[ckellyne]

My 2006 wee is well overdue for a valve adjustment, and the dealer mentioned that they may as well replace the valve seals as well. I have several questions on this topic (I am by no means anything remotely close to being considered a mechanic :fineprint: NOTE: My bike is working fine, no issues whatsoever and put about 10k miles on the bike each year. I've replaced the plugs with Iridium plugs and have about 50k of miles left on them.


Question 1 - The dealer said may as well change the valve seals when doing the valve adjustment. Is changing the valve seals really necessary? What is a reasonable cost to change the seals if being done while performing the valve adjustment? :yikes:

Question 2 - Aside from the obvious differences between a Wee's engine and the average automobile, etc. For a non-mechanic type "me", trying to understand why a wee / other bikes require a valve adjustment and automobiles "generally speaking" do not as a normal requirement for maintenance. It is about 4 hours of shop labor at about $85 per hour, so no small cost as you all know. I also have heard other's say it is cheaper to have the valve adjustment done than to pay for engine repair --- trying to understand why these engines are not built so this maintenance is not required. I have 120,000 miles on both of our cars / suv and have never had a valve adjustment done for either. Why is a valve adjustment needed for a bike / the wee and not for an automobile?

 

[greywolf]

Many cars have self adjusting hydraulic lifters while almost all bikes do not for various reasons.

Valve guide seals are good for over 100,000 miles and should only be changed if oil is being lost, not as regular maintenance unless the valve springs are removed for some other reason.

A good dealer will provide a variable scenario quote. One for valve clearance inspection only, one for adjusting one cylinder and one for adjusting both cylinders. Four hours of labor no matter what is found is just wrong. Also get a list of measurements for each valve clearance and any changes made.

As for the likelihood of an adjustment being needed, see http://www.stromtrooper.com/informa...stment-poll-those-who-have-done-had-done.html

 

[ckellyne]

Many cars have self adjusting hydraulic lifters while almost all bikes do not for various reasons.

Valve guide seals are good for over 100,000 miles and should only be changed if oil is being lost, not as regular maintenance unless the valve springs are removed for some other reason.

A good dealer will provide a variable scenario quote. One for valve clearance inspection only, one for adjusting one cylinder and one for adjusting both cylinders. Four hours of labor no matter what is found is just wrong. Also get a list of measurements for each valve clearance and any changes made.

As for the likelihood of an adjustment being needed, see http://www.stromtrooper.com/informa...stment-poll-those-who-have-done-had-done.html

Thanks for the info Greywolf, very helpful insight.

 

[Black Lab]

Thanks for the info Greywolf, very helpful insight.

ckellyne, if you haven't looked at any of the, "parts and pieces", that are involved in this work, you may want to read this thread and look at the photographs: 2007 DL-650 Valve Check and Adjustment « Black Lab Adventures

Doing so, may let you have a better conversation with your dealer/mechanic.

B.L.

 

[ckellyne]

ckellyne, if you haven't looked at any of the, "parts and pieces", that are involved in this work, you may want to read this thread and look at the photographs: 2007 DL-650 Valve Check and Adjustment « Black Lab Adventures

Doing so, may let you have a better conversation with your dealer/mechanic.

B.L.

Thanks much, I'll check it out!

 

[bwringer]

I think the dealer may have been talking about the valve cover gaskets and seals, not the valve guide seals.

You can normally re-use the valve cover seals and gaskets many times, but some folks feel better if new parts are on hand.