bad heads (oil in air filter)...updated question

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maximnewb · Thu Jul 21, 2005 11:30 pm

After driving my new purchase (82 maxim 550 air cooled 4cyl in storage for 10 years - "seemingly" excellent condition with only 30,000) home the other day we noticed a lot of oil dripping off the rear end.

We discovered that it was coming from oil that had been spat up into the air filter (quite a bit too). the filter looked pretty well covered, and the drip produced a fair sized puddle. After asking a friend, discovered that it could have been due to overfilled oil level (which I agreed was likely) but now that it's cooled, the oil level is WAY too low. So low the bike's oil level sensor won't let it start.

If it WAS overfilled, why is it now underfilled? Any idea what could be going on? I don't want to just fill it back up (to the proper level) to see if the same thing happens again without knowing whether or not I could be causing damage in the process.

Thanks for the help! And sorry if this is a ridiculously obvious question. I'm a DEFINITE newbie.

BuzZz · #2 Unread post by **BuzZz** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 12:14 am

For some reason, your crankcase is being pressured up, forcing the oil out the ventline, which runs to the airbox. It could be ring blow-by, or a cracked cylinder/head, bad valve guides, a leaky head gasket or some other reason I'm not thinking of at the moment. It warrents investigation though....

maximnewb · Fri Jul 22, 2005 12:53 am

Not too sure how to go about checking this out online, but does anyone know if the the heads from an 81 maxim 550, shown here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... gory=35595

would work on my 82 maxim 550 ? My first impression (with very limited experience) is that they would, but I'm not too sure.

Also, would visual inspection of the exterior of the block be any help in looking for the possible crack, or just a waste of time?Thanks for the help!

maximnewb · #4 Unread post by **maximnewb** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:02 am

Ok...might have figure this out, but not too sure

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayI ... ename=WD1V

The link above sells the same gasket kit for 81-84 maxims, so I'm assuming that means the heads I also showed for the 81 maxim would be compatible...but correct me I I'm wrong and have overlooked somthing.

First off, is $89 US a decent deal for a set of gaskets for this bike (since I won't really need the bottom end stuff if it IS the heads).

Also, I realized it's a bit of a shotugun solution, but should this fix my problem? Is there anything I can check out before a relaitvely drastic solution like this?

Thanks.

TechTMW · #5 Unread post by **TechTMW** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 1:17 am

slow down... you need to find the problem before you can fix it. Buzz weas just making suggestions ... but even if this was one of our bikes, we'd still have to throughly and methodically go through the bike to find the problem. You can't just jump to conclusions. Although I'm all for doing your own work, this may be over your head. Take it to a shop.

Unless you have the tools - like a compression tester for one. A leak down test would be handy to see if anythings going on up top, but if the head is cracked chances are you will not be able to spot it unless you take the head off, and even then sometimes it's tough to see.

maximnewb · #6 Unread post by **maximnewb** » Fri Jul 22, 2005 2:29 am

My concern is that for an old bike like this I'm going to spend more than is cost feasible to diagnose and fix the problem at a shop.

Since all or at least most of the parts I'd need to "shotgun" the problem (ie: a blanket fix) are available pretty cheap (a total of about $200 for everything - I'm assuming a shop would charge a lot more to solve this kind of issue) so I figured that might be a decent way to go.

I'm very mechanically inclined (I rebuilt a EFI v8 truck engine first time with no prior experience and no help - other than a haynes manual) so I figured this couldn't be much harder.

kar_the_terrible · Fri Jul 22, 2005 3:08 am

Motorcycle shops seem to be a lot more helpful than your average car dealer/mechanic. You could do most of the labour yourself. take the head apart if you wish, but take it down to the shop and have it looked at. After plodding through a few shops you will generally find one with a rather chatty owner, who is more than willing to help DIYer's.

Also, if you've done most of the labour, they may only charge a few bucks to inspect the head etc. and give you a more experenced diagnosis, aboot an hour's worth of labour. I agree it will cost a lot more to ride you bike into the shop and say fix it. but spending about an hour of labour at a shop is more than worth the time and money.