Gave The Cat An Oil Change Today

[Mr Mistoffelees]

Yes Yes I know nothing to shout about there, however, what a PIG of a job it turned out to be  :x



Draining the old oil and removing the filter was simple and no hassel, putting the new filter and refitting the drain plug (with new washer) again no problem.



Then it went tits up....



Filling the fucker back up with the correct amount of oil 4L (as stated in the owners handbook page 84) caused me to over fill by a massive amount ???



Didnt think to much of it, so took it for a gentle ride expecting the level to drop down, apon returning it was still way high ?.



Check container which new oil came in, nope, defo 4 Litres, checked for second drain plug, nope only one  :x  :x .



After scratching my head for ten mins trying to work out where I had gone wrong, I decided to fill the now empty container with the old oil to see how much I had taken out, low an behold 3.3 Ltrs (approx).



So then spent the next hour syphooning the new oil out through the filler hole to bring the level back down to max (had to remove about 500ml).



So listen up guys and girls - if you own a 2005 model, check your oil level as your filling up, dont just throw the whole 4Ltrs in like a muppet (me).



p.s. I have doubts about the handbook as it gives me the rear wheel eccentric clamp bolts torque fiqure, which this model dont have anymore !!!



p.p.s. Seriously pissed off as I rode about 16 miles after filling it , so most likely have soaked the air box  

[BP_LONDON]

Doh,unlucky.



I also had an oil change, but it was all done by my dealer when I had the bike serviced. Shifting is now much smoother  8)

[Paka]

My mechanic said to fill the filter before installing it. He also adds 250 ml more so you can check the oil level without screwing in the dipstick.



Anyone else do this?



Paka

[Badger]

My mechanic said to fill the filter before installing it. He also adds 250 ml more so you can check the oil level without screwing in the dipstick.

I thought that the idea of checking the oil level was to ensure that the correct amount of oil was in the bike  :?  not so that it looks pretty on the dipstick when you can't be bothered to screw it in fully.

[greg]

Oh dear you have thrown doubt on my whole philosophy of doing things, which is:



READ THE INSTRUCTIONS WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS.



I am undone. Thank you Triumph.

[WildeKurt]

I've never gotten the full amount back in the bike after a change.  When draining, I've tried tilting the bike in case any oil was caught up in the engine.  I always pre-fill the filter too.  Either the Triumph spec. is wrong of perhaps the oil is hiding in the cooler.  Anybody ever get the full amount out?



In any case, I always check the level as I'm filling it to avoid overfilling.  I'd recommend do this with any motor.



Kurt

[Mudhen]

Doh,unlucky.



I also had an oil change, but it was all done by my dealer when I had the bike serviced. Shifting is now much smoother  8)

That's because he put 4L in and soaked the clutch... #-o

[looch]

I suspect you'd have to leave the drain plug out for close to a week to get ALL of the oil out - but 3.3 does seem a little low. Did you remove the dipstick when you drained the oil? FWIW, I overfilled mine too. I used a rubber hose and my thumb to "pull" the excess out through the filler cap.



And as I've mentioned in other posts - the Triumph manual is evil. It makes references to crap that isn't there, it has you adjust your chain so you can play dualing banjos on it, and who knows what else - and all for the low, low price of 100$. I would never use it as the sole source of info to help me with a job I wasn't laready familiar with.

[WildeKurt]

I betcha I didn't get much more than 3.3 liters out myself in the 2 times I did a change.  And I did take out the dip stick while draining and let it drain for a long time. What do you have to do, sqeeze the bike to get it all out?





Kurt

[Mr Mistoffelees]

Yep honest to god, I followed the instructions to the letter

- prewarm engine

- level ground

- Let it drain for ten mins (not in handbook) until it stopped dripping

- pre filled oil filter (from the 4L allocation)

- etc etc etc



I failed because I trusted the instructions / specifications, you live and learn ehh  :roll:



Still, on the bright side, It was getting an oil change at 3000 miles, so it will have another one (by the dealer) when it goes for it 6000 mile service.



Will get them to check / replace the air filter - going to stick to just riding it.



 

[Brock]

There's no disgrace mate...I've done exactly the same as you, myself. And been man enough to admit to syponing the excess out (just like you).

Either the capacities in the manual are wrong or the flippin' crank cases are porous.

Bummer eh?

[Guest]

With regard to the dip stick. The manual does say you should screw it in to check the oil level. BUT, if the level is to the top mark when screwed in, if you rest the dip stick on the casing the oil will come to the lower mark. So it is possible to check the oil without screwing it in. Just so long as you remember not to fill it above that level.

[knarf]

There's no disgrace mate...I've done exactly the same as you, myself. And been man enough to admit to syponing the excess out (just like you).

Either the capacities in the manual are wrong or the flippin' crank cases are porous.

Bummer eh?

Me too first time on my 885i, I just removed the drain plug and leg some flow out, Messy but effective. Mobil is black gold and is making someone very rich.

[NortonCharlie]

My 01 955 takes a full 4 liters to fill it up.  Sometimes I use quarts and use about 4 1/4 or so.  Did they do something to the new motor that reduces the capacity?



I have drained it on the center stand then noticed the manual recommended draining it on the side stand.  I got the same results either way.

[smartin]

I think the overfill issue, where the manual specs more than the bike will hold, goes beyond Triumph.  My Kawasaki suffers the same malady.