| Author | Message | ||
     No_rice |
so i keep looking through all these updates to the oil change procedure and such. yada yada, im not dumb i can read it. so today i decided to do the first oil change on mine. drained it all out. no biggie. put in the new filter and about 2 3/4(or a bit more) quarts of oil just to see where it got me. started the bike up and get it good and warm(about 168 or so). shut it off, let it sit for 3,5 minutes. check the dipstick and nothing on it. and yes i had it sitting upright. so i added the rest of that quart. fired it back up and ran it for a bit. shut it off and let it sit again for 3,5 minutes or so check it again and still nothing. what the hell is up with that? the thing say 3 quarts full. heck one place even says 2.7 full. did you guys need to allow it more time for cool down then it says to? normally i would let my cars sit closer to 10 minutes or so before checking and somewhere around the same on my xb's. have you just been doing cold checks instead? when i put the oil in before i ran the motor it was half way up the stick(as i would kind of figure since it handnt circulated any of it yet) nothing like a simple oil change to make a guy feel like he has never turned a wrench before... | ||
| Doerman |
I do cold checks. It is a lot easier and leaves no ambiguity. When I did warm checks I'd wait for more like 10 minutes before checking. That came out correct as well. I have 3 quarts in mine. To aide in checking the oil, I got me one of these They're great for a lot of other bike chore related things as well | ||
| No_rice |
well i let it sit(all be it on its kick stand) while i washed the bike. then i propped it upright and let it sit for a couple minutes and now i atleast have enough to make it to the add mark. guess i will have to see what it says in the morning. | ||
| Dtx |
Tim, I have done 3 oil changes on my bike so far. Each time I put 2.7 quarts in and it registered exactly in the right spot on the dipstick. Heres the thing, though....the only way I get an accurate reading is if I go for a ride, then come back, pull in the garage, grab a rag, while still sitting on the bike, and reach down and unscrew the dip stick. Basically, check the oil while sitting on the bike upright. It really isn't as hard as i thought...but I am 6'-3" tall. The reading is VERY sensitive to bike temperature and levelness, in my experiences. (Message edited by dtx on April 25, 2008) | ||
| Xb9 |
No-Rice, Follow the Bulletin B-070 Dated February 12, 2008 exactly to a tee as it is written. It must be followed EXACTLY otherwise you WILL get a false reading. The hot check is the only accurate way to check it. My experience with the cold check is if it is full with the hot check, it will be just on the tip of the stick with the cold check. This is how I do it: RIDE it for at least 5 miles, pull it into the garage (nice and level). I have a two by four I shove under the kickstand that will leave the bike nearly vertical. Check the clock on the dash and let it idle there for four minutes. sit on the bike and shut it off. Stay on the bike and keep it upright. If you have the alarm on "ask" it will start the countdown timer (4 minutes) as soon as you shut it off. Unscrew the dipstick NOW and leave it out. When the timer gets to less than 1 minute left (3 minutes elapsed) screw in the dipstick and you will get the correct level. Don't check it after the timer has finished - it must be checked in the 3-4 minute range. If you deviate from any of this (follow the procedure in the bulletin word for word)you will get all kinds of confusing results. If you add oil you will need to start the procedure all over again. Hope this helps, my 2 cents from my experience trying to figure it out after I also got all kinds of different readings. This method will result in a fill (with filter change) of 2.8 - 3 qts. | ||
| Brad1445 |
wow | ||
| Zac4mac |
Don't freak Brad, you only have to do a hot check if you add/change the oil. The oil has to run thru the tranny to get an accurate level check. The rest of the time a cold check works fine. Z | ||
| Slypiranna |
...sight glass like "old school" is in the works I think! | ||
| Brad1445 |
Thanks Zack, I keep forgetting that. | ||
| Smoke |
not recommended procedure: change oil and filter, put in 3 qt synthetic oil, ride 3000 miles, repeat. no check unless leaking or smoking. ps. i like the sight glass option. tim | ||
| New12r |
not recommended procedure: change oil and filter, put in 3 qt synthetic oil, ride 3000 miles, repeat. no check unless leaking or smoking. ps. i like the sight glass option. tim I was trying to find a nice way to say that last night, but could not lose the sarcasm.... +100000000000000 | ||
| Blake |
Tim, I concur with those above advising to ride the bike to get the oil circulating through the transmission. | ||
| Cutty72 |
rice, the reason you weren't getting anything on the dipstick is it wasn't warmed up and expanded. in my experience, that 20-50 is a thick heavy oil, and needs a good amount of heat to get it to temp. | ||
| No_rice |
well after sitting straight up and down all night with 3 quarts in it, i checked it cold this morning and it was exactly on the add mark. seems like a pain in the a$$ just to check the oil on this thing... i'll have to do the ride and check tomorrow | ||
| Dtx |
Tim, Its really not any more cumbersome then checking it on the XB's...its just different. Cheers. (Message edited by dtx on April 26, 2008) | ||
| Brad1445 |
O those Wacky elves | ||
| Unibear12r |
O those Wacky Austrians Brad  |
