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Mysterious oil leak under the starter.

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Old 06-16-2019, 01:41 AM
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Default Mysterious oil leak under the starter.

If anyone can help. 2009 street glide. When I ride the bike it leaks oil and seems to leak even more if I really accelerate harder. Steady leaking wherever I park it. It’s wet underneath the starter and the oil collects at the bottom of the bike and leaks. I removed the starter and the starter is dry. And the drive belt is visible and dry, so I don’t think it’s the starter. There isn’t anything under the starter I can see that would be causing such a bad leak. Any ideas?
And thanks.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 06:28 AM
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Trap door is a common leak, you can check to see if the bolts are loose.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 06:36 AM
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motor oil? gear oil? tranny fluid? just how much?
if you removed the starter you have more clues than we do.
leaks can come from way off, some gasket fails, then gravity does the rest.
clean it up, ride and see what you can see.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 07:15 AM
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Stator plug is also a common leak that will run all the way back the bottom, both motor and frame would have primary oil on it.
Another common one is the shift shaft seal

Clean it all up and then run the bike 5-10 mins and start looking underneath to see where it is coming from. Some have used baby powder on the engine to find the leaks but I haven't ever had to do that.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 07:41 AM
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Look at that shifter shaft seal....
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 07:59 AM
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Quit guessing and take to a professional at a Independent or a Dealer.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 08:43 AM
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Originally Posted by GTK
Quit guessing and take to a professional at a Independent or a Dealer.
Pay no attention to the little man behind the curtain....

You need to clean up the bike and try to determine where the oil is coming from, you can do this just as easily an an Independent or a Dealer.

How do you know it leaks more when you accelerate??????

How long has the bike been doing this?

What is the oil level reading on the dipstick?
 

Last edited by Dan89FLSTC; 06-16-2019 at 08:45 AM.
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Old 06-16-2019, 11:00 AM
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If I ride it easy. It won’t leak as much.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 11:19 AM
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Originally Posted by Harley5
If I ride it easy. It won’t leak as much.
But it leaks that is the issue

You got some good advice here and it isn't hard to find a leak with a little patience and logic behind it.
 
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Old 06-16-2019, 11:44 AM
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Thanks. In the worst case, I’m bringing it to the shop next week.
 
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