Oil

Television & Motorcycles

Moderators: Ice Cream Jonsey, joltcountry

User avatar
Ice Cream Jonsey
Posts: 28877
Joined: Sat Apr 27, 2002 2:44 pm
Location: Colorado
Contact:

Oil

Post by Ice Cream Jonsey »

Can... I just get an oil change at an oil change place? I have zero interest in learning how to do this myself this year.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!

User avatar
Jizaboz
Posts: 4811
Joined: Tue Jan 31, 2012 2:00 pm
Location: USA
Contact:

Post by Jizaboz »

Well yeah man. I could do it myself, but I barely manage to change the oil in my push-mower once a year.

Just don't pay more than 30$ and if they tell you something else is wrong with the vehicle, don't tell them to go ahead and fix it. Also, big "chain auto places" are the worst for ripping people off and messing with your engine.

User avatar
Flack
Posts: 8822
Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 3:02 pm
Location: Oklahoma
Contact:

Post by Flack »

Your oil case has a bolt in the bottom and a twisty-knob on top. To change the oil, run the bike for 5 mins, take off the top knob, then undo the bolt. Make sure you have something under there because all the oil will pour out. Then put the bolt in, then put oil in the top hole. Then put the knob on. Literally a 5 min job.

I don't know that a car change place is going to be able to do it. Most motorcycle shops will and it should be $40-$70 depending on the type of oil they sell you (mobile vs. synthetic).
"I failed a savings throw and now I am back."

User avatar
Tdarcos
Posts: 9333
Joined: Fri May 16, 2008 9:25 am
Location: Arlington, Virginia
Contact:

Post by Tdarcos »

Flack wrote:Your oil case has a bolt in the bottom and a twisty-knob on top. To change the oil, run the bike for 5 mins, take off the top knob, then undo the bolt. Make sure you have something under there because all the oil will pour out. Then put the bolt in, then put oil in the top hole. Then put the knob on. Literally a 5 min job.

I don't know that a car change place is going to be able to do it. Most motorcycle shops will and it should be $40-$70 depending on the type of oil they sell you (mobile vs. synthetic).
Your description sounds more-or-less exactly the same as what I did over the years when changing the oil in an automobile (until the price for an oil change at cheaper places like Walmart or Merchant's Tire and Battery was the same as the raw materials, then I might as well get someone else to do it) except for the following detail which I will ask about.

Two things: First, don't all engines - including motorcycles - that use oil for cooling have an oil filter, and wouldn't he have to also change that? (My experience is exclusively with cars and the general rule was you pull the filter with the oil to get maximum lifespan out of the engine, as it takes away the dirt and water that collects in the filter.)

Second, does anyone know what synthetic like Mobil 1 is made of? I've heard some new synthetics coming out are made from natural gas, but I wasn't sure what the older synthetics are constructed out of.
Alan Francis wrote a book containing everything men understand about women. It consisted of 100 blank pages.

User avatar
Flack
Posts: 8822
Joined: Tue Nov 18, 2008 3:02 pm
Location: Oklahoma
Contact:

Post by Flack »

Tdarcos wrote:does anyone know what synthetic like Mobil 1 is made of?
Link
"I failed a savings throw and now I am back."

mehak

a

Post by mehak »

The other day on the radio they played a Metallica song I had never heard before and it was okay and I kind of got excited. Then they said it was from Death Magnetic, which tells me I didn't listen to that album at all apparently.

User avatar
Ice Cream Jonsey
Posts: 28877
Joined: Sat Apr 27, 2002 2:44 pm
Location: Colorado
Contact:

Post by Ice Cream Jonsey »

I can never tell if these new users who post off-topic are part of that spambot thing that harvests old posts to try to fit in or if they are just totally off-topic.
the dark and gritty...Ice Cream Jonsey!

User avatar
AArdvark
Posts: 16178
Joined: Tue May 14, 2002 6:12 pm
Location: Rochester, NY

Post by AArdvark »

The only issue I had with my Shadow is that it's too low to the ground to fit my oil drain pan. It's really an old dishwashing bin but works great for oil changes. Most cycle dealers will do oil changes but that can get expensive. (Harley Davidson oil?)

Two years ago I put the bike up on my buddy's bike lift but it only made things worse, and messier. These days I still have to get down on the ground every October when I do the oil. It's not all that bad. Better than having to remove the exhaust pipes like my friend with the Yamaha V Star has to do every year. F that.

I heard good things about that purple oil. I feel my bike is too new for full synthetic right now. Once I top ten thousand miles I'll start using Castrol GTX if I can find it in a 40 weight. There's talk about motorcycle oil being better better than auto oil because of the wet clutch thing but I've never had a problem.

THE
AUTOMOTIVE LEFEBLOOD
AARDVARK

Post Reply