Weeping carb and water pump...
 

Hi,

I am looking at buying a low mileage (12k) 1998 VTR. However after going through the bike there was a coupld of things that got me worried. Obviously the bike had been laid down on the right side. Two small dign on the tank where the clip on had touched it...repainted lower fairing...upper seems to be orig. Not a big deal since the bike runs straight. But...

1) The has hard time running in idle. I read the post about this so I believe I can fix it. However every time it stalls or even when I switch the bike off, the rear carb carbles out a bit of fuel. It seems to come out from a niblle on the cabr that points back so you can see it if you take the seat off. The nibble points towards the rear of the bike and comes from a round part that is attached to the cabb with 4 philips screws. Question is how to fix this and any idea what the problem might be? Easy fix...? Expensive? Oh, the bike has TBR exhausts on it and seems to be running rich...a lots of popping.

2) The weep hole on the waterpump weeps :) I have seen this on other bikes....is it normal on VTR? There might be some weeping off the water pump gasket too...but I am not sure. Anything to worry about? I would thing that a gasket between the pump cover and engine would be an easy thing to replace...but, I wan expert opinions about the whole issue.

Thanks a lot guys! I am mechanically ok...I just do not always know that much about engines....but if someone tells me what to do, I can fix it :) Engineer you know :)

Looking frwd on the feedback...also if there are other things to look for, let me into the darkest secrets of the VTR's :)

Jussi

Re: Weeping carb and water pump...
 

The water pump leak is more common then many will admit :roll: It is a bit of a pain to fix, but not all that hard if your reasonable equipped (shop press, drivers and press plates, depth gauges, buy or make an installation tool for the mechanical seal) for setting the impeller in the case and have some general motor experience. I had to do mine on my new to me SH just a few weeks ago. You need a case gasket, oil seal, support bearing and the mechanical seal. And need to be ready to replace the impeller if you find it corroded (I did)

The carb issue sounds like it is flooding that carb,, To high of a float setting? Crud in the needle or seat? worn needle and seat? take your pick.. But for sure address the fuel venting issue before you do anything about the run ability issue.

Where in TX are you at?

Re: Weeping carb and water pump...
 

Thanks for the reply :) I am in the DFW area.

Sounds like the whole rear carb need to taken off to figure it out. To me it sound tricky to figure the root cause...

I would think that there ought to be a tube of some sort in that nibble, I mean if it is supposed to get rid of overfload, you still would want it to get into the ground, not on top of that rubber thingy that is between the carb and the cylinder.

Jussi

Yep,

Honestly it sounds like a stuck float. I see it on dirt bikes a TON. It happens when the bike sits with gas in the carbs for a while. The gas turns to lacquer (not Jack Daniels) and things start to stick. Either way, you need to get into your carbs, because a fuel drip is NOT ok, because you would have an overflow hose, like you said, if it were a "normal operating condition". I live in Dallas, as does CNI Dawg and Cliffhanger. Maybe you can come out with us on a weekend and we can take a look in person and help you out. Cheers

Yeah, it sounds like the bike has been sitting.

At minimum, some carb cleaner might fix the carb but that's rare. At maxium, you need both carbs cleaned/rebuilt.

Early models like the 98 are well known for weeping from weep hole. At minimum, the seals are dry from sitting and will get better with use (many stop on their own). At maximum, you'll need a complete waterpump replacement.

If you're still really interested in the bike, I'd suggest getting a quote from a Honda dealer for the maximum scenarios, which will be quite high from them, and use that as bargaining leverage during the sale.

You could do both yourself for under $100 or so depending on the amount of parts/tools.