yes the linkage is on the shift lever. on the 250's i believe it works by loosening the nuts and turning the rod. i understood what you meant by the jerking. thats what happens when they are rode while not all the way in gear.

 

The 650"s have plastic side panels that cover the engine on both sides..

My new 250 has no side panels at all covering the engine..

Also on the end on mine I have to take out a carter pin and slide the rod out of the shift linkage bracket, then losen the lock nut, turn the end attachment bracket 1 turn , put it back together and see if it does OK.. THEN make sure all other shifting to all gears is ok......

 

Ok...mine just has lock nuts on each end of the rod. I just had to loosen the two nuts and the rod rotated. I tried moving it in small increments. I went on both sides of the original position (farther forward and farther back) and it still does the same thing. I'm not sure how far i can go in either direction before it starts to move it into low range or back into neutral. I'll try some more tomorrow...my neighbors probably are tired of me riding up and down the street in my neighborhood this time of night.

If this does not work.....any more suggestions?

Thanks

 

I was thinking it is either the linkage or a belt/clutch slippage issue. Belt if its an automatic or clutch if its a manual shift.

Might also try putting it up in the air on a good AV stand. Mine gets all 4 wheels off the ground about 12 inches if I want to and the machine is strapped to the lift. If I am careful I can then run it in gear. Might save the trips up and down the driveway but it does not put the same load on it as riding it.

SJ

 

Swampy...its an automatic. It has low and hi range and the jerking only occurs in high range. I don't ride much in low range but i have done so just to see if it jerked and it does not. I dont know much about transmissions but it seems that if it was the belt it would do it in both low and hi?????????????

 

swampy junior. my 2003 400 act manual jerks sometimes when shifting gears right as you get on the gas. it is also shifts hard and has trouble getting out of gear any ideas?

 

An update on my 250. A friend of mine who has worked on atvs for years took the transmission apart. He found that the high gear clutch dog was worn pretty badly and was letting it slip out of gear then back in causing the jerking. The gears themselves are ok. We have ordered the parts so i should be up and running again by the weekend.

 

Mjlyn,

I was not 100% sure the belt slipping would cause a jerking like that but I do know when my clutch on my Manual shift 400 went out it would jerk and hop when starting out in high range and then began doing it in low range and could not be adjusted out. Clutch plates were nearly gone! I guess nearly 15,000 miles will do that.

Good to hear you found the problem. Those are good friends to have.

SJ

 

so to stop the jerking and hopping the first time you would just adjust the clutch?

 

Mountainclimber,

When my 400 AC manual trans would jerk an hop when starting out in High range I would shift to low range and it would not do not do it for a little while. Eventually it would do it in either high or low. My jerking and hopping was the clutch slipping not it poping in and out of gear.

I would adjust the clutch, per the directions in the service manual, and I was good for another 1000-1500 miles. I am pretty sure there are no adjustments for the auto trans other than the engagement springs in a clutch kit.