Motorcycle Repair: Honda vtx1800R, broken spring, fresh oil

Question
The gear when shifting up does not return to down position so you can shift to the next gear, you have to manually tap the gear down to shift up.. What can cause this problem and what can be done to fix it. Is this a transmission problem or just a broken spring.

Answer
Charles, There is a return spring on the shift shaft inside the engine side cover. I fixed a 2005 model with the same problem and the spring number was #24651-MCH-000 and was only $4.50. If you dont tear the gasket on the side cover you will need fresh oil and could get by fairly inexpensive for the repair.