Gonna have to use some washers to stop the leak. The gasket doesn't get compressed enough to stop the seepage. Put washers on mine now no leak.

from what I understand there is a new gasket that fixes this problem my buddy had his fixed under waranty

RE: valve cover
05/13/09 11:18 AM

Kawnow-you were right on the money.I installed washers on the bolts-not leaking now.Thanks for your help in this!Ride safe there!!P.S.-Probably my imagination(?),but she actually "sounds" a tad quieter?Is that possible?

* Last updated by: blue07 on 5/13/2009 @ 11:41 AM *

Hey Blue, I also have the ZX14 "defective valve cover leak" that many owners are experiencing. My valve cover is just starting to leak slightly near the left side (as you sit on the bike).

Not feeling much like getting into the bike again, since I recently finished plugs & TBS. Not a fun job. lol. For now, I will keep an eye on the leak (hope it doesn't get worse). When it gets time to fix it, could you please let me know what are the EXACT washers, procedure, torque values/sequence etc to complete the task? When I get to the job, can I simply just replace the two washers near the effected area (left side) & re-torque to factory specs? Will that stop the left side from leaking? I want to make this as easy as possible when it gets time. Thanks.

I've got the dreaded left side valve cover gasket leakage now. I pulled in from a ride the other day and got a whiff of cooking oil. Looked down on the left side and it looks like it's been leaking for awhile. Hard to say how much oil was lost so I put the bike up on the stands to get her level and my oil level was well below the lower line on the sight glass. Added 800ml to get her back up near the top line and that's only 1500 miles since oil and filter change. This engine has never used oil before so I'm not sure if it's leaking it, burning it, I just didn't put enough oil in at the change or maybe a combination of the above. I used the factory recommended 4.1 L (4.3 Quarts) last time so I'll need to check this out next time I change oil. It may be starting out low on the sight glass from the git. Do you guys recommend the new cover gasket or just tighten up with a couple washers under the screws? I hate oil leaks, especially when they burn and stink.

Kruz

Well like I said Blue, I put in the full 4.3 quarts per the manual and she was way low at 1500 miles. If I'd gone my normal 3000 miles....hoo boy she would have been bone dry. Don't know if it's burning oil or leaking at the cover gasket but I do aim to find out with the next oil change. If it's burning that much oil at 11,000 miles, something's wrong. I'll post up an oil consumption thread and see what goes with other 14s. I've never noticed this thing using any oil in the first 10,000 miles so it's kinda strange to start now.

Kruz

Cool Whip wrote:

Not feeling much like getting into the bike again, since I recently finished plugs & TBS. Not a fun job

How did the engine run after the TB synch and plug change CW? Was their a big difference in throttle response, idle stability etc? I'm right there at 11K miles, need to do both but it's riding season now and I hate to pull it down for maintenance.

Kruz

I hope your wrong about the blowby issue Blue. How'd you break yors in? I did mine by the KHI book, prolly not a wise move in hind sight. I broke in the CBR much more agressively, we'll see how the rings seat on that one.

You mighta got took if it runs worse after plug change and throttle synch. They were probably really close already and they let a newbie cut his teeth on em and hosed up. I don't know that, just guessin, might want to take it back and let a pro do it..if they have one. I've heard two schools on this, proper synch and it'll rip your arms out of socket right off idle and the other school didn't notice much difference at all. Maybe how far out they were in the first place and who dunn the synch.

I think I'll do a Blackstone analysis on my oil this time around and see if there's any blowby i.e. high insolubles in the oil...what I call crispy critters. I've babied my bike and normally work it between 5 and 8K, pulls like a freight train so no need to rev it like a 600. Maybe babyin's bad.

Be 4 I jump to conclusions I will do a controlled test next oil change, precisely measure oil going in, level in the sight glass and see what comes out after 2500 miles. Need to fix that cover gaasket first though. Yer right, it didn't leak out or I'd have a puddle on the garage floor 4 sure.

Kruz

Hmmmm..food for thought. Has anyone else with a leaking cover gasket noticed oil consumption was up? That makes more sense to me than an engine that had no history of using oil suddenly burning lots of it.

1. External Oil Leaks
Some of the many points where external oil leaks may occur include: oil lines, crankcase drain plug, oil pan gasket, valve cover gasket, oil pump gasket, fuel pump gasket, timing case cover and camshaft bearing seal. No possible source of leakage should be neglected because even a very small leak will cause extremely high oil consumption. For example, it has been estimated that a leak of one drop of oil every twenty feet is approximately equal to a loss of one quart of oil every 100 miles. The best way to check for external leaks is to road test the vehicle with a large piece of light-colored cloth tied under the engine. Oil on the cloth will indicate a leak which should be traced to its source.

