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Averagejoe
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 - 05:47 pm: | 
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Please remember that HD oil is made by Citgo, which is owned by Venezuela, which is ultimately owned by Hugo Chavez
(Message edited by averagejoe on March 10, 2010) |
Chameleon
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 - 06:47 pm: |
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Checking oil level can be a sensitive ordeal with the 1125. If you deviate from the prescribed procedures, results can vary widly.
Considering that I have a 2008 1125R (#679 produced to be exact), I have found this to be the correct procedure, which I did follow.
In order to get the bike level, I put it on a rear stand. The axle sliders with spools I have fit nicely into the Hayabusa rear stand I acquired long ago.
198F isn't too hot, right in the desired operating range (140F to 220F).
I agree that 198F is within the desired operating temperatures. However, considering that I had been observing 165F +/- 10 degrees* for the last 3 months of commuting to my new job 35 miles each way from home and the operating temperature suddenly spiked toward 200F within the last 10 miles of my ride home with no change in riding pace or style but a quite disconcerting change in the "feel" of the bike (more vibration, popping exhaust, stuttering & throttle response oddities), I was understandably very concerned.
Sometimes the dipstick can collect condensation in cold weather. Wipe it clean and dry and reinsert to check oil level.
I did wipe it clean and rechecked it twice to be sure. Each time the level read at the overfull mark and there was only a tiny amount of oil residue on the shop towel and the rest of the fluid seemed to be water... I would say at least 7/8ths of the fluid was watery in appearance/consistency.
Could it be that the oil was simply breaking down and becoming thin and that what I thought was a small amount of oil at the bottom of the dip stick was actually more akin to burnt oil or sludge? That fluid did seem very dark, while the rest seemed so thin that it appeared to be water.
I will check the oil before (following a brief warm up ride) and after my next ride, which will most likely be this Saturday when the local Buell group meets and has a group ride.
If I perceive anything concerning, I will have the oil analyzed.
Hope all is well.
So do I.
Perhaps this is to be expected with 44,500+ miles on the bike.
It seems I am the Christopher Columbus (or Leif Ericson?) of 1125R ownership.
* Several times over the last few months I have noticed the bike flashing "COLD" while cruising on the highway... Particularly shortly (almost immediately) after getting on the throttle (triple digits) and also shortly after returning to slower cruising speeds (70 +/- 10 MPH). I requested that my servicing dealer check into it for me, which they did, but found no problems that would explain why it did this. Interestingly, the ambient weather was not too frigid (mid 40sF to high 50sF) during these occurrences, but when I have rode the bike in extreme cold (16F lowest), I never noticed the flashing "COLD". It would seem that my particular bike runs somewhat cool.
(Message edited by chameleon on March 10, 2010)
(Message edited by chameleon on March 10, 2010) |
Redbuelljunkie
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 - 07:41 pm: |
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Why would Buell recommend SNY3 over HD360 and then fill the bikes with HD360 at the factory? Makes no sense.
It makes perfect sense- especially if your specialty is marketing. H-D is a master marketer- they buy oil from Citgo (most likely the lowest bidder) and put an H-D label on it. Since it says H-D on the bottle, they charge more than it's worth- an excellent way to increase profit margin. Recently, H-D decides to jump on the synthetic oil bandwagon that they've bad-mouthed for years. Why?... profit margin. They get Citgo to produce a semi-synthetic oil, and H-D labels it as "Synthetic". Because it has "H-D" and "Synthetic" on the label they mark it up even higher- now they've got a huge profit margin.
Even H-D knows that mineral oil is best for engine break-in (or they're just cheap- who knows), so the bikes come filled with H-D 360 mineral oil. The manual recommends SYN3 because they want you to use their oil when it comes time for service, and between their two oils options they want you to buy the more expensive one. It's a rather brilliant marketing strategy- unless you take offense to being taken advantage of, being misled, considered uneducated, and being overcharged (not to mention supporting an anti-American nut-case).
Don't fall for their marketing BS- use the highest-quality oil you can buy (fully-synthetic is superior) in the appropriate weight approved by the manufacturer for the ambient temperature range you are riding in. If you choose mineral oil, make sure you change it before the 5-6,000 mile intervals as stated in the manual- mineral oils are degraded around 3,000 miles. |
Sparky
| | Posted on Wednesday, March 10, 2010 - 11:03 pm: |
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Chaneleon, be aware that if you're checking oil level with the rear up on a stand and wondering why the level appears too high on the dipstick, you're not following the correct procedure.
The bike should be on level ground and vertical. If the rear (on a stand) is higher than the front (wheel on ground), that will make the oil level higher in the front of the sump than the rear causing an incorrect reading.
Perhaps if the front wheel were rolled on a block of wood so that it is raised off the ground by the same amount that the rear is when on your stand, then the oil levels should be more accurate, I'd think. |
2009cr
| | Posted on Thursday, March 11, 2010 - 09:52 am: |
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Ok... my dealer did not say the bike came from the factory with Syn3, he said THEY put Syn3 in it. I believe it came with HD360. My dealer believes themselves to be a "performance dealership" and they just thought Syn3 was the better way to go. Not really a big deal because it will be getting Mobil 1 anyway. |
Chameleon
| | Posted on Thursday, March 11, 2010 - 10:59 am: |
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Chameleon, be aware that if you're checking oil level with the rear up on a stand ... that will make the oil level higher in the front of the sump than the rear causing an incorrect reading.
Good point.
Often I do check the level while simply sitting on the bike to keep it vertical. I will try to compare the 2 methods to see how significant the discrepancy is. |
Sparky
| | Posted on Thursday, March 11, 2010 - 02:57 pm: |
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Sorry for the typo.
Yeah, I'd like to know if there is any significance too. I've got a wheel chock on a platform that came off a bike trailer that I'm considering using to aid in holding the bike vertical while checking the oil.
It's crazy to find out that if the bike is leaning slightly left or right, the readings will be off target, it's that critical. |
Chameleon
| | Posted on Thursday, March 11, 2010 - 03:03 pm: |
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I'll use my phone's accelerometer and 3D level app to ensure the bike is not leaning left or right.
(Message edited by chameleon on March 11, 2010) |
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