Unknown leakage on a 2003 ST1300 :(

[lycan]

Hello everyone,

I started to notice that there were some small oil patches at the bottom of my bike.

And there are times where by there were some smoke coming out from my bike.

I took some photos but still can't really tell what is going on.

My guess is the leakage came from the shaft area?

I am riding a 2003 model.

If it is the shaft that is leaking, how do I top up the oil?

I will be fixing it by next week however I would want to check the oil level first before I ride it over to the shop.

Thanks a lot!

 

[Igofar]

Take some contact or brake cleaner and clean the entire area, make sure its dry, then spray some arisol foot powder spray all over the area, then start it up and see where the trail leads.
Igofar

 

[BakerBoy]

That's a lot of oil leak--you can see a lot of carbonized deposit on the exhaust pipe, so it has been doing this for a while.

From the pics, it appears to be either the transmission output shaft seal, or the gearshift shaft seal (it seems most likely to be the transmission output shaft seal). But do the cleanup and trace the leak as Larry/Igofar suggests to see the real source of the leak.

Regarding checking the oil... With the bike on the centerstand on level ground (never check it while it is on the sidestand), you should see oil in the sightglass (low on the engine, in front of your right foot, looking through an opening low on the cowling), preferably between the upper and lower mark. If no oil is visible in the sightglass, the fill is on the right camshaft cover, under a silver plastic cover that says "Honda" on it. That cover can be difficult to get off if you don't know the procedure--don't force it. Don't overfill the engine oil either....nothing good comes from that.

 

[BakerBoy]

One more point, you may have to have it in gear (the rear wheel spinning) to find the leak, if it is the transmission output shaft seal. So have it on the centerstand (the ABS light may stay on, but that is normal since the front wheel won't be turning for this test).

 

[Igofar]

 

[Garry in AZ]

One more thing to check... if you have had your valves adjusted recently, it's possible the valve cover gasket shifted during assembly and is leaking. That's a very common source of oil leaks on the ST. Clean it all up and try to locate the source. Yours looks like it's coming from fairly high up...

Garry

 

[lycan]

Thank you everyone for your insights!

I still have no idea where the leak was coming from.

Sent it to the work shop this morning and gotten it back at night.

Doesn't seems to leak anymore! Costed me USD$300 to get it fixed.

Most of the $$$ went to workmanship I guess.


Replaced quite a few gaskets/seals in both the front shaft area and some parts of the coolant pump system,


The oil leakage was caused by normal wear and tear.

 

[970mike]

Well glad you got your leaks taken care of. Now go ride!!