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Gear Oil In Cooling System?


wayneniner
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Just picked up a 07 Rev3 270...bike was sold in "excellent condition" :), but, I still have to go thru the minor easy stuff and glad I did.

 

I was going to swap out the gear oil, gas, and coolant at a minimum, check out the electrical(since kill switch doesn't work), and couple other preventative maintenance things.(air filter, bolts/nuts torque, fork oil, possible hydro fluid flush, brake pad inspection/etc)

 

 

I read about the magnesium covers getting corroded, so, the cooling system is the first thing I checked.  

Unscrewed the cap...no coolant in filler neck.  Neck is long so figured it might be low.

Ok, I'll just unscrew the drain screw/bolt in the water pump cover to drain...stuck screw and not even a stock screw/bolt.  So, I lay bike on right side,  I undo the 3 bolts securing the water pump cover.....take off cover and find a broken impeller/"fan" and what appears to be red/pink ATF/tranny oil AND ZERO coolant.

WTH....I pick up the bike and a bunch of ATF comes out the open waterpump area(like the cooling system is filled with ATF)

 

The tranny oil window is clear and has what looks to be fresh oil/ATF. (not milky/etc)....coolant is not in the tranny as far as I can tell....there is ATF/gear oil in the cooling system and no signs of coolant.

 

 

I read about coolant in the tranny but not the other way around(oil in cooling system).  Is it possible the previous owner overfilled the tranny oil and it blew past the waterpump shaft seal into the cooling system?  where did the coolant go?  

(it is possible that the ATF is mixed with the coolant as the ATF seemed thinner than it should, but, it's been a long time since I've played with ATF and unsure of the proper viscosity/thickness)

 

 

 

with the little I know about liquid cooled bikes.... I am guessing that the oil was overfilled and made it's way past the waterpump seal into the cooling system?(any other seals where it can sneak past?)

how should I go about fixing it? (I am guessing:  flush out cooling system...drain and refill proper amount of gear oil....new waterpump seal, new impeller/fan)

 

still puzzled why there was no coolant in the system or at least not enough to really thin out the ATF(I'll compare the viscosity with fresh ATF tomorrow... maybe it's a lot thicker than I remember)

...and puzzled at the amount of ATF that came out of the cooling system.   As far as I can tell, the magnesium cover/side is not corroded so not sure where the coolant went.  

 

 

am I missing anything? could there be a bigger issue then the seal/overfilled tranny?

 

 

The bike did run for about a minute before I handed over the money...tire was flat so I didn't get a chance to "ride" but seemed "strong" lugging around in first gear with a rear flat.(could be top end eating coolant but doubtful).  

 

 

thanks..any insight/advice is appreciated.

 

I will post pics later...

 

 

 

 

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Are you sure it's ATF in the rad?

Some coolants look very similar in colour, particularly some OAT stuff, maybe you or the previous owner has got confused.

 

If the gearbox was overfilled I'm pretty sure it would find it's way out of the breather on top of the 'box.

If the seal was gone, it's more than likely the hot, expanding coolant would find it's way in, rather than the oil out.

 

It's not uncommon for the standard plastic impeller to break up after a while, it's a pretty cheap and crumby part.

Jitsie do a larger, metal impeller kit for the EVO, but I think it fits the Rev3 as well, think the waterpumps are the same part.

 

You're probably best sorting the impeller, replacing all the fluids, starting again and see what happens.

If you flush out the cooling system and fill it with clean water to start with, run it up a while and then drain, see if it oiled up.

 

Edited by goudrons
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thanks 

 

No, I am not %100 sure it is ATF in the cooling system but I was told by seller he used Engine Ice(blue color, unless different versions exist)...I was expecting to see blue coolant(not green, orange or red).  The seller could have topped off with engine ice(on top of a red/orange coolant).

Also, the "coolant" seemed pretty thick for coolant..... all the coolant I have dealt with is similar to water(in terms of viscosity).  I've never handled the orange stuff, is it thick/viscous? 

