Year, Make, Model

2006 Kawasaki KX250F

Symptoms

The gear shift lever will not return to original position once lever has been pushed up or down. If 1st or 2nd gear is selected, it will stay in the down or up position and not return to it’s “neutral” state.

Diagnosis

I had a feeling that the problem had to do with the detent system that is located under the RH side engine cover. After removing the cover, is was very apparent what failed. There is a pin that is pressed into a boss in the case that broke off and did not allow the gear shift lever to spring back into its neutral position.

How did this happen?

The owner told me that his very worn chain (and sprockets) fell off the front sprocket and became wrapped up and eventually slammed the gear shift lever down pretty hard.

I guess this failure can also be caused by accidentally using the gearshift lever as a footpeg when landing from a jump.

Tools

Motion Pro Clutch Hub Holder

Parts List & Cost

You have 3 options on repairing the cracked case:

1. Have it TIG welded. This is the cheapest option and what we originally decided to do. I know a good TIG welder that can attempt welding this aluminum case. The weld turned out OK, except quite a bit of the weld bead would have to be ground down for clearance on all the parts that need to be stuffed back into the case. We ended going with option 3.

2. Buy a used set of cases. Yes, I said set, meaning both left and right matched sides. This is also how they sell new, as a matched set. The cases are most likely machined in the same CNC setup for accuracy purposes. You can probably get away with buying a RH case on ebay or the classified section of forums, but there is a chance they may not line up properly and cause binding in the crank and gearbox. The owner lost a few auction and others were going for more than new, so we went with option 3.

3. Buy new cases. Pricey, however the best option. The downside is transferring all the bearings and other parts.

How-To Video

The video above will show you how to open the RH cover and look for the failure. I cover the repair in a later video called “How-To: KX250F Top & Bottom End Engine Rebuild“, where the cases will have to be split and either welded, or replaced with new or used RH case.

Comments

Did your shifter fail also? Did this video and post help you out? Comment below.