Guest new2guzzi Posted January 25, 2006 Share Posted January 25, 2006 Hi, I've noticed some rear oil/grease on the right side of the tire and wheel. I cleaned it recently, took it for a ride and it is there again. It is on the inner wheel and the outter most area of the tire (right side only). This could be dangerous - especially if I lean into a right hand turn too much, I could lose it. Any ideas... I just changed the gear oil and final drive oil. However, this problem was occurring before I did the change. Now I get a nice smooth shifting action though which is nice. Anyway, it is not obvious where this oil/grease is coming from... thanks for your help Black/Grey 2003 V11 LeMans 2k miles. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrt Posted January 25, 2006 Share Posted January 25, 2006 Of course, the first thing is to track down where the oil is coming from. Can you tell if it is gear lube or engine oil? Based on previous experience, my first guess would be engine oil, but the two have very distinctive smells. One common source of oil spray is the vent system. Do you drive for extended periods at high rpm? If so, you could be pushing oil out your vent, which is a tube that sets down near the exhaust crossover. Speaking of which- do you smell burning oil? Could it be coming from any of the vents that sit above the crossove? Do you notice any leaks or streaks on the motor? There are some potential sources that aren't the motor- have you greased the rear drive spines recently? They have a habit of throwing excess grease out onto the tire. It's an iterative process, but like I said- you need to track the source. No doubt others will have alternative and even better ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldini Posted January 25, 2006 Share Posted January 25, 2006 ....It is on the inner wheel and the outter most area of the tire (right side only)..... If it's the tyre sidewall sounds like the rear bevel box seal's gone - there'll be a drip on the centre of lower edge of bevel box. Wheel off, it's the big seal in the box, around the splined drive gear. Look for a trail of oil from seal lower edge. If it's treaded area not sidewall, then look for a source ahead of the tyre. As Jason says - could be motor/trans/breather - see what's wet. KB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
guzzi323 Posted January 25, 2006 Share Posted January 25, 2006 Could it be 'extra' grease getting flung off of your drive splines? Did you recently get a new rear tire? The shop might have greased the splines and used a bit too much. Just a thought.. johnk Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
docc Posted January 26, 2006 Share Posted January 26, 2006 True, it's actually pretty likely this is being spun off from the drive splines. this grease lubes the cush drive then spins off onto the wheel. Is there grease here . . . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Baldini Posted January 26, 2006 Share Posted January 26, 2006 grease looks like...err grease, oil looks like...oil? - any large amount of oil'll spread into an continous film, it's thin, grease is thicker tends to keep to itself more...... which is it? take the wheel out should show you - if it's coming from the hub/drivebox. KB Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest new2guzzi Posted January 26, 2006 Share Posted January 26, 2006 Hey Guys, I am sick right now so haven't been in the mood to check out the bike based on your suggestions. It looks more like oil or gear lube to me but who knows for sure? I will check into it more next week and get back to you on what I find. In the mean time, thanks very much for your suggestions. Rob A. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrt Posted January 27, 2006 Share Posted January 27, 2006 I think KB's recommendation with respect to that seal is a good one. If you suspect it's oil from the drive box, then check it's level. I'd hate to see you post a want-ad for a new one from lack of oil. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest new2guzzi Posted February 4, 2006 Share Posted February 4, 2006 Hi Guys, I brought the bike to the dealer yesterday and it is the rear drive seal that is causing the problem. They were nice enough to diagnose the problem, give me back my bike, order the parts and they will call me when they come in. They said MG is getting a bit better with parts so hopefully I will have the seal within a week or two. Also the steering damper set screw broke so now I have no steering damper and the steering is as loose as it can be. In the 6 short months and only 1k miles I have had the bike I have now had the following problems: Oil leak Rear drive seal leak Steering damper broken Speedometer cable broke Thank goodness it is still under warranty. thanks guys Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jrt Posted February 5, 2006 Share Posted February 5, 2006 Well, these are just teething pains. Keep riding- work out the niggles and she'll run strong and without fail for 10's of thousands of miles. Honestly- a rear drive seal failure is rare- not indicative of mainstream at all. I'm sorry it happened, but it's just bad luck. Speedo cable on the other hand worst design ever. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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