2006 R 1200 GS rear main seal replacement

hi all, my friend just bought a 2006 R 1200 GS with an oil leak. the bike has 36,000 miles, and seems to be in great shape other than that. the oil seems to be leaking between the engine and trans, which leads me to think rear main seal. the dealer quoted him $2800 to replace the rear main seal, does that seem high? I am thinking about doing the job for him. although I have never done this job on a hex head, I have done it on an air head. after watching a couple of you tube videos, it looks fairly straight forward. so does anyone have any advice , encouragement, or suggestions? thanks in advance

chasmrider said:

hi all, my friend just bought a 2006 R 1200 GS with an oil leak. the bike has 36,000 miles, and seems to be in great shape other than that. the oil seems to be leaking between the engine and trans, which leads me to think rear main seal. the dealer quoted him $2800 to replace the rear main seal, does that seem high? I am thinking about doing the job for him. although I have never done this job on a hex head, I have done it on an air head. after watching a couple of you tube videos, it looks fairly straight forward. so does anyone have any advice , encouragement, or suggestions? thanks in advance

Click to expand...

before you rush into the rear main, have a look at the left side camchain tensioner...it resides behind the left throttle body...common problem that it could be a bit loose weeping oil to exactly where you describe...just split my 13RT for the very same thought as you only to find it was that pesky tensioner...i did replace the main seal, input shaft seal and the entire clutch while i was at it...BTW, should you decide to do the clutch i STRONGLY suggest you NOT use aftermarket....dont ask...

thanks Wyman, we cleaned it off today, going to take a test ride tomorrow, then look and see where the oil is coming from.

wyman.winn said:

BTW, should you decide to do the clutch i STRONGLY suggest you NOT use aftermarket....dont ask...

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Not to hijack a thread, but I think the OP and the rest of us would like some clarification on that. I currently have one machine running a Siebenrock clutch plate and another running a clutch that was rebuilt by Southland Clutch and both are performing well and trouble-free. And the Siebenrock plate is in a sidecar machine, so it is really getting a workout. So what is/was your issue with aftermarket clutch materials, and which materials?

Best,
DG

GTRider said:

Not to hijack a thread, but I think the OP and the rest of us would like some clarification on that. I currently have one machine running a Siebenrock clutch plate and another running a clutch that was rebuilt by Southland Clutch and both are performing well and trouble-free. And the Siebenrock plate is in a sidecar machine, so it is really getting a workout. So what is/was your issue with aftermarket clutch materials, and which materials?

Best,
DG

Click to expand...

DG,

all i can really say is that i did NOT use the Siebenrock friction disc (probably would've turned out ok), and i will not say where i bought the aftermarket parts due to my relationship with the owner, suffice to say the disc i initially installed, when removed for the OEM, was not parallel and created a shudder on launch...i seriously doubt the aftermarket pressure plate and cover purchased from the same vendor was the problem just the disc...when i installed the OEM disc, pressure plate, cover and new bolts the bike again shifts like new...smooth as silk...

if you really need to know the vendor, please PM me...

just got back from a 250 mile test ride, not much to see. we are going to continue testing and see what happens.