What is the point of my oil pump cover aka crankshaft cover?

Mine had a hole in it and had all this gunky oil residue in it. I took it off and not only did I find old oil but some weird yellow stuff too.

However, there's no hole or anything inside! It's just a metal area that's sitting there what the hell...

Is there even a point to this?

If I clean this up, how should I go about it? Water? Some kind of voodoo solvent?

I got a gasket for putting my new cover on but again, if nothing's going in, there's really no point...

Ps, i'm thinking that there is some kind of secret mystery door that lets oil get in so I'll probably need a gasket and for it to be squeaky clean.

 

Also there was fuel in my oil and i'm currently changing it.

I'm also going to rebuild my carbs and petcock. So, can i flush my engine out with a quart of oil? Or just fill her up and drive her a few hundred miles and change it again?

 

See that black plastic plug in there? It's the end of your crankshaft. You really don't want that coming into contact with the ground in the event of a spill/crash, so think of the cover as being more of a sacrificial barrier.

The gasket is there because the cover and the engine cases won't be flush with each other, without it there would be holes that water and other crap could get into.

As for flushing the engine, I would just fill up with cheap motorcycle oil, ride about a hundred miles and then empty and refill with good stuff.

 

There is no gasket specified for that cover. Only the LH one with stuff behind it.

That's because it's completely cosmetic.

 

And the oil needs to be - motorcycle specific, or commercial diesel.
Castrol 4T, Rotella-T

A quick cleanup - Easy-Off, a tooth brush, garden hose.

You might want a nicer cover, PM sent.

 

Oh crap, thanks!

I had managed to somehow procur one on ebay but I won't use it then.

But how come some of that oil sludge was inside?

 

Re: What is the point of my oil pump cover aka crankshaft co

You put your weed in there. :twisted:

 

Pags, it gets a tad hot in there. Might be a good place to smuggle diamonds though.

In regard to the oil you found in there, you need to keep an eye on that.

That seal in there is the crankshaft end seal, and it is "lipped" into the cases. If it "weeps" a tiny bit then there is no cause for concern.

If it becomes an actual leak of any magnitude then it's a problem. The true repair would involve splitting the crankcases but there are alternatives. First step would be to try an external sealant; flush the whole thing out really well with contact cleaner, blow out around the seal with compressed air, and apply either a few drops of CA (superglue) or "pack" it with a smear of this: http://www.permatex.com/products-2/prod ... ker-detail.

Next step would be to gouge out the old seal and install a "lipless" one of the same OD, pressed and glued in place. We've had a couple of members successfully do this.

But for now, just keep an eye on it. It took 32+ years for the oil you found to accumulate; so it doesn't sound drastic.

One more thing: "discover" XJ4Ever. You're gonna get a lot of the wrong stuff or crap repro parts if you rely on eBay for "consummables."

 

yup, as others said.......it's a cosmetic cover. The oil pump is actually inside the engine and the bottom of the oil pump sits just above the inside surface of the oilpan. So technically, the oil pump cover is the big square cover on the very bottom of your engine. The purpose of the oil pan cover, then, is to keep the oil IN the engine where the pump can pick it up and send it on up farther. The cover also holds the oil level switch........

But......if you mean what other people call the oil pump cover--which is simply the engine's right-side cover, it's a cover on the right that matches the timing cover on the left. for the gasket......just use a left-side gasket flipped over. You don't really need one....just put anti-sieze on the bolts.

dave F

 

Yamaha calls it the "oil pump cover."

 

Yeah, well, what do THEY know!?!?

 

+1 hogfiddles...lol