I recently had a clutch failure on my 1997 ZX-6R 600F3 (21,000 miles). It literally exploded in the housing. I can see what caused it to go by the deep wear groves on the basket fingers. I replaced it with a complete new clutch $800. I started the bike yesteday, and now it has a right side engine knock at idle. The knock goes away when the engine is under load in gear. Sounds to me like a wrist pin knock, but can't understand how the clutch failure could cause the problem, unless it was just the sudden stop of the engine when the cluch went out. The engine runs as great as ever, no smoke, no leaks. Any other ideas?

 

Maybe you had a wrist pin issue at the same time? but the clutch explosion caught your attention first? Can you pin point by using your stethescope in what cylinder or if it is a wrist pin noise? I would assume that you replaced all of the components such as the bearings, etc when you replaced the clutch assembly? let us know, welcome to KF

 

Thanks for the reply. I really appreciate it. Yes, I replaced everything in the clutch. Bearings, washers, basket, hub, pressure plate, steel and fiber discs and bolts and springs. With a stethescope, it sounds like the knock is coming from the area under the cover that is in front of the clutch cover. I think that it is a pickup coil and timing wheel. When I removed the clutch cover after the failure, I noticed one of the basket fingers was wedged between the flywheel gear and case. Yikes! The engine appeared to turn over fine after I removed the piece of aluminum. I didn't notice a knock prior to clutch failure. I've rebuilt several car engines over the years, but have not been deep inside a motorcycle engine. I'm not sure that I'm ready for that, but don't think that I have a choice.

Thanks Again,

Jim in Ohio

 

hmm, debris can go everywhere in a wet clutch application. At the moment, I am not sure except for you to verify your checks and adjustments.

 

Could just be your cam chain making the knocking noise. Remove the Cam Chain Tensioner cap and push in the plunger with your finger or a small 1/4" drive extention or something similar. If it quiets down after, that was your problem. In Most cases, wristpin or rod knocks get louder as the RPM increases. Did you inspect the crank gear for any small bits of aluminum stuck in the gear?