I am triying to hunt down an oil leak.  It is funny how everyting works fine until it comes back from the shop.  Here are the 2 images.  I circled the 2 possible places where i think oil may be coming from.  The engine above these locations is clean and free of oil, but there is a lot of oil on th bottom of the engine, probably from this leak.  Thanks for any help.

Matt




I think the first image is the most likely source.  is there a seal there?  It is gonna be a pain in the ass to tear it down and replace isn't it?

The first pic looks like the head gasket material oozing out. It is a liquid gasket material that is supposed to be there.  If there is a leak then it is probably there and will need to be replaced. The second is the same material for the crank case cover. I have not experienced any leaks there myself other than the head gasket. Sorry, but not an easy fix.  

What kind of work did you have done at your shop?

all they did was oil change, carb sync, valve adjustment, brake check, etc...
they did a basic tuneup.  $260 and it comes back with a leak.   Am i gonna have to pull the engine to replace that?

Matt

I'd say that $260 worth of work should be done RIGHT.  You should let them know that you now have a leak you didn't have before, and ask 'em what they plan to do about it.

Meanwhile, I guess you have oil dripping on the ground?  Where does it land in relation to, say, the oilpan drain bolt or the lower curve of the oil filter cover?

If it drips right under the drain bolt, the crush washer under the bolt head may need to be replaced.  Or, it could just be that the mechanic didn't clean the area before putting the bolt back on, and there's some grit that's preventing the bolt from sealing the hole completely.

If it drips below the oil filter cover, there are two possibilities:  First, just like with the oil drain bolt, the mechanic may have left some grit from the used oil on the mating surface between the engine and the filter cover.  Insta-leak!  Alternately, the "O-ring" that fits into a groove near the perimeter of the oil filter cover may have come slightly OUT of the groove.  If that O-ring has been pinched between the cover and the engine ... Insta-leak again!

These are all common things that can happen with an oil & filter change.  Your leak could be something else entirely, but my bet is on something related to the oil change.

["Pssst!.  If you can take macro shots that well, you can certainly change your own oil & filter."   )

If the head gasket is leaking, yes you will have to pull the head. You don't have to pull the whole motor.  That sucks that it happened, but what probably happened was when/if they re-torqued the head bolts down that material worked itself out and now is a nice slow leak. I am not sure why they would have removed the crank case cover but they may have re-torqued it as well, and now its leaking as well.  Taking it back to them and bitching wouldn't be a good idea. I would just take it back and KINDLY explain it and ask for them to check it out so you can determine how to fix it.
Good luck!

I don't see how it could be from the oil filter or drain plug.  How would it get from these locations to the locations where i am seeing the oil.  the entire bottom right fo the engine is covered in oil, but I cannot find the source.  I think it is only really leaking when it is running.  more pics show where there are drops of oil, but this is probably just where is is collecting, not where is is starting.

I think they did say that they were going to go through and retorque all of the bolts.  That is probably the cause.

Sorry.  I didn't see any oil in the first pictures; just areas where you thought the leak(s) MAY be coming from.

Best of luck in getting them to go away!  

Newbie: The circle in the first picture isn't the head gasket, it's worse, it's the horizontal crankcase split. No gasket there, that's sealed with liquiid sealant.

One other possible cause: Dd they use fully synthetic oil? That can cause old deposits to wash out and open leaks that had previously sealed themselves.

Yo MarkusN,

Check that FIRST pic out again. That is the head and cyclinder head.  Look closely you can even see the exhaust tube running along with the frame, and the oil filter location behind it. But thanks.

Newbione, if it was the head/cyl gap, you would see the exhaust ports and bolts holding the flanges of the pipes to the head, if you look to the right, you see the oil filter cover, and to the left on same plane is the leading clutch cover bolt, its indeed the mating surfaces of the casings. in fact looking at the lower edge of that very red circle is a casing bolt, the head/cyl gap bolt is dead center, this one is not

That which MarkusN identified as the horizontal split on the inner cases... absolutely right... its not the head. No fins and no exhaust post visible... pipe running vertical... = main cases. Frankly dont see why an oil change will make it leak there though... and besides its not under oil pressure... so while I'll still make them fix it... its major enough that I'll sue them and get them to pay for the work to be done at a better shop. If it were my bike and I dont have a shop responsible for it... I'll not even bother posting about it. Its not under pressure and hence I wont fix it, of course a rebuild on the motor will be done ad it will get fixed then.
Cool.
Srinath.

I have got to stop drinking and reading this stuff. HAHA! I am totally wrong, it is the engine casings.  Yall are right, I am blind. Sorry for the mistake.  :mrgreen: