Metal shavings on a drain plug magnet any input appreciated

[09gs]

got my spyder used its a 2009 gs model got it with 11k on it now its aproximately 12.5k decided to do an oil change drained the reservoir and then drained the engine when removed engine drain plug with a magnet there were some metal particles or shavings stuck to it and oil was kinda black so i could even imagine oil was used for a while in it, engine ran fine tranny shifted good aswell just had sometime fish the neutral but rather that that no problems at all here is the pics of a drain plug







i was thinking maybe taking the tranny cover to see maybe its from a tranny side, as i was suggested it there trike ran fine no issues dont bother taking it apart, but anyway wanted to see maybe someone else had similar issue

[UtahPete]

got my spyder used its a 2009 gs model got it with 11k on it now its aproximately 12.5k decided to do an oil change drained the reservoir and then drained the engine when removed engine drain plug with a magnet there were some metal particles or shavings stuck to it and oil was kinda black so i could even imagine oil was used for a while in it, engine ran fine tranny shifted good aswell just had sometime fish the neutral but rather that that no problems at all here is the pics of a drain plug i was thinking maybe taking the tranny cover to see maybe its from a tranny side, as i was suggested it there trike ran fine no issues dont bother taking it apart, but anyway wanted to see maybe someone else had similar issue

With no punctuation and no pics, this is maybe a little difficult to understand...put some effort into it, please.

[09gs]

With no punctuation and no pics, this is maybe a little difficult to understand...put some effort into it, please.

i've attached 3 images weird that you dont see them

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

Holy Cr*p ..... I've owned three different Spyders and NONE of them produced that much metal even on the first OIL change ....in fact in over 100,000 miles never produced that much in TOTAL amount for all three ...... I can't diagnose your issue, but I would be concerned if that Spyder was mine .........good luck .... Mike

[09gs]

in case no one sees i've reattached 3 pics as an attachement

[OlJim]

Looks like the magnet is doing its job. What did the filter look like?

[09gs]

Holy Cr*p ..... I've owned three different Spyders and NONE of them produced that much metal even on the first OIL change ....in fact in over 100,000 miles never produced that much in TOTAL amount for all three ...... I can't diagnose your issue, but I would be concerned if that Spyder was mine .........good luck .... Mike

i just think i will ride it as is if its stalls i just burned it as if i take it to dealership will be charged an arm and a leg as they will be taking engine out and splitting the case and you got the idea skys the limit there

[UtahPete]

in case no one sees i've reattached 3 pics as an attachment

Wow. As Mike says, you should be concerned. I would be. Unless this is a joke and I've been 'had'.

[09gs]

Looks like the magnet is doing its job. What did the filter look like?

filter was nice and clean no any particles or shawings same with oil as i drained it to clean pan and used magnet to search for any metal shavings in drained oil was none as well, as the oil was very black i think it maybe was used since day one

[UtahPete]

i just think i will ride it as is if its stalls i just burned it as if i take it to dealership will be charged an arm and a leg as they will be taking engine out and splitting the case and you got the idea skys the limit there

Probably a good idea.

[09gs]

Probably a good idea.

you mean drive it as is or take it to stealership ?

[UtahPete]

you mean drive it as is or take it to stealership ?

You should do whatever makes most sense to you. There is no right answer here.

[johnsimion]

If there was damage, it probably occurred a long time ago, but in spite of that is apparently not affecting your ride. If you still have the old oil, I'd have it analyzed. Otherwise, if it was my Spyder, I'd ride it for about 1000 miles, checking the oil levels each time you go out, and then change the oil again and see if there's anything else in it. The extra oil change won't hurt anything and it might get rid of anything else remaining in your system.

[DGoebel]

Blackstone, Napa, and others will give you an oil analysis and like John said, I'd put fresh oil and filters in, ride it some, check oil levels routinely and take a sample at 1000 miles, before you change the oil and filter, send it off for analysis (full analysis is like $35 or less).
If that was the original oil it stayed way too long and all those shavings might be the last of it.

[09gs]

If there was damage, it probably occurred a long time ago, but in spite of that is apparently not affecting your ride. If you still have the old oil, I'd have it analyzed. Otherwise, if it was my Spyder, I'd ride it for about 1000 miles, checking the oil levels each time you go out, and then change the oil again and see if there's anything else in it. The extra oil change won't hurt anything and it might get rid of anything else remaining in your system.

thanks that what i thought of doing as if engine was running that long with al that shavings in it and i assume it may be even the first oil since new as i got the spyder with 11k on it saying oil been changed but thats words only no proof , so i might just changing oil and try to run it for another 500-1000 km and see if there is more shavings if there none so probably nothing to worry about if there is more then its time to replace engine or split it and see whats happening as i mentioned earlier the filter and actual used drained oil was free from any shavings or metal particles

P.S. i had a check engine light developed over the last few rides but its kinda weird since if you start the spyder it says check engine and you shut it off and re start there is no check engine light on anymore, so im thinking it might be one of those dealers tricks to get you in for the maintenance as i have a pier of seadoos and one of them were asking for maintenance all of a sudden and it appears to be it just needed to reset maintenace intervals

[vtown biker]

Yikes- That is all.

