Head oil seepage normal?

[PowerDubs_imp]

I think I already know the answer to this question, but I am not thrilled to even think about it.

I bought a leftover '14 a couple weeks ago. Yesterday I went down to take it out, and before I did I was looking it over. It had right at 100 miles on it, and I noticed some oil on a couple of the cyl fins.

I haven't looked since, but I will head to the garage in a bit and look again and take a picture.

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

Hard to get the camera to focus on it, but here is a picture-

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[rboe]

May need some fastners retorqued; worst case - a new gasket. Very minor issue with simple solutions.

 

[LongRanger_imp]

I trust it's still under warranty, so any repairs should be covered.

 

[kmoney_imp]

Mine did this for a while and then it just went away. I tightened the 10mm valve cover bolts, but this didn't really help (the way it's designed tightening them doesn't really matter anyway).

If you ever see under the valve cover you will see that there is a pool of oil that builds there, rhe top of which is above the valve cover gasket. This is because the bike tips forward and left when on the sidestand. I started parking it with a block of wood under the sidestand (the center stand would work even better) and it made it go away.

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

Yea, it's not leaking at the valve cover- its the cyl head gasket.

Taking a brand new bike in for warranty work is a pita I wasn't expecting- have to get someone to follow me to drop the bike off, then drive me back to pick it up. Bummer.

 

[BestStandard_imp]

Before you take it to dealer clean off the oil and give the bike a good bath to remove all the factory protective coatings. Then ride it for a while ro see if it comes back.

 

[kmoney_imp]

I doubt it's leaking through the steel shim head gasket, but anything is possible. I'd agree with best standard, clean it up a verify....

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

Not much to doubt- if you zoom in, you can see the dark area on the gasket. Right above that is a wider fin which is clean and dry- no oil up top. It is definitely from the head gasket. I would not have expected this from a modern machine either, but anything is possible.


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Btw- although I new here, I am not new to engines. I've been hotrodding anything with a motor for decades. I currently own several cars and several bikes, having fairly heavily modified more than a few over the years.

I suppose my wording of 'normal' was phrased improperly- but it is the easiest way to fit 'anyone ever had this happen before?' into a thread title.

So now comes the delima. If the leak continues do I tear it down myself and put a new gasket in it.. or do I go through the hassle of bringing it to a dealer just to trust it to someone else's work? I've been around cars enough to have seen waaaay too many botched dealer monkey repairs. At least if I do it myself, I know it is done right. Which is important to me, especially on things such as cyl tq values being observed.

Naturally although I don't mind the time for a teardown, the work, or the cost of a gasket- it is disappointing to have to potentially do it soo soon on a new bike, and I don't want to eat the cost on a cyl head if it is warped or defective.

Ugh.


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[Ulvetanna_imp]

Nothing you can get from a forum can help you. The image is impossible to scrutinize very well anyway. If you have been working on engines for all that time you know that oil seeps and migrates, and it's very hard to tell exactly where it's coming from without cleaning the surfaces and then checking again after a time.

What I would do is irrelevant but if I had this problem and the bike was under warranty, I would not touch it. Honda has an obligation to fix it and fix it right. If the dealer screws it up they have to redo it until it's correct. If YOU attempt it and have problems, there is no more warranty. Pretty hard to believe anything is wrong with that engine, the bike is made in Honda's newest and most advanced plant with the best available technology. The bike is also known to leak from the valve cover gasket on the left.

Sounds like you are well aware of all this stuff.

 

[CIP57_imp]

I would describe it more as sweating then leaking. I had the same issues when switching to full synthetic on my CB. Sitting on the bike the leak was on the left side and covered the first three fins. Loosening and retorquing everything did not solve the problem. As long as it's not dripping ride it and clean it.

 

[BayAreaRick_imp]

^^^
Back in the day...we would call it weeping (seriously). Most often when switching from Dino oil to synthetic (the oil molecules are smaller). As said above, wipe it and ride.

 

[Sam Mac_imp]

I would clean it and ride it. See if it continues to leak and if it does as much as you don't trust the shop rats to fix it that may be the smart thing to do otherwise you can probably forget any warranty if you do the repair yourself.

 

[kvdv_imp]

I noticed a similar thing on my 2014 DLX about six months ago. Looked like a small oil leak, just like in your picture. I did what some of the other folks have suggested; I simply wiped it off and kept an eagle eye out for it to return. It never did, even after a 2500 mile road trip up through the Canadian Rockies. Not sure how to explain that, but it happened once, only once, and now it's gone (thankfully). Maybe you'll get lucky and experience the same? Either way, you're absolutely right to expect that a new(er) engine shouldn't be leaking any oil. Good luck and let us know what develops. - K

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

I'll clean it up and keep an eye on it. Was just wondering if anyone else has had this happen and apparently they have. I'll just chalk it up to the bike trying it's best to give off an old vibe of another time.

Thanks guys.

 

[rboe]

It's good to ask as sometimes these things are a sign of worse things to come (oiy, Moto Guzzi!), sometimes not. Some models can have very odd failure modes and it's nice to get a better feel for them; even if you think you know the answer already.

Warranty issues are a pain, but hey, some times things happen; even with a Honda.

 

[Tezza_imp]

After 40 thousand kilometres mine weeps a little around the valve cover. I will install a new gasket next time I check the valve clearances.

 

[Hawkeye_imp]

I'll clean it up and keep an eye on it. Was just wondering if anyone else has had this happen and apparently they have. I'll just chalk it up to the bike trying it's best to give off an old vibe of another time.

Thanks guys.

Hopefully your "oil seepage" issue has been resolved; please advise.

Thank you.

 

[PowerDubs_imp]

Honestly, I haven't ridden much since I posted this- due to both work and heat. I bought the bike in July and just finished up my 2nd tank of gas. I've spent waaay more hours wrenching on it than riding it, although I hope to change that once the weather cools down. It was mid 90's and humid today for example.

 

[Hawkeye_imp]

Hopefully you'll have more time to enjoy cooler, nicer autumn riding weather before long.