Oil Isssues

[TristanGS]

I keep getting oil draining from the air box, no the levels arent too high. I have been told to try 20/50 oil, opinions?

[Mdow]

if you run it hard your oil breather will put oil in the air box. if its not enought to make a noticable dent on the dip stick you should be fine

[Bluehaze]

You know i seem to have oil disappear pretty quickly.. are there signs i can look for around the bike??.. or do i have to remove the tank in order to tell if the oil is getting to my airbox.

[fred]

I keep getting oil draining from the air box, no the levels arent too high. I have been told to try 20/50 oil, opinions?

Just to be clear, you did check the oil level on the centerstand without screwing the dipstick back in, right?

What do you mean by "oil draining from the air box?" The lowest point on the airbox is the crank case breather hose. Are you getting oil out of there when you pull the breather, or is the airbox filling with enough oil that you notice it coming out from somewhere else? Also, are you sure that oil is coming from the airbox at all? Do you have some leak at the back of the head that is getting oil all over the airbox?

You need to pinpoint the source of this leak in order to determine what's going on. If the leak is coming from something like the head, it has to be a pretty bad leak before the oil actually gets on anything instead of just burning off. Monitor your oil levels very carefully or possibly stop riding the bike until you've figured this out.

[fred]

You know i seem to have oil disappear pretty quickly.. are there signs i can look for around the bike??.. or do i have to remove the tank in order to tell if the oil is getting to my airbox.

Quickly how? Faster than some water cooled vehicle you're used to, like your car, or did you search the forum for oil consumption and determine that your numbers are way worse than the numbers posted? What model bike do you have? How many miles? Is this problem sudden or has it always been like that? Did it get slowly worse as the weather got warmer? The first thing you need to do to check for leaks is just notice the ground underneath your parking spot when parking the bike after a decent ride. Come back a half hour later and see if there are any fresh drops of oil. If so, follow them up and figure out what is leaking. If there are no drops, that doesn't mean you're not leaking necessarily. Next thing to do is start looking and smelling for smoke. A small oil leak high up on the head will just burn off long before it gets anywhere near the ground. Go on a decent ride to warm the bike back up, then park it on the centerstand while it is still running and just walk around the bike, looking for little wisps of smoke or drips, or areas that are shiny with fresh oil. If you find a shiny spot, wipe it very clean and keep track of it over the next ride or two. If it goes right back to being oily, you have a leak.

Once you've found the leak, look in the service manual or post here and figure out how to fix it. Most leaks are from failing seals. In the last year, my '94 has leaked oil from the valve cover gasket, the right case guard and now it is leaking from the left guard. None of these leaks have been a problem, they typically only take an hour or two to fix with $6 to $12 worth of parts. My bike has 88,000 miles on it, so I figure that it is about time for the original paper and rubber gaskets to be replaced anyways...

[bill14224]

Last time I checked my air cleaner I had about 1/2 oz of oil in the air box, so I just soaked it up with a paper towel.  I add about a quart of oil to the engine several ounces at a time throughout the summer to keep it full between oil changes.  My bike has 18,000 miles on it.  I would describe this as normal oil consumption and dispersal for an air-cooled bike.  Air-cooled bikes burn more oil than liquid-cooled bikes.  Looser tolerances to tolerate head temperatures you could bake a pizza on.  This is normal.  Mmmm, pizza... why does pizza sound good at 9 in the morning?

You are going to get a little oil in the air box.  The crankcase breather tube is attached to it, and the venting air has tiny droplets of oil in it, and it will accumulate inside the air box.  Normal operation, not to worry.  My air-cooled 1972 Super Beetle did the same thing when I was a kid.  Once again, the air box that so many hate is doing its job as it's supposed to.  Now, if you have a lake in there, that's another story.  In that case the oil breather material would probably have a hole in it, or the oil was overfilled.

