Valve cover pimple

[Kitsap]

Parked the bike after arriving home yesterday and found this...

 

 

There is a corresponding dimple on the inside of the cover. I found no debris inside and the closest thing to the damage location is the upper, forward cylinder head bolt. I have no idea what's going on. Any ideas?

[Mister Tee]

Is it possible the dealer could have swapped valve covers on you the last time you had it serviced?

 

It's also possible the dent/anomaly was always there and the paint just now cracked...

[johnlt]

Wow, that's a strange one. Was the cylinder head bolt tight? Assuming it is concave on the inside, something got in there.

[Kitsap]

The dent wasn't there when I washed the bike last week and it is my valve cover. The head bolt displayed no signs of wear. It is odd.

 

I will take pictures of the interior after the engine cools off.

[Paul In Australia]

Could it be a stone or road debris chip?

regards

Paul

[bobbybob]

Not saying this is what happened, but....when I bought my 07 RT, there was a small paint chip on the left valve cover (it was used litely as a demo). They did not point it out to me, but when I noticed it and told them I wanted it fixed (prior to riding away with my new bike), they said no problem and promptly swapped it with one from another bike they had in inventory. I *believe* it was aso a new bike. Anyway, just food for thought....

[T__]

Wade, there is nothing that moves directly under that area of the rocker cover & anything that does move under there moves in a different plane than that damage so if something was thrown by a rocker arm or chain it wouldn’t hit there..

 

So that leaves prior damage (probably from assembly line handling equipment) or it was swapped from another bike..

 

Was your run-in check done yet? If so maybe your issue happened then..

 

Not sure how close the cyl head stud nut comes to that damage but maybe someone stepped on the rocker cover & forced it into that nut (kind of iffy on this one though)..

 

In any case that damage came from within the cover not from the outside it’s just a matter of what caused it & when..

 

Twisty

 

[Kitsap]

I must be getting old. I reviewed the pictures I took of the bike after my deer strike, zooming in I can see a bump on the valve cover. So the damage was present when I turned the bike into Ride West for insurance work. I'm wondering if the impact with the deer would have pushed the valve cover down enough to ride the cylinder head bolt? The front and right side of the bike took the brunt of the damage.

 

[T__]

clip~ I'm wondering if the impact with the deer would have pushed the valve cover down enough to ride the cylinder head bolt? The front and right side of the bike took the brunt of the damage.

 

 

Kitsap, that is possible,, to check just remove the cover then put a piece of modeling clay (or dum-dum) inside the cover where the divit (sp) is then reinstall the cover without bolts & lightly push it straight down.. That will tell the story..

 

 

Twisty

 

[Ken H.]

I can see a bump on the valve cover. So the damage was present when I turned the bike into Ride West for insurance work.

Well at least I feel better, how that could happen spontaneously internally was really bugging me!