Kawasaki Sportsbike Riders Club - Australia - Online Forum

Hi Guys,

As the title says I have a 2006 ZX6R and I have finally hit some transmission troubles. The problem only occurs when i'm decelerating and down shift in to 1st gear. When you do this it feels like 1st gear is slipping. I have checked all the basics like chain tension hoping for the easy solution but it looks like it is something worse.

So, does anyone know what I have to do to fix this problem??

Thanks in advance.

Just thought I would add that you can do a slow deceleration without it skipping, but as soon as too much load is placed on it it skips.

Simple fix dont drop all the way into first when pulling up,if lights go green before your stopped im sure you can take off in second.very rarely will i downshift into first.

bjn_42 wrote:Hi Guys,

As the title says I have a 2006 ZX6R and I have finally hit some transmission troubles. The problem only occursw when i'm decelerating and down shift in to 1st gear. When you do this it feels like 1st gear is slipping. I have checked all the basics like chain tension hoping for the easy solution but it looks like it is something worse.

So, does anyone know what I have to do to fix this problem??

Thanks in advance.

Few questions just to clarify:

When you say decelerating; how fast are you going when you're entering first? Are you trying to match the engine revs to the speed by blipping then throttle?

When you say slipping do you mean the gear is dropping in and out or that the bike is bouncing/chattering at the rear after you let the clutch out?

If shifting down at high revs it could be the slipper clutch? Or that the clutch may need adjusting?
Does it do it in any other gears at all?

Sounds like the slipper clutch is working. I never shift down to first coming up to a stop, second is enough as was stated above

JimZXR wrote:Few questions just to clarify:

When you say decelerating; how fast are you going when you're entering first? Are you trying to match the engine revs to the speed by blipping then throttle?

When you say slipping do you mean the gear is dropping in and out or that the bike is bouncing/chattering at the rear after you let the clutch out?

Roughly 40 - 50km/h ' ish nothing extreme. And no, not blipping or anything fancy, just a simple downshift.

When i downshift it feels like the bike is slipping in and out of gear. Like if you were to engage and engage the clutch when decelerating.

I leave locking up the rear wheel for the track (Which is probably where I caused this issue)

Cwidova wrote:If shifting down at high revs it could be the slipper clutch? Or that the clutch may need adjusting?
Does it do it in any other gears at all?

Only 1st gear, which makes me think it is not the slipper clutch

Rest your finger on the clutch and see if you feel it pulse when this happens.
If so, it's the slipper.

On my zx10, if you rest your finger on the clutch just taking up the free-play. Accelerate and snap the throttle shut and you should feel the clutch lever pulse a bit.

Wattie wrote:Rest your finger on the clutch and see if you feel it pulse when this happens.
If so, it's the slipper.

On my zx10, if you rest your finger on the clutch just taking up the free-play. Accelerate and snap the throttle shut and you should feel the clutch lever pulse a bit.

Wouldn't it happen in all gears if it was the slipper clutch??

Yes, but 1st would be more noticeable because of the lower gearing

I just tried it on the way home, i can feel the slipper clutch kicking in when i pull down to first at about 50km/h
Its a slight feel, but if i do it at 60, i notice it even more. 80-90 you really start to notice it...not to mention everyone on the street looking at you like thinking wtf is this guy doing?

Want to test your slipper?

Get up to about 100, pull clutch in and let revs drop to idle.
Drop clutch. I wouldn't recommend this in the rain...

I sent my bike to the mechanic for him to look at and he told me that he would have to pull apart the gearbox to know what is wrong with it but that would be expensive. Ive always wanted to do a big maintenance project so here is my chance. To make things easier I ordered a kaneg front head lift stand and a torque wrench for when I have to put it all back together.

So far I have removed all the fairings, fuel tank and a lot of wires.







Next weekend I hope to get it all ready to have the engine removed. A mate of mine that does this stuff a lot will be back from the mines so Im going to recruit him.

If anybody has any tips or tricks for removing an engine and opening the gear box up, please leave them here. Also, could someone list all the gaskets and perishables im going to have to replace.

Last night i set up some flood lights so I could work on it during the week after work.



I managed to remove more wiring, drain the radiator, remove the radiator and remove the crash knobs