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GasGas SM450...WTF, Do I have a Lemon???...

18K views 21 replies 9 participants last post by  Enemy Zero 
#1 ·
My '04 Gas Gas SM450 is very "jerky" when I wind it out a bit through the gears as well as at the top end of 6th gear. The dealership says that it is the rev limiter kicking in and that it's normal. They said to just let off the throttle a bit and it will be fine.

~If it IS the rev limiter, is this normal? I don't ever remember this with my previous bikes.

If it is NOT the rev limiter, could the EFI setting possibly be off a bit? The bike goes through more fuel than anything I have ever seen before, if this helps paint a clearer picture.

What do you think???

I love this bike, but it has been nothing but problems since I purchased it (new), a few months ago.

Here is a list of problems I've had with the bike so far...

1. Slow start and battery goes dead after 3-4 attempts at starting.
Solution: Dealership installed a battery tender and it starts up on the 1st or 2nd try every time.

2. Leaking Oil.
Solution: Dealership repaired it.

3. Idle would rev out of control when I turned the bars to the right.
Solution: Dealership zip tied the throttle cable in place so it doesn't pull when the bars are turned to the right.

4. The stock kick stand doesn't fully extend when down and the bike falls over if someone within 50 feet sneezes in its direction.
Solution: I am going to heat up the stand and hyper extend it to the point that it will fully extend and put the bike at a lower lean angle when the kick stand is down.

Thanks for you input everyone...
 
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#4 ·
Your description does sound like you are reving it untill you hit the rev limiter bobble and then shifting.

I'm not crazy about the zip tie fix for the throtel cable. What you are describing sounds like the cables are adjusted to tight so there is little or no free play. This is common on 2 cable set ups. Loosten one of the cable adjusters and see if it helps.

Did you just buy this 04 new? It certainly sounds like they are taking care of you.

Why are you bumping (2X) a post in a section where people seldom if ever even post?
 
#5 ·
Apa,

Yea, I know what you mean about the zip tie repair job. Yes, it's a new '04 and yes...they are definately taking care of my issues. I used to go to highschool with the owner back in the days.

About the rev limiter...it does the same thing when I have it pegged in 6th gear. Is this something I should live with or something I can work around some how?

Also, thanks again for your input. Sorry the the (2X) bump. I just wanted the post in the new post section for a little while. Thanks again.
 
#6 ·
My 03 450sm

Hey ,

I have an 03 sm and your issue with the rev limiter sounds so familiar. It seems to have been related in my case to the clutch slipping under heavy loads. Meaning once I got high up in the revs it seemed like I was hitting the rev limiter but I believe the clutch was slipping. I say that because I bled the hydraulic clutch and afterward rode the piss out of it and no more farting out at higher speeds like that. I have a brand new clutch, basket, springs, master cylinder , the works and it still did that until I bled the clutch.

Also, another trick I discovered is to lean the bike over as far to the right as you can and pump the clutch for air bubbles. This way the master cylinder is higher than the cable and the air will find its way totally to the top. If you look at your cable when the bike is upright there is a point where the cable is higher than the master cylinder where air bubbles can hide. **** do all this with the bike off of course :)

Also , the gas mileage is poor as you mentioned but I think because I ride the throttle harder than I did my drz. I did a test and was able to get 50mpg but I rode like someone on a Harley for a couple days. All in all the bike seems to be pretty kick ass. I do wish I had a bigger gas tank and a more comfortable seat mainly.

Oh, ordered some Avon distanzias and can't wait to try them out. :)
 
#7 ·
two more things

I forgot about the awesome kickstand. It does bite. Someone put a link here about how to move where the spring is located with a chain link and apparently that fixes it. I am going to try it soon as I get a minute from my jacuzzi hot tub install at home that is eating up every spare minute I currently have.

And the battery completely dying after two or three trys was an issue for me too. I installed a battery tender and hook the bike up to it every night, no problems starting the bike now.

just thought I would add these two thoughts to the previous thread so you didnt think you were the only one.

I currently have mine up for sale but I keep wavering about whether or not to actually sell it. I really just needed extra money for christmas for the kids but this bike smokes my drz in so many areas that it makes the idea hard to deal with.
 
#8 ·
Does your GasGas get jittery when the rev limiter kicks in at the top of each gear, including 6th? I don't remember anything like this happening with the DRZ. :(

Thanks for you input, its good to know my issues aren't isolated.
 
#9 ·
reply

Yes, unfortunately it did. It does not anymore though. It would almost feel like it was losing fuel or something but since i checked the clutch for air it is resolved. Again, with air in the clutch line it would surface under heavy loads only, hence the high revs and the symptom you and I both have experienced.

I must say though, the DRZ will rev to the moon. More than most singles I have ridden. Very good bike, just slower and heavier and now that i am used to the light weight and power not sure I could go back. Who knows, though. I do really miss true dual sporting and the DRZ is perfect for that. And i need to pay off my christmas debt. !!!!
 
#10 ·
A slipping clutch will usually show signs of slippage in the higher gears.

