Wilsons Sandbox

Hello, I thought I would aske the experts. I have a 2004 KLR and have managed to put 400 miles on my bike. I have recently discovered that I have an oil leak from the left side of the bike when I am sitting on it. The leak appears to be coming from the smaller of the two flat head screw bolts on the engine case. Does this sound familiar to anyone? It only leaks when the bike is on the kickstand for an extended period of time. Second problem and the most bothersome is my battery. I have to charge my battery up about once every two weeks. IT has left me stranded twice because it went dead. If anyone has ever tried to push start their KLR they know that it isn't very easy. I am wondering if I don't have a problem with the charging mechanism or if I have some other problem. I am getting a little frusterated with this thing and I just recently purchased it. I thought I would run this by the board and see if anyone had any ideas. I guess I will run it another 100 miles or so and take it to the dealership for maintenance and then have them figure out what is wrong. Thanks Bryan

Hi Bryan, A dealership can also "load test" your battery to see if it will hold a charge. I believe most dealers should have one of these machines, but some small mc shops do not. It's an easy way to rule out the battery as the culprit, before you (or they) get into the electrical system. They should do this for free if they want to keep your business. I just had mine tested (for free) after my bike was in storage - because I didn't want to get stranded after using my trickle charger and thinking things were okay. The battery was fine - and now I can ride with peace of mind. Hang in there, Cookie 2000 KLR

Bryan, Don't know about the leak, but if you are locking the forks, you might be turning the key too far and doing the parking lights. You will need to charge your battery with a charger as the bike will not give it a good charge. Just my $0.02 Jim A-17 In a message dated 9/29/2004 11:21:36 AM Central Standard Time, bpdurling@... writes: Hello, I thought I would aske the experts. I have a 2004 KLR and have managed to put 400 miles on my bike. I have recently discovered that I have an oil leak from the left side of the bike when I am sitting on it. The leak appears to be coming from the smaller of the two flat head screw bolts on the engine case. Does this sound familiar to anyone? It only leaks when the bike is on the kickstand for an extended period of time. Second problem and the most bothersome is my battery. I have to charge my battery up about once every two weeks. IT has left me stranded twice because it went dead. If anyone has ever tried to push start their KLR they know that it isn't very easy. I am wondering if I don't have a problem with the charging mechanism or if I have some other problem. I am getting a little frusterated with this thing and I just recently purchased it. I thought I would run this by the board and see if anyone had any ideas. I guess I will run it another 100 miles or so and take it to the dealership for maintenance and then have them figure out what is wrong. Thanks Bryan [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]