dainesegirl Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I'm so annoyed with myself! just did an oil change on my R6 only to find that it's only got about 1/2 litre of oil in it. Took it to the PB 90s day Monday and the oil light came on round park, so put in 1/2 litre... that was about the only oil in it! Now I'm wondering what damage I've done to the engine red-lining it with so little oil in it! Anyone else run their bikes low on oil and what were the consequences? Ta DG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GPZRX Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I run mine with a thimble full of oil to save weight HTH Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavydavy Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I've seized a few bikes low on oil... But they were strokers. But then again, you weren't redlining it 'cos the R6 redlines higher than 14k so you'll be reet... Ish... [edit] on a serious note, did the warning light stay on after you added oil? No warning light after you added oil and *maybe* it wasn't as low as you think and *maybe* you got away with it..... Maybe [/edit] [edit 2] I ran mrs.wavy's R6 round here once and, as I was going quite fast the oil light came on. Then it went off as i backed off. Then I revved higher and it came on again. Then back off and it went off etc etc etc. They have a *lot* of oil in 'em and yes, you can add 1/2 litre+ when the light comes on til you get to a decent level again, but there's still a few litres sloshing around in there even when the light is on. [/edit 2] Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
prauk Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 Get worried when things poke out the front(or back) of the engine cases Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cibbersicks Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 Is it knocking at all? like a deep loud rattle noise? Really the only way of finding out for sure is dropping the sump of an checking for any foreign objects, i.e little bits of shell in the oil etc. Buy yourself a sump gasket and take it to someone who know what they are doing and get it checked out. Cibbers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 You'll be reet. Lacking in mechanical sympathy and generally abusing bikes doesn't kill them, in my experience. It's when you turn over a new leaf and decide to clean it or something that it'll play up. Seriously, don't worry about it. Chances are you may well be okay. I would suggest you ignore me and concentrate on advice given by a non-numpty, though. Warning: this post may not cantain anything of use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gregtrx Posted May 28, 2009 Report Share Posted May 28, 2009 I ran my trx (very) low on oil and the bottom end went a while later, but you may be ok, keep an ear on the engine for knocking. Mine lasted another year and about 10 k miles before it went completely so it may be an idea to do this while putting "ebay engine" money in a piggy bank. At the end of the day, it's only a bike and you can always get another motor, so I'd not worry about it until it made nasty noises. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalracingsnake Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 I'm so annoyed with myself! just did an oil change on my R6 only to find that it's only got about 1/2 litre of oil in it. You collected only 0.5 litre from the engine in the drip tray when you drained it? If so, then I'd say there is a very good chance the engine is going to have issues later on. Could be top end, or bottom end you never know, and the oil lights on these bikes are NOT to be relied on, use the sight glass to check levels. You might still get away with it though, I ran a Fiat 132 out of oil after splitting the sump when I hit something in the road. New sump, oil pick up pipe, and it was fine... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavydavy Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Actually, thinking on this a bit more, I'd be more worried about what was causing the motor to get through so much oil - how many miles had it done since the last oil change/fill up? Some Yamahas have a reputation for burning lots of oil, but if the bike's using all but 1/2 a litre (out of 31/2 litres) in fewer than 4000 miles (assuming that servicing schedules are maintained) then there's possibly something already horribly wrong with it...... Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
originalracingsnake Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Do modern bikes have removable sumps? My old GSX-R's did, but my TLS did not....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavydavy Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 I did say possibly.... Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
foo Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 The R1 is a level sensor, and it can scare the crap out of you by switching on when there's plenty of oil in the sump. I don't know whether the R6 is the same. If I were in the OP's shoes, I'd look silly, but aside from that, I'd check the level more frequently and keep track of the amount of oil used, and also keep an eye on how the motor's behaving. If I was diligent, I'd do what Millemille has suggested. It's worth keeping in mind that if you drained the motor when it was cold, quite a bit of oil will have stayed in it, so what came out won't be the full story. The oil filter also retains some, so if you didn't do a filter change, that would account for some more. So in fact your oil may have been low, but not nearly as low as it seemed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gixxerthou Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 I4's/triples or parallel twins are generally horizontaly split cases, whereas V or L twins have vertically split cases. Well done MM, you win a cupie doll! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Von Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Put some YPVS stickers on it and flog it to some newbie on ebay as a 600cc two stroke (hence the blue smoke) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MonkeyJim Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 The R1 is a level sensor, and it can scare the crap out of you by switching on when there's plenty of oil in the sump. I don't know whether the R6 is the same. If I were in the OP's shoes, I'd look silly, but aside from that, I'd check the level more frequently and keep track of the amount of oil used, and also keep an eye on how the motor's behaving. If I was diligent, I'd do what Millemille has suggested. It's worth keeping in mind that if you drained the motor when it was cold, quite a bit of oil will have stayed in it, so what came out won't be the full story. The oil filter also retains some, so if you didn't do a filter change, that would account for some more. So in fact your oil may have been low, but not nearly as low as it seemed. the Foo-ster is, as usual, correct. R1 is a level, not pressure, sensor and AFAIK R6's and indeed most Yam's are the same. Mine burns a wee bit - they all do that Sir - so I keep an eye on the level. But even so the light it occasionally flickers under hard acceleration or breaking even if the oil is only just under the 'max' level. hope there's no damage as a result of you running it low. