Oil mess.

1Steve

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Jan 2, 2014
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35
Location
SE Mn.
Long story short....oil cap came off while riding in very very windy conditions. On a highway at 65- 75 mph. Lost probably a quarter quart or less before I noticed smoke as I had slowed to turn in towards my house. Oil is everywhere on the lower half front to back. Question is what is the best way to clean all the oil off, metal plastics, & rubber ??
 

Kurgan

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Dec 11, 2015
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SE Michigan
Simple Green is very effective but gentle on paint and anodized metal, etc.

Wet the bike down, spray it liberally with Simple Green, wait 5 minutes, hose it off. No streaking and it doesn't smell bad either. Biodegradable if I remember correctly.
 

Cycledude

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Jan 29, 2016
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Rib lake wi
Long story short....oil cap came off while riding in very very windy conditions. On a highway at 65- 75 mph. Lost probably a quarter quart or less before I noticed smoke as I had slowed to turn in towards my house. Oil is everywhere on the lower half front to back. Question is what is the best way to clean all the oil off, metal plastics, & rubber ??
I highly doubt wind had anything to do with the oil cap coming off.
 

Tenman

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Dec 7, 2013
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Natchez Ms USA
The only time I ever let someone else change my oil. I had crushed an oil pan in on my zrx1200. The mechanics young son didn't tighten my oil plug. It came out doing 55mph in a curve. I did a full lock power slide and got lucky I didn't crash. Soaked everything from the plug to the license plate. Gunk degreaser and dawn dish soap took care of it. I took the brake pads out and rub them on some sandpaper for the hell of it.
 

HeliMark

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Dec 18, 2013
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Tennessee
Thanks. I still don't know how it came loose.
BTDT, but it covered my leg with oil, and drained enough to have the oil light come on.

It is easy to put the cap on, get distracted, and not tighten it down. The vibration will work it off, took about 50 miles for mine. Because of what happened, I am in a habit now of checking the cap before every ride.
 

1Steve

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Joined
Jan 2, 2014
Messages
35
Location
SE Mn.
The only time I ever let someone else change my oil. I had crushed an oil pan in on my zrx1200. The mechanics young son didn't tighten my oil plug. It came out doing 55mph in a curve. I did a full lock power slide and got lucky I didn't crash. Soaked everything from the plug to the license plate. Gunk degreaser and dawn dish soap took care of it. I took the brake pads out and rub them on some sandpaper for the hell of it.
Yes, I did just have my oil changed by a yamaha shop a few days ago. Che
I highly doubt wind had anything to do with the oil cap coming off.
No but I think the smoke was blowing low and behind me. Didn't see it till I slowed in the subdivision.
 

1Steve

Member
Joined
Jan 2, 2014
Messages
35
Location
SE Mn.
The only time I ever let someone else change my oil. I had crushed an oil pan in on my zrx1200. The mechanics young son didn't tighten my oil plug. It came out doing 55mph in a curve. I did a full lock power slide and got lucky I didn't crash. Soaked everything from the plug to the license plate. Gunk degreaser and dawn dish soap took care of it. I took the brake pads out and rub them on some sandpaper for the hell of it.
I did have oil changed by local yamaha shop. Checked level but not the cap. I'll do my own from now on and check the cap also.
 
R

RonH

Guest
That's why I do my own work. You never know what they strpped/forgot to tighten/hooked up wrong ect.
I had good luck using gunk spray or other similar products. They do smell and you are best off using a car wash being careful not to be overly aggressive. If you do it at home all runoff will kill any grass nearby and it will smell for days.
I've also tried the Simple Green, but it's been many years ago. For me it caused streaks on all the rubber parts and bare aluminum parts and didn't really do a great job cleaning the oil.
 

regder

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Sep 10, 2017
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Toronno
That's why I do my own work. You never know what they strpped/forgot to tighten/hooked up wrong ect.
Doesn't guarantee that you don't screw something up, at least then you have no one to blame but yourself. Years ago, did a clutch on my FZ6 with an oil change. Buttoned everything up and went for a road test. 30ish km's later was on the side of the road with most of the oil leaked out and no drain bolt. Thankfully, nothing blew up.

Everyone makes mistakes.

I did have oil changed by local yamaha shop. Checked level but not the cap. I'll do my own from now on and check the cap also.
Get in contact with the shop and let them know what happened. I would ask them to clean up the mess, replace the rear pads and tire. Most respectable shops will take care of it with barely a discussion.


If you want to do it yourself, there's no better oil remover than brake cleaner. Super harsh chemical so you have to be careful, especially around plastics and rubber. I will generally spray it on a rag and wipe down the offending area. Strips the oil right off, leaves no residue.

Also, depending on how much oil leaked onto the rear pads and rear tires, you may want to consider replacing them. If they got soaked, there's no getting it out as it will seep in. Last thing you want is oil on your rear tire on a rainy day.
 

scott123007

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Jupiter, Florida
[QUOTE="regder, post: 383952, member: 11491
Also, depending on how much oil leaked onto the rear pads and rear tires, you may want to consider replacing them. If they got soaked, there's no getting it out .[/QUOTE]







Replace brake pads, yes. Tires, no.
 

Tenman

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Dec 7, 2013
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Natchez Ms USA
I took mine home and cleaned it immediatley with a pressure washer. I don't think the pads had time to soak in much. The material didn't look contaminated after I rubbed it on some sand paper. They work fine. If they werent new I probably would have shank them. I'm tight too. I've done this to a bunch of soaked front pads on dirt bikes.
 

Don in Lodi

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Check your drain plugs too. Final drive as well if they goofed around back there.
 
R

RonH

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Goofed around is a great term for dealer work. You have to check every bolt/nut/hose or other they F**K with. You have to, or risk things falling off which could be fatal. Good reason most guys that jump out of an airplane at 20,000 ft or whatever pack their own parachute. Do it yourself you know what you did, let someone else do it, you know nothing until too late.
 
B

ballisticexchris

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Goofed around is a great term for dealer work. You have to check every bolt/nut/hose or other they F**K with. You have to, or risk things falling off which could be fatal. Good reason most guys that jump out of an airplane at 20,000 ft or whatever pack their own parachute. Do it yourself you know what you did, let someone else do it, you know nothing until too late.
Do you have personal experience with botched work from dealerships Ron? I blame the customer for choosing poor dealerships to perform work on their bikes. With careful research and communication skills it's not hard at all to find highly qualified mechanics. I always ask questions and meet the guys/gals working on my bikes. It's pretty simple to filter out incompetence. I'm fortunate to have long standing relationships with really good mechanics.

I had my first service done at the shop I bought my Super Tenere from. I would have done it myself but the heavy discount was well worth it on a bike I'm not familiar with. Since it was the first time using this dealership, I stayed there until the work was complete. There is a window you can watch them doing the work. Very transparent. The young man went above and beyond what was required. He did everything noted for the 600 mile service and came out explaining some stuff I needed to do after every ride. He actually readjusted my clutch and told me to give it one full day of riding in stop and go before adjusting it back the way I liked it. I'll be damned if his adjustment was way better than mine!!

Point is that you have to communicate before and after bring any bike in for repair. Mistakes happen, but it's almost always customer induced.
 
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