Oil in my air box

[newbie1993]

I took my Gs for her first ride ever since I bought her and when I got to work I discovered that oil somehow worked its way into my air box... Any ideas on how it could've gotten there?

[Janx101]

How'd you determine oil in airbox ... At work ?

[newbie1993]

It was more of an assumption since I didn't have much time to check it out.. Oil was everywhere. I removed the seat and saw oil splatter on the air filter so I assumed that it was also in the air box.. A buddy of mine told me it was blow back from oil in the Engine

[Janx101]

Mrrrrhhmmm k ... While I agree that oil splatter is probably not desirable on the filter, it may not be' doom' .. Bike backfiring at all?, running oddly? ..

I'm not anywhere near my bike at moment so I can't look and see the possibles, so... Visualizing.. Or trying to, .. Got any engine vent hoses or emissions hoses running into the airbox?,

Also on the phone access at moment so search is a biatch .. As I recall you have had Tech help thread running recently... Other issues that may contribute to the oil splatter? ...

I 'think' blowback through the carbs would also mean backfires on impressive scale or engine otherwise sounding really sick? .. Which makes me then think engine breather hose/pcv valve like on a car....

Hopefully one of the 'engine-tisti' can chime in shortly

[Janx101]

...oh and define 'oil everywhere' ?

[newbie1993]

When I started her up earlier I got a gunshot sized backfire.. But otherwise it's running fine other than the issue mentioned in my "Diagnosis  Anyone post. And by oil everywhere I mean the oil splashed everywhere between the carbs and the air box

[newbie1993]

Other than the breather tube connected between the air box and valve breather nothing is connected to the air box

[Janx101]

Errr ... Valve cover breather .. To the air box ... Backfire.... That's all sounding suspiciously connected!

.... Reckon it might blow/suck some oil that's bathing the valve/cam area through that pipe with a backfire eh! ....

engine chaps.... chime in anytime to confirm/deny this?! ..

.. And just to be sure ... A heap of oil on surfaces inside the airbox and boots area? .... But nothing dripping or oozing on the outside? ..

[newbie1993]

No oil oozing out just dripping.. I'm gonna wipe it off and see if its stopped.. I know it definitely doesn't help that I red lined a couple time in a rush to get to work

[adidasguy]

Oil on outside and dripping sounds like a blown gasket.
Clean everything off.
Dry it.
Sprinkle with baby powder and look for signs of oil.
If none, start her up and look again.

[Suzuki Stevo]

The 2 most popular ways to get oil in the airbox  that I know of are.....

(1) Overfilling engine with oil
(2) Overfilling engine with oil & having worn rings/blowby

[newbie1993]

The 2 most popular ways to get oil in the airbox  that I know of are.....

(1) Overfilling engine with oil
(2) Overfilling engine with oil & having worn rings/blowby

#2 sounds like my issue ... What rings would be worn?

[Suzuki Stevo]

#2 sounds like my issue ... What rings would be worn?

That would be the piston rings, but...has your bike been consuming excessive amounts of oil? Check the breather tube from the top of the engine into the airbox...it should be dry, that is the point of entry to the airbox I am referring to.

BRAIN FART: Maybe you have an over oiled K&N filter in there? 

[newbie1993]

More like number 1 now.. I started up again and rode home and no oil this time

[newbie1993]

Turns out I overfilled the engine with oil.. It hasn't happened since earlier today.. But not there's a completely different issue.. The smoke... When I start her up and get her warmed up she smokes a lot not from the exhaust but from under the tank and I also continuously smell fuel and I don't know where from

[Janx101]

err... ok ... smoke and a lot of fuel smell warrants investigation rather quickly ...

could be simple like just some extra degreaser/carb cleaner or something burning off, which has its 'own smell' .. or it could be smoke= tappet cover gasket stuffed and leaking oil vapor , fuel smell = loose/damaged fuel line/clamp/carbs ...

the bikes will smell a tiny bit 'fuelly' if rich mixture and a tiny bit just in general ... but theres kinda a limit to it... it should not smell like you are filling the tank at the fuel station! ..

my take on it is....in a darkened garage?... unbolt the fuel tank again... and lift it up some at the back.. without removing it or the lines... prop it up with a small wood block or something? ... start the bike... let it idle and warm... have a nice bright LED torch (for preference) and sit beside bike .. shine light 'across the frame' around under there .. but look 'down' on the side of the beam .. not into it or with it... you see a wider cross section of 'smoke/whatever' that way .. try to isolate the area where the smoke come from .. also looking for damp areas for fuel leaks? ..

Adidasguy frequently recommends wiping areas down with a clean cloth and then dusting with talcum powder or similar too... thats a great way to point out weepy oil/fuel spots !! ..

at the moment you mainly need a little 'quiet time' to run your eyeball over the undertank area and just familiarise yourself with it... looking for drips/damp/wisps ... there should benone! ... which makes it easier to find the ones that exist! 

... im not ever gonna be a master mechanic at anything! ... but over years of basic maintenance on trucks, cars, tractors and bikes ... its amazing what you notice is 'wrong' when you give yourself time to! .. ive found loose bolts i wasnt looking for... stripped/damaged wires .. worn bushings.. badly weathered fuel lines ... cracked structural sections ... and even once a spanner i left hanging on a tight bolt head (for 2 months) ..

so .. "sit yo' ass down, and LOOK" ..    i mean that in the nicest possible friendly helping way! 

[newbie1993]

I had a previous post where Kerry told me my valve cover gasket needed replacing because that's one origin that the smoke came from but I just feel like its coming from somewhere else

[newbie1993]

I'm gonna take a picture and let you judge whether it needs replacing

[Janx101]

pictures help ... and give everyone a better understanding ..

i will say this ... while i am online more during my work hours... and i do offer you and others my thoughts or advice.... its only based on my very basic maintenance experience...

if any of the 'tech/engine gurus' tell you something... best you listen to them!! ... i'm completely happy to be wrong! ... and happy to learn from them too!

[newbie1993]

Here's the picture of the valve cover gasket


Another question though, any reason why unburned gas would end up in my air box ?