Oil leak from bike sitting for long period

[eckoblue03]

Hi everyone, I am new to motorcycles and have loved Big Dogs since 2005. This would be my first motorcycle and I have some questions and concerns before I buy this Big Dog that I am looking at. This bike is about 6 hours from where I am so I am trying to do as much research before I make the drive to where it currently lives. Thanks for all of your help in advance.


I am looking at buying a 2003 Chopper. The current owner has not ridden the bike for over a year and when I saw a picture there was oil underneath. He said that was normal for a bike that sits for a long period of time and that there was a drain of some sort under the motor so its not leaking form a seal or anything. Also, he put a 3 1/2" open belt on it and said he has been told there are six springs inside of it and it needs 12. He has the original closed case that came with the bike and is going to give that with the bike and said it had nothing wrong with it. Do these things sound normal to anyone? Any suggestions as to what general servicing should be done on a bike that has sat for so long?

 

[toadstool]

Post an introduction and let us know a little about you and you will have a warm welcome.

Whenever you are faced with this large of a purchase, follow Judge Judy's advice. If there is no warranty, it is your responsibility to have an independant mechanic look at it. Pay an hours labor for him to check it out. It is better to be safe then sorry any day of the week! Good luck, keep us posted.

As far as leaking oil, mine sits 6 months in winter and has never leaked... just saying.

 

[Eric]

it shouldnt leak..... the extra springs go with the belt drive chutch setup. thats a good thing.. you need to drive it & feel how the clutch is working.. if it slips install the extra springs.. how ever it may make the lever pull harder.. depends on the mfg of the belt drive system..

 

[eckoblue03]

So I need to find out if he has the extra springs that came with the set-up. So you guys are saying that it is not normal to have any sort of leak from sitting. I plan to have a mechanic look it over but if there are things that seem wrong, I may not even get to that point. Anyone else out there that could shed some light on why this bike may be leaking?

 

[Dawgboy]

Not normal. Mine sits 6-7 months out of the year due to winter. No. leaks

 

[Tim]

Leaking on a newer bike is not normal. If it's an '03 and leaking, it may have been sitting awhile. Depending on the price, you could get a great deal on this bike and change the seals yourself.

How many miles on it and what's the asking price?

 

[eckoblue03]

It has 3000 miles on it and the asking price is $8000. I don't know if I am that mechanically inclined to change out all the seals. Any idea on what that would run to change out all the seals?

 

[erldawg]

It has 3000 miles on it and the asking price is $8000. I don't know if I am that mechanically inclined to change out all the seals. Any idea on what that would run to change out all the seals?

Seems like a good price on it. PM mcgroom he may give u an idea. It's possible when the belt drive was put on the seals were not changed.

http://www.bigdogbiker.com/forums/members/mcgroom.html

 

[Dozer1]

Post an introduction and let us know a little about you and you will have a warm welcome.

Whenever you are faced with this large of a purchase, follow Judge Judy's advice. If there is no warranty, it is your responsibility to have an independant mechanic look at it. Pay an hours labor for him to check it out. It is better to be safe then sorry any day of the week! Good luck, keep us posted.

As far as leaking oil, mine sits 6 months in winter and has never leaked... just saying.

100% agreed!!! :2thumbs: Mine hardly EVER sits for more than 2 weeks at a time, even in winter. But Dogs don't leak (if there's a leak, there's a problem). Have it checked out!!!

 

[dagjr]

i bought my 2003 a year ago with a simular situation. sat for a year and leaked. Called Big Dog and they indicated there is a rubber plug on the drain lin that will shrink over time. Once the bike is ridden it will heat up and expand and should no longer leak.

after a couple of thousand miles it stopped leaking.

If you buy....head my warning......dump all fluids including brake.....use synthetic

 

[eckoblue03]

dagjr, that sounds almost exactly like the seller explained to me. I guess having it looked over by someone that know what they are looking at should help. How are you liking the 2003?

 

[toadstool]

i bought my 2003 a year ago with a simular situation. sat for a year and leaked. Called Big Dog and they indicated there is a rubber plug on the drain lin that will shrink over time. Once the bike is ridden it will heat up and expand and should no longer leak.

after a couple of thousand miles it stopped leaking.

If you buy....head my warning......dump all fluids including brake.....use synthetic

So it took a couple of thousand miles to heat up and stop leaking? :loony:

It sounds like a good deal. If you feel good about it get it, but please fix the leak. A shrinking plug doesn't sound like a gamble I'd be willing to take. What happens when it viberates out and you dump your oil?

