Antifreeze leak update

[Deerskinlake]

I rented a pressure tester and I was able to produce the leak and here is where it first appears, at the marked circle below the black ground cable in the picture.
This area is actually forward of the gas filler neck but of course could be deceiving. Is there anyone out there who had leakage in the same area and then found out which hose was actually causing this? Just thought I gather as much information as possible before I start taking body panels off.

[tamathumper]

I don't see a marked circle...

[GoldWingrGreg]

Is this your mark ???

If so, there are several places that will cause coolant to gather there. The first thing to do is to eliminate the coolant pipe, or coolant pipe's o-ring, or coolant pipe's hose is not the cause. Without tightening anything, with a mirror and a flash light, and while it is leaking, inspect under the hose, and around the pipe where the coolant pipe goes into the head. The pipe is held in place with the same bolt securing the ground cable.

See the 2nd pics ??? While it is leaking look for a coolant trail up in there ??? Up in there is from hose clamps leaking from on top of the engine. Hopefully your leak is coming from either of those 2 places.

If you post what you find, I will tell you how I would repair.

[Deerskinlake]

Thanks so much for your reply and help. Your first picture indicates the black circle and the area where the leak starts to appear. When I do the pressure test, the coolant appears where that circle is.... traveling from the front of the bike rearward towards that circle.
If you would just follow your arrow towards the front of the bike, Staying on top of that casting because it is like a narrow trough, that is where the coolant is coming from.
The coolant pipe is not leaking as it is quite a bit fore of the area. If I peer in forward from the water pipe, I can see a couple hoses with hose clamps and they all appear to be dry when I was running the test.

[Deerskinlake]

I was able to remove the front lower cowling and reach from the front of the bike Using a flexible quarter inch shaft and a 6 mm socket.....and snugged the two worm clamps I mentioned earlier. then I reapplied the pressure tester and set it for 10 psi. The two pictures here show where the coolant begins to appear once again. Apparently, Those clamps are not the issue.

[GoldWingrGreg]

I was able to remove the front lower cowling and reach from the front of the bike Using a flexible quarter inch shaft and a 6 mm socket.....and snugged the two worm clamps I mentioned earlier. then I reapplied the pressure tester and set it for 10 psi. The two pictures here show where the coolant begins to appear once again. Apparently, Those clamps are not the issue.

The front clamps that you tightened are rarely the issue ... to avoid causing problems, I would have advised that you not touch those clamps. There is a seal on the pipe they attach too that can become problematic as a Wing ages. Did you look into the area from picture #2 that I posted above ??? The next step in determining where your leak is coming from is inspecting that area.

Sometimes, a rear leak will drain towards the front of the motor since the engine is lower in the front when on a centerstand. It will pool, fill the pool, and spill over rearward like you are seeing. Sometime it is best to put a jack under the motor to raise the front of the motor.

[Deerskinlake]

Yes I did check out the area of your second picture. That stays dry unless of course the area that first fills with antifreeze gets to the point where it just keeps pooling rearward which then it will start to fill the area of your second picture but it never starts there.
I will raise the front of the bike and do another test to see if the starting point of leak changes any If that is what you are alluding to?

[Deerskinlake]

By the way, the bike has only 12,000 original miles if this helps any.

[GoldWingrGreg]

Yes ... assuming your rear tire is the correct size, raise the engine so the front is higher and retest. I usually jack it till the rear tire is touching.

[Deerskinlake]

OK, I did just that.
Reapplied the pressure test and as before, the leak first appears where it has been… In the forward casting at the circle mark...... flowing from front to back...

[GoldWingrGreg]

OK ... well that then sucks.

year ???
mileage ???

[Asphaltmaniac]

Maybe the 3 way joint or its connection? Hate too say it but Id be pulling the tank.

[Deerskinlake]

2007,
13k original miles.
Has anyone removed the right side fairing panel ?
Was wondering if it can be done leaving the tank cover panel on ?
It sure would be helpful to see a picture of another bike that is tore down , exposing the top of the engine at my leak area

[Deerskinlake]

Found this nice picture of the top of the engine and I placed a blue arrow pointing to where the antifreeze shows up......
Along a narrow casting channel, next to the cast raised block that has a hose with a thin wire clamp on it.
There are other hoses in the area that have thin wire clamps… Are these coolant hoses also or are they air?
(I wouldn't think that style clamp would be able to keep high-pressure hot coolant from leaking past them.)
Judging by this picture, if I didn't know any better I would still suspect the 2 Worm Dr. clamps just to the right of that casting block is the leaking source. It sure makes sense as far as the proximity of my leak but I am just speculating at this point.

[GoldWingrGreg]

2007,
13k original miles.
Has anyone removed the right side fairing panel ?
Was wondering if it can be done leaving the tank cover panel on ?
It sure would be helpful to see a picture of another bike that is tore down , exposing the top of the engine at my leak area

OK ... low miles is usually good. At this point remove the cowl for a better inspection. To do that:
- remove the garnish, windscreen and visor
- remove the lower, inners, and center cowl
- remove the rear lower vent ducts
- unplug the BAS, the temp sensor, unplug all 4 headlamps, and the headlamp motors
- remove the cowl while releasing the white clips that secure the low-beam harness in place
Once the cowl is off, re-pressure test. Your leak is probably coming from the o-ring that goes around the pipe that inserts into the head where those 2 radiator hoses attach too.

If true, here are some things you might want to know. The o-ring can be replaced without removal of the head. Unfortunately, the bore the o-ring seats into needs to be clean, and the only way to know if it is clean enough is to remove the head and clean the bore with either very fine sand paper or steel wool. If it is leaking there, verifying it is nearly impossible. Because you have low miles, most likely less corrosion, in the bore, it is probably worth attempting to remove the pipe, inspect the pipe, and hoses, and replace the o-ring. The other possibility is that a head gasket is leaking. Again, because space is so tight, and it is difficult to look in with a mirror, it is very hard to verify.

Once you get the cowl off, be sure your leak is not coming from the hose from the filler neck to the radiator, and that your radiator is not leaking.

For a better inspection, once the cowl is off, I unbolt the 2 bolts that secures the rad/fan assembly in place and pull it upwards towards the handle bar. To do that, I remove the upper-rear rad fan/shroud bolt, loop a nylon tie through the bolt hole, and using several more ties, I tie it upwards towards it's handle bar. That might give you about 2" of space. Then remove the fuel injection chrome cover and lower radiator support.

If again the choice is made to replace the pipes o-ring, the other concern is how much road dirt and pebble are laying on top of the motor. None can be dragged in with the new o-ring.

Are you absolutely sure your leak is not coming from the inward area from my 2nd picture above. Sometimes stuffing small pieces of paper towel in various areas helps to confirm. Coolant leaks from the area I was pointing to is common. A coolant leak coming from a pipe o-ring with very low miles, although is possible, it's unlikely.

[Deerskinlake]

I have performed 4 pressure tests, front end low, front end high ..... leak always appears from same area. (from forward)
When I first bought the bike this spring, I did have to clean out some dead mice and nests from that area as well as other areas on top of the motor.... it was a mess.
I will remove the right cowl.
Thanks so much for your guidance