[Docster]

i've attached 3 images weird that you dont see them

Fact remains it's tough to read when a paragraph is long and uninterrupted. Agree with the need for a little correct grammar and some effort to do it right so folks can spend time the time suggesting an answer rather than figuring out what is written

[ofdave]

Do the particles feel like metal or do they smear between your fingers like grease?
Metal particles on a drain plug magnet (often called "swarf") are not uncommon.
Concern would be if you can actually feel them as little slivers of metal or if they smear when rubbed between your fingers.
An oil change should be done and cut the filter open and see what you have inside.
Do another oil change in 500-1000 miles and check the drain plug again.
If it's the same, you may well have an issue.

[youngers]

I am not sure of the type of cycle you have , is it the s-e spyder ? or the s-m ? { the one with the clutch lever on the left handle bar } ... I am thinking about those metal shavings , they are long , and I am wondering if they could be from the transmission clutches , { if your cycle is the semi-automatic , shift paddle -- s-e model } if this is the deal , the shavings might have been through the break in period , and just finally made its way too the magnet ... ( I would ride the cycle as you are doing just pay attention to the different sounds and shifting , if the engine starts too get a noise or small knock { bearings or some other moving parts , with-in the engine / harder to shift or a lag time in shifting --- as in 2nd gear too 3 rd gear , takes a few more seconds longer too engage , then the trail of shavings will be identified } question : if you can remember , when you changed the oil , did it smell burnt , or something like this ? ( there has been a few people who find some shavings in their oil after the plug has been pulled , but I do not think that they find this much , so you are probably right that the oil is very old in change intervals ) keep on having a good ride ,

[Little Blue]

All Good Tips I would change the oil & filter and ride 500 miles. Then check the oil drain plug for anything. If it is clean . If it has particles, maybe time to talk to your Spyder Dealership. Good Luck.

[BoilerAnimal]

When we lived in Arizona during the 80's's, I worked for a company that built and serviced commercial air conditioning systems utilizing natural gas engines. Long story short, we had a new engine that we had installed as a replacement for an older one. The new engine soon developed problems running. We ended up dropping the pan and couldn't believe what we found.

On a completely brand new engine, from a very large manufacturer, with a very good reputation for building very good equipment, we found the oil pan literally full of metal shavings! However, it was very obvious that the shavings were not from the engine and were from a machining operation and had to be placed in there as an act of sabotage by an employee. We cleaned the pan and and inspected the bottom end, replaced the pan, filled with oil (measured by the gallons) and ran it. Never had another problem with it after that.

Hopefully, your situation is the result of something similar and you're getting the last few particles out of the engine. Otherwise, I would be concerned.

[09gs]

I am not sure of the type of cycle you have , is it the s-e spyder ? or the s-m ? { the one with the clutch lever on the left handle bar } ... I am thinking about those metal shavings , they are long , and I am wondering if they could be from the transmission clutches , { if your cycle is the semi-automatic , shift paddle -- s-e model } if this is the deal , the shavings might have been through the break in period , and just finally made its way too the magnet ... ( I would ride the cycle as you are doing just pay attention to the different sounds and shifting , if the engine starts too get a noise or small knock { bearings or some other moving parts , with-in the engine / harder to shift or a lag time in shifting --- as in 2nd gear too 3 rd gear , takes a few more seconds longer too engage , then the trail of shavings will be identified } question : if you can remember , when you changed the oil , did it smell burnt , or something like this ? ( there has been a few people who find some shavings in their oil after the plug has been pulled , but I do not think that they find this much , so you are probably right that the oil is very old in change intervals ) keep on having a good ride ,

hi thanks for the input its an SM5 model manual transmission i was thinking of opening a cover on right side to inspect the clutches and springs, as i mentioned earlier sometimes you have to fish for neutral as it goes from 1 to 2 or from 2 to 1 and skips the neutral

[09gs]

Do the particles feel like metal or do they smear between your fingers like grease?
Metal particles on a drain plug magnet (often called "swarf") are not uncommon.
Concern would be if you can actually feel them as little slivers of metal or if they smear when rubbed between your fingers.
An oil change should be done and cut the filter open and see what you have inside.
Do another oil change in 500-1000 miles and check the drain plug again.
If it's the same, you may well have an issue.

its actually looked like real metal shavings some shorter some longer but they stay same when rubbed with fingers, and like i mentioned earlier i tryed to magnet drained oil nothing found as well, oil filter looked clean but i will cut it open and inspect in a day light today

[KX5062]

Do the particles feel like metal or do they smear between your fingers like grease?
Metal particles on a drain plug magnet (often called "swarf") are not uncommon.
Concern would be if you can actually feel them as little slivers of metal or if they smear when rubbed between your fingers.
An oil change should be done and cut the filter open and see what you have inside.
Do another oil change in 500-1000 miles and check the drain plug again.
If it's the same, you may well have an issue.

Beat me to it.

I agree with the above. However, I'd give it a couple of oil changes, all done prior to schedule before I panicked.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

hi thanks for the input its an SM5 model manual transmission i was thinking of opening a cover on right side to inspect the clutches and springs, as i mentioned earlier sometimes you have to fish for neutral as it goes from 1 to 2 or from 2 to 1 and skips the neutral

To the best of my knowledge all 5 & 6 speed transmissions are essentially the same. They differ in that the SE has additional parts to activate the clutch the manual has YOU to do it ...... If you have a lot of money you could ADD the SE feature to either the 5 or 6 speed Manual trans & make it an SE ..................hope this makes sense to you .... Mike