2012 Ec250 Clutch issues...

[Novascotiarider]

So I bought a demo '12 250e in January and hadn't ridden it until mid April. I rode it twice and cleaned the air filter, and changed the oil. The oil was VERY dirty and made me pretty nervous. I refilled it then drained it twice with clean fluid before filling it again.
After another ride I thought I should change it again just to make sure everything was as it should be. The oil was just as dirty again so I pulled the clutch apart to see what was going on.
Hopefully the pictures loaded properly but I am thinking that either the basket has started to fail and is contaminating the oil or the oil has never been changed and has caused clutch and basket damage... Either way I guess I'm in for a new basket, plate and pressure disk.
Any thoughts?

[GMP]

From the pics I'd say your friction plates are shot. Basket looks fine to me, some marks but no deep notches. Hub looks like it might be notched worse than basket, but hard to tell from the angle of your pic, take another.

GG clutches are pretty tough, and the '12 basket was improved over the past bikes. Likely just a friction set and your good for awhile.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[Novascotiarider]

Thanks for quick the input! I don't have any more pictures right now and the bike is at work. I guess my other question would be where would the aluminum be coming from if it were not the basket. The oil was VERY grey with that scary bearing eating shine. I assumed that the only aluminum would be from the basket. The basket isn't terribly gouged but it's got some pretty significant marks for a bike with low hours.
Also, there were flakes of aluminum in the friction material of the clutch. You can see bits of it in the 2nd picture of the friction plates. I guess I'm just nervous that I will cause more damage if it's not corrected. I do have access to a "new" set of plates. I could put them in for a ride and see what happens.

[GMP]

I just looks like friction material has separated from the aluminum in that one spot. That's only the top plate, one side, so 9 more to go. If everything else is tight under the cover, and there are no strange noises, it should be good. Remove the side cover completely and inspect everything if it will make you feel better.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

[Novascotiarider]

Sounds great. I think I will replace the plates and give it a good flush with lots of new fluid before giving it a try. I bet all will be solved then.
Thanks!

[nambo-trev]

I wouldn't worry to much about it if the basket looks good. I blew apart 2 clutch packs this last winter and have been fine ever since then so weird things happen sometimes!

[GMP]

I've found the OEM GG clutches to be excellent, but I'm not a clutch abuser. Usually the aftermarket stuff is what causes issues. That was a demo bike so sure it probably had the crap beaten out of it. GG plates are a little thinner and there are two more of them. Clutch Factory makes a good friction plate, but for a Honda. If you go up in thickness like this you have to drop plates/and use a different shim washer on the basket to keep the travel of the slave cyl in the proper range. Its been discussed, use search if intereted.

[nambo-trev]

Originally Posted by GMP

I've found the OEM GG clutches to be excellent, but I'm not a clutch abuser. Usually the aftermarket stuff is what causes issues. That was a demo bike so sure it probably had the crap beaten out of it. GG plates are a little thinner and there are two more of them. Clutch Factory makes a good friction plate, but for a Honda. If you go up in thickness like this you have to drop plates/and use a different shim washer on the basket to keep the travel of the slave cyl in the proper range. Its been discussed, use search if intereted.

Big +1 on the oem clutch! I am a heavy clutch abuser and blown a few in my gasser and found the Barnett no where near as reliable as the factory clutch stack. If you need a new one buy a factory part.

[desertgasser300]

Originally Posted by nambo-trev

Big +1 on the oem clutch! I am a heavy clutch abuser and blown a few in my gasser and found the Barnett no where near as reliable as the factory clutch stack. If you need a new one buy a factory part.

Yes, use the oem clutch plates. I used the Barnetts once! Although they looked nice they never felt right in the bike while riding. Ditch the barnetts and went with oem and it felt fantastic.

[Neil E.]

Hard to be sure from the pictures, but there is some notching. Definitely put in new fibre plates and see what the oil looks like after riding. If you don't have a nice smooth clutch pull it could from the notching.