82 maxim 1100xj rear wheel locked up at highway speed...why?

Not sure why yet, anyone know of a reason this might happen? Haven't looked into it yet, still recovering. Wondering if the gear oil resevoir was low/empty? I don't know how to check it.
I'm new to all this and am kicking myself for not reading my manual thoroughly and knowing my bike better.

 

Probably because one of your rear brake shoes delaminated. It's a known issue with the original brake shoes. http://www.xjbikes.com/Forums/viewtopic/t=15874.html

If you don't even know how to check the oil in the final drive you don't have any business riding a 30 year-old motorcycle. There is a lot of maintenance that needs to be done to these old rides to make them safe put on the road again.

Read up here and in your manual until you feel more comfortable doing some maintenance yourself. These are some things you should check:

1. Replace rear brake shoes so you don't experience the delamination issue (too late)

2. Check date codes on brake lines. Odds are they're original and need replacing.

3. Replace the 30 year-old seals in the caliper and master cylinder.

4. Check the date code on the tires and replace them if they are over six years old.

5. Inspect the valves for proper clearance and adjust as necessary.

None of this is particularly hard. I have no mechanical training and with a manual and the write-ups here I was able to do most of the above with no major issues.

 

Howdy, sorry to hear of your misfortune. Low or no gear oil should not cause a lock up situation, my best guess would be something to do with your rear brake. Did the lock up occur when you applied the brake? But to answer the question about the final drive oil level; there is a plug you can unscrew with an allen wrench, the oil should be to the top of the threads in the hole.

 

There's so little oil in the rear that you don't really check it so much as you either change it outright (it only takes a couple of ounces) or you put it on center stand and open the screw cap (points up and back, not the thing that points straight up) and make sure you see oil almost overflowing out of it.

I confess not to know a heck of a lot about the way the final drive works. I do know that the oil I drained out of the back of my 650 was *greenish-black* when I first got it. New gear oil is golden. Who knows how long it had been in there.

In your case, start by changing that oil and then dismounting the rear wheel and look for obvious damage in the wheel and the hub. When you get the wheel off (it pops off of the hub by sliding to the right), you'll see where the wheel and the final drive meet and whether or not there are bent metal bits in there.

Does the rear wheel turn freely if the transmission is in neutral? Does the engine idle? While I don't recommend this under most circumstances, can you put the bike on center stand, start it, put it in first (ENGINE IDLE ONLY) and get the rear wheel to spin relatively smoothly?

It will buck a *little* since the wheel is turning with no load, but you should be able to just stand there and watch - it's mesmerizing - without obvious concern. If it's doing *anything* that seems like cause for alarm, kill switch! Definitely don't let it get off of that center stand while in gear! Maybe run this test while sitting on the bike with front brake engaged and a helper to observe the rear wheel.

Sorry that's not more helpful.

[EDIT]: After reading the other replies, I guessed right(-ish). You'll be able to get at those rear brakes once you have the rear wheel dismounted. Pay careful attention to the brakes and keeping things clean where appropriate as you re-assemble them. Brakes keep you alive. Lube the pivot point, and ONLY the pivot point. Friction surfaces should be as clean and oil-free as you can get them with brake parts cleaner. Get this one right.

[EDIT 2]: For disc brakes, dismount the caliper and see if the rear wheel spins freely and the other tests I mentioned pass. If so, time to rebuild the rear brakes. Caliper probably seized, but you should check it stem to stern.

 

Sabre, the XJ 1100 has a rear disk brake, delamination is not an issue. Rhys, there is more than a pint of gear oil in the final drive, and it should be checked at least once a year.

 

One of the guys that stopped to help touched the rear brake disc and said it was cold so it wasn't the brake.
I know I need more information. I really felt like an idiot for all the unknowns I should know!

 

The xj1100 has a rear disc brakes so no shoes to come apart. Sounds like your piston seized up in the caliper or something along those lines. Might have something to do with the bike being 30 yrs old...the seals in the calipers are only good for 2 yrs and were probably never replaced.
Glad to hear you're still around to tell us about it.

 

Another possibility is that a chunk of metal got between your ring and pinion gears and that would be very bad, but the chances of that are so remote.

 

It won't generate heat since it's not slipping. It's locked. Take the rear wheel off and look at your brake shoes. I'd bet money one of them is delaminated.

 

And even though I don't know near enough i have had it safetied, worked on by 2 bike mechanics, who with me replaced the whole motor and clutch assembly...I've tried to be safe with it but after my first long ride (3 hours up and 3 hours back....though the accident happened about half way home 3 days after my original trip up I realized there is still lots more to know that can be life or death important!

 

After some thinking about it, I believe that when you applied the rear brake the piston seized and not gradually either. This would explain the cold rotor.

 

No one is born with knowledge of how to do anything besides eat, poop, and complain. What differentiates us is how we react to a situation where you suddenly need to know more. Do you go find out? Or do you fake your way through (meaning shortcuts)? Or do you give up?

The third kind sell bikes to me. The second kind get themselves killed and I get their bikes from the estate sales. The first kind get to ride with me and have munchies afterward and talk smack about themselves.

Don't feel bad about not knowing. You should only feel bad about CONTINUING to not know. Your presence here is a good sign. Keep after it until you're satisfied that you know what caused the problem and that you know what you need to know to maintain this bike. It doesn't take long to understand all of its systems and what each one requires, and just about everything you need to know is on here. Stick with it and, as one of my parts suppliers put it, "Get out there and shred the pave."

 

I will get into the bike as soon as I can use both hands...but I was in the process of passing fairly slowly--not really increasing speed but slowly passing a car, wasn't braking on purpose...then if I recall correctly I felt an initial sudden grip and then the fishtailing started (continued for about 200feet and then we went down)

 

Oh, whoops. Well now I know

 

or rather...wasn't braking at all, just a nice leisurely cruise and then it grabbed.

 

NO that is yoo much. On the XJ1100 there is a special tool to check the oil level. It is included in the tool kit. The correct level is actually about 1" below the fill hole. That same tool is also used to check the middle drive gear oil level.

Since you had a sudden wheel lock-up it is probably not the brakes, though it is possible. A few things it could be; rear drive or middle drive gear boxes, drive shaft U-joint, transmission. Any one of these can cause sudden wheel lock.
Time to put the bike on the center stand and have a look.

 

Re: 82 maxim 1100xj rear wheel locked up at highway speed...

When I started reading the thread my suggestion was going to be the brake. Some of the other info (especially the cold rotor) seem to rule it out.

Not sure what else can "grab" the rear wheel without things breaking though. Be interesting to hear how this turns out.

Sounds like you weren't real badly hurt. Glad to hear that.

 

I'm putting my money on catastrophic failure of the universal joint.

 

Re: 82 maxim 1100xj rear wheel locked up at highway speed...

Had 2 of the 4 bolts that join the middle gear flange to the universal joint back out on me one time. Instant rear wheel lockup!! Lesson learned?...check everything on these bikes. PO had not used Loctite on the bolts and I can only guess how close he came to torquing them correctly. Even though they all now have Locktite and proper torque, I check them on a regular basis just like any other maintenance item.

 

was the motor still running or did it seize ? if it did seize, what caused it ?

Catastrophic gearbox failure ?

Universal joint failure ?

Diff failure ?

brake lockup ? but doesn't sound like it....

photos and a strip down to help solve the mystery ..... glad to hear you're still in the land of the living though.