955i oil consumtption

[diggerT]

I have recently bought an 03 955i with 2,500 miles on clock from a dealer.
Before a long trip I thought I would check the oil level and it was a litre and a half low. I assumed the dealer had not done the service properly so phoned and complained.
After another 500 miles it has used another half litre so it is going back to be checked as it is under warranty. There is no smoke and no leaks at all. Any one had anything similar or any idea what may cause this?
The bike runs fine, the only thing I notice is when I am slowing down, there is a series of what sound like mini back fires or crackles. Is this normal?

Thanks

DiggerT

[HockleyBoy]

Not had any problems with oil consumption on my 05, never seem to need to top it up between services. The amount you are using sounds  excessive so you are right to get it checked while under warranty.

The mini backfires or overrun (which I think sound great :D ) are normal for a Tiger so you don't need to worry about that.

[TigerTrax]

Digger...
No Smoke - No Leaks.

1 - 1½ Liters/500 miles.

Seems like a a reading error of some kind:
1. Bike upright when filling & reading?
2. Letting oil settle after fill .... then take reading? Make certain oil has drained into engine/pan.
3. Correct oil dipstick? ( There have been posts questioning that ).

I think this is most reliable; I would drain oil; Fill to spec then monitor.
My '06 says: DRY Fill + Filter: 4.3 ltr ( New engine )
                          Oil + Filter: 4.0 ltr
                               Oil Only: 3.9 ltr
     *** In fact you may measure the amount you drain out for your
           records.
If it continues to show a loss, take your documentation to the dealer and let him perform his own tests.

[diggerT]

I have checked the oil in various situations always on centre stand and on level ground.
The dealer is going to drain all the oil, fill it up with the correct amount and let me run it for a week, when of course I will have to rag it like hell, then he will measure again.
It would be handy if anyone had any similar experiences as the rider often know a lot more about the models than the dealers in my experience.

Ironically my 93 Steamer never uses any oil at all!!

Glad it's meant it to make the small backfiring noise, I think it sounds great also

Cheers

Digger

[ridin gaijin]

Mine is well out of warranty and drinks 1 qt of synthetic every 700 miles when ridden hard (sustained high speed). Dammit. A friend who manages the local BMW dealer has suggested gradually changing to a heavier weight; his BMWs sometimes respond by drinking less.

In the end, it's some sort of horrid rings job  on my plate I'm sure.

[Uralite]

Ohh boy. Interesting thread. I have an 05 Girly I just bought a few months ao. I though it was using oil when I found that the dryseal plug was dripping a bit on the front of the oil pan. I fixed the leak and I thought that took care of it. I found that it is using about 1/2 quart per 1000 miles. It will sometimes have blue smoke when I first start it and rev the engine, but then it runs clean once warm.  There appears no significant leaks from anywhere.

I am beyond the warranty, and I am also terrified it is rings??

[diggerT]

Well I won't know the score until the weekend after next when the dealer has checked it.
I will pass on any solutions

Cheers

[John Stenhouse]

Am I right in remebering somewhere that Mobil 1 is too good for the Tig, or is that the GS. Apparently it protects too well so the surfaces never bed in properly and as a result the bike always uses oil.

[WIDGIN]

Am I right in remebering somewhere that Mobil 1 is too good for the Tig, or is that the GS. Apparently it protects too well so the surfaces never bed in properly and as a result the bike always uses oil.

That's the GS.  Tractor engines need real dinosaur turds.  :lol:

[eldiii]

Yep. me too....I first noticed a problem when I went in for an oil change at 36K miles; more than half it's capacity gone.  Up to that point I never gave it a though as it had never burned a drop.  1.6 K later (today) as I was doing a post operation check coming back from the Ride-In I'm below the dip stick (on the center stand).

I don't thrash my bike..just normal use...

My question is this normal to see for what I would consider a still young engine?

Who out there has had this happen and is it the rings or ???

eldiii

[diggerT]

The dealer drained the oil, replaced filter and filled it with Mobil 1 fully synthetic wthich is what they recommend. I did around 500 miles and it had not used a drop. I checked it on friday and it was fine, then did 400 miles over the weekend at the same sort of pace and it was off the dipstick by sunday night, had to put a bout quarter of a litre in. It seems inconsistent, either it should burn oil all the time or never, surely not in bursts?

A mechanic has told me it could be not running the bike in properly and the barrels glaze which means barrels need deglazing and new rings fitted. The bike had done 2,500 miles when I got it. He said all new engines should start with mineral oil, then semi-synthetic then fully. Any ideas?

Cheers

[Sasquatch]

Every full liter bike I have owned over the last 20 years drank some oil when running hard all day.  But not that much.

I just (literally) got home from a 1500 mile trip where we were running 70-90mph the whole way.  My oil is down about half way on the stick.  I consider this normal.

[eldiii]

I wasn't seeing anything on the dip stick; my dealer gave me three quarts of 4T to take home thinking the worst (Triumph of Windber is awesome), fortunately I only needed 1 quart.

My Dealer had me pull the breather hose at there were instances of bad seals allowing oil to blow up the breather hose but that was not the case.  So I guess something going on in the head or rings.  Anyway, he agreed that it should not be burning that much if any oil at 38K.  I'm ok for now but want a better answer.

eldiii

[blacktiger]

I did around 500 miles and it had not used a drop. I checked it on friday and it was fine, then did 400 miles over the weekend at the same sort of pace and it was off the dipstick by sunday night,

 either it should burn oil all the time or never, surely not in bursts?

Don't forget that the oil consumption depends not only on how fast you're riding but also how hot it all gets. Was your 500 miles in the same sort of ambient temperatures as the 400 miles later?
Also depends on whether you're reving it higher during acceleration etc.
Lots of factors come into the equation.

For me, I rarely rev above 6K. My '02 955i has 50K on the clock and it barely uses any between services unless I've been at a constant 80~90mph on a motorway. I ran in the engine at the highest revs I was allowed according to the book schedule.

[NortonCharlie]

My 01 955i Tiger started using some oil at about 50,000 miles.  I think I had some oil thinning going on because the 1st 1000 miles after the oil change almost no consumption, at 1500 miles about 1/2 quart low (1/2 quart in 500 miles) by 2000 miles about a quart low (1 quart in 500 miles) then it would continue on at about 1 quart/ 500 miles until the next oil change.  It would then repeat itself.  At 75,000 miles it seems to be doing the same thing.  I tried changing the seal on the balance shaft/vent.  Thought it fixed it but didn't.  Tried changing the o2 sensor (thought it might be running rich and thinning the oil) that didn't fix anything.  The 1st symptom of the oil consumption was serious black smoke puffing at full throttle up around red line.  I am pretty sure that oil is running straight out the breather hose and into the air box.  I can usually find oil residue in my air box.

I think my bike has a blow by problem, I ran a lot of dirt through the engine.  At about 52,000 miles I pulled the air box myself for the 1st time and found the grommet that seals the idle motor to the clean side of the air box missing.  It was all plugged up with dirt and sand and sh$t and had a sand blasted sort of look to it.  I don't know which 12,000 mile interval it was left out on but I have about 12,000 miles or so done on dusty dirt roads.