Good morning,
Having replaced the gearbox oil in an attempt to “cure” some transmission whine (see other post), I took my V7 down to the Ryka’s Cafe near Box Hill yesterday afternoon - a round trip of about 40-odd miles. Great to meet up with other bikers, even if there were no other Guzzis there.
On getting back I happened to notice evidence of oil sprayed onto the rear wheel sidewall and rim, on the right hand side only. Not much, perhaps just a few mls, but certainly noticeable and quite worrying.
I didn’t have the chance to re-check the transmission oil level immediately and will hopefully do it this evening to compare to when I checked it last week.
In the meantime, are there any words of wisdom on this? Is it a gasket that needs replacement?
Jim
Is it possible that you overfilled it?
Hi Chris,
I have only had the bike just over a month.
No, I didn’t fill the rear transmission oil - only checked it, and it appeared to just came up to the hole to the rear of the box.
I did fill the gearbox, but with a measured 500mls, and don’t think this is the source of the splattered oil anyway.
Jim
Maybe the previous owner overfilled it? I am not sure as to the oil leve;ls on the small block bikes but I’m sure someone who knows will be along shortly
This was a problem that I had with my 2008 V7 Classic. It turned out that the oil seal in the bevel box needed replacing.
Thanks jef,
Is that a big/expensive job? I guess the seal itself is quite cheap, but labour costs could be quite high. So, is it something I could do myself?
OK,
I’ve looked at Fowlers Parts and it seems that the oil seal on the wheel side of the bevel box is made up of a combination of two large gaskets with a spacer sandwiched in between (parts 21 and 22 in the Transmission Complete II diagram for my V7 II Special). However there seems to be a number of different thickness spacers to choose from, and I have no idea which one will be right for my bike.
Or am I mistaken and the main oil seal is the smaller gasket ring (part 15)?
Thanks for any further help!
Jim
If like other older Guzzis, I think no it’s an oil seal around where the splined coupling is that drives the wheel, is not gaskets. I’ve had this happen to me yes oil ends up on the rim and tyre wall. Was a big block tho if not applicable in this case others will correct me.
NB: the plain ring between the two gaskets is a shim and whatever thickness it is now is the correct one for your final drive. Do not change it to something different unless you absolutely know what you’re doing.
Thanks Mike, that’s helpful.
I feel that it’s probably a job for a professional.
So, the question now is - who do I take it to? I am based in SW18 - SW London.
Jim
Baldrick is your bloke, see advert in back of Gambalunga. Don’t be put off by his customer services charade, he is a top mechanic.
I took it to my local bike shop and it was fixed there !!
Had a chat with Baldrick and as we spoke I realised it is still under warranty at the dealer I bought it from! So it’s going back there in the first instance to be checked over.
Jim
The bike is now in having the oil leak investigated under warranty - I hope they get it sorted quickly!
They’re also going to look at the transmission/gearbox whine (see other post).
So much for getting it sorted quickly…! 
The mechanics at Doble’s have so far confirmed that the leak is there, but won’t be getting round to stripping the bevel box until Tuesday next week, then will be ordering parts, then don’t expect to have it fixed until possibly another week goes by.
And I did check whether they’d be happy for this warranty work to be done on their behalf by a Moto Guzzi specialist - e.g. Baldrick - but they said “no”.
I’ve told them not to bother checking out the gearbox whine… Get the feeling they wouldn’t have a clue what to do anyway.
Not happy! It looks like I won’t have my bike back until mid-August. Won’t be going to Doble’s of Coulsdon again - even if I had a Honda!!
Jim
I was given to believe that in English law (or whatever) “warranty work” only needs be done by any VAT registered workshop or sole trader type mechanic so as not to void the warranty. So I think they’re talking rowlocks telling you that you can’t take it to someone else. 
(Hitherto I believed had to be same dealer who sold it.)
Could the top vent be blocked?
That’s a good question that I will ask them despite the fact that they will then almost certainly a) ignore me and replace everything else; or b) just focus on the vent and not fix the real fault if it is indeed the seals…!
Jim
Servicing at another dealer should not invalidate the warranty as long as genuine parts and oils are used and mileage/service intervals are adhered to - must be able to provide proof in case of dispute.
Warranty work however depends on the warranty supplied as the warranty company may only be prepared to reimburse the dealer who paid for the warranty. You could try using Baldrick but would probably need to pay him and try to get reimbursed by warranty company. You need to scrutinise the small print of the warranty and also be aware of your rights under Consumer Legislation - if not sure, contact Citizens Advice Consumer Helpline 0345 4040506
Good Luck
I took my Stelvio to Baldrick to change the cams, however I believe he could only get the parts from the factory through a registered dealer. If they supplied the parts, but did not fit them there was no guarantee that they were fitted correctly and no profit (more probably) for the registered dealer, and the dealer had to take responsibility of the work in the eyes of the factory whoever did it. In the end I took the bike up to Twiggers, a great job but a lot further away from me than Baldrick. The parts were free, so I only paid for labour and oils.
When the bike was under warranty, I only had it serviced at Newcombe Bros or Heywards of Cambridge. Both registered dealers that later decided not to be part of the Guzzi family after my warranty had ended. I still had the bike serviced at Newcombe Bros and they stamped the service book, which was accepted by the factory for the free issue of cams and followers even though they were no longer a Guzzi dealer. So my experience was with Guzzi dealers or ex-dealers, now the cams have been sorted I will now get any future work done by Baldrick, he is the closest and best a man can get (or was that Gillette?)
I enquired about cams to Colchester Kawazaki, now my closest Guzzi dealer, and neither the workshop manager nor the sales boss knew anything about an issue with the cams, so I went to Twiggers on Baldrick’s recommendation.
OK, I was wrong,
The part that has failed on my V7 is apparently the gasket ring where the drive shaft goes into the bevel box, not the one at the centre of the rear wheel. The part is now on order - luckily they’ve found one in the UK, because Fowler’s only have them on back order, and Piaggio/Moto Guzzi parts suppliers are on summer holiday in Italy at the mo.
The vent plug was not blocked so that’s OK.
I doubt I’ll have the bike back for this weekend, but you never know…
Jim