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dainesegirl Posted May 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Thanks for all your replies; however i have now reached a new level of numpty-dom... I did eventually collect 2 litres of oil out of it, so it must have had 1.5 litres in it before i topped it up...which i'm hoping is okay; however... when I re-filled it with oil and tightened up the sump... I OVERTIGHTENED it and have now stripped the thread!!!! Hubby has now banned me from working on the bike and took it upon himself to take the sump off- he's spent the last 2 hours doing it and came to the last bolt (out of 15) only to round it off and now has to put it all back... !!! so now I have no oil in my bike, no exhaust, a loose sump and a trackday booked for monday.... :-( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ZXRRDave Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Thanks for all your replies; however i have now reached a new level of numpty-dom... I did eventually collect 2 litres of oil out of it, so it must have had 1.5 litres in it before i topped it up...which i'm hoping is okay; however... when I re-filled it with oil and tightened up the sump... I OVERTIGHTENED it and have now stripped the thread!!!! Hubby has now banned me from working on the bike and took it upon himself to take the sump off- he's spent the last 2 hours doing it and came to the last bolt (out of 15) only to round it off and now has to put it all back... !!! so now I have no oil in my bike, no exhaust, a loose sump and a trackday booked for monday.... :-( Blimey, you been walking under ladders? On the upside, if you buy a Lottery ticket now you are in with a good chance because I think you have used up your shitty luck allocation for the rest of the year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dainesegirl Posted May 29, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Blimey, you been walking under ladders? On the upside, if you buy a Lottery ticket now you are in with a good chance because I think you have used up your shitty luck allocation for the rest of the year. I know... seriously p1ssed off! why am I such a muppet? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fran9r Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 There is one on ebay. Fit that...then sell all your spanners! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cibbersicks Posted May 29, 2009 Report Share Posted May 29, 2009 Hubby has now banned me from working on the bike and took it upon himself to take the sump off- he's spent the last 2 hours doing it and came to the last bolt (out of 15) only to round it off and now has to put it all back... !!! so now I have no oil in my bike, no exhaust, a loose sump and a trackday booked for monday.... :-( Ouch, was it the best idea to remove the sump at such a time in the week for it to be near impossible to get a new sump gasket (unless you already have one of course, which incidentally is unlikely) you may be able to get it sorted out tomorrow, providing there's no obvious engine damage. At least with the sump off things can be checked from below, i.e bottom end. This would be more expensive to repair and would of course be the worst case scenario, so if thats ok then that is a bonus. See if you can reach up into the cases onto the crank and feel for play on the rods, this can be very tricky and requires eyes on your hands to see what you are doing, but it can be done. Crude but it works. Like i said before, if there's any serious damage there will probably be some sort of debris in the sump, i.e parts of the bearing shells, which may look like tiny bits of copper. Was it knocking before you removed the sump? if so what did it sound like and where on the engine did it seem to be coming from? To be honest Monday is very optimistic if we are being realistic. Plus the repair bill may be quite expensive if something bad is wrong. Before making any rash decisions though, get someone who knows what they are doing to check it out. HTH Cibbers As Fran says, sell them tools, sounds like they are more trouble than they are worth! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wavydavy Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 Now I could be wrong, but as I understood it the sump *isn't* off as the last bolt rounded off and so they put the other 14 back. Good advice if they have managed to get it removed, though. Dave Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jammerw Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 I'll give you £50 for it Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lorenzo Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 What I didn't realise was that geepee was married?! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
buster Posted May 30, 2009 Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 What I didn't realise was that geepee was married?! Get with the program, there's no way thats possible, as I suspect DaineseGirl means she's - 1. A girl 2. A biped Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dainesegirl Posted May 30, 2009 Author Report Share Posted May 30, 2009 Get with the program, there's no way thats possible, as I suspect DaineseGirl means she's - 1. A girl 2. A biped actually, I'm a hairy ginger bloke with a big bushy beard!! :-) but seriously- today was a palava and a half! We nursed the dripping bike to the local bike shop who were going to fit a steel insert into the sump hole so that the sump plug can go back into it. Called up 3 hours later to find that they hadn't got an insert large enough to fit! although they did drill out the rounded off sump bolt for 1/2 an hours extortionate labour. we got a secondhand sump from Taz for £25 including a gasket and hubby spent the last 4 hours doing the same thing he did last night and now is hopefully leak-free and has fresh oil in it!!! so, might make it out monday,... we'll see. DG Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cibbersicks Posted May 31, 2009 Report Share Posted May 31, 2009 Glad you got it sorted.......best of luck for tomorrow don't forget to report back! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.