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Saddlebags (panniers) leaking

abbienormal

abbienormal

High Miler
GT Famiglia
Joined
Nov 29, 2008
Messages
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Location
Edgewater, FL
How common is the saddlebag leaking been a problem. I did some searching on this and came up with a few comments but nobody seems to have commented on it as a problem. I initially thought it was just the water from the handle falling inside when I opened them but after riding in a lot of rain I had some very damp clothes. The bags were not stuffed as it is obvious the Norge bags will not stand for that. I id see a post where somebody commented on the seal being changed from round to oval. Can this be changed?
 
Mine leak when the bike is washed. Not a lot of water, but some does get in there. I have done a lot of rain riding and the water does not get in as it does when putting the hose to it.
 
Mine appear distorted but don't really leak that much, even when properly stuffed full.... They were bought 2nd hand so I don't know how well they were treated from new. But I always put the contents in black bin bags..... Paranoid moi?
 
One of the Norge panniers, right side, I purchased for my 120 Sport does not seal properly. There seems to be a high spot, somewhere near the center at the latching area, that prevents the front and back edge from closing tightly. When latched, either the front or rear can be forced to close but then the other end pulls away from the seal. Take a close look at you panniers and see if your have the same issue.

Because they were purchased as an accesory they are not covered by the MG warranty according to dealer from which I purchased them, they also did the installation. The dealer has taken photos and sent them to MG USA to see what can be done.
 
Hi

I recently purchaced a 2007 Norge which is immaculate. It came with the side cases.
I am amazed how bad the side cases leak. Even a wash with a sponge leaves the cases full of water. I also own a 1400GTR (1400 Concours in the USA)and have owned FJRs and their
side cases are totally waterproof. Whilst I love the Norge the side cases are next to useless due to their inabillity to keep out water. Has anyone come up with a DIY fix for this or can anyone tell me where the water ingress weak points are?.

Cheers

Ian
 
My Breva cases were distorted when i got the bike but they don't leak in normal riding.
I put everything in bin bags anyway so its not a problem.
The only time the insides got wet was when i washed the bike with a hose.
 
londonrob wrote:
My Breva cases were distorted when i got the bike but they don't leak in normal riding.
I put everything in bin bags anyway so its not a problem.
The only time the insides got wet was when i washed the bike with a hose.
Click to expand...

Same here. The shape of the Aprillia "Futura" bags for the Breva make them prone to "distortion," I think. I always make sure to give my bags an extra pound with my fist to reduce the gap between the lid and bag after they're locked. And since I also carry everything in separate bags when I'm traveling, I don't worry much about it either. I do find, however, that a good spray of a disinfectant (Lysol) in the bags when they've been sitting for awhile eliminates a musty odor that is otherwise annoying.

I've wondered why Aprillia seems to have had so many more bags produced for the Futura than examples of the bike they sold. :)
 
I returned from a 2700 mile trip last week. Of the 8 days that we were on the road, 4 of them were in the rain. One day was raining heavily.
Both of my bags were stuffed to the limit. In fact, they were so stuffed that the front of the bags(the part without a clasp like the rear) was not completely closed tight over the seal.
Amazing as it was to me, I did not get any water whatsoever into the bags. Even my Tourmaster guarenteed-waterproof-forever riding suit was internally soaked but the bags did not leak.
Am I just lucky?
 
seb wrote:
I returned from a 2700 mile trip last week. Of the 8 days that we were on the road, 4 of them were in the rain. One day was raining heavily.
Both of my bags were stuffed to the limit. In fact, they were so stuffed that the front of the bags(the part without a clasp like the rear) was not completely closed tight over the seal.
Amazing as it was to me, I did not get any water whatsoever into the bags. Even my Tourmaster guarenteed-waterproof-forever riding suit was internally soaked but the bags did not leak.
Am I just lucky?
Click to expand...

Yes. Now go buy a lottery ticket and find out for sure. ;)
 
I was just packing my bike for a trip this weekend to Shannonville, Ontario for the Canadian Superbike races. I had washed the bike a few days ago and there was a sweatshirt in the left bag. It was wet in the bag showing the water had came in. Looking closely I see a small crack right on the curve of the inner half of the bag under the handle where the seal sets against it. :ohmy: This is also exactly where the water lies when the bag gets wet. I saw it due to some dirty water marks there. This is probably the problem. Now I'll have to figure out what to do about it.
 
abbienormal wrote:
I was just packing my bike for a trip this weekend to Shannonville, Ontario for the Canadian Superbike races. I had washed the bike a few days ago and there was a sweatshirt in the left bag. It was wet in the bag showing the water had came in. Looking closely I see a small crack right on the curve of the inner half of the bag under the handle where the seal sets against it. :ohmy: This is also exactly where the water lies when the bag gets wet. I saw it due to some dirty water marks there. This is probably the problem. Now I'll have to figure out what to do about it.
Click to expand...