 

[mobsta]

If it has a crankcase breather with a filter or can could leak from sittn,also make sure the oil pump didnt sump.just my 2 cents

 

[BorgerBigDog]

1. Look under it find the plug, if oil is around it that is probably the problem it's a cheap fix.
2. Buy it
3. Have the mechanic take that open primary off then sell it to me :up:

 

[ZZ CHOP]

eckoblue did the seller say that its common for the bike to leak some oil After Starting the bike when it has been sitting for a long time? im betting that's what he said or meant because its very common, oil can leak past a check ball into the crankcase and when engine starts theirs simply to much oil there and pukes it out, this engine is designed to do that because it it a dry sump engine, it will puke out the excess and keep the rest, you said you are new to motorcycles so im trying to read between the lines of what i think he may have told you, have i said anything he may have said? you said the Current owner changed the primary is he the original owner? maybe still original tire on rear? maybe with plenty of tread left, if it does it would show that maybe it hasn't been used much for a tire burner, that would be a good thing imo with only 3 k miles, does the bike have any other extras other than the open primary? like wheels, pipes, breather,pegs,grips, ect ect, to me it sounds like it could be good deal with 8k being his asking price and possible a tad cheaper,if i were you i would defiantly check it out and make sure its not one that's been hammered and abused,even if you do have to replace any seals any Harley wrench can work on that bike,that 03 has a shitload of advantages it has real on/off switches and no shitty 04 up style EHC:2thumbs: i/we can tell you a lot more advantages but this is longer than i expected,if you will do an intro their will be a lot of great people willing to help you out especially you being a new rider and hopefully bd owner :2thumbs:..Dave.

 

[eckoblue03]

ZZ- The seller bought the bike used when it was a year old. As far other options it only has the open belt, pipes, and a passenger suction cup seat. He said he has the original piece from when the open belt was put on as well. I am trying to set something up with a BD mechanic where the bike resides right now to have them put their eyes on it. Thanks for the advice.

 

[RuDawg]

If it's leaking from the hose routed to the bottom of the bike, the oil is probably leaking back into the crank case through the oil check valve which is probably stuck and then the oil is eventually leaking out of the breather valve. I was told by a mechanic years ago that that was normal, but Ray taught me that it was cuz of the stuck valve and not normal. I have an 02 and it does it if it sits for a month. If I start it periodically no problem. Or you can try to unstick the valve, being careful not to damage it or put a flat spot on the ball valve.

 

[stlmikie]

I thought mine was leaking oil once. Turns out it was fuel from the overflow that sat and kind of carmelized. Could be that simple.

 

[m40345]

I have an 03 Pitbull. If the bike sits idle for a couple of weeks, the oil that is in the engine will settle to the bottom and the motor will will allow it drain. If you start the engine every couple of days to allow the oil to circulate, you will not have any oil leaking when the bike is started.

It really sucks to have to start the bike every couple of days, especially when there is no time to ride.

 

[pumpdogs]

eckoblue did the seller say that its common for the bike to leak some oil After Starting the bike when it has been sitting for a long time? im betting that's what he said or meant because its very common, oil can leak past a check ball into the crankcase and when engine starts theirs simply to much oil there and pukes it out, this engine is designed to do that because it it a dry sump engine, it will puke out the excess and keep the rest, you said you are new to motorcycles so im trying to read between the lines of what i think he may have told you, have i said anything he may have said? you said the Current owner changed the primary is he the original owner? maybe still original tire on rear? maybe with plenty of tread left, if it does it would show that maybe it hasn't been used much for a tire burner, that would be a good thing imo with only 3 k miles, does the bike have any other extras other than the open primary? like wheels, pipes, breather,pegs,grips, ect ect, to me it sounds like it could be good deal with 8k being his asking price and possible a tad cheaper,if i were you i would defiantly check it out and make sure its not one that's been hammered and abused,even if you do have to replace any seals any Harley wrench can work on that bike,that 03 has a shitload of advantages it has real on/off switches and no shitty 04 up style EHC:2thumbs: i/we can tell you a lot more advantages but this is longer than i expected,if you will do an intro their will be a lot of great people willing to help you out especially you being a new rider and hopefully bd owner :2thumbs:..Dave.

My 2002 pitbull will leak after I start it if it has been sitting.