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Hello ! Need advice on R80 RT. 1983

mmazariegos

New member
Hi, I went for a ride today and came back after an hours ride. When I shut the engine off I could hear a very faint hiss, after looking I suspect it could be the cilinder valve seal on the left side, is it imperative I get that issue resolved? The bike only has 11,500 miles on it. Can I ride it like that until my next scheduled maintenance? Anyone with similar experiences? I appreciate your comments.
 
Did you run through some rain or did you just wash the bike before the ride? Trapped water on the topside of the head can steam off and create a hissing sound just like you describe.
 
Yu are right.

Yess indeed, I just washed the bike yesterday, It could be water as you say, thank you for the insight!
 
Hmmm...washing a day before wasn't what I had in mind...typically trapped water will evaporate over time. Certainly, listen for the noise the next time you ride. If it's still there, then let's talk!!!
 
Tried again.....

Hello, I went for a ride this morning and well, the darn noise was there once again so I finally located the place where the noise comes from, I seems to be the cylinder valve cover. NOw I suppose I will have to change the gasket right?
I am not educated yet here but is there supposed to be pressure where the valve cover is? Could it be the valves are already in need of the exchange for the unleaded fuel valves?
I have another question, is it an imperative repair to do or may the bike be operated with the leak?
The leak is not ozzing any oil It is barely audible. I enclosed a picture so yu can see where the leak is. Thank you for sharing your invaluable knowlege!!!!!
 

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According to your picture, it's at the top of the valve cover gasket. That area is not under any significant pressure and with the "leak" being at the top, you're not bound to loose any oil. So, there's no real harm in delaying. On the other hand, I don't know how bad it is, so riding through a downpour might not be the best.

You can remove the valve cover really easy and make sure that both surfaces are clean. Then reinstall and make sure every thing is tight. In case you're not aware, be careful of over tightening the center nut. The stud is easily pulled.

I don't know if that coudl be caused by valve recession. But, you can check the valves once the valve cover is off. If the valves have closed up, then you can track how often that occurs. If it's very frequently then you have valve recession. There may be other ways to tell, but that's above my knowedge.

Anyway, that's my $0.02. I hope it helps.
 
If the valve cover is being pressurized, (it should not do that) I would look at the crank case ventilation system. If pressure is building up in the crank case, the pressure could try to escape the motor thru the valve cover via the pushrod tubes. The Positive Crankcase Ventilation system is located under the top cover on the motor and routes the vapor into the air intake thru a valving and hose structure.
 
Thanks!

Thank you, I appreciate your feedback very much, I will open it up Saturday and will let you know how it goes, I will also have the front fork oil changed and install a set of new accelerator cables and a new clutch cable too.
 
Water

I have the same thing happen to me every time i wash the bike. It is normal and harmless unless you try to adjust the valves right after a wash. Water that gets trapped there will spill all over your valves. There is something you can do though if this bothers you. When you take the valve cover off you will see that there is this little cavity that traps water. It is outside of the valve cover gasket seal but the trapped water cannot drain out, it has to boil off. I just drilled a drain hole into this cavity from the outside of the valve cover. I located the hole on the surface just above the center nut, actually partially inside the recess for this nut. You cannot see the hole unless you get on the ground and look up inside the center nut hole. I used a 1/16 drill to start and then chased it with a 1/8 drill. You may have to use a center punch to start off the 1/16 drill. If you need a picture i'll see what i can do.
 
A day later I can't see it being water. A couple of things I would check in addition to the crankcase vent:

1. The area on your picture is very close to the spark plug as well. I would pull and check the plugs washer or just replace them, torque to spec and see if that helps.

2. It also could just be oil leaking onto the head from the valve cover gasket. Replace the gaskets.

It is odd for that to be happening.
 
Thanks guys...

Ok I will look into the water pooling on top of the cylinder head and try to emulate ocoinjis method of getting rid of trapped watwr, it was scary to see boiling fluid on my cylinder!! And yess cycleman I appreciate your insight too, I will make sure to change the gaskets once the cylinder head is opened. I very much appreciate this wealth of knowlege.
 
I have the same thing happen to me every time i wash the bike. It is normal and harmless unless you try to adjust the valves right after a wash. Water that gets trapped there will spill all over your valves. There is something you can do though if this bothers you. When you take the valve cover off you will see that there is this little cavity that traps water. It is outside of the valve cover gasket seal but the trapped water cannot drain out, it has to boil off. I just drilled a drain hole into this cavity from the outside of the valve cover. I located the hole on the surface just above the center nut, actually partially inside the recess for this nut. You cannot see the hole unless you get on the ground and look up inside the center nut hole. I used a 1/16 drill to start and then chased it with a 1/8 drill. You may have to use a center punch to start off the 1/16 drill. If you need a picture i'll see what i can do.

I agree with this assessment- very similar to my experience after washing the bike, pretty much as long as I've owned it. I've never seen it as a serious problem, and not had water inside of the valve cover or in the oil. I've never been successful at getting it to seal the water out of that cavity, though (not having tried very hard...). The water collecting in there causes some rust on the center stud at it's base, so I always clean it well and apply a light coat of oil when I have valve covers off and replace the gaskets. Maybe the drain hole is a good idea if, like me, you are not able to prevent it from entering when you wash the bike. :drink
 
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