oil level woes

S

senninha13

New member
hey everyone! I completed my 500 mile service last week, and am having the toughest time figuring out the oil level. I have the service manual, and tried to follow it to the letter.

I filled it with 3 quarts, and started it for 30 seconds. let it sit for a few minutes. nothing.

slowly and slowly I add 1/10th of a quart, and nothing is showing. every time I add, I run the bike for 30 seconds. no oil shown.

long story short, I ended up adding about 3.7-3.8 quarts (I spilled some in the process). while changing the oil, I leaned my bike over and got a ton of additional oil out that I figured wasn't usually accounted for.

like most, I overfilled it. I removed a handful of filters full of oil, and low and behold, it started showing correctly. I ran the bike until it was quite warm - 180 degrees, but only a bit earlier I had warmed it up until the fans kicked on and off. it showed absolutely dead center between low and full. perfect.

until I took it on a ride, roughly ~15 miles... I came home, and it was just over the full mark.

I'm about to go buy a new oil change kit and re-do, but still don't quite understand how to properly fill this thing! any insight would be greatly appreciated... this has been a killer for me as I don't want to ride my bike out of fear of hurting it.

thanks in advance!
 
LoudFTR

LoudFTR

Member
As a rule, I overthink things. That fact makes it easier to spot when I see someone else doing the same. It really is this simple. Drain oil, replace filter hand tight, replace copper seal rings, add 3 quarts of Indian full synthetic, start bike, add oil when bike is absolutely level until it reaches the full mark. Repeat at 5k interval. In my honest opinion, if you do that you cannot go wrong.
 
Max Kool

Max Kool

Well-known member
Nope, ride it fully warm before adding oil to top it up.

But to be fair, just throw 3 quarts in and be done. It can be that simple.
 
LoudFTR

LoudFTR

Member
I'm just glad that Max Cool showed up to set us straight. I've been changing oil wrong my entire life /s.
 
S

senninha13

New member
LoudFTR said:
As a rule, I overthink things. That fact makes it easier to spot when I see someone else doing the same. It really is this simple. Drain oil, replace filter hand tight, replace copper seal rings, add 3 quarts of Indian full synthetic, start bike, add oil when bike is absolutely level until it reaches the full mark. Repeat at 5k interval. In my honest opinion, if you do that you cannot go wrong.
Click to expand...
ha! nailed it. i had it quite warmed up and it was halfway between, however after a 15 mile ride it was just above full. that’s what really concerned me!
 
B

BillyZ1200

Member
Seems strange that oil change kit comes with 4 quarts if only 3 are needed. I’m within 50 miles of my first oil change so will try the 3 quarts. Thanks for info.
 
Max Kool

Max Kool

Well-known member
At least you have enough for topping up. Or a free fourth oil change...
 
Last edited:
John-FTR17

John-FTR17

Member
Interesting...Not everyone has a Service Manual but every bike comes with a new Owners Manual.

Owners manual Page 50 reads:

"Engine MUST BE AT OPERATING TEMPERATURE when checking Oil Level"

"Do not Overfill"

"The correct approximate volume is in the middle of the sight glass between the FULL and the ADD marks" (Not fill to the Full mark)

The funny thing is, check out page 140 for engine specifications, it says Engine Oil Capacity is "5 qts" for dry engine.

So I can see where this can cause confusion when the owners manual does not concern itself with volume quantity as much as that it should be in the middle of the marks in the sight glass.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top