The more I visit this site, the more I examine my bike for various things and I think my bike could be used as a good example of an older GS that was well maintained. (I've only had it 10 months)  It's a '94 and has none of the leaking and wear problems many folks here have.  Right now the only worn parts I have are the brake rotors.  It's getting to be time to have them turned.  They are still thick enough.  They are the original OEM rotors, folks.  Then again, I don't have 88,000 miles like Fred! 

I am going to ride this bike until I either have Fred mileage on it or I drop dead, whichever comes first! 

[joshr08]

pizza always sounds good.  but yeah oil in the air box is a normal thing  as long as your not blowing more oil in the air box then the motor has in it.  just like the old time car motors with the valve cover breathers if you didnt clean them or change them you would get oil dripping out of then and have oil all over your valve covers.  If the valve cover didnt have anywhere for the air to go from everything moving and creating pressure you would blow the top of the motor off.  well atleast thats how ive always understood it anyways.

[fred]

Last time I checked my air cleaner I had about 1/2 oz of oil in the air box, so I just soaked it up with a paper towel.  I add about a quart of oil to the engine several ounces at a time throughout the summer to keep it full between oil changes.  My bike has 18,000 miles on it.  I would describe this as normal oil consumption and dispersal for an air-cooled bike.  Air-cooled bikes burn more oil than liquid-cooled bikes.  Looser tolerances to tolerate head temperatures you could bake a pizza on.  This is normal.  Mmmm, pizza... why does pizza sound good at 9 in the morning?

You are going to get a little oil in the air box.  The crankcase breather tube is attached to it, and the venting air has tiny droplets of oil in it, and it will accumulate inside the air box.  Normal operation, not to worry.  My air-cooled 1972 Super Beetle did the same thing when I was a kid.  Once again, the air box that so many hate is doing its job as it's supposed to.  Now, if you have a lake in there, that's another story.  In that case the oil breather material would probably have a hole in it, or the oil was overfilled.

The more I visit this site, the more I examine my bike for various things and I think my bike could be used as a good example of an older GS that was well maintained. (I've only had it 10 months)  It's a '94 and has none of the leaking and wear problems many folks here have.  Right now the only worn parts I have are the brake rotors.  It's getting to be time to have them turned.  They are still thick enough.  They are the original OEM rotors, folks.  Then again, I don't have 88,000 miles like Fred! 

I am going to ride this bike until I either have Fred mileage on it or I drop dead, whichever comes first! 

Aww man, you mentioning food reminds me of how crazy hungry I am. I couldn't pick up breakfast on my way in to work because everything was closed and now I have to wait until the EDM doesn't need my attention for more than 7 minutes so I can go out and obtain some food. Starting work at 5:40am on a Saturday is no fun.

As for those brake rotors, you'll probably just have to scrap them and get new ones. With only .6mm between new and past service limit, the chances you'll be able to turn them flat aren't good...

You had a super beetle? Sweet. I like those old air cooled VWs. They're kind of like a GS in terms of their simplicity... I have a turbo new beetle, which is a fun car, but it is nothing at all like the old VWs. It is all high tech with lots of computer controlled stuff and an engine compartment so cramped you have to take most of the surrounding body work off the car to reach anything.

[TristanGS]

I keep getting oil draining from the air box, no the levels arent too high. I have been told to try 20/50 oil, opinions?

Just to be clear, you did check the oil level on the centerstand without screwing the dipstick back in, right?

Yes... it is not draining insanely quickly, but it is coming out of the hose that runs from the airbox to the bottom of the bike. Its not affecting the levels on the dipstick that drastically however. Sounds like a normal issue. I was at the track last weekend and after every 15 minute session it would drip probably 6 mLs of oil. something like that. Just want to try to resolve the problem because I am selling the bike, and my truck, and I am picking up my 2003 SV650S tomorrow!    excited. but do you guys think running 20/50 oil will resolve my issue?

[bucks1605]

I am picking up my 2003 SV650S tomorrow!

Congrats on the new ride, be sure to post up some pics.

[TristanGS]

don't worry, I will. very very excited.  in the meantime look at these pics    http://gstwins.com/gsboard/index.php?topic=47386.0