Oil leak on C50 Boulevard

L

lil_c200516101

New member
I have an '06 C50 that I bought new in '07. I haven't had much riding time since buying the bike so only about 2400mi on it. I changed the oil myself 3 months ago because of time not mileage. Put a K & N oil filter on it and a couple of days ago I noticed about a tablespoon of oil on the ground where I park the bike. So I put a peice of cardboard under it last night and a spot of oil was on it this morning. I got underneath and wiped a rag around and got oil leaking where the oil filter screws on. Could it be that I just didn't tighten the oil filter enough? If it wasn't tight enough then why wouldn't it start leaking immediately and not 3 months later? Thanks for any advice people. I checked my oil level and I'm still full. It's not dripping constantly but I'm still worried....
 
Did you make sure that the rubber gasket from the old filter came off when you took it off? Sometimes they stick to the bike and then you have a double gasket situation that will leak and could be a catostrphic leak as you are going down the road. Ive heard of people ruining their engines from this. Or it could be that you just need to snug up the filter a little. If you are in doubt about the old gasket I would take it off and check.
 
had the exact same problem a couple months ago..... gave it 1/2 turn tighter and the problem went away... I "more than hand tighten" my K&N filter...

bob
 
true, overtightening is worse in my opinion.... but most people try to "tighten by hand"... thus my recommendation to tighten just a bit more.

b
 
I hand tighten and the turn it 1/4 turn with the filter wrench.

With it happening 3 months later though I would bet it was not tighten enough and vibrated loose.
 
Thanks for the reply guys.....I'm pretty sure I took off the old gasket. And I did hand tighten it. Mainly because I don't have a filter wrench and a buddy told me hand tightening it was ok. I guess I'll have to get one and give it a quarter turn. That same buddy told me that when you hand tighten it, the heat would help seal it up as you ride. Well I'll see if turning it with a wrench works and if so, I won't be listening to him anymore.
 
Order a repair manual. I see alot of posts that says "My buddy told me" In the end your buddy is not going to pay repair bills.
 
The manual says to tighten 2 full turns once the filter makes contact. I find that to be pretty darn tight. I mark mine with a piece of masking tape once it makes contact so that as I'm tightening it, I know when I'm close to two full turns.

Also, consider a small strap type oil filter tool. I bought one of those cap type that fit over the end of the filter and it slips when the filter is tight. The strap type, although a little tricky to get on the filter, has a much better grip.
 
Or get the K&N filter that has the bold built in to the end of the filter and attach and socket on the end and tighten away.
 
That's right....I'd forgotten that I had the one with the bolt on the end. I didn't need to buy an oil wrench. I put a 16mm wrench on it and was surprised at how loose it was. Gave it a 3/4 turn. I think it's on there good now. I'll look at my cardboard today.
 
Slightly :off-topi: but hopefully close enough.

Can anyone link me to a "how to" on changing the oil?

I'm a newbie with a recently purchased 2005 C50 with 2,900 miles.

The dealer wants $80+ and 2 days to do an oil change.

Also, any tips or tricks for reading through your oil "view window" when you're the only one around. Propping the bike upright all alone and peering into the sight glass seems like a physically impossible task. :D

Thanks all.
 
Hope the attached pages will help. The illustrations didn't turn out too good, though. If you need an owners manual, Copronymous has a link to M50 manual in his signature. As far as I know the C50s are mechanically identical to the M50s.

To check the oil level, ask your wife/girl friend to sit on the bike and hold it upright on an even surface. Then check the oil level on the sight glass yourself. By doing so, not only you know the exact oil level in your crankcase but also you give your wife a chance to get a sense of how it feels to ride a bike. Chances are good she'll want to try.

When you're on your own, you could use a mechanic's mirror.
 
Thanks Elvis. That helps. I went out and got a new filter, 4 quarts of Rotella 15W40 Heavy Duty oil and a filter grip that fits onto a ratchet wrench.

Turns out I was able to read by setting my kick stand on a brick...which got the bike 97% upright, but still enough lean to keep the bike stable. Then it was easy to bend down next to the bike and with very little effort, move the bike to fully vertical with no balance issues. (Gotta love the low center of gravity).
 
Glad the scanned pages from the owner's manual helped. How much did you pay for the filter and oil?

I saw the pics of your C50 in another thread. Is that an OEM windshield? Is it quick and easy to remove the shield when you don't need it?

Cheers
 
I got everything at Wally world. I think the oil was $4.00+/- per quart and the Fram oil filter was $7.00+

It is an OEM windshield, but doesn't look that easy to detach. It's not likely I'd do so anyway. I figure I've cleaned off about 1/2 pound of various bug parts that would otherwise be in my lower intestine. :mrgreen:
 
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