I noticed while climbing a hill today on my '98 454 that the engine sounded like it was revving in neutral and then catching before pulling me to the top. Does this sound like a bad clutch?

 

Thats what it sounds like. Of course im not a mechanic. How old is the oil? I have the manual and can tell you the proceedure to adjust it when i get home if you like. Proceedure is very simple. IF it doesnt help you may have to take it to cat.

 

Are you sure your using the gears right? If you are in to high a gear it'll do the same thing.

 

Ya anything is possible, but if im climbing a hill and am in 4th lets say, it doesnt slip and rev, it will bog and die if i didnt shift.

 

I was in second gear so I couldn't have been in too high a gear. As far as the oil, not sure. I just bought it used a month ago and was told that the owner had just had it serviced before trading it in. The oil filter looks brand new and the oil clean so I assume they just changed it.

 

Your foot wasnt on the rocker engaging it a bit? I doubt it but had to ask. Does it seem to do it only up hill under load? Ill send you or post here the procedure to check the clutch as soon as i get home, ill be home around 5.30 AST.

 

No, I'm sure it wasn't on the rocker. It only started to do it yesterday on a steep hill on my property that I have ridden several times. I have a service manual I just picked up that I'll check when I get a chance. I just know, from working on motorcycles, that the manual only supplements actual experience hence I usually get opinions before doing any work.

 

is it jetted right if it isn't jetted right it will bog down pretty bad on a steep hill or when pullin something heavy mine wasn't jetted right and it would lug down while pulling many honda's outa the woods[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]

 

It wasn't bogging down- the clutch was slipping. I am going to adjust it as soon as I get a chance. However, I do need to adjust the carb as suggested in another thread. I can't get the float bowl screws off and need to remove the carb completely to get a better angle at them. However, I can't figure out how to remove the choke cable from the carb. How does that come off? I tried to get a wrench on what looked like a nut on the end of the cable but there is not enough room on the carb body. Any hints?