I got, or maybe I put it there, a nick in the o-ring on the back side of the filter cover and had a seeping leak. Replaced it and all was good, I'd check that first if you haven't replaced it recently.

 

Yeah I agree, maybe the rubber o-ring is damaged or rolled out of place upon installation of the oil filter cover. Either that or one of the oil filter cover bolts could be stripped out, but hopefully that’s not it, and I doubt it is. I think if that was the case the leak would be much worse.
I would pick up an oil filter cover o-ring and lean your bike over carefully on the left side and remove the right side oil cover, inspect the o ring and since you’re there, replace it. When you put it back on make sure to put some oil on the o-ring so it slides nicely into place. I like to rotate the cover both ways a little once it’s seated and make sure you don’t feel much friction. Also keep your cover boot threads super clean... steel bolts and aluminum cases don’t always play nice.[emoji85]
Best of luck!


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1) It could be leaking and burning oil. 2) It's hard for me to tell from the photo but if the leak is from the top of the cover (and not the center as it appears) then it is just the o-ring.

 

I assume it is burning a little oil, but not a quart every two weeks. But yes, it appears as if it's from the oil filter cover. I ordered a new kit but it won't be here till next week unfortunately. Closest dealer is over an hour away as well.

 

First wash the engine and then start monitoring where the stains appear. In my case, it was leaking both from under the filter cover and from the filling plug.

 

As others mentioned spray that entire area down with brake cleaner and then rinse off with a hose or spray bottle to identify where the leak is coming from.

If it is the same leak I had then there is an O-ring back there that needs to be replaced. The dealer did my case too while they were in there as it was under warranty. Needed to dump the coolant too if i recall.

Ended up leaking all over the place causing quite the mess:

 

What issues am I looking at in terms of damage of running it low on oil? Like I said, didn't notice it till I got to the shop, which is luckily only about 3 miles away, but it was probably low the ride before that too.

 

The only other issue is the bike getting dirty. Maybe a permanent stain on the pipe if it drips on that. Millions of old British bike riders can assure you that an oil leak does no damage to the bike if the level is kept up.

Well, you could slip on a spill on the floor. But you need a real man's oil leak to get that far.

 

I'll echo what @Chip stated. Rode the bike for a month before the parts came in for the service job. No issues as long as you're keeping an eye on the level and not being stupid about it - i.e letting it idle for too long dripping hot oil onto your exhaust could start a fire. More-so just the stink and slippery spots I'd be worried about.