Tell me it ain't that bad

[demito]

This trace of oil worries me. It is not excessive and I have never seen a drop of oil on the floor, but there is a leak somewhere. Any suggestions on what this could be/what this will cost :rolleyes: . Bike's a 2004 1150 GSA, 50000 kms (about 31000 miles).

Cheers

Demito

[MikeP]

Either Gearbox output shaft seal or final drive seal.

Neither are expensive parts but labour prices will be costly if done by main dealer unless you DIY. (Is the bike out of warranty?)

Check gearbox and FD oil levels to see which it might be. If neither is obviously low, you won't know which seal has gone until you take things to bits.

Did the oil appear suddenly or has it built-up slowly over a long time?

WHen my FD seal went, the oil suddenly appeared but when the Gearbox seal went it was very little oil over a long time (it has further to travel down the shaft housing and gets spread about inside).

I was told by BMW mechanic that the FD (which is a threaded steel ring with the seal attached) seal is loctited on assembly but that heat will cause the different expansion rates of steel and ali to break the loctite. On replacement they now use a silicone sealer that allows for the expansion.

[demito]

Did the oil appear suddenly or has it built-up slowly over a long time?


It appeared over a longer period of time. The odd thing is that I never saw it leak, never found oil on the floor. Its just traces of dirt/dust stuck in a little bit of grease.

Since I first noticed this I have wiped off the grease and have done 2500 kms to find it back in this state, so obviously not a major leak I presume... :nenau

I will check oil levels tonight. What oil level is considered appropiate/ low and just in case, what type of oil do I top it up with?

Tnx

Demito

[Fanum]

I had a bit of a leak like that in Morocco.....I pointed it out to the Guru and he reckoned it could have just been a bit of excess seepage on a hot day doing a lot of miles....I wiped it off and have had no re-occurrence.

Not saying that it's the same for you, but don't listen to the doom mongerers straight away..might be worth wiping it up, checking the level and seeing what happens for a while :nenau

[PeterGS]

Recently had the same on my 2000 model after a trip to France. Did a search here and Steptoe mentioned seals can 'sweat' so cleaned off crud and checked levels. All as they should be right to the lip of the fillers so decided to ignore. Just enjoy, "they all do that sir!" ;)

[demito]

checked the oil levels and all seemed ok. Steptoe seems a wise man :rob
At least I hope so :D
Tnx all for your replies. I'll just rub it off and pretend nothing ever happened.

Cheers

Demito