| Author | Message | ||
     Duceater |
Does anyone use any sort of oil additive? I just saw a commercial for Lucas oil stabilizer. They claim that it should cut down on oil consumption. My bike drinks about a quart every thousand miles, so I thought that this would be something to try. They do advertise it for motorcycles. Is this just "snake-oil-additive"  Opinions? | ||
| Foximus |
My bike drinks a quart every week. Dont complain. Seriously though, Dont worry about additives, go to a straight 60wieght. All the additives are, are viscosity additives... changing the base oil they are poured in. If you want a nice real nice oil that will stop/reduce your burning amount go to a lucas straight 60w. | ||
| Duceater |
thanks for the reply Foximus! I'm not complaining, I'm just trying to improve my need for oil... I've read a little about tubers and oil consumption and see that some people's bikes don't really consume that much, where others (like you) have a bike that drinks oil like a frat-boy drinks Bud Light What kind of mileage do you have on your bike? Do you need to replace your rings? How many miles do you put on a week? I'm trying to compare apples to apples. Thanks! | ||
| Foximus |
the bike has something like 18k miles on it, however the previous owner trashed and rebuilt it twice(probably to bad spec's, they were dumb MMI students). I'm just going to bore and new pistons and build it correctly this time. Hopefully with new XL heads. | ||
| Foximus |
seriously though... get some lucas straight 60w. Its good stuff. | ||
| Buellistic |
LUCAS, the PRINCE of DARKNESS !!! CHANGE and CHECK YOUR OIL Class 101, yours upon request, just PM me and a copy is yours "ASAP" !!! | ||
| Kalali |
Loosing a Qt every thousand miles means you should run out of oil at every oil change if done at 2500 miles. If that is indeed the case, then I would say it is definitely not normal for a healthy motor. For comparison, my oil level remains essentially the same at 2500 mile oil change intervals or at least it remains the same within the accuracy of my measurement. Make sure you check your oil level under exactly identical conditions, e.g., engine temp, position of the bike, etc. | ||
| Duceater |
i do check my oil in the same spot up on the rear stand at ~500 mile intervals just after a ride. I keep track of what I put into it. I've read people on this board saying that if its not puffing smoke out the tail-pipe just ride it. I've checked my plugs and they are light tan and dry. I assume that means that its, at least, not dumping oil into the cylinders. My catch-can only catches water and a small amount of oil it in. Nothing to be alarmed about I suppose. Granted that, if you feel that my oil consumption is bad, what else do I need to check? Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think that this warrants a leak-down test, since my plugs are dry and my exhaust isn't black (even when i start it up after it sitting for a while, right? thanks! | ||
| Kalali |
The only other place you may want to check is the transmission oil to see if the oil level is where it should be. Some folks here had issues with the seal where engine oil seeped into the transmission and eventually the oil blew out of the transmission breather hose. I'm not suggesting you have a problem if everything seems fine. I suppose given the varying amount of tolerances in all the moving parts in these engines, there could be a good bit of variation from one motor to the next. Just ride it and enjoy. | ||
| Sloppy |
There's no need to "add" anything to the oil as long as you're using the appropriate API "C" oil. Make sure you are using the appropriate viscosity for your temperature and riding styles. These engines do like heavy oil though... | ||
| Littlebuggles |
I have used Lucas products in my cars and truck, once they are over 100K miles. Not in my bike though... 1 qt seems like a lot of oil to go through in 1,000 miles though, I'd prolly give it a try and see if it helps. My bike has some consumption, but as far as I've seen loss is through the breather lines if I over-fill. Once my bike does it's self leveling trick it stays pretty steady. Using 20/50 as the manual recommends, generally Syn3 due to availability. (Message edited by littlebuggles on November 09, 2010) | ||
| Hootowl |
I would not run 60 weight oil in the winter. Also, if you're filling your oil tank to the high mark on the dipstick, you're going to end up puking out quite a bit of oil, which may lead you to perceive that you are "using" it when if fact you are blowing it into your throttle body. Keep your oil level no higher than half way between the marks. | ||
| Foximus |
Ah yes... sorry Hootowl. Bad advice on my part. I forgot not everyone lives in florida. | ||
| Buellistic |
An interesting note ... Was UP NORTH(above the MASON DIXON LINE, yes "i" too live in FLORIDA)one late OCTOBER early NOVEMBER with just H-D 20W50 oil in my engine ... Had the seat off for some reason and deside'd to start the engine ... Was standing next to my BUELL and heard a loud "POP" which was my oil tank cap being blown out of the oil tank ... If "i" had been in the way it would have been like a 37mm round hitting me !!! Then "i" had to search for the oil cap ... |
