Re: More XL185 misadventures :-(

 sean_q wrote:


Such can be the vagaries of shyte old bikes.


Yup. May be worth checking dry then wet compression pressures. How is the
oil getting water in it?, one way -could- be excess ring blow-by. For each
gallon of fuel, you get very roughly a gallon of water produced.

Worth changing the oil out.


Pipe it to a catch tank or filter. Have a look at the air filter housing,
there may be a stub on there to pipe to. I'd still go with a catch
tank/filter though as it is roughly the equivalent of the engine breathing
its own farts.


That's bloody good fault finding.


The leaky valve cover and oil in the pipe are probably not connected other
than both scream hardened seal/gasket. Neither are difficult or expensive to
fix.

Did these engines have an air bleed into the exhaust for some markets?

 sean_q wrote:


<snip>


It isn't always under pressure. Reed valve connected to an air supply,
usually the air box. Once the exhaust valves has closed, that slug of
rapidly expanding and cooling gas creates a low pressure region behind it.
The idea is to draw fresh air in to help with emissions. As the pressure
rises again, the reed is closed. Not all engines are so equipped. Some are
equipped for certain markets and blanked for others.

That low pressure can pull oil past a hardened valve stem seal too. As the
oil hits the very hot exhaust, it creates a grey/white smoke that doesn't
dissipate as rapidly as water vapour. It also deposits as it condenses. As
you alluded initially, the smoke is not blue, so it isn't burning enough to
be noticeable. This points towards, albeit a little vaguely, the inlet being
pretty much OK, the rings being pretty much OK, but the exhaust stem seal or
guide or both allowing unburnt oil through. It is probably the only way for
the oil to do that. For three out of the four cycles of the engine, the
rings are more or less under pressure. The one cycle they're not is the
intake stroke, so if it was an oil ring issue, this would be where it may
show if the engine is burning oil.

For the compression rings, dry then wet compression testing, or 'does the
crank breather feel pressurised'

HTH

 

Start by finding an unlocked dumpster.

Enlist the aid of a friend to help you throw your pile of Honda into
the dumpster.

Alternatively, remove any license plates and evidence of registration
and abandon it on the street and let the authorities haul it away.