I use the lean the bike bleed routine also. A bubble would not cause the clutch to slip though. A bubble would not totally disengage the clutch or make it drag.

Sounds like the rev limiter kicks in sooner than other bikes. A rev limiter does not change depending on what gear your in. Read your manual and it probably has at what RPM the limiter kicks in at.
 
#11 ·
reply

apa is right about the rev limiter on this bike. If you have a drz or it was the last bike you owned you will notice a difference.

as far as what air does in the line, I can only say I had some of the symptoms you had and I addressed them the way I described to my happiness.

hope you get it all working right and get a chance to enjoy your bike :)
 
#12 ·
Yea, me too. Thanks for your comments everyone.

So you had air in your line...you bled it out and it performed better? Hmmm...good to know.
 
#13 ·
Wow, I have been away for a bit and just came back to this thread. I haven't run into the rev limiter issue that you've talked about but I have had a few other things.

I had the issue of the throttle cable pulling when the bars were all the way over but I re-routed the cable to alleviate this issue.

I have the issue with the battery going dead. I just have to go out and start it every other day or it will go dead.

I also have the leaking oil. I've tried tightening the bolt on the underside like crazy but I'm gonna have to do an oil change this week sometime so I'll just find a new washer and it should solve the problem.

As far as those few things, it's been a good bike. I knew this one would be more maintenance so I haven't really shrugged much at the few things that are wrong with it (although the refusal to start can be a real pain in the @ss sometimes).
 
#14 ·
Okay, so I took the bike out of the living room / garage (long story)...fired it up...didn't want to start...after 4 attempts the battery died completely. I thought this issue was resolved since the battery tender was installed and I always have it charging when I'm not riding it. So after work today I picked up a new battery, stalled it, and it fired up on the second attempt. I think the issue is correct for the time being. The battery has a six month guarentee (which I'm sure I'll be taking advantage of since putting it on a charger everyday can't be good for it).

Anyway, I should be able to ride the bike to work now. ~Especially since I had the kick stand heated up and bent into a functional position that it should have been in from the moment it left the factory. ~Still blows me away GasGas sends their bikes out the front door with a disfunctional kick stand like that.

Aside from the "rev limiter" issue the bike should start putting a smile on my face now that the bugs are worked out. Speaking of the jerky issue when the rev limiter kicks in...if this is actually a problem with the EFI am I causing damage to the bike when I ride it if it is an EFI problem? What do you think? The "rev limiter" explanation makes sense, but it just doesn't feel right jerking like that. It's almost the same as when I would wind out my little pocket bike, except on a larger scale.
 
#15 ·
Update:

As one last ditch effort to get this bike going it is sitting at the dealership right now to FINALLY check the mapping on the EFI. They are also installing a rev box, dyno, tsi, or whatever its called. If these don't work I don't know what to do.

Bless my pregnant wife's heart, she has been even more patient with this than I have been. When the bike wouldn't start yesterday after I replaced the sparkplug in an effort to start it she was pissed. When it finally did turn over it was so loud (back firing) and smoking from the exhaust and flames coming out the end that every fire alarm in the house went off and her patience finally wore out.

~Long story short, she's so fed up with the issues of this bike and getting up early to drive me to work because the bike never starts when I need it to that she doesn't want to see it back at the house. After a little convencing I convinced her to give it one last chance to get the bike running like it should...a new bike with less than 200 miles on it. :) Wish me luck.
 
#16 ·
Bleedback??????

Check voltage regulator for bleedback. Excessive bleedback(anything over .50DCV) will cause battery to drain while sitting. But will still charge battery while bike is running. :headscrat
 
#17 ·
This sounds like a Yamaha Virago. If a Virago does not have a really hot battery it will spin over but in doing so it uses most of the voltage and there is not enough left to produce a spark. Seems like the Cannondales had this same problem. Could it be FI related issue with all the additional electrical components? Can you put in a battery with a higher cranking amp rate?
 
#18 ·
Gas Gas jerking

This is really a late reply But here goes. That bike does have a revlimiter and feels like a heavy miss or fuel shut off. The limiter is however at spacific RPM and duration. Some of these will miss intermitanly caused by the coil wire jumping to ground or sometimes it will zap your left kneepad.
And that kickstand has dropped more bikes than all of my kids put togeather over the last 30 years, not to mention the severe bruises to my right shin. Loads of data for you if needed. I have the starter and no start situation down pat.
 
#20 ·
I have on '03 fse450, non SM. And if I hit the revlimiter it gets jittery. The bike definitely lets you know when its time to shift. But I've never hit the rev limiter in 6th, just because I'm running a 21'' rim up front and I've had it up to 75mph, and the front gets lose and I never max it out. Just a question, what's the max you've reached?

Oh one problem I found and it takes 10 seconds to check. Is that my FI throtle body slipped out of the rubber boot that connects it to the engine so it was pulling some extra air, and the bike started stalling because of it. It took me a couple minutes to find this problem, but once I did it took a minute to fix it and the problem. Also if this happens do you replace or clean the plug, it will probably be blackened.
 
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