Question?????

So been riding my XJ550 maxim more and more this fall and it’s been running great.

then this; (see photos)

oil all over. I see the cables, where they connect. But I’m unsure the system…what I need to do to fix. Thoughts?

 

https://xjbikes.com/forums/threads/tach-gear-housing-oil-seal-replacement-w-pics.19538/

Read this how to by the greatest XJ guru Big Fitz

 

Looks like the valve over to me ?

 

dumb question (those are all i ask)

can i drive it?

 

If it is simply a leak, preferably a valve cover gasket leak, you could drive it as long as you make sure your oil level is ok and don't mind the mess.

 

Of you could look at the images I posted. There’s a cable hanging out of the engine block and a cable jacket descending from the tach.

i have tried re threading it but no luck. It is decidedly not a leak. I simply need to get it to a mechanic who can see and touch it.

 

In the first image, you're holding (left hand) the inner drive cable for the tacho drive cable assembly, and that drive cable is supposed to be fitted up into black vinyl sheathing of the "cable"........the other end of the metal drive cable pokes into the back of the tachometer gauge up on the dash (just like the end of the metal drive cable---visible in your first picture--- is fitted into the end of the drive housing gear shaft....which is not visible in the picture). The visible end of the black vinyl cable sheath still has the threaded "adapter" on it; that adapter screws into/onto the forward end of the drive housing in the cylinder head (where the metal drive cable is still attached). If this presentation has been "as shown" for any amount of time, that is where your oil is coming from (the drive housing) since without the vinyl cable attached to the front of the drive housing, there will always be a small amount of seepage thru the drive unit which is normally captured and retained within the black vinyl cable...........

 

In my opinion, the best option would be to replace the tachometer drive cable. While the old one may be salvageable, probably just better off spending a few bucks and getting a new known good one. They aren't overly expensive.

 

That's true, but make sure you salvage that threaded adapter off the end of the current cable, as that must be screwed into the drive housing.

 

Thank you guys for your insight.