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The case of the missing oil.

Discussion in 'Mechanical' started by Dhan Rollioni, Aug 5, 2013.

  1. Dhan Rollioni

    Dhan Rollioni Commuter 500 +

    Messages:
    108
    Well, as some of you may know, I have returned from my trip (very wet) to John o' groats and back on my trusty and little rusty old Honda XL600V transalp. The bike has 41k on the clock and is in pretty decent condition for its age (1991).

    The problem is oil consumption, very high, I put about 2 ltrs of oil during my trip which was just under 2000 miles. It's doesnt smoke, starts and idles on the dot and will cruise at 70mph without an issue. So I need help diagnosing where my engine oil is disappearing to. I def dont have a leak as my garage floor is nice and clean and I have never see any oil whilst filling up.
     
  2. BlackHornet

    BlackHornet Look before you turn Staff Member Moderator +

    Messages:
    7,985
    some bikes do drink a fair amount, and while doing a weekly run around covering maybe 200 miles you hardly notice when you top it up once a month but doing 1000 miles in a few days it makes you notice. 2 litres is quite a bit but then some bikes don't cover that in a year.

    If you are sure it's not leaking ( might be worth leaving the engine running one day, hot oil flows alot easier so may just show up) then it must be burning it, maybe a tune up will help.
     
  3. Panel Man

    Panel Man Secret prototype +

    Messages:
    1,830
    I don't think that consumption is especially high, I must say, but, if it has got worse recently, the oil must be going somewhere! If this was a car, I'd focus on a leak into the cooling system, which might reveal itself by the presence of a coffee-coloured sludge under the oil filler cap (emulsion with water) and a drop in cylinder compression values. I'm not familiar with your engine, I'm afraid. Do the gearbox and engine on your bike share oil? And just to be a little facile, do you ever use the upper three gears? (High revs will certainly bump up the oil consumption, and you may not be aware of the smokescreen you are laying down if you are concentrating hard on the rush of scenery towards you)!
     
  4. Skortchio

    Skortchio Caustic +

    Messages:
    2,035
    As already said, if you're losing oil then it's going somewhere. Either being purged out the system meaning something is blocked and causing excessive pressure, leaking into the coolant from a failed HG although it's more common that the water will ingress into the oil, or given the mileage you could be looking at failing oil seals / rings on the pistons. An oil vent has to be pretty serious to notice any exhaust plumes and as PM says, it's hard to keep an eye on the exhaust fumes while gunning it (when it's most likely to happen).
    One test that's quicker than a compression test but could point in that direction would be to start the bike and leave it idling around 1500rpm then put a clean cloth over the exhaust for about 10 seconds - dark residue ie. oil spits will indicate where it's going.

    Check the oil filler cap and radiator cap / filler bottle / sight glass for "mayo" to more of less rule out the chance of HG issue.
    Check the cloth on the exhaust.
    Remove any fairing and make sure there's no leaks hiding under it that are pooling when you stop and not dropping down.
     
    Panel Man likes this.
  5. Dhan Rollioni

    Dhan Rollioni Commuter 500 +

    Messages:
    108
    Thanks for the advice guys. The is no fluid mixing or leaking and the engine is in pretty good form. I have done some checking online and others with the same bike share the same story, roughly 1ltr every 1000miles. So, I am just going to accept this as it is without worrying about it any longer. Thanks
     

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