Oil Leak?

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JohnB1953

Well-known member
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Dec 22, 2014
Messages
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Location
Jamestown ND
I have a 1981 GL1100 that I am making into a trike. I was testing it the other day and noticed that there was a drop or two of oil every time I parked it in the garage. It looks to be coming from the clutch cover area. It only seems to drip after it has been running not when it sits for a while. Today I cleaned the underside real good and parked it on a clean spot. Tomorrow I will run it a while and shut it off and see if I can see where it is coming from. The bike only has 50,300 miles on it. My question is there any other areas near there that could be the problem? I have to get it fixed as oil leaks drive me nuts. thanks JohnB
 
could be the oring on the clutch adjustment plug, maybe the crankcase ventilation hose, check hose for pinches and proper routing. then again not sure if it dumps there or the air cleaner.
 
Are you riding it and then you see it leak or is it leaking after running statically? Oil leaks on the underside of the engine are difficult to locate since wind pushes everything to the back of the motor as you are traveling down the road. Reading your thread, sounds like it is a static leak while idling. If this is the case, in addition to the o-ring Jeff mentioned, there is a seal on the side of the clutch cover where the shaft goes through and then the more obvious... the cover gasket and rear case gasket.
 
Ok I moved it today and was nothing on the floor. I then ran it for about 10 minutes and once again I found nothing on the floor or underside of the engine. This is as far as I can go right now. I have the front wheel off as I am doing a brake rebuild( getting rotors cut, new braded steel lines and pads) on the front because the front fork seals leaked an oil soaked the pads . And on the rear I am replacing lines with braded steel and adding a 10# check valve in the hopes of improving the braking. Then I will be able to take it for a ride and then see if the leak returns. Will post results later. Thanks for the input. JohnB
 
[url=https://classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=174873#p174873:3p57k2hu said:
Omega Man » Tue Jun 14, 2016 7:24 am[/url]":3p57k2hu]
Shift lever seal might be leaking and sending the oil back while riding. :read:

~O~
Click to expand...

Dead right!

That leak could be coming from anywhere if you just see it after riding.

I always spray the underside down with a good solvent de-greaser, and then get the thing hot where it stands!

Ain't failed me yet.

Question: where are you getting rotors cut? They won't do it around here, I hope you know the difference between the new rotor and the service limit is only 1mm!
 
There is a shop here that will do it. I had it done to the rotor of a 650 Yamaha that I used on my VW Trike. Has worked fine for over 17,000 miles. And these weren't bad at all just a touch up so to speak.
 
Ok got a chance to ride a little yesterday checking out the brakes. returned to shop and noticed the leak is back. From what I see it looks like the rear crankcase cover is dripping at the bottom. Not the clutch but the cover the clutch cover attaches to. Now is that a job that requires the engine to be removed or can that be done in frame?
 
Pretty sure that is an engine out deal to replace. I'd check all the cover bolts. Some might be loose.
 
Ok back to this leak. I got time to change oil today and through that I found out that the bike has been running for at least 500 miles over full on oil. Looked to be about .3 of a liter over full. I cleaned up the bottom and made sure there was no oil, took it for a quick 1 mile ride and parked it. I got a very small drip from the same place as described before. I wiped and ran the bike for 5 mins at idle and found no drip I also rechecked the bolts for tightness. I moved the bike for the night and will recheck tomorrow and if time allows a short ride. I am wondering since it was overfull could this be the issue and with it at the correct level could it fix its self? Or am I just wishing on a star? I really don't want to have to pull that motor this winter. Thanks John
 
hmmmm there is a oil return hole that drains the oil from clutch to inside motor it starting to act like this is cloged up ...and oil getting trap in rear cover .....sounds to me the maybe if you dont want to remove motor ,,,and good no run flushing might have to be done to clear that cloged hole ...if that what it is ....im going to reread the thread ...and post again...
 
Ok was a nice day so I got the trike out . I made sure that the spot that leaks oil was cleaned off. I then went for a 10 mile ride and came back to the garage. I had taken a piece of wood and taped some wax paper on it do no oil could soak in so I could see if anything leaked. There was nothing dripping when I first parked it, but after 20 minutes a drop or t2 had fallen. After 2 hours the drips had grown to a pool about the size of a quarter with a drop hanging from the motor. . I cleaned the engine again and moved it to its resting spot. So it seems to seep from the bottom edge of the gasket between the 2 bolts on the rear engine cover( that the clutch cover bolts to). Now this crazy thought crossed my mind how about a small bead of RTV silicone along the offending edge? I know it may not be correct fix but it could work right???? This oil on my shop floor is driving me nuts .John
 
Try tightening the cover bolts they may have loosened. Yes rtv might work but in my experience it rarely does.
 
Thanks Slabghost but that was the first thing I tried I even cracked them loose and retightened them to the correct torque , and retightened then the other day so I am sure that isn't it. I think if I try the silicone I will clean the area real good with solvent to get rid of any oil that may be there.
 
Well I cleaned it up today applied sealer to outside case seam let it dry and took it out for the same 10 mile drive as yesterday and returned to shop. Put the wax paper covered board under and it leaks just as bad. So either it didn't seal at all or the leak is further up the side closer to the starter location where I couldn't reach. So plan B Just how hard is it to pull a motor out of an 1100 bike? John
 
Not bad, I've pulled many times and back in. Helps a lot to have a large clean area to work in. Take pics as you go to help put parts back where they belong. It's just a bunch of parts bolted together. I think the single hardest part is that damn boot and spring clip.
 
Question? why do you have to take it out for a ride to warm it up? You're just confusing things.

Why not just let it get hot where it stands, that way, if you've cleaned it up good before hand, you really will know where it's coming from.

Maybe I'm just old but I found all my leaks, laying down on my back with a beer and a cigarette, looking up at a hot engine. :headscratch:
 
[url=https://www.classicgoldwings.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=183314#p183314:1blkcljm said:
chilidawg » Sat Nov 05, 2016 1:51 pm[/url]":1blkcljm]
Question? why do you have to take it out for a ride to warm it up? You're just confusing things.

Why not just let it get hot where it stands, that way, if you've cleaned it up good before hand, you really will know where it's coming from.

Maybe I'm just old but I found all my leaks, laying down on my back with a beer and a cigarette, looking up at a hot engine. :headscratch:
Click to expand...
:good: :salute:
 

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