My bike mechanic says that is caused from people not letting their bike warm up enought before they take off. I'm certin that he just pulling my leg a little there. I tooked off a few times with my bike cold and it hasn't caused any leaks yet.

 

Funny thing is that the owner's manual for my '06 Shadow recommended that you only run the engine for 30 seconds before riding. It said that it is better for the engine to warm up under riding conditions than by idling. I've even heard that there can be carb issues by letting it "warm up" too long. So yeah, I think that he's pulling your leg.

 

You know, I've read a lot about the warm up thing on forums, but I crank it and let it idle while I'm getting gear on and such, but I'm not buying it. I do not run it hard, sure I twist the throttle, but I don't push the envelope by any means. I shouldn't need to have the things replaced, that's the bummer. Is this par for the course on the big twins also? If so, I don't want one...

 

I agree with you mac. If this is how it is owning a Harley, then maybe it's time to move on. I love my bike, but if this starts to happen to mine....

Guys, is this a common issue with all Harleys, or what? Time for some honesty.

 

Have you ever owned an air cooled motor before? Regardless of the make or genre for that matter. They undergo a very wide range of expansion and contraction and require regular maintenance to make sure things are tightened to spec.

 

Yes I have. My first bike was a Honda CB750F. Never had any leakage problems. Right now I have an '85 Yamaha FJ600 sitting in the garage waiting to be turned into a street-fighter. Again, no leakage problems. I also had a '76 Triumph Bonneville, and that thing leaked like anything. But that's a Triumph. You shouldn't have to expect this from an $10,000, or more, motorcycle. Especially not after only 1000 miles or so.

 

72,000 miles on my 06 XL, no rocker box leaks.

 

I wonder what they changed here? From my observations these early failures of rocker cover gaskets started with the 07 bikes.

 

I'm having the same issue, I got aftermarket exhaust and wonder if they'll make an issue out of that. Those of you who have taken their bikes back for warranty work, have any of you had to put back your stock exhaust or have you taken it back with aftermarket and gotten your warranty honored?

 

Hey ; I have a 06 Sportster 1200 with only 11000 kil. on it and the rear rocker cover just started leaking . The local dealer quoted 2.5 hours labour plus parts and of course my bike is out of warranty .