05 450x tranny problems!

[Cotton_87]

hello first off i'm new here, i just bought this bike on march 6th, its an 05 with muzzy exhaust, thats about it. i bought the bike off a 42yr old guy, it hasnt been rode alot and looks to been very well maintained. soo yesterday i was finally headed to some trails i was going about 55mph and had been on the rode for about 4 miles, when my back tire completely locked up! there were no clunks or any noises. i pulled the clutch in and it did nothing. after i finally stopped, i couldnt get it into neutral, but with the clutch pulled in i was able to push it off the rode, i started it up and atempted to move and it locked up for good... its stuck in first and pulling in the clutch does nothing!.... drained the oil. didnt seem to be low... took the clutch cover off and the clutch is fine... i do want to add last week when i was slowing down from going about 60mph i heard a squaling sound from my gearbox area, it did this twice and never heard it again...

Did a bearing lock up? mabey, does the motor have to come apart or can i get to the problem from the right side of the case

i've put 30miles on the bike since i bought it and i get this! i'm pretty pissed!

this is the first time a honda has really let me down!.....

[timoyz1]

hello first off i'm new here, i just bought this bike on march 6th, its an 05 with muzzy exhaust, thats about it. i bought the bike off a 42yr old guy, it hasnt been rode alot and looks to been very well maintained. soo yesterday i was finally headed to some trails i was going about 55mph and had been on the rode for about 4 miles, when my back tire completely locked up! there were no clunks or any noises. i pulled the clutch in and it did nothing. after i finally stopped, i couldnt get it into neutral, but with the clutch pulled in i was able to push it off the rode, i started it up and atempted to move and it locked up for good... its stuck in first and pulling in the clutch does nothing!.... drained the oil. didnt seem to be low... took the clutch cover off and the clutch is fine... i do want to add last week when i was slowing down from going about 60mph i heard a squaling sound from my gearbox area, it did this twice and never heard it again...

Did a bearing lock up? mabey, does the motor have to come apart or can i get to the problem from the right side of the case

i've put 30miles on the bike since i bought it and i get this! i'm pretty pissed!

this is the first time a honda has really let me down!.....

Flat roads at a sustained speed is a problem for the X. Read up, one of the mods is to run a full quart in your tranny, to solve that issue.

[CFR450X07]

your tranny is not accessable from the right... the motor will have to come out and you'll have to split the case.

[CFR450X07]

But this does sound like a problem a few on here experienced. Not running a full quart of oil on the right on flat grounds at high speeds did not allow proper lubrication between some gears. What happens is they'll actually weld themselves together. Lets hope it is something more simple for you. I think 3rd gear is usually the culprit if memory serves me correctly.

[Old-Man]

hello first off i'm new here, i just bought this bike on march 6th, its an 05 with muzzy exhaust, thats about it. i bought the bike off a 42yr old guy, it hasnt been rode alot and looks to been very well maintained. soo yesterday i was finally headed to some trails i was going about 55mph and had been on the rode for about 4 miles, when my back tire completely locked up! there were no clunks or any noises. i pulled the clutch in and it did nothing. after i finally stopped, i couldnt get it into neutral, but with the clutch pulled in i was able to push it off the rode, i started it up and atempted to move and it locked up for good... its stuck in first and pulling in the clutch does nothing!.... drained the oil. didnt seem to be low... took the clutch cover off and the clutch is fine... i do want to add last week when i was slowing down from going about 60mph i heard a squaling sound from my gearbox area, it did this twice and never heard it again...

Did a bearing lock up? mabey, does the motor have to come apart or can i get to the problem from the right side of the case

i've put 30miles on the bike since i bought it and i get this! i'm pretty pissed!

this is the first time a honda has really let me down!.....

Man oh man, I must be real old then if a 42 year old, is old. ? :banghead:

Sorry about the bike. Buying a bike from a 42 year old or even a 60 year old doesn't mean the bike wasn't rode hard. A lot of people like to say when they are selling a bike it was owned by a older rider. Most of the guys I know that are 40+ are just as strong of riders as the 20 year old guys. Most are even better, fast, stronger riders then the kids.

I know someone just posted something about a trans issue. Check out some of the post on that thread.

[Cotton_87]

well i have read about putting a full quart in the tranny, but seeing how i was only going 5 miles till i hit the trails i didnt think this would be an issue on a 50F degree day.... how hard are these transmissions to take apart? or on the other hand put back together lol

[FORMA MOTO]

well i have read about putting a full quart in the tranny, but seeing how i was only going 5 miles till i hit the trails i didnt think this would be an issue on a 50F degree day.... how hard are these transmissions to take apart? or on the other hand put back together lol

I think the majority of the damage was done before you owned it: you just put the nail in the coffin. There have been about 7 posts in the last 4 years, to my recollection, of this problem. All have happened when in fifth gear going fast.

