Leaking Left Engine Cover

[parnn]

Hi Guys,

Sorry if this has been posted before. I couldn't find it.

I am new to KR and to motorcycles in general.

Living in Arizona and just bought a 2000 GSX600F with 20K miles.

I left for New York for 10 days and when I came back all of the engine oil had
leaked out of the left engine cover.

Empty: https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5QT...it?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5QTB5MDJ_RoUXhxZWhYUGY4YTQ/edit?usp=sharing

https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5QTB5MDJ_RoQVdxNjBHWEVUOFU/edit?usp=sharing

Some work done? https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B5QT...it?usp=sharing


What I'd like to know is how big an issue this is and how hard it would be to fix myself. I am pretty handy and not afraid to turn a wrench.

If you could point me in the direction of some instructions I would greatly appreciate it.


Thank you.

[daddijuggalo]

no oil is a big issue if u plan on riding it.now if ur gonna park it and use it to look cool .then u don't need oil .I wouild start with the gaskets .they look whooped and like someone made them with a caulk gun

[hinow41]

pull the cover replace the gasket and then add oil. Should stop the leak

[BIG-KO]

You say all the oil leaked out. That would mean 4 quarts of oil on the ground, quite a mess. Picture doesn't show a 4-quart oil slick, that'd be a puddle 3 feet in diameter. Be sure to check oil level with bike level, not tipped to the left on the sidestand. If you add oil to the full mark with bike tipped to the left you'll over fill it. An even worse situation than a leak.

[Wild-Bill]

+1 on both of those.
That's a significant oil leak and looking at those photos, it's plain that the problem is a poorly done seal. It's going to be a pretty easy fix. Either order up an oem gasket or swing by Autozone for some gasket sheeting (black, rubberized paper) and cut your own. Cost will be about the same. The only advantage to cutting your own gasket is that you won't have to wait on the mail.

When you do go to replace that gasket, be sure you get all the RTV sealant off the sealing surfaces and don't let any of it get down into the engine. If you do then it'll get pumped around inside the engine with the oil and could clog something up. Just put a paper towel inside to catch anything that goes that direction and take your time with a scraper. Follow up with a small steel brush and use your fingernail to check that the sealing surface is nice and smooth. If there's any pitting or irregularities you can use a VERY thin coat of blue Permatex on the new gasket (so thin you can see through it) but odds are you won't need it.

Oh, before you ask, yes you'll need to drain all the oil out of the engine before starting. You needed to change the oil anyway, right?

[parnn]

Thanks for all the replies guys, I really appreciate it.

Most of the oil leak is still in my backyard that's why it looks so small haha.

I have quite a ways to go before I look cool on that bike anyway!

[latenight]

When you are changing the oil, be sure not to overtighten the drain plug, big headache that happened my first oil change!

Use a torque wrench to put the plug back in.

[parnn]

So I opened her up and found this:



Just received a replacement cover I found on eBay:




I can't seem to find the torque specifications for 98+ though. Also I am not sure of the oil drain plug torque either. Anybody know?

Thanks.

[DarkFury]

http://www.motorcycleanchor.com/katana/trinc/images/torque_spec.jpg

http://katriders.com/wiki/index.php5?title=Service_Manual