*** HELP - 1984 Honda 200es - engine oil leak ***

[bkvette3]

Hello guys - my '84 200es all of a sudden developed a minor engine leak the other day. Driving in cold weather. Starts & runs perfect with no issues. Has never leaked before. This is driving me nuts. Wiped the oil off and went for a little ride and the oil was back. I can not trace where the oil is coming from. The oil is a slow drip that ends up around the left foot peg area. I am taking it to the local Honda dealership first thing Monday morning. I guess my question is - is there something I should be looking for in regards to the leak??? Bugging the hell out of me. Your comments and advise is appreciated. Thanks in advance. BK3

[tri again]

200es going to the dealer?
ugg.

Um, I hope it's the gear shifter seal, about 3 dollars and can be
put in from outside in a couple minutes.
I use 3m weather strip adhesive aka contact cement but they never squeeze back out.

For chasing oil leaks?
I blow a little bread flour on the engine.
Seems to make it easier to see the oil tracks.

Did you hit a rock or anything?
Side cover and other bolts tight? incl drainplug. Do NOT overtighten anything trying to fix a leak.

Hope it's a super ez fix.

[bkvette3]

Slowing easy driving here - never hit anything. Hoping it is something as simple as the gear shifter seal as you mentioned. Hey, that flour trick is a great idea. As I mentioned earlier - starts and runs great. I did check all bolts and like you advised DO NOT OVERTIGHTEN. Thanks BK3

[kb0nly]

The dealer is gonna rape you good for that... A $10 job into a $300 job i bet....

Near the left foot peg on a 200ES i would almost bet on a shifter shaft seal. A few bucks and its easy to replace. Remove the shifter from the shaft, one bolt and a flat screwdriver to spread the end a bit, then a scratch awl or a pick and you can work the seal out, a deep well socket about the same size as the seal and will fit over the shifter shaft is all you need for installation. Clean the shifter shaft good, put grease on it and the inside lip of the seal. Also pack the back side of the seal in grease so the tension spring can't come out. Slide it over the shaft, use the socket and a rubber mallet and tap it in slow and easy, replace the shifter and your done...

You don't even wanna know how many of these i have done... LOL

[bkvette3]

Thanks guys for the heads up on the cost of the repair - I am aware how these stealerships operate (scarey).. I dropped Big Red off at the dealership early this morning. They couldn't look at it until next week. Just picked it up and decided to take a closer look at it myself. Cleaned up all the areas where I thought the leak is coming from - shift lever seal, oil drain plug, etc. Then drove around for awhile and took a look again. These areas really showed no traces of oil or a leak. Here is a question for the experts - is there anything behind the pull start recoil that might leak??? Before I pull the recoil off to inspect. Thanks in advance. BK3

[tri again]

so it seems like it's not leaking now?
or just a slow accumulation?
Still has oil in it right?
...any chance it was a little overfull?
I'm wondering if there may be a plugged vent, like crankcase vent tube somewhere?
Plugged vent might make it leak around the crank seal and others if you run it a little faster rpm than just putting around.
Increases crankcase pressure or something like that.

Behind the recoil is a crank seal probably.
can you click on :
service manual
?
All my 200es's went to a returning marine with an asparagus farm so it's been a while since I've seen one.
GREAT trikes. Will do anything you ask them to do except diagnose themselves.

Is this machine new to you?

[kb0nly]

Yep there is a seal on the basket that the recoil spins on the end of the crank, thats a very common leak point on the 200ES as well.

[bkvette3]

Cleaned around the shift lever seal and area really good and so far no leaks there. Will continue to monitor. Going to try and find the vent tubes and see if anything is coming out of them. Where and how many are there supposed to be on a 200es? I see 2 tubes that are hanging off the rear (by the chrome grab bar) Not sure were they lead to. When it warms up I will have to investigate more. Thanks.

