Did I put too much oil in the bike?

I did an oil change yesterday, and put about 3.5 quarts back in(new oil filter). I filled it up(on the center stand, level ground) and the glass reading showed oil just under the upper level. Today when I went to do my TCLOCKS, I notice the oil is completely filled in the glass window. Is this because my oil is just cold and not circulated, or did I put too much oil in the bike? I don't want to start it with too much oil and then deal with a bad air filter and plugs.

I searched the forum already and couldn't find a definitive answer. sorry if this is an easy question.

It'll be fine, it's just the oil settling after a cold night in the garage. Start it up and get it to operating temp and shut it off... let it set a minute and check again.

Thanks Slayer! I followed your directions and the oil level looks like it did yesterday.

Although it was due to sitting in the cold on the street . Here in SF, Garages are rare and expensive :pinch:

Arrrg... Okay now I'm confused again.

After slayer's suggestion, I warmed it up, shut the engine off, let it sit, and the oil came back to just below the fill line. Feeling great about a successful oil change I took a trip down to Pacifica, where the engine must have gotten hotter than before, because when I came to a stop and checked my oil again: Same problem, oil level too high in the window. So now I'm thinking I might have circulated the oil into my engine before, making it appear as if I didn't have too much, but maybe didn't warm it up enough for the oil to expand, and now with the oil nice and hot, the reading is too much oil. Going to take a little out now. Should I see the oil level in the window drop as I drain the oil from the plug, and can just stop when it looks right?

If you do decide to remove some oil don't pull the drain plug. Just fish a small vinyl tube down the filler hole and siphon a little out. Ed

650ed wrote: If you do decide to remove some oil don't pull the drain plug. Just fish a small vinyl tube down the filler hole and siphon a little out. Ed

^^ That's smart.

I have dedicated turkey baster with clear "fish tank" tubing that I use for such messiness...I'm not sure, (Someone will correct me if I am wrong! LOL!) but I think you are supposed to use the middle of the sight window as a goal level, not the top.

First step is don't panic....too late! Listen, check your owners manual or your service manual to determine what is the correct capacity for your bike. 3.5 Qts sounds about right. Now oil level is going to fluctuate due to three main things:

How long it has been sitting.
What temperature the engine and oil are at.
How much oil you put in.

If you have verified 3.5 is correct with a filter, and you have accounted for whether or not you have an oil cooler installed, then if us most likely is the result of temperature.

Your bike is air/oil cooled. Unlike liquid cooling, the engine oil temperature fluctuates more than on a liquid cooled engine since the engine itself puts more heat unto the oil and doesn't have the thermal stability and capacity of liquid cooling.

If you rad riding aggressively, or in warmer weather, or idling more due to stop and go traffic, the oil will be hotter. Oil expands when heated, thus this expansion in volume will show as a higher level when warmer. So if the bike was hotter than your original running/level checking, it will be higher in the sight glass.

It sounds normal to me if you put in the correct amount and the engine got hotter due to idling in traffic and not having the cooling air over the engine....

Welcome to the world if air cooled bikes....

Cory

Hey thanks guys! You are being so helpful! To reward you for your efforts, I have more questions

First, what is an oil cooler?
Second, I've acquired some vinyl fish tank tubing, and attempting to use it. I don't have a turkey baster, although that's a brilliant idea. I'm forced to suck it through the tube a little at a time. Is there a technique for getting the tube down to the oil? I have about a foot and a half, and when I feed that down and suck, it's not picking up any oil. I don't mind the mess that is the oil drain plug method, are there any downsides as far as accuracy with that method?

Stop drinking the oil....that may the root of your problem...

You need to fish the tubing down into the sump of the bike. That PVC tube likes to curl so you will have to rotate it around until you find you can draw oil out.

Nothing other than mess and amount removed, you can do it through the drain plug just fine.

I think you are trying to expect brain surgery results from a sanitation engineer attempts. The oil level just needs to be between the marks on the glass when filled and standing up right and level. Your bike will most likely use oil, and you simply replenish. Check your manual or do a google search and verify capacity. You certainly have not added enough to cause a problem, because if it was ariating the oil, your oil pressure light would flicker....

Just ride the thing and start learning about your bike. Is this your first motorcycle? There are plenty of other items that should be addressed that you can learn about.....

An oil cooler is a finned device much like a radiator on a car. It will sit up, in front of the engine just below the lower triple tree. It will have a supply and return oil line plumbed into it. It simply circulates the oil through it to shed heat. Oil coolers require additional oil be added to the factory capacity simply because you are adding system volume.

Cory

NakedFun wrote: The oil level just needs to be between the marks on the glass when filled and standing up right and level.

The oil is completely filled in the glass, nowhere in between the two marks. I know it's probably not too big of a deal, I'm just overly cautious because...

Is this your first motorcycle? There are plenty of other items that should be addressed that you can learn about.....

Yep, first bike, got it a month ago. I've wanted one since I was 16. 26 now and I'm in love with it. The only thing I've done is replace the spark plug caps when cylinder #1 started misfiring (seemed to fix it), and had someone balance the carbs because I don't have(nor know how to use yet) a vacuum gauge. Is there a thread for things I should specifically look for in a bike that's new to me, or would you mind listing a few things to get me started? At some point I want to simplify the wiring harness with the resources on this forum. What else?

i'm assuming your putting the bike on the center stand. One thing I've found out is I have to use the same spot in the garage because even if you don't see it, the floor isn't always level. Water runs off the floor. I can go to a couple of different places in the garage and get some reading fluctuation. Like most Americans I shoot for the top line but really any where between the two lines is good. I did over fill my Z1 once and had oil coming out the breather and into the air box. What a mess.

Having to use the street would prove to be a pain.