Starter Replacement
 

First off hello!

I am new to both this forum and the motorcycle world. I recently got my licence in the summer time. I purchased a 98 superhawk 996 vtr last year and finally getting to ride it. About a month ago, my starter went. I only recently found a place that would fix it for the right price. I took the starter off one night and when I did, some oil came out. I checked my oil window when the oil stopped coming out, and it was still full. My handle bar fluids are still full so not sure where this oil/fluid came from or what to do now. Please help because I want to install the starter this way I can return it if the starter doesn't work not to mention get a few more rides in before the snow comes ;) If I forgot any valuable information i apologize in advance but let me know and I will fill in the blanks.

How much oil are you talking about? A little? A lot? Quarts? CC?

Welcome to the forum.

You have fluid in your handle bar????

Reservoirs for clutch and brake fluid.
Dear '98: There's a service manual that's accessible via the Knowledge Base. You can find information about installing the starter there.

You mean you lost your starter fluid....... damn you're FUBARed......lol

But actually it is nothing to worry about, it is normal to have a small amount of oil from the crankcase in there, just put it back together and go. ;)

Can't wait until he finds out how expensive the blinker fluid is going to be.

This had me laughing, as well as the handlebar fluids....

Bahahaha this could get fun.

superhawk98- welcome! and pics of the bike when you get the chance

lol yes maybe i should have worded it a little differently. I figured you would have realized what i meant as comedo elaborated that i meant the reservoirs not the actual handlebar aha and that i leaked starter fluid and looking for instruction on installing it the right way so i dont mess something up. Im not that much of a noob i've just never replaced a starter before and bikes are brand new to this 22 year old hah. so ill check out the service manual for more info so thank you for the helpful comments

P.S. I hear blinker fluid is very very expensive. It was developed by an old crazy scientists with white hair and a DeLorean and it actually helps the flux capacitors flux at a perfect rhythm.

i attached some pic of big red

Could be me but the front brake fluid looks about time for a change.

all joking aside, it was only a small amount guesstimating about 5oz of fluid came out when I took out the starter. I wasn't sure if that fluid was suppose to be there or not so I'm not sure if I need to replace what leaked out when installing the starter. I'm just trying to be cautious so i don't make a small fix into a large one. So like 8541Hawk said, I should just install the starter and not worry about the fluid correct?

and why do you think the front brake fluid needs changing?

thanks in advance!

im a worry wort but the starter is installed, started first try and running good.

Thanks to the people who advised.

It may be the photo but it appears very dark in the reservoir.

Your "handle bar" fluids are brake and clutch fluids; they are hydraulic systems that use DOT 4 brake fluid which is much different from the engine oil that came out when you took off your starter. These motorcycle engines just bathe everything in engine oil it seems like- clutch, alternater/stator, cam chains- everything. It's kind a weird to me, but seems to be pretty standard practice so as a non-engineer, who am I to argue?

Brake fluid starts going bad in the rubber lines, with exposure to moisture, with heavy use, etc. It is pretty transparent when it is clean, so when it turns muddy it's time to replace it. Kind of time consuming (hour or two from start to finish) to do if you haven't done it before, but it doesn't take many tools and the fluid is fairly cheap.

If you want to know more I can give you a summary of how I do it (disclaimer on this: I'm pretty new to motorcycles myself so it should be taken with a grain of salt) or check online or look a the manual for your motorcycle it's kind of refreshing to see that clean fluid in front of you!

p.s.- DOT 4 brake fluid is bad on paint so careful not to mix the two if you start to mess around with it!

First off...Welcome!

You can lose what looks like a lot of oil without bringing the level down too much. Don't worry, as long as it's between the marks in the sight glass. Also, it may have been slightly overfilled.

Next, you said this is your first bike. The VTR is very user friendly, but go easy on the throttle. This bike has a huge amount of torque, and you can get into trouble quickly if you aren't careful. Keep your weight slightly forward when accelerating in 1st, unless you want to practice wheelie's.:wheelie:

Have fun, and keep the rubber side down.