Author Topic: Clutch cover center plate  (Read 252 times)

Philip Pino

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Clutch cover center plate
« on: July 26, 2015, 06:34:21 pm »
On my trip to Moab, UT during the July 4 holiday, this happened:  /img]

I had gone down several times on a trail with a lot of sand.  After about 50 yards of riding, after the last get off, I heard a pop and felt something strike my right foot.  I looked over and saw a round object rolling off into the bushes beside the trail.  I then looked down to my foot and saw my clutch staring at me.  The only reason I can come up with for the plate blowing out is an excess amount of crank case pressure when there is too much oil in the crankcase vent tubes.  Maybe you have to wait a minute or two after picking up your bike, to let enough of the oil to drain back down into the crankcase.  After one get off I did let the bike lay on its side for a few minutes, while I caught my breath.  The sand was draining my energy.  Oh, and helping my buddy pick up his loaded down 1190 R during the same stretch of sand.

If this happens to you, be sure to find the rubber ring/gasket which holds the plate to the clutch cover or you are screwed.  I used gas and q-tips from my camping gear to clean up the cover and rubber gasket before reinstalling the plate.

I haven't contacted KTM, but my local KTM dealers have never encountered this.  I believe this is a designed pressure-blow-off or relief when there is excess crankcase pressure.  I encountered a similar feature with my '89 Yamaha FZR 600 when I over filled the crankcase with oil.  There were tabs on the valve cover gasket that would blow open with excessive pressure.  I suppose this feature is to prevent the pressure from causing more serious engine damage.

Also, a word of caution when using the stick-on case/engine guards.  Make sure they only attach to the plate and not the clutch cover itself.  Also, give yourself a few minutes of rest after picking up your bike, especially if you let the bike lay for a while.
'14, 690 Enduro R

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