox problem thread (and Bartosz’s too). However, I have to make it clear, no one here or anywhere else has actually got a definitive answer as to what is the root cause of the problem – the vast majority of the talk is supposition and speculation, which in itself isn’t always that helpful. If we (XT660.com) knew the definitive cause/answer (which we don’t) then we would be the first to let everyone know about it.

Not sure what you are insinuating here? Who are the “few”? Who’s denying Yamaha a “get out”? As I’ve already mentioned, everything known is out there on the forum already! Nobody here is covering anything up or hiding anything. As for futile and misguided… Why does that bother you so much? It’s not as if you’re doing the leg work!

In the original two gearbox failure threads it has been mentioned several times to owners with the problem, that, with any second hand bike, it is impossible to ascertain how the bike had been ridden/abused. A bit harsh though to suggest it’s their own fault (even if you think it) - I suspect you may feel slightly differently if it happened to you!

I’m afraid that’s the nature of forums; like it or loath it. If you read the main threads on gearbox failure thoroughly you will see that it has been made abundantly clear many times, the caveat that, in the interests of fairness, balance and reason – negative comments/issues always outway the positive within forums (attention is always drawn to the negatives). In fact your post above is, to a degree, an example of this very phenomenon.

Even if it appears misguided and futile in your eyes, it doesn't mean it isn't worth doing. Yes, Yamaha may come up with nothing, but then again there’s a small chance that they might concede something – no one will ever know unless someone tries! Where would the world be now if everyone had the “oh, that’ll never happen/it’s a waste of time” attitude. I’m of a “glass is half full” disposition, so I always expect a positive result, even when it’s against the odds and it’s going to take a bit of effort. I won’t be disappointed if nothing comes of it either, but at least I can hold my head high and say I’ve done something.

Original gearbox threads (please read them in their entirety to put this thread in context).

Niek’s Thread (the first one alluding to this issue): http://www.xt660.com/showthread.php?t=19882

Bartosz’s Thread (follow-up to the above): http://www.xt660.com/showthread.php?t=22495

The reason I'm doing what I'm doing is, as I said in the OP: "I’ll do what I can, as much as anything, because I know how I’d feel if the same misfortune befell me."

Believe me, we've thought about this, but other than making the three main threads in question "sticky", there's not a lot that can be done. Trouble is, merging threads into one almost always makes the finished (combined) thread unintelligible as people's replies are directed at different posts and it all gets chronologically messed up and out of sync. The other problem is that, by the very nature of a forum, topics are contributed to by different people at different times with different angles and approaches; no one person is imparting the information. Effectively a forum can be seen as a database of information, and like all databases, they need querying/searching to extract what is relevant and required.

As I said, no one person is the sole contributor and different people have different axes to grind, so keeping it simple and sharp not really something one can completely control - without the authoritarian approach of editing everyone's posts! (Which isn't going to happen here!) ;)

I don't recall anyone making any 'promises', vague or otherwise? :dontknow:

***

Here's what we will do in an effort to make things easier to find:

(1) Make all three of the main gearbox threads sticky
(2) Edit the titles so they are more clearly linked together
(3) Put links to all three threads at the top of the OP in each

Give me 24 hours and I'll get it done...

It is done. All sticky, clearly labelled and in one place.

Should be transparent and easy enough for everyone to find the information they need without having to use the search button.

See here: http://www.xt660.com/forumdisplay.php?f=163

I think you're doing a fabulous job. Without people like your good self taking on seemingly hopeless causes a lot of valuable victories in various fields would not have been won. Just my two penneth.....if it was down to riding style you'd would expect the failures to be spread evenly across all model years.

Power to your elbow Pleiades.:WellDone_OROQR1::WellDone_OROQR1:

Issue not confined to XTZ
 

My son was racing in the Finke Desert Race last year on a 2014 YZ450 & had a similar failure, the dog between 3rd & 4th broke at race speed with catastrophic results, cases all but split in two, around the countershaft, top & bottom.:icon_sad: From what we've heard, 5 others over the race period, suffered the same failure, so it appears, Yamaha has a "Houston, we have a problem" issue which is continuing.

That's very valid point. Whilst undoubtedly riding style will likely exacerbate a problem that already is in the making, it is unlikely to be the root cause. There are loads of 2008 and 2010> XTZs that have been ridden just as hard, if not harder, and have shown no sign of the issue occurring. Take Jenny Morgan's 2008 bike, which is probably the one that's seen the most abuse: That did an extended tour of America, came back home, did the Heroes-Legend Rally and then countless Big Bike Rally Championship rounds and by all accounts (now in new hands) is still a strong as she ever was (that's the bike not Jenny!)

Fingers crossed for you. Just remember, there are way more 2009 bikes that haven't gone bang than have, so the odds are stacked in your favour!

Yamaha do seem to have a recurring problem with the stopper lever arm and shift shaft assembly across a range of models. It was only just over a year ago when several bikes in the MT range were recalled because of "potential transmission lock-up" due to the aforementioned part.

2009 xt660z
21 548 ks on the clock
Third gear broke while on gentle acceleration heading home for lunch.

Thanks pepsi.
Sadly i now have a bank loan for a paper weight.
looking into a replacement engine.

I know the feeling mate. Do yourself a favour and talk to Yamaha also. I went through my local peter stevens and they went in to bat for me also. Basically, Yamaha ended up paying for about 900 dollars of parts and I covered the rest. And at the end of the day my bike is only just now going again, but in time to get it dirty. Seriously though, call Yamaha! Any little bit out of them will be better than nothing.
Good luck mate