*and for the record I didn't see any fluid in the radiator...looked bone dry looking down the neck with a flashlight.  The "coolant"/whatever it is was only seen after removing the WP cover, looking inside and then placing bike upright to let a little drain onto floor

 

The color and thickness did make it seem like ATF(but as I've said, I am not very familiar with ATF--IIRC, ATF is thinner than "standard" oil but not like water)...I did give the "coolant" a whiff/smell.  It didn't have that sweet coolant smell(I am only familiar with green stuff/smell), at least not strong as I would expect straight coolant.

 

 

Makes sense when I think about it, thanks for mentioning.(coolant expanding and going INTO oil/crankcase)(excess oil escaping out of breather tube).  

 

Metal impeller sounds good

 

 

 

I'll drain the crankcase and the rest of the "coolant" in clean/clear separate containers and compare...and post what I find.  

 

 

There is filmy crap in the water pump area, sticking to metal..like plaque(very thin and not much)...forgot to mention that  .Pictures for the heck of it when I get a chance. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Like I said, clean out the cooling system well and fix the impeller.

Fill the cooling system with clean water, gearbox with oil (ATF).

 

Then run it up for a while, let it cool overnight.

Repeat a few times.

 

Then drain it out and see if the ATF is mixing with the coolant, you should be able to spot anything in the clean water.

 

Now drain the gearbox and check for water (you might get a drop or two of condensation)

Edited by goudrons
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Flushed out the cooling system a couple times yesterday... probably not really flushing well without impeller but did get initial chunks out- of whatever was inside.

I am hoping it's not a head gasket sealer.  

 

Noticed my fan doesn't work...will try to sort that as I wait for parts.  

 

Doesn't really help, but here is a pic of the "coolant" on the left and gear oil on the right:  (the coolant was significantly thinner that the ATF/gear oil but still seemed thick for coolant.  At this time I don't think ATF was in coolant unless it mixes together really well...still not sure what was in cooling system tho)

20150825_134544_zpsm6murfb5.jpg

 

 

Nothing you guys haven't seen but here are pics:  

 

20150825_143215_zpspiolxxkl.jpg

 

20150825_190532_zpsi0wgeydk.jpg

 

20150825_143225_zpsszkchidm.jpg

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Maybe the previous owner was a :wall:  or made a mistake. Blowing past the seal does not seam likely, there is more pressure in the cool system than in the crankcase. Also than the cool system would be full to the top (and trowing out past the overflow).

it's possible.. most likely both

 

Motul coolant is red and recommended by the factory - I'm guessing that is what was in the bike.

I am hoping this is the case...hoping it is not some kind of sealing type product.  

*seller said he put engine ice in it...I am sure he did, just not sure where it went.

 

Maybe, but no coolant regardless of the color is viscous. It's all basically the same consistency as water.

my thoughts exactly..I've never seen a thick coolant.

 

Like I said, clean out the cooling system well and fix the impeller.

Fill the cooling system with clean water, gearbox with oil (ATF).

 

Then run it up for a while, let it cool overnight.

Repeat a few times.

 

Then drain it out and see if the ATF is mixing with the coolant, you should be able to spot anything in the clean water.

 

Now drain the gearbox and check for water (you might get a drop or two of condensation)

 

Ordering impeller today...

already flushed/rinsed out the cooling a system a few times.  Will do it a few more times after I receive the impeller.

 

Oil already changed...kept level "low" 425cc to be able to look for milk/foam etc thru the window.   

 

I'll report back after I fix and let it cycle numerous times.  

 

thanks again for all advice.  more questions to come :) as I dig into fan issues/electrical

Edited by wayneniner
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any reason not to go with the "metal" impeller?  (jitsie kit)

 

I doubt the impeller would break/corrode like the plastic ones...cant think of any negatives except breaking point might now be a expensive or hard to get to part.  

 

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The black stuff in the casing is the original coating (powder?). It was probably coated after casting then the faces machined.

 

Coolant will soften it and it will peel away, Just have a scrape to rid it of any loose bits, Seen this in many water pump casings, nowt to worry about.

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