changing your motor oil

so, you've got this gorgeous bike. you've been doing nothing but riding for the last few weeks, racking up the miles. now it's time to take a little care and keep that machine running right!



this is my odometer reading the day i did my oil change (august 19th, 2006). the last change was done at 1,250km or so, at the first service (yes, i was a little late getting it in). the next change isn't due until 6,000km, but we're leaving on vacation very soon and i will be well over 6k by the time we get back. since i still have warranty until september 24th, 2006, i'm not willing to go too far beyond the service interval.



this is the oil drain plug, located on the bottom of the motor.



this is the oil filter, located on the front of the motor behind the radiator. these will be our two main areas of focus for this job.

time: 30 minutes
tools needed: 14mm wrench or 14mm socket and ratchet, oil filter wrench, new oil filter, 3,000mL (just over 3 quarts) of new motor oil. i will not discuss the synthetic vs. dino oil, or preferred weight, topics here. buy whatever oil makes you happy. for this change, i'm using castrol GTX 10W40
instructions: first, pull the oil filler cap off the top of the right side motor casing. this will allow the oil to drain more freely.



next, put the drain pan under the motor, and use the 14mm wrench or socket and ratchet to remove the drain plug.



let all of the oil drain out. since i did this on the side stand, and the drain plug is dead centre on the motor, i let it drain to just a dribble, then brought the bike up to level. then i leaned it slightly to the right, held it there a moment, then brought it back to level. i let it sit at level for a minute or two before putting it back on the side stand, to get as much old oil as i could out of the crankcase.



while the oil is draining, take the opportunity to clean up the drain plug bolt. check for marred threads, and get all the old oil off of there. set it down on a clean surface - you don't want any dirt or grit to get into your crankcase! if there is a great deal of road grime or sludge on it, use a degreaser (i use kerosene) and a cloth/shop towel to clean it up.



once the oil is down to a very slow drip, pull the oil drain pan out from under the bike (leave a shop towel there to catch drips), and replace the drain plug. if you don't take the pan out, you stand a decent chance of dropping the plug in the old oil, and having to clean it all over again!



now you'll need an oil filter wrench. these are two different types - can you guess which one is better? unfortunately, you cannot use the cap type wrench on all bikes (including a 1983 honda shadow 750 - grr!), but it works very well on the volusia 800 and C50.



this is my preferred wrench setup for the C50 - a 3/8" drive ratchet with a 12" extension and a universal joint, with the cap wrench on the end.



you can use the cap wrench with just the ratchet, but with this setup i don't have to reach under the bike.



"look at the size of my tool!"

now put the drain pan under the filter, and use your wrench to loosen the old oil filter.



once loose, you can spin the filter off its mount by hand. remember, it will be full of old motor oil, so try to drain it over the pan before you just chuck it over your shoulder! also check to make sure there is a rubber ring gasket on the filter - if you don't see it, you'll probably find it stuck to the bike around the oil filter mount. remove this and throw it away.



this is me draining the old filter over the pan. we're about half finished now!



below we see the naked oil filter mount.



here's the new filter i purchased for $10CAN at a local bike shop. note that there is plastic over the end of the filter that attaches to the bike, to prevent any dust or dirt entering the filter prior to installation - remove this before you spin it on!



now use some of the fresh oil to lubricate the rubber gasket on the new filter before you spin it on. this will help you get a good seal.



just use your finger to wipe some on - make sure there is a liberal coating all the way 'round.



now spin the new filter onto the mount by hand



once the gasket makes contact, use your filter wrench to give it two full additional turns. you do NOT want your filter coming off and leaving a puddle of oil in front of your rear tire! note: i had to warm the bike up a bit before i could get two full turns. once you have started the bike after filling it with oil, check the tightness of your filter again. then you can put your funnel in place (making sure that it's clean inside) to prevent spilling oil on the motor.



now fill the bike with oil. it takes 3,000mL, so if you're using a big jug like i am here, eyeball it to about 2,500mL. you don't want to overfill!



