Engine Oil Leak - Front Left

VMAX  Forum

Help Support VMAX Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.

vbmike

Active Member
Joined
Apr 22, 2008
Messages
38
Reaction score
0
Location
Buffalo, NY
I’ve got an engine oil leak on my 93 vmax but I can’t tell where it is coming from. The oil seems to be coming from the front left side cover. The cover bolts were a bit loose so I tightened them down a bit but that didn’t seem to help. It’s not the valve covers because they have been replaced earlier this year and everything is dry up there. Is it common for the side cover gasket to leak? Could it be leaking around the starter?

You should be able to see the oil in the picture. The part I have circled in the picture is that the engine mount? Is there any way oil can leak from there? It almost seems like the oil is coming from there sometimes.
 

Attachments

  • P1010003.jpg
    P1010003.jpg
    69.1 KB · Views: 82
Have you fiddled with the vboost? There are bolts that have to go in the right holes. Front left and right rear will leak if you put the wrong one in. They should have sealer on them.
 
Are all the stator cover bolts torqued to spec? Oil can get blown some pretty crazy places if it's leaking a bit and your on the road.
 
That front left cover in your pic. I was gonna ask if your oil filter was tight, but that question was fueled by alcohol.
 
As a general rule oil won't run up hill. On that basis any oil on the engine mount must be coming from somewhere above it.

Dust the area with talc which should show where the leak is coming from.
 
I vote for a stator cover gasket, mine leaked from bottom and my buddys max from top, either wasn't loose..! And it looks oily in picture. And see that first screw at top of the cover, or near it, is that gasket coming out?
I put genuine yamaha gasket with perfect seal on both surfaces, has been bone dry since.. Great stuff! http://www.usindustriallubricants.com/PerfectSeal.html
 
This stuff is awesome. I spray it on almost every gasket and never have had any leaks on any of the 10+ bikes I've owned. Not for head gaskets and certain others like cork valve cover gaskets on old v8's, but for example I just replaced the starter clutch and sprayed the gaskets for both of the left side engine cases/covers- job done. Even helps seal cracked/torn gaskets- although for the really bad ones I use a bit of black rtv.

This stuff is $6 and the part number for the right one is 80062.

m97_grZ2RN1KlM2H0MWJLig.jpg
 
If the oil is coming from the stator cover, you will probably find the cover distorted from PO overtightning cover bolts. You can correct the problem by cleaning the old gasket material and using a fine 8" mill file. Lay the file flat on the cover and file from bolt hole to other bolt hole. If the cover is distorted you will notice the bolt hole will start to shine while the surface area between bolt hole will remain tarnished looking because the file is not making contact with the mating surface between bolt holes. Work your way around the entire cover. File just enough to show a light contact of the file on the mating surface between the bolt holes. Use a good sealant on gasket and rubber grommet where the stator wires exit the cover. Tighten the cover to specs and your leak should be fixed if that's the source of the leak to begin with.
 
Thanks for the replies. I agree and think it's leaking from the front cover so I ordered a new gasket. In order to remove the front left cover do I also have the remove the cover behind it where the shifter is? I started to remove the case cover and it wouldn't come off because of the wires inside that were hitting the other cover. I saw there was a rubber grommet that looked like I could remove but wasn't sure if I should remove the back cover instead.
 
Yes the other cover must come off but its not gasketed and is primarily cosmetic. I think once thats off and the wire holder clips are undone you should have enough play in them to pull the stator cover. I think there was even a plug there somewhere so you could remove the whole thing and move it to the bench to clean it up.

Still not getting how oil from the stator cover made its way up to the motor mount...
 
I did have to take the back cover off to get the front cover off. There is a gasket there and engine oil behind the cover.

Still waiting for the replacement gasket to come in the mail. I think the case was leaking at the front upper most point and the oil was getting blow up on the engine mount. I hope anyway. The front gasket did not appear to be properly aligned when it was put on at the factory so I think that's the problem. Find out soon.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top