Changed the oil today and put a little over a half quart too much syn into the beast. Have heard advice from backyard mechanics that this is worse than underfilling and could possibly damage the motor. Anyone know for sure before I drain it or fire it up?
By not draining out the excess you risk running your crank through an oil bath thus increasing rotational resistance of the engine and creating a frothy mess (also has the affect of power loss). You also risk pumping that oil out your crank case breather and into your intake system. Google 'overfilling engine oil' or 'overfilling oil' and see what comes up. Do yourself a favor and drain the excess. -Jake
are you sure it's overfilled? Did you change the filter too? If you changed the filter then some of that oil that's over the line on your dipstick will pump into the filter. When you check it again she might drop right down to the fill line. Are you threading the dipstick in to check or just setting it in to where it rests?
+1 to Jakobi and Tink, probally need to start it first, let the filter fill with oil and then shut her down and re-check after waiting a minute for the oil to drain down. And no, starting her up long enough to do that won't damage anything or cause significant foaming.
I would be really careful with this. I have read horror stories of folks, even slightly overfilling bikes, messing up the internal pressure and blowing hard to reach pricey engine seals all over the motor. You will also know if you have overfilled if the bike is shifting hard because internal pressure is off. Google it and I promise you will find some nasty tales and pics of what can happen if you overfill.
Thanks for the input. Started it up, let the oil pressure build, then let it set for ten minutes. Still over 1/2 qt. over. So I drained the excess off (what a mess...). I check the oil with the dipstick not screwed in and the bike level. I prefill the filter half-way before installing it so I was pretty sure that wasn't much of an issue. Thank you all, sound advice all around. Oh yeah, here's something I came up with years ago. Stick a magnet onto the end of the oil filter, will only pick up ferrous metal floating around the system, but it works as well or better than those magnetic drain plugs. I use one of those super magnets that you have to use a crow bar to remove. After you pull the filter, transfer the magnet over onto the replacement filter. Dave
I have a turkey baster with some tubing attached to it to suck oil out of the filler hole. It has happened to me as well. I always run it for a minute after filling it to make sure all the crannies get filled and then check the level on the center stand afterward.
I take mine to casa de toecutters lube and oil service station...only place in town that changes your oil and gives you food and a beer oh yeah, drain off the extra oil....
though i agree with the draining off the excess oil, if your close to the top line ( even just over it by a bit) your more than fine and it shouldnt hurt anything, as for those horror stories on google, the ones i read all had really high oil pressure, having more oil does not equal more pressure, only your pump (bypass valve or if its a high pressure/ flow) , filter ( of the ultra high flow types) and passageways(blocked) can affect that. If you put in way too much, youll more than likely blow it into your breather box, it will foam a bit and cause some power loss due to the cracnk being bathed in oil. this can also lead to killing mosquitoes behind you, replacing plugs ( build up), o2 sensors (carbon choking) and catilitic converters (over temp burn up). as for crusty taking his to TC chop and service shop, I think id need a oil change just getting back home.
I changed the oil and filter, 5th gen vfr. I used 3.25 litres exactly, I see the level is above the full line by maybe quarter inch, I can see the oil level just below the top of the sight glass, I'd say I could do with maybe 100 or 150ml less, will it be ok as it is or should I try draining out some?
Is this level after you ran the engine for a few minutes? If so, you may consider removing some. When I bought my 5 Gen, the PO had overfilled the oil and as I ride it home, shifting was very problematic. Ultimately I flushed/filled all of the fluids and filled the oil to the proper level and all has been fine since. Typically I will fill the oil to the top line, start the engine and let it run for a few to get the new oil circulating and then shut off and let it sit for a few minutes. Then I’ll check the sight glass and see where the level is. I will them top it to the upper line and run the motor again. Let it sit and verify level again. Usually it’s right where it’s supposed to be.
I removed about a cup full of oil and now the level is just at the full mark on the sight glass, bike on centre stand,level floor cold engine, it might have been ok but I'm happier with it set at the correct level, I'll be fitting a new air filter soon so I'll see if she sucked any up into the air box.
