| Author | Message | ||
     Griffmeister |
Well, I've put about a hundred miles on the bike now that it's back together and have a couple of concerns. First is the engine oil capacity. I know on a regular change it's supposed to be 2 1/2 quarts. Now I'm on a rebuild with everything dry and initially I put in almost 3 full quarts before it showed on the dipstick. Today, I checked again and added another 3/4 quart of oil. There's no leaks and the engine's not smoking so I'm trying to account for all this oil. The only thing I didn't do yet was pull the primary clutch cover to be sure oil wasn't migrating. I hope not. Anyone else experience this after having a rebuild? Secondly, the battery has been disconnected for 2 months now which means the ECM has been dead for the same amount of time. When I fired the engine back up last weekend it was running pretty crappy. Did a TPS reset and it still stumbled and popped with poor idle before reaching full operating temp. Of course the exhaust actuator decided it didn't want to work any more but still that wouldn't affect overall operation. I actually put most of the miles on today and the bike got progressively better as the day went on. I'm wondering if the ECM had to relearn everything after being powered off for so long? Any thoughts? | ||
| Tootal |
You are correct sir. The ecm woke up in another world and must learn it's ways and customs! Keeping a steady throttle over 3000 rpm will help it learn quicker. As for the oil, it should be hot when checked. On the 08's some have found that checking the oil can be a mystery so the way many have decided is best is to get it hot. Park it on a flat surface with the engine running. Remove the dipstick and wipe it off. Now shut off the engine and take a reading. You should be at the second XX. Filling it over this point will usually cause oil to blow into your air box if you haven't rerouted the breather hoses. (Message edited by tootal on September 21, 2014) (Message edited by tootal on September 21, 2014) | ||
| Uly_man |
"I know on a regular change it's supposed to be 2 1/2 quarts. Now I'm on a rebuild with everything dry and initially I put in almost 3 full quarts before it showed on the dipstick". As I recall I put in 2.75 Lt on a oil and filter change and a Lt is almost a US Qt. I know this as I always buy oil in 3 x 1 Lt bottles, for the change, and last time bought a 4 Lt and 2 x 1 Lt bottles for 2 changes as it is cheaper in the long run IE Post, time, etc. "Today, I checked again and added another 3/4 quart of oil". Unless you have something else going on, like a leak, you have WAY to much oil in the swing arm/ system. The reason to do it hot, and I mean with a VERY HOT engine say after a good run, is that it takes the oil a while to expand to its full limit. Doing a oil level test on a dry sump is not the same as on a wet sump engine. You will find that the amount of oil to get from the low "X" to the top "X" on the Uly is quite (relative) small. This is the reason it is easy to overfill it. This is not uncommon with dry sump engines and have just done the same thing on my MZ because the bike was not hot enough. Warm engine is at Max but hot it is overfilled. Use a tube to suck out (and save) about 0.5 Lt of oil and run the bike to very hot. Stop the bike, check the level and add/ remove oil as required. I run mine at about 3/4 of the "X" levels on the dip stick. | ||
| Terrycoxusa |
The owner's manual advises to check the oil hot, with the bike on it's sidestand. | ||
| Griffmeister |
Yeah, I'm not talking about it being a dry sump, I'm saying it was completely dry. This is after a complete rebuild, no oil in the lines, pump or cooler, only assembly lube on the bearings and gears. That's why I'm thinking there's going to be some difference from a normal change. It should have been hot after a 35 mile run and it was just shut off. That and I haven't had an issue checking the oil over the last 22K miles that I've owned it. Oil expansion hasn't been too drastic in the past. If it was halfway in the add when cold it usually was on the very low end of the x's when hot. Tied up with other stuff today, hope I can check the basic stuff again tomorrow. | ||
| Mark_weiss |
I've never rebuilt a Thunderstorm engine, but do have experience rebuilding other dry sump powerplants. My practice has been to do an initial fill with the requisite amount of oil. Start and run the engine until fully warmed up. Shut down and drain the reservoir. Then, refill with the "recommended" amount of oil. This usually turns out to be a bit more than was drained. |
