WaltH
Senior Member
In a previous thread I posted about some small oil leaks found on my engine. I was advised to find out more about them myself before taking the Spyder to the dealer for warranty work. This was good advice.
A couple of the leaks were weeping from the rocker boxes, which was not important because I will be getting the valve clearances checked in another month, or so. We can replace the rocker box gaskets at that time. At first, it appeared there was oil on the clutch valve solenoid. This turned out to be an illusion, probably caused by a couple of drops of oil flying through the air from another source. The solenoid is in the vacuum line for the clutch assist mechanism. The only way oil could originate there is for the diaphragm to be worn or damaged. I lucked out on that one. The largest leak (still small) puzzled me. It was at the front of the engine and was causing some pooling in the lower frame member. With a mirror on a stick and a flashlight, I still could not find the exact origin.
I took the Spyder to my Harley mechanic to have a look. I told him I was going to take the Spyder in for warranty work and wanted his opinion as to what I should tell the dealer. He confirmed what I already knew and then gave me the answer to the mystery leak up front. The Harley guy said “you have a water pump leak”. He said the leak was coming from the weep hole. The Spyder has a “leak indicator hole” in the clutch cover (think crankcase cover). The purpose of the hole is to indicate when the water pump is leaking. The water pump is fully enclosed so you do not get the usual telltale signs.
The next day I went to the Spyder dealer. I told him about the oil leaks and I said I think the water pump is leaking. I mentioned the leak indicator hole. The Spyder mechanic did his own examination and announced that I did not have a water pump leak. The leak in question was from the clutch cover gasket. Since they were doing the warranty work, I deferred to their authority. The parts were ordered.
The parts came about a week later. I brought the Spyder in first thing in the morning on a Thursday. I was told my Spyder would be finished by Friday morning and they would call me. They called on Friday afternoon to tell me they had discovered that I had a water pump leak and that three additional parts would need to be ordered (rotary seal, oil seal, and shaft). The parts were ordered. The dealership is not open on Sundays or Mondays.
On Wednesday afternoon I called to find out if the parts had arrived. I was told that two of the parts had arrived, but that the third one was on backorder. I then inquired as to what they were going to do about this. They seemed surprised by the question. After some hesitation, they said they would call BRP. This was the right thing to do. BRP located the backordered part at a Spyder dealer in another state. My dealer asked the other dealer to ship them the part, but at first forgot to ask them to overnight it. I was told the other dealer could not ship the part before Thursday, but that it would arrive overnight. Late Friday afternoon, the dealer called to say my Spyder was finished. Since at that time it was raining, I picked up the Spyder on Saturday morning.
I did not complain about the misdiagnosis, even though the Harley guy seemed to have no trouble getting it right. I did not complain about the Spyder being out of service for nine days instead of one day. However, when I got the Spyder home I discovered a credibility issue which led me to believe it would be wise for me to not have any more work done at this dealer.
From reading this forum, I know that water pump leaks are very rare. I don’t recall a single previous report. In the event that you think your water pump may be leaking, don’t forget the weep hole. It is at the front of the engine just behind the water pump.
A couple of the leaks were weeping from the rocker boxes, which was not important because I will be getting the valve clearances checked in another month, or so. We can replace the rocker box gaskets at that time. At first, it appeared there was oil on the clutch valve solenoid. This turned out to be an illusion, probably caused by a couple of drops of oil flying through the air from another source. The solenoid is in the vacuum line for the clutch assist mechanism. The only way oil could originate there is for the diaphragm to be worn or damaged. I lucked out on that one. The largest leak (still small) puzzled me. It was at the front of the engine and was causing some pooling in the lower frame member. With a mirror on a stick and a flashlight, I still could not find the exact origin.
I took the Spyder to my Harley mechanic to have a look. I told him I was going to take the Spyder in for warranty work and wanted his opinion as to what I should tell the dealer. He confirmed what I already knew and then gave me the answer to the mystery leak up front. The Harley guy said “you have a water pump leak”. He said the leak was coming from the weep hole. The Spyder has a “leak indicator hole” in the clutch cover (think crankcase cover). The purpose of the hole is to indicate when the water pump is leaking. The water pump is fully enclosed so you do not get the usual telltale signs.
The next day I went to the Spyder dealer. I told him about the oil leaks and I said I think the water pump is leaking. I mentioned the leak indicator hole. The Spyder mechanic did his own examination and announced that I did not have a water pump leak. The leak in question was from the clutch cover gasket. Since they were doing the warranty work, I deferred to their authority. The parts were ordered.
The parts came about a week later. I brought the Spyder in first thing in the morning on a Thursday. I was told my Spyder would be finished by Friday morning and they would call me. They called on Friday afternoon to tell me they had discovered that I had a water pump leak and that three additional parts would need to be ordered (rotary seal, oil seal, and shaft). The parts were ordered. The dealership is not open on Sundays or Mondays.
On Wednesday afternoon I called to find out if the parts had arrived. I was told that two of the parts had arrived, but that the third one was on backorder. I then inquired as to what they were going to do about this. They seemed surprised by the question. After some hesitation, they said they would call BRP. This was the right thing to do. BRP located the backordered part at a Spyder dealer in another state. My dealer asked the other dealer to ship them the part, but at first forgot to ask them to overnight it. I was told the other dealer could not ship the part before Thursday, but that it would arrive overnight. Late Friday afternoon, the dealer called to say my Spyder was finished. Since at that time it was raining, I picked up the Spyder on Saturday morning.
I did not complain about the misdiagnosis, even though the Harley guy seemed to have no trouble getting it right. I did not complain about the Spyder being out of service for nine days instead of one day. However, when I got the Spyder home I discovered a credibility issue which led me to believe it would be wise for me to not have any more work done at this dealer.
From reading this forum, I know that water pump leaks are very rare. I don’t recall a single previous report. In the event that you think your water pump may be leaking, don’t forget the weep hole. It is at the front of the engine just behind the water pump.
