Is it commom for my 99's clutch to let go at 11k miles? I am getting a rhapping that sounds distinctly similar to a pilot bushing or bearing from my automotive experience. Mostly I want to know what I am looking for and if I should take it apart or if I should bring it to the dealer. Any help would be appreciated.

I've got a 99 with 13000 miles on the clock and within the last 3000 it has developed a slight rattle in neutral and with the clutch pulled. this should just be down to the plates wearing and isn't a problem/hasn't caused any noticeable side affects.

I changed out my clutch at about 11k. It would act funny when it was hot, like riding in start and stop traffic. Or if I would drop the clutch on a downshift it would spin for a little too long beofre it would grab and go.

I did some research with the guys I race with and everybody pointed to Yamaha parts. I had thought of putting a Barnett kevlar job in because I'm very happy with the kevlar clutch in my truck, but all the racer I deal with said Yamaha's the best.

As far as the work, it depends on how willing you are to tackle the job. The hardest thing is to break-loose the big clutch basket nut. Once that's done it's just pulling all the springs, then the plates, then checking for excess wear on the basket. This is a visual check, you look to see if there are any grooves or notches, and they are very obvious if they're there. Then you put in new plates, get both metals and frictions, in the same order as you took them out, put the basket back together, and finally put the side cover back on.

I also recommend swapping in a new clutch cable if you've never done it. It'll reduce the pull strength on the clutch. And if you think the lever has gotten harder to pull, while you're in the clutch replace the springs. They get stiff with heat.

It's really not that hard of a job. Probably 6 hours for a home mechanic. The downside is you need to take everything apart to see what you need to order. So I took mine apart one weekend, ordered all the parts on monday morning, and had everything to reassemble the next weekend. So I was without a bike for a week. And parts... if you just need metals and frictions and a cable you're in the neighborhood of 125-150 depending on your dealer's mark-up. But you can always check Cycle-Parts (http://www.cycle-parts.com)

It ended up being the auto cam chain tensioner, as I explained in another thread. I did pull the clutch apart and checked tolerances, everything was low, but there was no damage to report. I got to say, getting the clutch cover back on with the cable hookup in the correct position is a huge pain. Also didnt help that I stripped a hole in the case trying to bolt the cover back in place.