[NoSkillsMcSuckington]

Had the bike in at the dealer for service a week or so ago. Was giving it the once over after riding this evening and noticed the oil is WAY high. Almost to the top of the sight window when on the side stand. I have time to do some work on it tomorrow but the dealer is of course closed. My question is, is it ok to siphon or drain the oil down to the proper level and carry on or should I drain the engine completely and refill, using the same filter since dealer is closed? It has a couple of bubbles visible and I'm worried it might be chemically damaged from the frothing (not sure if this even happens) Do I need to wait and do the whole shebang, oil, filter and everything?

 

[lolhahaha]

You might want to bring it back to them and have them explain it. It would suck if they blew out some gaskets and you don't notice the effects until later.

 

[MotoMike]

Had the bike in at the dealer for service a week or so ago. Was giving it the once over after riding this evening and noticed the oil is WAY high. Almost to the top of the sight window when on the side stand. I have time to do some work on it tomorrow but the dealer is of course closed. My question is, is it ok to siphon or drain the oil down to the proper level and carry on or should I drain the engine completely and refill, using the same filter since dealer is closed? It has a couple of bubbles visible and I'm worried it might be chemically damaged from the frothing (not sure if this even happens) Do I need to wait and do the whole shebang, oil, filter and everything?

I think you may be WAY over reacting to the situation here. No need to drain all of that perfectly good, brand new oil, change the filter, etc., etc., etc. Get yourself one of those turkey basters, remove the oil cap and draw out enough oil using the turkey baster, to get the oil level even with the top line on the sight glass with the bike upright (off the side stand). I'll bet that you will find that it isn't a huge amount of oil over what the specified quantity is for the engine. And no, I don't think that "they blew out some gaskets", as was suggested. You can check the pink hose that is hanging between the drive chain and the rear shock linkage, to see if any excess oil has collected in the hose, which is called the air cleaner/crankcase breather drain hose. If there is some oil in the hose, go ahead and drain it.

Above all, don't worry, your bike will be fine... it's not likely that they put 6 quarts in that motor, under high pressure.

 

[NoSkillsMcSuckington]

Thank you sir, I was hoping I could just siphon some out, so good news. I do believe I'll be doing my own oil changes in the future though just for my peace of mind.

 

[NoSkillsMcSuckington]

Had to end up removing drain bolt, but took out about a pint(edit, half pint). Then warmed up to 3 bars, let cool for 3 minutes and rechecked and it's just below the high mark, so I guess I'm good. Thanks

 

[MotoMike]

Thank you sir, I was hoping I could just siphon some out, so good news. I do believe I'll be doing my own oil changes in the future though just for my peace of mind.

You're welcome... yeah, besides saving a nice chunk of money, you'll have the satisfaction of knowing the job is done right when you do the routine maintenance yourself. Learning more about the bike is a big bonus for DIY'ers as well.

 

[my250cbrgeo]

Good advice about DIYer's is that you found out that YOU can do it yourself and the satisfaction of being right about it!! Being around scooters for a long time and bikes and I picked up alot routine maintainance procedures and techniques to keep my CBR in tip top running shape.

 

[kfsrq]

Consequences are not serious.

Long long ago, a well-meaning friend put two quarts of oil into a Honda CB-77.
The crankcase capacity of this bike is about 1.5 quarts, so there was an
extra pint of oil sloshing around in there.

Enough found its way above the pistons that the bike ran very poorly, but still, it ran. By and by some of us diagnosed the problem and removed the excess oil with a siphon or perhaps a baster. The bike continued to run poorly for a day or so, but eventually it purged itself of excess oil in the combustion chambers and was back to normal.

There were no long term effects.

It seems to me that an extra half-pint, in a similar sized engine, will do no harm,
especially since the problem was detected and the excess oil removed promptly.

Ride on and do not worry.
Keith

Disclaimer: the above is merely my opinion,
and I have no credentials, but remember,
2012 is my fiftieth year as a Honda owner.

 

[Jme250RA]

is the oil level not meant to be checked with the bike vertical on flat land? If the bike is leaned over on the kickstand it will read as though the oil is high.

 

[pooder7]

is the oil level not meant to be checked with the bike vertical on flat land? If the bike is leaned over on the kickstand it will read as though the oil is high.

It IS meant to be checked with the bike vertical, but if the bike is leaned over onto the kickstand, the oil level will read low, not high, as the oil sight glass is opposite the kickstand . . . .

 

[6fOOt6]

Glad to hear everything worked out for you noskills.... I totally agree, do all the routine maintenance yourself.

 

[Jme250RA]

It IS meant to be checked with the bike vertical, but if the bike is leaned over onto the kickstand, the oil level will read low, not high, as the oil sight glass is opposite the kickstand . . . .

My bad! you are correct. I got my sides mixed up from memory.

 

[NoSkillsMcSuckington]

Thanks everybody. And it may be my imagination, but it does seem to be running a little better than it was. I'll definitely be doing the routine stuff myself in the future. I hate to pay to have something done wrong, when I can do it wrong for much cheaper!

 

[Conundrum]

I still hate how oil is read on the bike, personally. Depending on if I lean the bike even a few degrees one way or the other it can read high or low, and it is kinda hard to tell if the bike is perfectly straight or not when crouched beside it bent over.

 

[MotoMike]

I still hate how oil is read on the bike, personally. Depending on if I lean the bike even a few degrees one way or the other it can read high or low, and it is kinda hard to tell if the bike is perfectly straight or not when crouched beside it bent over.

Doesn't need to be precisely on the upper line... if the oil level is just above or just below the upper line, you're good to go. I think that after you've checked the oil level a bunch of times, you will get a feel for the balance point when holding the bike upright.