Fork Seals

[FretGrinder]

So, I went to take the bike out today and noticed that the right hand fork was leaking. I removed the dust cover and there is oil sitting above the seal. I'm guessing that the fork seal has gone.

I bought the bike (varadero XL125) from a Honda dealer. My question is, as the bike is just over 3 years old and done 4300 miles will they replace the seal under warranty, or is it gonna cost me a small fortune?

Cheers.
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Yamaha MT-09

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[.....]

The fork seals need replacing now and then, think of them as a consumable.

You could try cleaning the dirt from out of the seal first like shown here which if you're lucky will mean they don't need replacing.

https://www.mxboards.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=19

[stirlinggaz]

definately not a warranty job (unless you just bought it recently) as its a consumable/service part.
the seals themselves are cheap enough (think their 9 quid for a pair, fo each fork leg for oem parts)
but the labour will shock you, some places are charging around £100+ to do them!
an easy afternoons work, if you've never done it before,
cheers,
GAZ

[FretGrinder]

[stirlinggaz]

3 weeks? then i'd expect them to do it under warranty.
leaking fork seal is an mot failure, so i'd argue the fact that the bike is not fit for purpose?
cheers,
GAZ

[.....]

If you've only had it 3 weeks then it's definitely worth bringing it up with the dealer with an aim of getting them to sort it.

[FretGrinder]

Yeah, like I said, I'm gonna give them a ring in the morning and get them to sort it out. I won't be happy if they are thinking of charging me for it as I've only had it 3 weeks. As you've rightly said Stirlinggaz, they sold me a bike so it should be sold as "fit for purpose", same as if you were buying anything else.

Luckily the leak isn't major, there are no crazy spurts of oil when I rode it slowly round my road, I even bounced the suspension with the dust cover off. It seems like it's leaked overnight when it's been stationary, so I'm not really sure of what is exactly wrong with the seal.

I'll definitley post back stating what they said and how they went about sorting it out. I won't be fobbed off though, I've had to make a fuss in a few stores before when they try and fob me off. I'll keep you posted.
____________________
Yamaha MT-09

ಠ_ಠ

[.....]

Don't go in all guns blazing, play it nice at first and you might just find they sort it.

[FretGrinder]

[neil.]

Are you sure it's fork oil and not something like WD40 or ACF50? A lot of people give the stanchions a good covering of this to protect them against corrosion, especially over winter. Perhaps the previous owner did this? I do it and a couple of MOT's ago, the tester pointed out what he thought was oil but was satisfied when I told him it was ACF-50. It'll have that distinct smell to it that fork oil doesn't have. Seems quite a low mileage to have the seals fail already (mine is 5 years old, 32'000 miles and still has the originals), unless the bike has sat outside over winter or the forks are pitted, or maybe the rubber has just perished over that time but seems a bit strange to me.
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CBT February 2008 | A2 June 2008 | Yamaha YBR125 (written off) | Honda CBF125 (current)

[FretGrinder]

[FretGrinder]

Just rang up the Honda dealer and the seal is covered under warranty! Success!

Got the bike booked in for Thursday morning. I gave it the once over today and for some reason after giving the 35mm treatment last night it doesn't seem to be leaking. Just gotta watch it till thursday.
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Yamaha MT-09

ಠ_ಠ