Kruz

* Last updated by: Kruz on 6/9/2009 @ 3:08 PM *

This ought ta rock your world then. I change at 5 K interval with Mobil 1 Racing 4T. It has never used or leaked a drop in the 18.5K miles I have had it. I don't baby it at all and have regularly ran it up to redline thru the gears almost since purchase and even bang the limiter occassionally. Scouts honor.

* Last updated by: Bluebyyou on 6/9/2009 @ 4:08 PM *

Blue Wrote:

RE: valve cover
06/07/09 7:00 PM

Sorry to hear that Cool-Hope yer ridin's goin AWESOME-Mine is!!!!That leak,yeah,left side(probably from sittin on the sidestand)and that's the "easiest way out for the seep".It was not a prob,once I figured out HOW to do it the easiest way!-You can choose what you think is best for your piece of mind in the torque area.I DID NOT TORQUE my bolts down to spec.I DID NOT REMOVE the tank cover.I removed the ram air cover-the grill,the midfairing(kept the lower fairing attached to the midfairing) and that was it for bodywork.I removed the brace that holds the wiring harness(see Service Manual "fuel System"-3-105,The lower picture there) and moved that out of the way.I disconnected those plugs you see to the left there.I cut the ziptie off the harness.Moved the harness away so I could get a clear shot.I removed the Reservoir there and set it to hang away from the area(didn't disconnect anything there except the plastic clip on the hose that keeps em together once installed.Folded the hot wind cover seal over and away from the bolt heads.Removed bolts.Okay-Installed 2 3/8"(M10) washers on each bolt.Reinstalled(I would wipe the head gasket seal mating point(on the outside of the valve cover)very good-get it free of any oil seepage,and around the top of the engine,along the front on that side.Check the rear of the engine cover area as well and clean any blowback there.Then-I tightened down the bolts.I watched the compression of the gasket as I did it.I tightened down PRETTY GOOD.Not as far as they could go,but VERY SNUG.The gasket was "deforming" slightly in a few areas around that seal,but it was okay.No problems.I can't say what torqueing to spec would do.They didn't count on needing to shim the valve cover I don't think.So the values MAY OR MAY NOT WORK in this case.I just wanted to make sure I didn't have to go back in again.BE CAREFUL!!!Those bolts can strip out in a heartbeat if yer not paying attention to the force yer applying.I(THANK GOD)didn't strip any out.I stopped when she got VERY SNUG and the gasket was "deforming".(not much,but some).I've not had any more leakage from the valve cover since.Okay-so there it is-Don't forget to reinstall the cover seal back over the engine there(DUH),And if you've got a Power Commander on there-don't forget to hook up the ground again(if yours is mounted to the reservoir).Reconnect those plugs there.You don't want to FORGET anything-One time ONLY!!!!Start yer engine-let er run for several minutes there.Get the oil flowing up inside that valve cover.Shut er down,wipe Clean again.Check er later on,see if yer still gettin a seep.If you have the patience,don't reinstall the fairings until you've checked her over a couple if times,wiping down,then letting her sit for a while.You'll get SOME seepage that was leftover from the initial seep,trapped up in the gasket.But once that's gone-she ought to be good to go if it's right!Take er out,ride aggressive.Then check again.Should be PERFECTO!!!!You know you don't have to remove anything to see if she's seeping,right?Take care COOL-hope this helps!!

Thanks much Blue for the detailed info!!! I will definitely print/archive this and do it when I feel like digging back into the 14 or when the problem gets worse (let's hope not). It is a *VERY VERY* small leak. Like a drop of oil hanging off the #1 header bolt once & awhile.

Tonight, I took her out for about an hour & didn't notice much if anything leaking this time (ok maybe ONE drop). I also changed oil tonight as well. The same thing came out that I put in - 4.3 quarts with filter. I change oil & filter between 1.5K - 2.0K religiously. I also wanted to mention that the bike is on a center-stand 95 percent of the time.

Okay Blue, on to my point. lol. When, I get to fixing the leak. I will follow what you said above: remove effected two bolts/washers & replaced with 3/8" (M10) washers. Only difference, is that I will torque to what the service manual says & then check for leaks. If that doesn't do the trick...I may add a *slight* more amount of torque and see if that seals that cunt. LOL. Sound like a plan Blue?

Kruz wrote:

How did the engine run after the TB synch and plug change CW? Was their a big difference in throttle response, idle stability etc? I'm right there at 11K miles, need to do both but it's riding season now and I hate to pull it down for maintenance.

Kruz

Kruz, the engine does seem to run a little crisper and seems to also "warm up" faster (meaning...from when you start it the fast idle drops quicker). Now, was that from the TBS or new plugs??? I don't know for sure. It could simple be because my air filter was about 80 percent full of these god awful green-swamp-bugs I picked up at the Great Mississippi River near LaCrosse. lol. Bastards. Obviously, I changed the almost plugged air filter too. I also want to thank you. I took your advice and replaced the air filter cap with the G2 version aluminum cap. I could tell the plastic OEM was just starting to warp. Nothing got past but I caught it in time.

