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Primary leaking after fluid change

turnerbend

Active Member
I had no leaks when I took my 07 Ultra Classic with 7300 miles to Local independent shop to changed engine, transmission and primary oils, after getting home found I had a leak at primary. Seem like it was coming from Primary drain plug. Went back and they removed plug, installed new "O" ring and refilled Primary with new oil. They said that corrected the leak. Was checking today and still have leak. The leak seems to be coming from Primary cover at the bolt just behind the drain plug, not the drain plug. I think primary gasket could be leaking. Seem like the shop would have seen this while checking. Is this common after a fluid change on Primary? They also adjusted clutch while Derby cover was off while engine was still warm. Could the Independent shop have done something to cause this????
I guess I will have to correct this myself.
 
There is no reason to remove the outer primary cover. If you have a torque wrench make sure the bolts on the primary and drain are to specs.
 
Like HDDOn said they should not have removed the outer primary to change the fluid or adjust the clutch. Was there any other reason they may have done so? Hopefully they did not strip the threads when they put it back together. On top of that the clutch should not be adjusted while the bike is warm.

If they don't agree to correct the issue, might be time to find a new Indy for service and repairs.
 
have you looked underneath to see if maybe the oil is coming from the other side of the primary case? the starter pinion goes through the case near the top and if the o-ring there is faulty and the oil was filled a little too full you may have leakage from there. this may be a stretch but something to check.
 
Are you sure of where the leak is, oils have a way of migrating. No reason to remove the primary cover to change the fluid. Did they replace the derby cover gasket and the cover itself correctly?
 
It looks like the derby cover was the only cover off from what the OP posted. Best bet is to clean the rear of the primary cover with a degreaser and dry it well and see where the leak is actually coming from. There's a few places that can leak on the rear of the primary.
 
have you looked underneath to see if maybe the oil is coming from the other side of the primary case? the starter pinion goes through the case near the top and if the o-ring there is faulty and the oil was filled a little too full you may have leakage from there. this may be a stretch but something to check.

It seems to be seeping at the gasket near the primary cover bolt at the drain plug. I don't think they removed the primary cover. Looking under the bike, their is no oil above that area.
 
It seems to be seeping at the gasket near the primary cover bolt at the drain plug. I don't think they removed the primary cover. Looking under the bike, their is no oil above that area.

I don't doubt what your seeing, but as has been stated the derby cover is the only thing that needed to be removed. If the fluid is not coming from the derby cover or the drain plug you may have to replace the primary gasket. Before you do that wipe the underside down and torque the primary bolts and drain plug, might as well torque the derby cover also. Let us know how it goes.
 
A buddy of mine was hand torquing the derby cover bolts and after awhile it bent the cover around the bolt holes which cause it to leak. He now uses a torque wrench. I had a issue with the primary drain plug where I installed and then torqued to specs, however after coming to the next due change I was taking the plug out using my fingers when about half way out it got tight. I turned it about a half turn and continued to remove. Upon inspection the plug had metal in the threads and caused me to have to re-tap.
 
Will clean it good tomorrow and check torque on primary bolts and go from there. Thanks for the feedback all.
 
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