It is an oil starvation problem that was remedied the following year with a gear that has oil traveler grooves added.

The tranny repair is not a basic one mostly because of how far you have to dismantle the motor, and how many parts are involved. If you don't feel confident, you might let a pro do it. At the very least, you need to buy a service manual and read it through.

[cubera]

A friend of mine who is a regular poster here and up and coming desert Ace could not race today because he lost 3rd gear on his 450X. Really a bummer no way around it. But I digress (bad habit).

Cotton it seems you got the short end of the stick on the 450X you bought. I'm very sorry this problem is your introduction to the 450X. That really sucks because the 450X is a GREAT bike. Your problem is something seized from the main bearing upwards if it won't roll with the clutch disengaged. Seems like a seized piston or frozen crank based on the description you've given. On the bright side, once you get it fixed (not the end of the world) you'll have one fine machine to enjoy. Good luck to you and welcome to the 450X forum. You've come to the right place.

[idahogiant]

Sorry to hear about your issue.....keep us informed what you find out....

[Cotton_87]

well i'm so thrilled! no not really but thanks for the info...just what i've been looking for to, rebuilding a bike tranny. >> btw the bike stills runs great, that was the first thing i did when it came to a stop is make sure it would still turn over / run, its just strange how it would still roll with the clutch pulled in after i came to a stop, and i was able to downshift it to 1st gear. but after i started it again and attempted to move, it would do nothing at all and now pulling in the clutch does nothing... would a 450R tear down manual be the same as a X, tranny wise i mean??

[FORMA MOTO]

well i'm so thrilled! no not really but thanks for the info...just what i've been looking for to, rebuilding a bike tranny. >> btw the bike stills runs great, that was the first thing i did when it came to a stop is make sure it would still turn over / run, its just strange how it would still roll with the clutch pulled in after i came to a stop, and i was able to downshift it to 1st gear. but after i started it again and attempted to move, it would do nothing at all and now pulling in the clutch does nothing... would a 450R tear down manual be the same as a X, tranny wise i mean??

Wait, pulling in the clutch does nothing? That would not be the tranny then.........................?

[cubera]

well i'm so thrilled! no not really but thanks for the info...just what i've been looking for to, rebuilding a bike tranny. >> btw the bike stills runs great, that was the first thing i did when it came to a stop is make sure it would still turn over / run, its just strange how it would still roll with the clutch pulled in after i came to a stop, and i was able to downshift it to 1st gear. but after i started it again and attempted to move, it would do nothing at all and now pulling in the clutch does nothing... would a 450R tear down manual be the same as a X, tranny wise i mean??

I would take apart the clutch assembly and see what's going on there as a start. No, the 450R is a different beast.

[Cotton_87]

yes correct, if i pull the clutch in and try to spin the back tire it doesnt budge, might move an inch lol. it also doesnt wanta come out of 1st gear. i took off the clutch cover and the outside disc's are moving and appear to be fine from what i can see.. which isnt alot

[Cotton_87]

if it is the clutch that would be super!!!!!

[Old-Man]

When you start to dig into it more any chance of some pictures for all of us to see?

[motomanx]

if the engine runs with the clutch engaged, you seized the trans. (most likely what happened)

hopefully you didn't wipe out the cases when it happened.

good luck.?

mine took out one case half and a bunch of gears. 3rd seized to the mainshaft.

(btw, full quart and mine was an 06'.)

[Cotton_87]

if the engine runs with the clutch engaged, you seized the trans. (most likely what happened)

hopefully you didn't wipe out the cases when it happened.

good luck.?

mine took out one case half and a bunch of gears. 3rd seized to the mainshaft.

(btw, full quart and mine was an 06'.)

yea thats what it looks like, did u tear it apart urself and fix it or leave it to someone else, how much money did u spend?

[motomanx]

I scrapped the bike. It made more sense to start over, money wise.

even with my hook up, the parts alone were over $1000. there were so many broken parts inside, that it only made sense to me to replace everything.

there is a complete 05 450X transmission on eBay right now for $200. If you get that and don't have any case damage, you could be up and running for less than $500 if you do the labor.

[cubera]

$200 is a great deal even if only the cases are in good shape! I've always been impressed with the gear box on my '05 but now I'm worried. Any warning signs motomanx?

[motomanx]

$200 is just for the internals. If it included the cases, I would have already bought it.

No signs for me, it just locked up. Click, Click, Bang! 50mph to 0.

List price for the parts to fix mine was over $1300.