Katana oil leak

[Pudzrx]

Hi , my 97 gsx1100 sz katana has developed what looks like an head gasket oil leak on the lhs. I have read that the o rings on the centre head nuts can fail and do this also. How does that happen ehen they are under the rocker cover? 

Cheers puddy 

[Joseph]

Couldn't it just be the head gasket ?

You'll be changing the O rings as well anyway.

Buy genuine gaskets if you want the job to last 

Edited April 25, 2022 by Joseph

[Pudzrx]

Thats not what I asked , yes it could be headgasket obviously,  but I have read that the o rings can make it look like hg leak , why ?

And I tend to use whatever gaskets I like , not just oe , thanks 

Edited April 25, 2022 by Pudzrx

[Gixer1460]

30 minutes ago, Pudzrx said:

Thats not what I asked , yes it could be headgasket obviously,  but I have read that the o rings can make it look like hg leak , why ?

And I tend to use whatever gaskets I like , not just oe , thanks 

Easy on the attitude fella! You're asking for advice / posing a question - don't get pissed if the answer isn't exactly what you want!

In answer to the Q, I believe there is a pressurised oil gallery up those studs that runs out to the cam caps to oil the cam bearings - the O rings stop that oil leaking away! And the OEM O rings is good advice - Suzuki use non standard O ring diameters - many have tried to 'cheap out' on critical O rings and gaskets and suffered oil supply / drain faults . . . . . . . penny rich / dollar poor in long run!

[Pudzrx]

Thanks for the reply , but how does that show up as an external oil leak ?

And I  said I  do not always use oe gsskets , obviously odd sized oe o rings are a different matter .

Cheers puddy 

[Joseph]

3 hours ago, Pudzrx said:

Thats not what I asked , yes it could be headgasket obviously,  but I have read that the o rings can make it look like hg leak , why ?

And I tend to use whatever gaskets I like , not just oe , thanks 

Well if you know everything just get on with it 

[no class]

43 minutes ago, Pudzrx said:

Thanks for the reply , but how does that show up as an external oil leak ?

And I  said I  do not always use oe gsskets , obviously odd sized oe o rings are a different matter .

Cheers puddy 

......welll......gaskets and O rings are meant to keep oil in......and.....when they fail , oil finds it's way out...... 

[Pudzrx]

On 4/24/2022 at 10:26 PM, Pudzrx said:

Hi , my 97 gsx1100 sz katana has developed what looks like an head gasket oil leak on the lhs. I have read that the o rings on the centre head nuts can fail and do this also. How does that happen ehen they are under the rocker cover? 

Cheers puddy 

Ok , seems I have upset a few with a simple question,  how does an internal oil leak show as an external leak ?

 

[Joseph]

Nope. It's your bitchbag attitude that got you the type of reactions you got.

But i'll answer your question again :

if you have a leak at the headgasket area, it's probably mainly because the headgasket has failed.

Surely you're able to realise, that even IF the O rings have failed, it cannot realistically result in the headgasket leaking, IF said headgasket is in solid condition.

Eitherway, you still need to fix all the top end.

But@no classvery nicely gave you the same albeit less detailed reponse earlier, so be nice and go buy a top end gasket set, and just fix your bike like everyone else in your situation has done before

Edited April 26, 2022 by Joseph

[Arttu]

5 hours ago, Pudzrx said:

Ok , seems I have upset a few with a simple question,  how does an internal oil leak show as an external leak ?

 

Actually the o-rings on center head nuts don't have anything to do with pressurized oil. There are deep(ish) bores for the nuts on the head and bottom corners of these bores go through the casting to outside of the head. And o-rings prevent oil leaking past the nuts. So when the o-rings fail oil starts weeping out. It leaks out from next to the middle exhaust ports but it easily looks like it's coming from the head gasket joint. If you clean the mess carefully and check again after a short run you should see where it's actually leaking.

Btw, what the heck is 97 GSX1100SZ? Just to make sure we all are talking about the same animal...

[Gixer1460]

Brilliantly explained - I doubted my explaination as it's been a few years since I've been into one of these heads! Sorry for the mislead!

[Pudzrx]

5 hours ago, Arttu said:

Actually the o-rings on center head nuts don't have anything to do with pressurized oil. There are deep(ish) bores for the nuts on the head and bottom corners of these bores go through the casting to outside of the head. And o-rings prevent oil leaking past the nuts. So when the o-rings fail oil starts weeping out. It leaks out from next to the middle exhaust ports but it easily looks like it's coming from the head gasket joint. If you clean the mess carefully and check again after a short run you should see where it's actually leaking.

Btw, what the heck is 97 GSX1100SZ? Just to make sure we all are talking about the same animal...

Absolutely excellent reply. I am a motor vehicle mechanic of 40 years , so not green behind the ears. I can see exactly why an internal part would like an external oil leak now 

Thanks a million 

Puddy 

[Pudzrx]

12 hours ago, Joseph said:

Nope. It's your bitchbag attitude that got you the type of reactions you got.

But i'll answer your question again :

if you have a leak at the headgasket area, it's probably mainly because the headgasket has failed.

Surely you're able to realise, that even IF the O rings have failed, it cannot realistically result in the headgasket leaking, IF said headgasket is in solid condition.

Eitherway, you still need to fix all the top end.

But@no classvery nicely gave you the same albeit less detailed reponse earlier, so be nice and go buy a top end gasket set, and just fix your bike like everyone else in your situation has done before

Please see arttu's concise reply , actually gave reasons rather than an ignorant tirade .

Cheers puddy 

[neilw]

The two o rings on the nuts you are on about mean you get a leak that for all the world looks like a failed head gasket between the two front cylinders

 

Buy a couple of genuine o rings and a rocker cover gasket and change the o rings  one at a time and retorque the nuts , if the leak stops then it is a cheap and easy fix, if it does not then you have more work to change the head gasket but the price of the o rings and rocker cover gasket will not be wasted ss you need them anyway

 

 

[TonyGee]

14 minutes ago, neilw said:

The two o rings on the nuts you are on about mean you get a leak that for all the world looks like a failed head gasket between the two front cylinders

 

Buy a couple of genuine o rings and a rocker cover gasket and change the o rings  one at a time and retorque the nuts , if the leak stops then it is a cheap and easy fix, if it does not then you have more work to change the head gasket but the price of the o rings and rocker cover gasket will not be wasted ss you need them anyway

 

 

thats what my gsx750 is doing, it has a very slight weep and looks like its coming from the gasket at the front of the cam chain tunnel.  but after cleaning the oil off go for a run and you can see the oil running down the outside of the chain tunnel just underneath where the long nut and O ring live.  will get round to replacing them at some point  

Edited April 26, 2022 by TonyGee

[Muddy]

Yep, experienced exactly the same thing just after a rebuild.  Replaced the orings and used some sealant on them and all looks OK now.

[Pudzrx]

Turned out to be just a poorly fitted rocker cover gasket by a previous owner , was hanging out  on the inner part above spark plug  no.2.

Then ran down the holes in the fins and dripped off the ns head fin on the side stand.

All good now tho.

Did the valve clearances too, been out a couple of times and nice and dry again

[johnr]

yes, the o rings on the head bolts can perish and oil will seep past them and down the studs and give the impression of a head gasket leak. you need to take off the rocker cover and you can do them with the head on if youre careful and do them one at a time. put a tiny smear of welseal on the o ring round the nut just so it doesnt tear as you tighten it down. its a common issue on the gsx motor.