Oil leakage

[awaffa2003]

Hey guys, back with another problem... There is a translucent oil that covers the bottom of my driveshaft boot after a ride, anybody know? I'm taking off the boot in a little bit to see what I find...

[nhmaf]

Likely that it is driveshaft oil (regular gear oil) that has migrated forward as it generally does, especially under very bumpy riding conditions.  I think that there is a "top" and "bottom" to the rubber boot - are you certain that you have yours on and clamps tightened properly?

The alternative is not so good news - the output shaft seal on the transmission is leaking and the gearbox oil is coming in from there.

The first possibility is basically a "no big deal" affair, the second one is one that will eventually require some expensive (if you don't have the tools to do it yourself) repair time in a shop.

I hope that it is just the first item - it is 'normal' for some oil to collect in the U-joint/boot area from the driveshaft.

[Justin B.]

The rubber "boot" is prone to developing cracks as it ages and will start to leak...  

[montmil]

...prone to developing cracks as it ages and will start to leak...  

Yo, Justin. Ya talkin' 'bout me again?  [smiley=1drink.gif]

[Justin B.]

You're seem to be starting to get a bit defensive...   [smiley=dizzy2.gif] [smiley=whip.gif]

[montmil]

I'll get ya!  Now where's that box of Depends?

[Yikes]

Is the neutral indicator switch a common source of leaks?  I see a few drops on the ground in the morning (and oddly not at all during the day) and it seems to be coming from the switch location.  :-/

John M

[Bob_Roller]

The neutral switch is a common source for oil leakage.

If you tighten the switch with a wrench, and 'snug' it up a bit, there's a good chance that you have damaged the switch.

It will work correctly, but usually it will start to leak through the switch body itself.

I was told by a local independent shop, to tighten it up by hand with an oil resistant sealant on the threads, easy to do with the gearbox removed from the bike, not so easy to do with the gearbox still on the bike.

 Back to the original post, the metal clamps that secures the rubber boot, can cause problems itself, stripped threads due to to overtightening, also there is a channel shaped piece of metal that bridges the gap between to two 'ears' of the clamp, this is tack welded to the clamp, if it is missing, good chance it will leak there as well.        

[nhmaf]

+1 on the possibility of leakage through the neutral switch - part of the housing is a plastic type material that can crack enough to allow leaks like that.   It isn't a complicated thing to replace of itw own, but getting to it and getting it out /replacement in there while the transmission is still bolted on is a bit challenging, especially for the large-fingered.

Always be careful tightening up that switch and anytime that you pull the transmission in&out of the bike as it can easily be damaged if you drop the transmission onto a hard surface, etc.

[awaffa2003]

you guys dont evben want to know what happened with this one.... turned out my driveshaft flange bolts backed out. one acttually came out and knocked all the others around and finally spit through the boot and thats how i was leaking oil. most of the bolts were rounded off and the flange was pretty knicked up so i guess it was spinning in there for a while. just to give you guys an idea of how bad it was, the remaining 3 bolts that were in there were able to come out using my fingers with 4 turns max...and i had been riding with it like that for maybe a month.

[Justin B.]

Holy crap!    I guess you must have forgot to Loctite and torque it...    Hopefully it didn't tear anything up 'cept the boot.

[weasel01]

I wonder if they are reused stretch bolts that were originally torqued to the hi spec (which should have been discarded and replaced) but then reused at the lower torque setting?