Waterpump seal leaking again

[Citizen2015]

Hi all;

I had rebuilt my 1984 Voyager last summer, got top end work done, replaced broken water pump gear, had new parts installed, etc.

Last spring, water pump seal broke, coolant leaking all over. I thought it was cylinder gasket leak...didn't read the manual!...rebuilt engine again before I found out it was the drain hole in the water pump that was pouring out coolant (faces the cylinder/block interface).. Replaced pump seal with new one from BikeBandit.

So, I was on the road again, great rides, until yet again, coolant leaking out of that *&^&$#%$ drain hole.

Has anyone else had this problem, better yet, does anyone have a solution? Pretty sure I'm going to keep having the same problem till I drive the bike off a cliff.

[Me Again]

First thing to check is the coolant level.Are you overfilling it?
If you decide to run it off a cliff,I have a nice cliff in mind.
Runs over the cliff and right into my garage .I have ridden a couple over that cliff with satisfactory results .

[Citizen2015]

I found it kinda of hard to determine the level in the rad...are you suggesting if I don't overfill it won't leak? I tore apart the engine last spring when it was leaking (not reading the manual of course that would have told me about the pump drain, but then again I found other problems...not all lost). I did fill it until it was pouring out the cap...can't see the level under the fairing).

If it just a matter of letting some rad juice out, then the bike stays, I alone will jump off the cliff!

[Me Again]

There is an overflow tank right above the kickstand .If it's overfilled it's got to go someplace .
My theory is if it's filled to full you may be blowing the seal before you blow a hose.
Is this your problem? I don't know ,but it's a place to start.

[lockwoodjohn]

Hi All,
Sorry to hear about your problem. When I replaced my water pump oil seal I also replaced the pump coolant seals and o rings in the water pump hoses. I got all my parts from Carl Leo. He also gave me a lot of tips on how to do the job. It has been over 1500 miles since the job was done! Not one drop of coolant not one drop of oil. One tip he gave me was to have everything clean, clean and clean. He also told me to lightly coat the case with dish soap where the water pump coolant o ring slides into the side of ythe case. Be careful so the coolant o ring does not roll out of the pump housing groove. He also said becarefull, go slow so not to jam the water pump in the case while installing pump. I followed his advise to the letter and the job went well. As far as coolant level in system goes, the whole system only holds around a gallon of coolant. My resuvior is almost to the upper line and the coolant in rad is at the bottom of the filler neck the coolant system is good to go. Maybe contact Carl he might be able to give you some fresh ideas. Gotta be better then the cliff idea. Good luck to you!! Lockwoodjohn

[Citizen2015]

Thanks LockwoodJohn;

I'm pretty sure I had everything right...the seal was good for a few hundred kilometers of riding, then I attempted to fill the rad again, thinking it was low (I should have "burped" the rad at 1st fill). Probably overfilling did it in (and it was the problem the first time too perhaps). Another lesson learned the hard way, another seal on its way...and some soap for good measure.

Thanks for your info!