Member Contributer Dash Posted March 24, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 24, 2019 Noticed a few drops of dried coolant on the inside of the fairing just under the water pump. The water pump drain bolt also had some dried coolant, but it was snug. Checked the Service Manual, and it states: Quote Inspect the inspection hole for signs of coolant leakage. If there is leakage, the mechanical seal is defective and replace the water pump as an assembly. After finding the inspection hole with an inspection mirror, I found more dried coolant (see photo). This was taken after a short ride with the bike at operating temperature. So is it time to replace my water pump? Bike is 11 years old with 13,xxx miles. Coolant was replaced about three years / 4,000 miles ago. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Cogswell Posted March 25, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 25, 2019 Was the replacement coolant silicate free? Coolant such as regular Prestone or similar that contains silicates will ruin the WP seal. For comparison my '08 has nearly 30,000 miles - no leaks. I check for minor leaks when the coolant's under pressure using tissue wound up to a pencil shaped tip - even the slightest amount will be absorbed and readily apparent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Grum Posted March 25, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 25, 2019 I've had issues with the Water Pump drain bolt not sealing after a coolant flush and had the tiniest of leak from it. I partially removed the bolt and added some high temp plumbers thread seal and its now fine. So I would make absolutely sure you don't have a weeping drain bolt, then completely clean the area, go for a good ride and re-check. If you then have the green dried coolant appearing, you may well have the beginnings of a failing seal. And as Cogswell stated the coolant needs to be Silicate and Borate free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer KevCarver Posted March 25, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 25, 2019 I thought I had a failed water pump last year on my ‘99 but after replacing it I was pretty sure it was just the cover gasket which is available to buy separately. Trouble is that is still weeps from the weep hole that would show a failed internal seal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Dash Posted March 25, 2019 Author Member Contributer Share Posted March 25, 2019 Thanks all, I will clean it up and try to identify the source of the leak. According to the invoice for the last coolant service, Pro Honda HP coolant was used (silicate free), but there's no line item for the water pump drain plug crush washer. I'm thinking the dealer may have re-used the original crush washer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer Duc2V4 Posted March 25, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 25, 2019 12 hours ago, Dash said: Thanks all, I will clean it up and try to identify the source of the leak. According to the invoice for the last coolant service, Pro Honda HP coolant was used (silicate free), but there's no line item for the water pump drain plug crush washer. I'm thinking the dealer may have re-used the original crush washer. I've gone through 3 water pumps, 1 on my 01 and 2 on my 09, the latter just recently. Fortunately the one on the 01 it was the 0-ring that seals the two large halves of the pump that was the culprit and I was able to get that replaced and the pump was reusable. I did a temporary fix with my 09 using that pump but since the pump off the 01 was the original (~32k miles) I ended up replacing the 09 with a new and I have the repaired one as an emergency spare. My understanding is that when the inner seal is done, which was what happened on the last event, the only options from Honda is a full replacement but I've heard from someone on the Facebook VFR800 group that you can find aftermarket kits to repair them. I have not researched or verified that but would good to know if that is true and how the quality of the components are. One other culprit I had with the 01 was the hose clamps. After I replaced the hoses with a set of AS3 silicone hoses I noticed a few leaks here and there and it turned out the hose clamps just needed to be tightened up a bit. Sometimes it's hard to tell exactly where the leak is coming from when the bike is just sitting but starting it up and letting it warm up you can sometimes see where the leak is real quick. On a different note, not sure what type of riding you do, commuting, casual, sport, etc. but I'm literally 10 miles South-East of Seal Beach and actually frequent the Pubs, Restaurants and shops there. If you're up for meeting up sometime, whether that's for a drink or a ride, PM me. Cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Member Contributer JZH Posted March 26, 2019 Member Contributer Share Posted March 26, 2019 I'm not saying this is the seal (I don't even know if the shaft is 12mm!), but I also recall someone suggesting a long time ago that the shaft seal could be pressed out and replaced. Something like: https://www.amazon.com/Uxcell-104-12-Single-Spring-Mechanical/dp/B00CZ6ENHI/ref=sr_1_2?keywords=mechanical+shaft+seal+12mm&qid=1553593242&s=gateway&sr=8-2 It would be a matter of removing the shaft and bad seal from the housing (using a press) measuring it carefully and finding a matching seal. I think it is likely that the seal is a common part because, like bearings and seals, Honda usually doesn't manufacture basic parts--they just source them from somewhere in Japan. In the case of the shaft seal, which is not available as a separate part from Honda, the pump manufacturer (Honda probably outsources that, too) would have been the one to source the shaft seal, but I think that would just increase the chances of this being a standardised part. I would guess the biggest problem would be pressing the shaft out in the first place--it may not even be possible without destroying the pump. Ciao, JZH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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