Hi everyone, Im new here and to owning a Blade, my previous was a 2007 R1 so ive got a couple of question id like to ask: The person i got the bike from ~(whom i know) told me about the lazyish start from the electric start..My R1 was was instant, push it and it fired into life without harldy any throttle input but with this RR8 the starter seems really lazy and slow aswell as you needing to put alot of throttle input into it..is this normall or common on these bikes (late 08)? i havent tested the battery yet but i hear they are very small and unless your doing decent distance runs your not replenishing what youve used..this bike has only 2200 miles on it and lately all the miles are literally a 4 mile drive to work and a 4 mile drive back home, he doesnt even take it over 6000RPM!! (thats why i purchased it, very well looked after in that sense).. obviously i need to get a Voltmeter on it to see if its reading 14v and rises a little when reving to 6k ish..then charge..then a long ride but any advise here would be great.. Also When changing down through the gears its not as smooth as i thought it would be, i guess i dont know what to expect as ive been absent from bikes for just over 12 months but just seemed a bit clunky going down, any ideas and agaion is this typical of the blades or if not is there a way (Easy Mode) of adjusting the clutch? Any help would be appreciated, thanks
Hi Jamz, Regarding the starting - it is very slow to crank over, however, you should never need to add any throttle for it to start. Mine normally turns over a couple of times before it starts. All of mine have had this lazy start and even the brand new one sounds like its not going to start, then fires into life! Your battery probably needs some tlc as the short journeys may not be enough to replenish the amount its used to start. Regarding gear changing - they should be smooth but you may feel some action from the slipper clutch. Sometimes you can feel a slight click through the lever, is this what you are referring to?
Hi mate, thks for the reply. Yea I understand about the battery situ, just as I thought really- tlc needed and yes the slight clunk is felt through the lever when changing down, up is fine with or without clutch so your saying it probably the slipper causing that? Thing is I had a slipper on my R1 but can't remember if it had the same symptoms or not :/ Carl
Discussed this many times on another forum and the concensus was that it's caused by the slipper clutch. It's nothing to worry about and you can minimise it by being deliberate about the way you use the clutch (ie, make sure it's fully disengaged and the throttle is closed when changing down). P.S. Make sure your bike has had the clutch update//recall. Re. the battery - get an Optimate!