JB Weld
 
We have a product called Plastic Weld here in the UK which does exactly what it says on the bottle. Available from model shops. Welds many types of plastic, apart from polypropyline.
 
Upon closer examination I noticed what I thought was a crack is a mold injection line. My bags leak bad enough that after washing the bike if I do not open the bags and dry them out the staps inside will mold, along with a $140 pair of Held riding gloves. Ask me how I know. :angry:
I called my dealer, Speaker's Cycle, and Jason said he would submit a warranty claim as "leaking bags" is a warranty code. It was refused so I called Guzzi to ask why. I got a I don't know but I will look into it. I then received a call from Jason saying they had refused it because my headlight recall was never done. The problem here is, it was. Still in negotiations but currently it looks like a maybe. I had to take pictures and Jason had to inspect the bike to verify the bags were not scratched up. I am hoping for new watertight bags to appear but who knows.

Rudy
 
They're just not made as well as the Hepco Becker ones. Surprisingly they don't leak more than they do. I rode through a very heavy down pour to the Kentucky Rally, I was the only thing on I-64 that was moving. When I got there every thing was dry, water will come in when you open the bags though. It seems to sit in where the locking mechanism is.

Dean
 
abbienormal said:
Jason said he would submit a warranty claim as "leaking bags" is a warranty code. It was refused so I called Guzzi to ask why. I then received a call from Jason saying they had refused it because my headlight recall was never done. The problem here is, it was.
Rudy
Click to expand...

The real problem here is that they are using an illegal reason to deny your warranty claim. There is no possible reason that failing to do the headlight recall would cause the saddlebags to leak. Seems to me (as a non-lawyer) that this could be a case for small claims court.
 
abbienormal said:
Upon closer examination I noticed what I thought was a crack is a mold injection line. My bags leak bad enough that after washing the bike if I do not open the bags and dry them out the staps inside will mold, along with a $140 pair of Held riding gloves. Ask me how I know. :angry:
I called my dealer, Speaker's Cycle, and Jason said he would submit a warranty claim as "leaking bags" is a warranty code. It was refused so I called Guzzi to ask why. I got a I don't know but I will look into it. I then received a call from Jason saying they had refused it because my headlight recall was never done. The problem here is, it was. Still in negotiations but currently it looks like a maybe. I had to take pictures and Jason had to inspect the bike to verify the bags were not scratched up. I am hoping for new watertight bags to appear but who knows.

Rudy
Click to expand...

Anxiously awaiting the final out come. I tried this with my dealer and they told me MG did not respond to their warranty request for replacement and that they were all leaked.... no, that didn't make me feel better.
 
I seemed to stop my leaking (but still used plastic bags when packing) using the rubber channel material sold at hardware stores for use in changing screen material in aluminum windows. I used the smaller size but think the next one up might be even better. I put in the groves and closed for a week, then added a little contact cement to strategic areas and let dry (held in palce many ways til dry). So far so good.
Ken
 
As an update on my leaking saddlebags I do have some information. Guzzi has now changed positions from replacing the bags to replacing the seals. I'm ok with that. After waiting over 6 weeks they finally sent the new seals. Oh, they don't fit. Seems an Aprillia takes the same/similar seal so they had to get the part number into Guzzi's system to ship them. Then, when they finally arrived they were about 41" long and the Norge seals are over 60". So now I am back in the waiting game. Someday..... My first Italian bike and they are proving all the horror stories correct. My sometimes functional and sometimes not rear brake is still in the unfixed zone also and now my warranty is up. :roll:
 
My Norge panniers leak a little.

It looks like water collects on the top of the pannier, and seeps through the seal.

Damned annoying really.

Since buying the inners as mentioned here, I haven't had it out in the rain (welcome to the driest continent currently in a long drought) so I don't know if they will protect my gear from the small amount of wet.

The panniers seem to seal closely when closed, but the water is definitely getting in.
 
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