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Not what you want to see when you head out to the garage to get some tools...

D

dsw

Tuned and Synch'ed
GT Contributor
Joined
Jan 13, 2018
Messages
47
Location
Cambridge, MA
I went out to the garage to grab some tools and noticed something under the bike...pictures attached. At least I noticed in early March and my dealer is typically great to deal with so I'll give them a call to come grab the bike and take a look. I'll circle back once I have a diagnosis.

IMG 0590 IMG 0600 IMG 0598
 
Has it had an oil change? Obvious question… new crush washer - and, drain plug snug? Just went out and checked mine - dry. Yeah, let us know - good luck!
 
Last oil change was about 2700 miles ago and the leak seems to be coming from between the oil pan and the block, but I need to take a closer look when I have time and look at the parts diagram too. Dealer should be picking it up one day next week.
 
Clutch cover leak perhaps?
Or where is it coming from?
 
Good questions :). I'll write back with thoughts once I get a chance to get out to the garage and poke around some more. I really only spent a few minutes to take pictures and call the dealership at this point.
 
Bummer and sorry to hear its leaking. Sounds like you have a pretty good dealer, especially if they will pick it up. My Guzzi dealer won't do anything unless I trailer the bike in myself. Love the bike, hate the dealer!!
 
It looks like it's leaking from both the drain plug and the oil filter cover plate. Sucks that it happened but consider that the cure could be worse. Hopefully, the dealer has a good service technician and they replace the crush washer, the gasket under the cover, torque all to spec and it doesn't happen again. What would really suck is the tech putting an extra 1/4-1/2 turn on each fastener so it doesn't happen again. That ultimately leads to stripped threads and more leaks. Look to the dirt bike world and see the instances of cracked and stripped out cases due to overtightened fasteners.

I do all of my own oil changes and instead of the crush washer, I use bonded sealing washers. They never leak and need minimal torque. For the plate covering the filter, I replace the bolts with studs, held in the case with removable loctite and then use a nyloc or acorn nut to hold the plate. Now, each time I do an oil and filter change, I don't need a breaker bar to remove the drain plug nor am I taxing the threads holding the oil filter cover.

No matter how careful one is with the torque wrench, every time you tighten a bolt in an AL case, the case is a little bit weaker than it was the last time. Yes, there are ways to fix stripped case threads. I think it's better to implement a near permanent solution in the beginning. The studs create no service problems and actually make it much easier to do a filter change because the cover says in position on the studs. It seems few manufactures use studs for anything anymore. Must be for reasons of manufacturing expediency as even heads and cylinder barrels are secured with long bolts instead of studs and nuts.

This primitive DRZ400 has studs and acorn nuts on the oil filter cap.

IMG 3077 IMG 3076
 
I just took another, closer look and I think the leak is from the oil pan gasket - not the drain plug or the oil filter cover plate. Though it would be hard to say for certain it isn't all three until it gets cleaned and checked, it clearly seems to be leaking where the oil pan is connected to the engine. The drips you see in the picture on the drain plug and oil filter cover, I think, are just settling there from the oil leak further upstream.
 
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We used Ultra Copper in the radial engine overhaul shop. Also non-hardening. Smear it lightly on both sides of the gasket. Contrary to popular belief radial engines don't leak oil if assembled properly. None of the engines that left our shop had a leak, we ran them for 5 hours to break them in. If we had a leak it was a rocker box cover. Some wet and dry paper on a surface plate would take care of it.
kk
 
scottmastrocinque said:
Two words…

HYLOMAR BLUE

I’ve written about it extensively on the forums here. It is the best thing you will ever discover with regard to the end of every single oil leak on your motorcycle.

Developed for jet aircraft engines…

View attachment 34580
Click to expand...

Scott, I need to replace the head gaskets on a v7II with 19000 on it. I assume the first service 're-torque never got done.
Should I put a layer of blue on the oil passage gaskets or just put in as it came?
Thanks.
 
Head gaskets don’t normally call for it but I use it on every gasket religiously. YMMV. I have never experienced any issues with using it and I like the added layer of sealing it provides.

Hylomar out of the tube is like very thin gel toothpaste. It gets thicker when exposed to air.

Accordingly, I put a blob on a paper plate and use a small chip brush and apply a very thin skim coat on both sides, then hang it with a paper clip in the air and allow it 10 minutes or so to tack up. Then install as usual.

The Hylomar will seal completely when you torque the head down. It will never ever leak unless your engine studs start to pull and it will never harden. Impervious to oil and gasoline.

I’ve sealed many oil puking Harley Evolution motors with it. Used it on every gasket including the trap door on the transmission. They never leaked a drop. Very un-Harley like I know!

In this photo you can see the blue color at the top of the head under the rocker boxes. I intentionally put it heavier at the end so my customers could see it. Once done, none of these old Harley engines ever leaked a drop again.

IMG 8303
 
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Just to close out with a quick follow up - root cause analysis for the oil leak was that the oil pan bolts had loosened. Per the mechanic, re-torquing the bolts got rid of the small leak. Hopefully that is the end of that, but I'll add those bolts to my list of things to periodically check.

When the dealer came to pick up my bike I also noticed a small coolant leak which was tracked down to hose clamps which were replaced.

Also while it was at the shop, they replaced the clutch slave seals under the technical bulletin.

I should get my bike back next week and be ready for Spring riding (well, after I do an oil change once it warms up a bit).
 
Hi
My motorcycle also leaked oil. Oil discharge plug aluminium gasket not changed during maintenance 😪 Normally it should be changed at every maintenance. The dealer made a mistake
The amount of leakage is small, I will follow the oil level regularly until the next maintenance.
(loose bolt tightened sufficiently)
IMG 1849
 
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I work in a tool repair shop and the blue goo is outstandingly good.
It withstands butane, gasoline and diesel environments with ease and in many cases acts as a mild form of thread lock which in turn prevents leakage also.
 
scottmastrocinque said:
Two words…

HYLOMAR BLUE

I’ve written about it extensively on the forums here. It is the best thing you will ever discover with regard to the end of every single oil leak on your motorcycle.

Developed for jet aircraft engines…

View attachment 34580
Click to expand...
Good stuff👍
Before I retired in January, I worked for a company that builds industrial gas turbines
I should have "liberated" a tube or two before I left!!!!
 
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