I did a search and did not find anything on this subject.. I just got the bike service.. They bled the lines and when I picked it up a few weeks ago the clutch reservoir was filled to the "fill line".. This morning on my way to work I noticed it was empty... The bike has sat for a week and there's no fluid on the ground.. Is this normal? Should I just add some fluid back to the reservoir? Sorry.. My technical aptitude gets me about as far as wiring surround sound.. Otherwise I'm a total n00b. BTW the clutch feels fine, its not slipping and the engagement/release timing is fine... if that even makes sense. Thanks in advance for any info.

 

check for leaks around the handlebar and around the slave cylinder. It's a closed system, and should not go down. If they did not bleed it correctly, it may have had air in the line. refill with proper type brake fluid and keep an eye on it again. if it goes down again, remove the slave cylinder and check it for any leaks.

 

Awesome... Thanks for the response man.. I'll do that tonight.

 

You said you noticed it while riding. Did you take the actual cap off and check it? If you have an older style reservoir, it's possible that it's full and you just can't tell 'cause the new fluid is clean. Definitely a problem to address before riding again IF it's leaking out.

 

It's a 98 and yes it is difficult to see but, before I could still tell that there was some in it by rocking bike back and forth.. I noticed that it was empty today at a stop light.. I pulled the clutch and it appeared (I may be wrong) that some fluid was either squirting from the bottom to the top of the reservior then dripping from the top.. again that ws only when I was compressing and releasing the clutch..

 

+1

If they put more fluid in it and it's all the way full sometimes it's hard to tell.

 

That's a normal observation, mine does the same. I noticed this when I changed fluid in mine this Spring.

I agree with others it's important you figure out where that fluid is going and fix it. Once air gets into the system, you'll have to refill and bleed all the way thru the slave cylinder to get the air contaminted fluid out. You don't want to lose clutch reliability in the middle of a ride.

 

UPDATE: It appears that the slave cylinder has gone bad. They ordered some new seals and misc parts to try to rebuild it.. If that doesn't work they'll have to order a whole new one (crossing fingers that isn't the case). Anyway the fluid was all getting trapped in the slave cylinder. They unscrewed the bolts and it all leaked out.. The only reason I maintained clutch control was because it ws sealed in the cylinder itself. I was told at some point the pressure would have built up and it would have blown out. We've refilled the reservoir and I'm waiting on the parts, trying hard not to ride the bike until it is resolved. Thanks again for all the heads up and hope this thread will help someone in the future.

 

if you need it, you can pick up used ones cheap on ebay from people parting out bikes.

 

I've got one if you want.
You can have it for $27 delivered. (paypal)