[Chopsaw]

Cleaned around the shift lever seal and area really good and so far no leaks there. Will continue to monitor. Going to try and find the vent tubes and see if anything is coming out of them. Where and how many are there supposed to be on a 200es? I see 2 tubes that are hanging off the rear (by the chrome grab bar) Not sure were they lead to. When it warms up I will have to investigate more. Thanks.

If a vent tube is clogged it causes high crankcase pressure that can blow a seal or gasket . So not really lookin for a leak out of the vent tube .

[bkvette3]

Hello again - the weather finally warmed up for me to do some wrenching on old Big Red (1984 200es). Found out where the oil was leaking from. kbOnly called this one from the beginning. Removed the recoil assembly and voila - here is what I found. I am guessing a crankshaft seal (???). Is this easy to repair??? Has anyone any experience in doing this??? Advice/tips on repair. Thanks in advance. BK3

[tri again]

Great picture.
So I wonder why it stopped leaking for a while?
Maybe had to accumulate inside the pull starter?
Anyway, the seal is right where you'd imagine.
You DO have a service manual?

The only thing that freaks me out is the occasional 'reverse thread'.

I am never sure where they are, not clearly marked or mentioned and have been known to wake me in my sleep.
Yeah, I'd wait until you hear from someone who's actually done one or you are able to see the procedure clearly in the
service manual

Nice job.

[bkvette3]

Hello - no, I do not have access to a service manual - wish I did. I too, also wondered why the leak stopped for awhile. I drove Big Red briefly earlier in the week (colder temperatures outside) with no leaks. Just a very small amount of oil on my fingertips when I wiped the bottom of the recoil assembly. This morning with temperature @ -6C (21F) I decided to take off the recoil assembly to investigate. Cleaned the oil and dirt/sludge and removed dirt from the small vent hole at the bottom of crankcase (see above picture). Reinstalled the recoil and went for a short easy drive. Once up to temperature - leak increased. Temperature sensitive. The recoil cover gasket also was damaged now from removal of assembly. Parked it back in the garage. Will pick up a new crankcase seal and recoil cover gasket tomorrow @ the dealership. Hopefully, someone will chime in on the repair. Thanks, guys. BK3

[bkvette3]

Well - got tired of spending quality time with the wife watching TV and decided to head out to the garage and spend some time with the one I really love. LOL - just kidding. Anyways, at the point of removing the seal - it was in very bad shape. Rubber lip chewed up. Just need to find a seal puller to remove old seal and then install the new one. Also going to replace the little rubber o-ring on the bolt that holds the recoil starter pulley on to the crankshaft while I have it apart. Job was actually very easy. Had a little help from you tube. Oil leak should be history. Will test it out tomorrow - day off from work. Regards. BK3

[tri again]

so? normal thread?

So Sorry my friend.
When I type :
service manual

it should hilight blue as a clickable link, so yeah, click on:
service manual
and you can either view it or download free

No real reason for a seal plucker, it's just a bent hook sort of thing, or look at
a real one and decide what else you can use instead.
I usually glue seals back in with a touch of contact cement, esPecially if they are engine rear main seals betweeen the engine and transmission of something heavy.
Probably don't need any for this.
but DO grease the seal a little so it doesn't roll and pop the spring out.
Most seals have a spring around the lip to keep 'em tight.

Nice work BTW

[kb0nly]

Sorry i got so busy and didnt get back sooner!

Very common leak on the 200ES, there is a weep hole at the bottom of the recoil that lets any water that gets in at the rope drain out, also oil when that seal goes!

Tri - Normal thread, not left hand thankfully.

BK - Definitely make sure you replace that o-ring on the bolt as well. It will likely be hardened with age. It won't leak nearly as much as the oil seal but the head of the bolt will always be wet with oil and then you know the o-ring is bad.

Definitely replace the recoil gasket, i get them to work on all the time with that gasket gone and the inside of the recoil is so rusty from water getting in there. Yes some gets in through the recoil rope hole if you don't have the correct pull start handle on it, but rain will just seep in around the top without that gasket.

I see you mentioned you don't have the manual, its available on my website, link is below in my signature. Just make sure you torque that bolt correctly and you should be good to go!