well l spoke to soon .exactly a year ago to the day l replaced the mechanical seal in my 2004 st1300.and after only 16.000 its letting a small drip of coolant out . my thinking is that after returning home from Alice the radiator came out for a service and l did other minor things but the donk was sitting there over winter with no coolant around the seal.It then gushed out of the tell tale hole after a 500km ride but has since slowed down considerably. I use the blue Honda coolant S2 as it doesn't have the silicates in it but its been in for 4 years and done 50.000ks.For the guys that have replaced the seal did you press the impella all the way home to the step on the shaft and does anyone else use the Honda s2 coolant Thanks.
mechanical seal
- Thread starter red rider
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I have never replaced the pump or seal but do use Honda Type 2 Coolant. I replace it pretty close to every 24,000 miles as recommended.
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Original water pump at 124,000 miles and I use the Honda Type 2 coolant also.
BakerBoy
It's all small stuff.
Original water pump and seal on mine at 10 years, 60000 miles. I use Honda Type 2 coolant also.
The leaks almost always come from hose clamps loosening. The hose clamps are to the rear of the thermostat, above the engine, below the throttle bodies. These leaks are often misdiagnosed as water pump seal failures by dealers and the uninformed.
The leaks almost always come from hose clamps loosening. The hose clamps are to the rear of the thermostat, above the engine, below the throttle bodies. These leaks are often misdiagnosed as water pump seal failures by dealers and the uninformed.
It isn't leaking any where but the mechanical seal.I get 1 drop of coolant after a 200 km ride.just annoys me that it only got replaced 15000ks ago.as l said it was sitting idle for 2 months without fluid so it may have damaged the new seal.maybe I'll leave it till it gets a bit more serious.what are your thoughts.
Smallville
Scott
Let it go a bit. Some seeping is normal. As evidence by Honda adding a hose in 2008 to the weep hole. If it's just a single small drip or so after a ride, I wouldn't worry about it. These seals can "heal" and stop leaking.
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Maybe take a picture of the antifreeze leak.
I thought my leak was the water pump seal, but it turned out the hoses in the vee had loose gear (hose) clamps.
I thought my leak was the water pump seal, but it turned out the hoses in the vee had loose gear (hose) clamps.
Thanks Scott.I'll take your advise and let it go for a while.I have a huge ride coming up for the Barry Sheene memorial ride and Phillip Island Moto GP.total a 1000ks so I'll see how it goes after that Cheers!
My bike also weeps from the water pump tell tale hole. Its a 2003 with 17,000 miles. I only bought it a couple of months ago and its in bits at the moment as I'm giving it a full service and inspection as a 'welcome' to my world!
I've removed the front crankcase to get at the pump, and I've got a new set of seals from Honda. When I removed the pump shaft/impeller, I found some corrosion on the underside.
This is what it looks like after 15 minutes cleaning. Hmmmm...this could possibly be the root cause of my weeping problem. If the top half of the mechanical seal isn't mating to the shaft/impeller securely, maybe there's an unauthorized path for coolant this way. I've ordered a replacement, hopefully that will cure it.
I can't be totally sure when the coolant was last changed as the service records supplied with the bike are a little sparse, possibly May 2009 at best. This looks like a good advert for making sure the coolant is changed regularly to the schedule, the anti corrosion properties of the coolant should prevent this.
I'll let you all know how this turns out once I've got the bike up and running again
I've removed the front crankcase to get at the pump, and I've got a new set of seals from Honda. When I removed the pump shaft/impeller, I found some corrosion on the underside.
This is what it looks like after 15 minutes cleaning. Hmmmm...this could possibly be the root cause of my weeping problem. If the top half of the mechanical seal isn't mating to the shaft/impeller securely, maybe there's an unauthorized path for coolant this way. I've ordered a replacement, hopefully that will cure it.
I can't be totally sure when the coolant was last changed as the service records supplied with the bike are a little sparse, possibly May 2009 at best. This looks like a good advert for making sure the coolant is changed regularly to the schedule, the anti corrosion properties of the coolant should prevent this.
I'll let you all know how this turns out once I've got the bike up and running again
- Joined
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- 07 & 12 ST1300A
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- STOC #
- 8057
I would think the corrosion would play heck with that seal and could make it seep bye. Good luck and keep us posted on your findings.My bike also weeps from the water pump tell tale hole. Its a 2003 with 17,000 miles. I only bought it a couple of months ago and its in bits at the moment as I'm giving it a full service and inspection as a 'welcome' to my world!
I've removed the front crankcase to get at the pump, and I've got a new set of seals from Honda. When I removed the pump shaft/impeller, I found some corrosion on the underside.
This is what it looks like after 15 minutes cleaning. Hmmmm...this could possibly be the root cause of my weeping problem. If the top half of the mechanical seal isn't mating to the shaft/impeller securely, maybe there's an unauthorized path for coolant this way. I've ordered a replacement, hopefully that will cure it.
I can't be totally sure when the coolant was last changed as the service records supplied with the bike are a little sparse, possibly May 2009 at best. This looks like a good advert for making sure the coolant is changed regularly to the schedule, the anti corrosion properties of the coolant should prevent this.
I'll let you all know how this turns out once I've got the bike up and running again
It's all back in 1 piece now, and so far so good. I've only covered about 100 miles but the weep hole is bone dry and no sign of any leaks. The attached pic shows the old and the new. I think I'll be doing an annual coolant flush to prevent a replay...
- Joined
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- Lompoc, California
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- 07 & 12 ST1300A
- SPOT
- LINK
- STOC #
- 8057
Well we hope this is the end of that problem. Enjoy having the bike back together.