now wait a minute or two for the oil to drain down to the bottom of the crankcase. apparently, tanker thinks this is a photo opportunity!



bring the bike up level, and check at the sight glass. if you are not up to the full line yet, add some more, but do so slowly! it only takes about half a quart to go from not being able to see oil at all, to full!



once you have the oil level to the full line, put the fill cap back on (or you'll have oil spraying everywhere!) and start the bike. bring it up to level, let it run for 2-3 minutes, and rev the motor a little to get the oil splashing around inside. then, shut it down and check the level at the sight glass again.



if the oil level is still at the full mark, you're done! if not (and this may not always be the case), you may need to add more. repeat this process until you can run the bike for 2-3 minutes without the oil level dropping, and make sure you check the tightness of the filter again. also, wipe the underside of the junction of the filter and the crankcase with your finger - a little smudge of oil (from when you lubed the gasket) is acceptable, but it should only be there the first time. if more comes out, you have a leak, which means you have a problem!



if you have spilled any oil in the process (or believed your husband when he said it was done draining ;), use some kitty litter to soak it up, then sweep it up. now you're done and good for another 5,000km (or 3,000 miles)!



i feel it's a good idea to save your receipts, and make a note of the date and mileage at which you perform any service. not only will it let you keep track of the next service interval, but it will be a great asset to you if trying to make a warranty claim, or even if you are selling your bike to a new owner.
NOTE: some very sweet and concerned folks have contacted me about the fact the full "account" number is shown on one of the receipts above. fear not good people! it's only my debit card number, which bears no relationship to the actual account number. it's completely useless to anyone that doesn't have my card, my PIN and my password in their hands! thank your for your concern, though!

now that you've successfully changed the motor oil, why not do the final drive oil as well?

on april 1st, 2007 i did the next oil change, and since i keep all my records here, i decided i might as well post the photos i took for posterity.



my odometer reading @ april 1st, 2007 - 4,704km since the last oil change, and about 7.5 months. ok for mileage, but i probably should have changed it twice by now! ahh well, too busy riding!



the bike shop isn't open today, so i looked at a quick reference from volusiariders.com that i had emailed home months ago and discovered that the NAPA gold filter # 1359 was a direct fit for the C50 as well. since NAPA was open today, they got my business - for the last time! $14.81 for a damn oil filter is too rich for my blood! next time i'm in zdeno cycle, i'm gonna pick up a couple of the hiflofiltros for my bike at $10 apiece.



and here's the receipt for the oil and a couple of rolls of shop towels (we've been out since about september, but don't wrench much through the winter - too damn cold in the garage!). i went with castrol syntec (full synthetic) 5W40 - i had wanted to change to synthetic this time, and castrol makes good oil which meets or exceeds all the specs given by suzuki for my bike. i paid $8.99/quart, which is less than mobil 1 (which i couldn't find in 40 weight anyway), and i think the 5W40 might be better for our riding conditions in the spring anyway - we do a lot of riding in low temperatures, so having a lower cold weight will allow the oil to circulate better at startup. don't agree with me? think i'm destroying my bike? well, i won't ask you to use it!



so here's this insanely expensive filter, which i quickly discovered is a smaller diameter than the hiflofiltro, and DOES NOT WORK WITH MY CAP WRENCH! sonofabitch! so i tightened it on as best i could, and it doesn't seem to be leaking. as i say, i'll be going to pick up stock of the hiflofiltro very soon so this doesn't happen again!



and here i am, having finished filling the crankcase. i took it out for a spin after the oil change and having dumped a bit of seafoam in the gas tank, and not only is it shifting more smoothly (the anticipated result of switching to synthetic), it's got some more punch to it as well (likely a result of the seafoam cleaning up the injectors a bit). very pleased with the results of just a half hour's work!

note: when changing to synthetic, DO NOT BE ALARMED when the oil turns black immediately! even when running the bike up to let it "suck up" as much oil as it's going to before doing a final level check, the oil will appear black. THIS IS NORMAL, AND NOTHING TO WORRY ABOUT!

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