Also, sorry about your leak. Keep a close eye on it. We don't want that shit getting on our back tire.

* Last updated by: CoolWhip on 6/9/2009 @ 8:43 PM *

Well, I checked the exhaust outlet last night and she's got that dry carbon "fluff" on there, no oil residue at all. The '08 CBR's are known to burn oil and you can actually see it dripping off the exhaust can so I'm leaning towards this being a leak issue. I checked last night and there was the faintest wisp of oil residue on the left side fairing. I did notice that burning oil smell when I came back from my run though so it may be dripping on the header and burning up rather than dripping on the garage floor. Anyway, first order of business is fix the valve cover leak, change oil and monitor it for the next 2 thousand miles. If she's burning oil I'm going to be pissed, I broke this thing in by the book, KHI's book.

Kruz

Just a tip for everybody with a leaking valve cover, if you run the oil level below half or close to the low mark it'll leak ALOT less than completely full I found out the hard way And if you park the bike in a front wheel stand it won't leak NEAR as much when its parked. Just thought I'd share that for the guys who have small leaks and don't want to tear into the bike right now. I rode my bike for a year like that before I decided it was time to fix it
I would also recommend checking your exhaust header bolts if you have the plastics off...mine were almost finger tight when I pulled the exhaust off, and the gaskets were completely shot....no re-using THESE gaskets In fact my exhaust gaskets looked like the gasket material itself had burned and/or fallen out, VERY sad looking units The new ones I ordered don't even resemble the old....parts upgrade maybe?

I've read posts that implied running your level on the lowside of the sightglass could cause oil starvation to the sump under wheelie conditions. Now this was posted by someone who threw a rod after doing some very extended wheelie riding. I don't wheelie much for fun but as a precaution for the regular power wheelies I run my oil level right at the top mark. No leaks.

I don't mess with anything that yields insignificant power gains at the expense of engine longevity, i.e. low restriction race filters, low oil level etc. The small gains you get are not worth it in my opinion.

Kruz

...low oil level...

Namely this one......never

Kruz I have to question your technique for checking the oil level. I check mine in the garage perpendicular to the door. Garage floor is sloped to the door for drainage. Leave it on the side stand grab it by the handle bar and pull it until the bike balances and look at the sight glass. Mine has never used a drop on the sight glass changed at 2K miles even with the oil leak. If you check yours on the stands how can you be sure the bike is level and not just following the angle of the floor.

I have the infamous oil seepage from the left side of the valve cover. I tried replacing the valve cover gasket with a new one... still have seepage. Now I'll add the washers, hopefully this will fix it. I have over 42,000 miles on my bike and it does not burn oil. I buy my oil by the gallon when doing oil changes, easier that way.... cause I can put my old oil back in the container for disposal.

Mine leaked after the dealer checked the valve adjustment @ 16000 Mi. (all ok) took it back and they replaced the gasket free with the new one - guess what?, still leaks ! going with the washers next - geezzz !

I just added the washers. Put one on each valve cover bolt. OEM service manual calls for 9.8 newtonmeters torque value. I set the torque wrench to 9 newtonmeters for each bolt, then set it to 10 and re-torqed. I've been monitoring for seepage and after 1000 miles since completing the task, no more seepage... Thank you so much for the tip!!!

Sorry to necropost, but I have a quick question about this.

The folks that have done this fix, did you only put washers on the 2 left side bolts, or did you add washers to all 6 bolts on the valve cover?

Only the left side bolts.(two).The new gasket WILL NOT FIX THE PROBLEM.It's not the gasket.It's the thread depth on the bolt holes.Just a tad shy of being deep enough to squeeze the gasket right.I know I know-someone's gonna say they replaced the gasket and it was fine.If your gasket is "shot" or not okay,yes,it will resolve it most likely with a new one.But as I and others here have mentioned-"new gasket,still leaks".I installed a new gasket at the valve check-promptly began seeping as previously.Washers are the best bet for a longterm fix IMO.That seal right there at the left valve cover spot is a pesky little bast@!#$%.Mine didn't seep until many thousands of miles racked up.So apparently when new-the rubber is thick enough to seal with stock bolts and torques.After she's run through however many heat cycles,I guess the rubber begins to thin out a bit?It does cook up there everytime we run.

* Last updated by: blue07 on 1/12/2010 @ 8:28 PM *

Thanks Blue. My gasket is fine.

Yer Welcome Rhavin.I also tried torquing the bolts down "more" than stock,it didn't help at all...and I could tell they were on the verge of stripping.Using those washers should allow you to possibly use LESS torque-and still get a great seal.You sure won't damage anything by going by the stock torque settings and the washers.

Thanks again Blue. Hopefully I'll have some time to get it done today.