• A few people have been scammed on the site, Only use paypal to pay for items for sale by other members. If they will not use paypal, its likely a scam NEVER SEND E-TRANSFERS OF ANY KIND.

DCT abrupt gear change especially 2nd to 1st

  • Thread starter Deleted member 1183
  • Start date
D

Deleted member 1183

The heading says it all. I rarely am in heavy traffic with my 2017 NC750 DCT (installed in an X-Adv). However when I am in snail traffic I find this gearchange (2nd to 1st) jerky and abrupt sometimes. When out in open roads this of course is not an issue except if I have to change down from 2nd to 1st on a really tight hairpin or the like.

Anyone else have this experience with their DCT motors or have any suggestions as to how to alleviate it in really slow moving traffic. I may have asked this question previously but had forgotten the issue until I encountered it again today.
 
I'm learning to anticipate the change and downshift ahead of time for curves. I don't have to deal with heavy traffic but you could switch to Manual mode.

Sent from my XT1650 using Tapatalk
 
I'm learning to anticipate the change and downshift ahead of time for curves. I don't have to deal with heavy traffic but you could switch to Manual mode.

Same here, that way I’m powering through the turn or curve as the bike spins up for the next upshift. As for stop and go traffic, I use sport mode which delays the shift points or, as suggested, manual mode and holding first gear. No surprises with that one.
 
Last edited:
Sounds like you need to get into Sport mode.
I tend to use it (S1) the majority of the time, as it shifts similarly to how I would shift with a manual. I don't use manual mode much, as I have long thumbs, or something, and find it difficult to downshift without loosening my grip awkwardly.

Sport mode gives the bike a tighter feeling and less of the numbness that comes in Auto, which I use for times when I want to get better mpg but where it isn't lugging into 6th gear too soon.

There is a bit of what feels like clutch grabbing when I'm slowing down to a stop at slow speeds, like when in a parking garage. This would be going from 1st into its Neutral state. That's the time I miss having a clutch.
 
Thanks for the input. I am aware of sport mode and I generally use a combination of S1 and the manual. However the abruptness is only at very slow speeds in 1st and 2nd. Much of the time on the open road I have no issues. However I will try manual only next time and see how I get on. Thanks again.
 
The situation you describe in heavy stop and go traffic is one of the very few situations I’ve found where I’ve had to be more adaptive and adjust to what the DCT is doing. While I could clutch, coast, brake, and drop a foot more smoothly in very slow stop and go rush hour traffic than the DCT is able to do, I’m far happier the other 98% of the time. When I recall how I spent the first 50 years of riding playing with a clutch, shifter, brake, etc, I ain’t missing a minute of it. :cool:
 
not really a solution but more of an FYI. The 2018 model NC750X DCT seems to have fixed this.

"DCT even senses whether the bike is travelling uphill or downhill and selects shifting points and engine braking accordingly. Adaptive Clutch Capability
Control assists in on/off throttle situations, reducing pitching motions for smoother riding."

Adaptive clutch seems to work like when you feather a manual clutch bike. I mostly use S2 now but used D mode on day one (May11)
 
Just an update. I did some testing today and discovered a couple of things. One was that there was a faint tendency for the bike to creep while stopped in first gear. Another was that the clutch was on a hair trigger with the throttle on take off. Another was that the twistgrip barrel was dry and not moving very smoothly. What is sure is that the dry twistgrip was contributing to the lack of smoothness in the lowest gears. The hair trigger clutch was also.

I did the DCT recal and immediately this cured the "hair trigger" there is now a bit of slack in the clutch on take off and this is good. The creeping has also stopped. The gear changes might be a little smoother but I am not sure of this. I greased the twistgrip barrell with some silicone grease and this has helped greatly. I also took some more slack out of the cables and there is now virtually no slack in them.

The end product is a much nicer throttle/DCT relationship that is much easier to live with. I suspect that a periodic recalibration will do no harm at all, especially if there is a change of oil brand or viscosity.
 
Just one last point. The DCT system in my bike is 2017 technology so that might also have some bearing on my results with regard to recalibration. Furthermore the recal was done when the bike was good and hot. I did at least 60 kms on it prior.
 
I've spanked the DCT (clutch reinitialize) whenever it misbehaves.
To date, she's been obedient and gives me no fuss.
For some reason, the AT DCT has more of a tendency to ask for this 'spanking' ;).
 
In my very limited exposure to stop-and-go traffic on my daily commute home through metropolitan downtown Montpelier, Vermont I look at creeping along as an opportunity to play with the DCT. I freakin' love this bike.
 
I do a fair amount of filtering (lane splitting) on my NC DCT and generally have no issues. I also never use D, but S1 is my default, aside from giving me access to the NC’s excellent low down power when in heavy traffic and really good engine braking, the g/box is very responsive either up or down.

The NC has to be one of the best machines for travelling in heavy traffic conditions...
 
Back
Top