Hey guys,

I've had an odd fault develop over the few days/week. On occasion, i noticed when pulling the clutch in to blip/rev bomb that they were sticking slightly above idle, around 2,000 rpm, when pulling the throttle to blip it would just bog out.

My bike is now doing this almost every time i pull the clutch in when riding. For example, shifting down gear and stopping at a set of lights i can notice that the idle seems to be higher than should be for about 3/4 seconds, and then settles to normal again. In this period of higher revs if i blip the throttle the bike just bogs.

The bike doesn't do this at all once it's settled. So after the idle is normal i can sit revving the engine with no problem if I wish. However, when riding again it will 'stick' when the clutch is pulled in.

I've not changed anything recently, and have Kev mod, DNA 1 & 2, no snorkel and aftermarket pipes.

Thanks.

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The obvious thing to check first is the clutch switch. Does it exhibit the symptoms if you pull the clutch in when the bike is in neutral, or only when in gear? If the neutral light is on the clutch switch position is ignored by the ECU.

If it does it in neutral too, one thing to look at is a dodgy connection or frayed wire somewhere either breaking down or shorting to ground. Sometimes where electrical cables are routed alongside or near the clutch cable the movement of the clutch cable caused by it taking up tension can tug on the wiring. Check the wiring/cable routing along the clutch cable run.

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If i fire the bike up and use the throttle it's fine. I.e i can hold it at high revs release and it will return to idle as normal. This is the same whether I'm in neutral clutch in, or in gear with the clutch in.

The problem seems to come only when riding

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OK. Check the wiring under the tank where it runs alongside the clutch cable. The wiring and connectors aren't the best on the XT and suffer from corrosion and abrasion. Many bizarre and strange things that happen on these bikes stem from wiring related electrical gremlins.

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Hey Pleiades,

I've just checked again and it does it only when in gear.
Started the bike up, behaves fine in neutral, if I put it into first the problem starts straight away, as described above.
Where do I go from here with it - faulty clutch switch?
Thanks.

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The clutch switch, neutral switch and side stand switch are all interlinked. If the neutral switch is working fine (which is easy to tell), it could be the clutch switch and/or the sidestand switch playing up.

What you need to do is first trace the clutch switch wiring back to its connector and test the continuity of the switch with a multimeter by unplugging the connector and inserting the probes into the switch side of the connector and operate the switch (by hand or with the clutch lever). Test if the switch closes (continuity registered on the meter) when the lever is pulled and, crucially, that it returns to its open state when the lever is released.

Perform a similar test of the side stand switch by tracing its wiring back to the connector. The sidestand switch should be closed (continuity) when the stand is up. Make sure it stays closed when up by jiggling the stand and there is no intermittent break in the circuit.

Whilst you at/in the connectors, make sure the contacts and terminals are in good condition and clean if necessary.

If you can verify that the clutch, neutral and side stand switches are doing what they should then you can eliminate them from your investigations and start to look elsewhere.

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Thanks for that.
Just tried getting to the connection but it seems to be tucked behind a bulk of other wires. Am I right in thinking the tank may have to come off to get at it?

Regarding the side stand; I don't actually have a stand attached to the switch (center stand only), so it should be closed all the time and won't have the affect of a moving side stand against it. And the neutral switch behaves fine, no flickering or false lights.

I've just taken the switch out, given it a good clean and few squirts of WD40. Bike behaves as normal again now. Will see if that has sorted it - or just coincidence since it's intermittent anyway.

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Let's hope it was just a dodgy connection at the switch and it stays fixed.

To access the coil properly it is best to remove the tank.

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