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'03 K1200RS Coolant overflow after service

skeive

New member
Just had the oil changed and brake fluid flushed filled at a dealer this morning. The bike is relatively new to me so this was the first time I had it in for service. The bike ran perfectly on the way home, and temperature was normal, but after I parked it at home I noticed something was leaking. Verified that it was coolant and after popping the seat off I could see a geyser coming out of the cap on the overflow tank.

I suspect that they just topped off the overflow tank a little too generously and it isn't really an issue. But thought I would check with the hive mind here on the forums. Also is there anything special I need to do to clean the coolant off the bike? Anyway, opinions and suggestions are always welcome.
 
Year and model of the bike should always be in THE TITLE of your thread so that you will draw relavent info from forum members. Not all Flying Bricks are the same. Even some major differences year to year within the same model. Put it in your next post and I will add it to the title this time, but in the future, please put it in the title. Thanks.


That being said, it sounds like there was air left in the engine block or radiator. Air expands more than coolant when heated, which if it's in a location that won't burp out the cap, could push coolant out into the overflow bottle. Some bikes have very specific procedures for bleeding off this excess air out of the engine or radiators.


Lots of clear water to clean off the coolant.





:dance:dance:dance
 
Year and model of the bike should always be in THE TITLE of your thread so that you will draw relavent info from forum members. Not all Flying Bricks are the same. Even some major differences year to year within the same model. Put it in your next post and I will add it to the title this time, but in the future, please put it in the title. Thanks.


That being said, it sounds like there was air left in the engine block or radiator. Air expands more than coolant when heated, which if it's in a location that won't burp out the cap, could push coolant out into the overflow bottle. Some bikes have very specific procedures for bleeding off this excess air out of the engine or radiators.


Lots of clear water to clean off the coolant.





:dance:dance:dance


Sorry, fair enough. 2003 K1200RS with 34,000 miles.

I don't think it was an air bubble as it was an exceptionally hot day for this time of year (maxed around 90 degrees) and I ran the bike in stop and go traffic for an hour to get home. The temp gauge sat right where it always does. At least for cars when this happens you get overheating almost immediately. The coolant coming out wasn't steaming or anything either, just squirting out like a water fountain.

I got a return call from the dealer and they confirmed the tank was overfilled. The mechanic realized he topped it off when the engine was not warm and that was probably the cause.

I ran the bike twice after that, and the coolant was at the normal level in the overflow tank after each of those trips. So I think all is well now. Just wanted to make sure this wasn't a huge red flag that needed immediate attention. Thanks!
 
Still, it would be good for you to check the level in the radiators, ensuring that it is indeed topped up properly there and all the air is squeeze out of the connector tube. The situation you describe actually sounds more like what I experienced with my 1100RS when the gasket on the underside of the radiator cap was not sealing properly.....no problems when running, but when I stopped, the heat absorbed from the hot engine with no wind through that radiator caused enough expansion of the fluid to pass the unsealed cap. Flipping the seal was a great short term fix. If that were the cause on your bike, I believe that would essentially require a new cap. But.....if you are no longer having the fountain of fluid, it likely was just an overfill. Filling to the min level should never be a problem.
 
Well, will figure it out for sure tomorrow probably. Planning a trip of a couple of hundred miles. Will have to figure out where the actual radiator cap is to check that :) Guessing it is buried under one of the front farings? Do you have to remove the farings to get to it? I have the service manual and rider manual so can look it up.
 
Will have to figure out where the actual radiator cap is to check that :)


Cap.jpg

IMG_0037.jpg

Can't remember for sure. Seems like you have to remove the small internal cover near the left handle bar.
I usually did the coolant change when the bodywork was off for other service.
 
View attachment 62217

View attachment 62218

Can't remember for sure. Seems like you have to remove the small internal cover near the left handle bar.
I usually did the coolant change when the bodywork was off for other service.

Great, thanks for the pics and info. Going to have to pop the bodywork off sometime soon to get comfortable with that process. Doesn't look hard, just a bit tedious. And already figured out that the screws vary in size so have to keep track of that during the process. May create some templates with photos so I can just tape the screws on a picture where they go as I remove them.
 
Great, thanks for the pics and info. Going to have to pop the bodywork off sometime soon to get comfortable with that process. Doesn't look hard, just a bit tedious. .

There's a stud that's easy to miss behind the side panel. There's a rubber grommet on the back of the panel that mates to the stud. Slide your hand behind the panel to remove grommet from the stud.
Put some lube on the grommet so it releases easier next time.

Stud.jpg

I usually had to use a plastic tool to release the nose fairing tabs.
I sanded down some of the taps that were hard to release.
Nose.JPG
 
You are right about all the screws being different lengths. And there's a lot of them. Some in hard to get at spots.
I'm sure that once you've de-tuperwared the bike a few times, they will all be mixed up. I'm anal about stuff like this, but even I couldn't keep them all straight.
FWIW, your fairing screws take the same Torx size as is used on decking screws. So if you've bought decking screws you probably got the free bit that'll work. You can speed things up by using it your cordless driver IF you can be gentle.
 
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