Worrying Oil Usage 1150GSA

Burge1150GSA

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Hi,

I bought my 2006 1150GSA just under a year ago and in 12,000km (7500 miles) it has used 4 litres of oil. I know these bikes use a bit but this seems excessive. I park the bike on centre stand as much as possible which I heard helps to prevent burning oil off each time you start it.

The bike runs fine apart from there is engine vibration/rattle if you slowly accelerate in 1,2 & 3rd gear from 4000rpm upwards but this is probably normal for this type of engine??

Would appreciate any constructive thoughts?

Burge
 
What grade/weight oil are you using ?
 
When do you check the oil?
Hot,cold?
If you are filling to the upper level when cold it will be overfilled.
Run up to operating temp,park on side stand initially ,then on to main stand.
Leave for 5mins then check.
Try to resist topping up to max ,I’ve found that if the level when checked as above will stabilise around 1/2 to 3/4 and oil usage will reduce
 
According to the hand book, the maximum oil usage is 1 Litre per 1000km. Which if my maths is correct is 1.6ml per mile.

Your usage is O.53ml per mile (0.3 Litres per 1000km), so though it’s a bit high, it’s within spec.

My 68k mile bike burns about 0.36ml per mile.

Ian
 
Sometimes folks are just too anal about oil!

1) Do you top it up to the upper mark every time you ride?

2) Do you leave it on the sidestand for 5 or more minutes when you return from a ride? (And then put it on the centre stand?)

If YES to number 1? STOP doing that! only Top up to just above the halfway level, when it gets to a 1/3 of the way up the sightglass
Over the years I have managed to slow down from being an obsessive topper upper to sit back and watch, after an observation from a friend sunk in and I quote "They find their own level and all you do when you constantly add oil is blow it off into the atmosphere!"
My 1200 went from using a 1/4 litre a week to nothing between services and it settled on around the third from low mark and rarely budged

Remember There is still the guts of 3 litres of oil still in the sump below the sightglass lower level


If No to number 2? START doing that, After 5 or 10 mins "then" stick it on the centre stand There is a lot of oil in the oil cooler (some say 3/4 of a litre but I have never measured it) and if you leave it on the sidestand, a significant amount will drain to the sump again,

Other wise you have just topped up to 4 litres in the sump and a further 1/2 to 3/4 litre in the oil cooler

Oh and if you have really thin expensive fully synth "pish" (<- referring to viscosity!!) Change it out for preferably 20W50 or 15W40,

Unless you are racing flat out every where these are more than adequate to provide lubrication for your steed
 
If you're using fully or even semi synth it'll likely piss through...especially if it's only 10W40.

Put it on 20W50 mineral and see how it is.....it'll quiten any cam tensioner rattle on start up too.

The Halfords Classic one in the old style tall can is ideal.
 
Pull the plug on the air box and see what comes out.
 
Burge1150GSA said:
Would appreciate any constructive thoughts?

Burge
Click to expand...

What is the total mileage of your bike ?
What are the normal riding conditions of your bike ? i.e. in town stop/start traffic or long rides.
What is the viscosity of the oil in your bike.

All these things affect oil consumption on an 1150, so to be able to judge if your bike is excessive it would help to know some details.
 
Tarka said:
If you're using fully or even semi synth it'll likely piss through...especially if it's only 10W40.

Put it on 20W50 mineral and see how it is.....it'll quiten any cam tensioner rattle on start up too.

The Halfords Classic one in the old style tall can is ideal.
Click to expand...

WTF :D
 
Tarka said:
The Halfords Classic one in the old style tall can is ideal.
Click to expand...

It is not.

It's the wrong specification. I think (going by memory so the details maybe slightly out, but you get my drift) it's an SE and the minimum spec for the 1150 is SG.
 
My 1150 burnt a fair bit of oil up to around 20 thousand miles. Then much less and usually only if it was getting really thrashed. Valvoline used to do a 20-50 mineral that was SL spec I think? and it was easy to get locally. Not so much now and I usually bung whatever 10-50 or 10- 60 synth car oil I can find cheap and local. This stuff generally exceeds the spec and seems more resistant to getting burnt off when the bike is thrashed. Not terribly scientific but the bike has 70K on it now and seems to be running smoother than ever. (that's torn it!!) As has been said topping up to about half way seems to mean it drops very slowly. 5 ltr can does for oil change and all top ups between services usually with a bit left. :)
 
mikeyboy said:
Try to resist topping up to max ,I’ve found that if the level when checked as above will stabilise around 1/2 to 3/4 and oil usage will reduce
Click to expand...

I found the same. When I got my bike first, it was using a lot of oil. It only had 24,000km on it and they supposedly use a good bit at low mileage, so I wasn't worried. I read somewhere that filling to the max just blows oil out the exhaust so I stopped topping it up. It settled at about halfway up the sight glass. I still top it up occasionally but never fill it above halfway and oil consumption has noticeably reduced.
 
Well all these replies and comments certainly made me chuckle.

Here is answer to questions:

**The bike has done 67,000km (42,000 miles)
**I am running the bike on Shell mineral 15W50 about to change on to Castrol 4T Activ 15W50 which is high grade mineral oil.
**No leaks at all
**if I leave the bike on side stand is smokes a bit immediately after starting (5 seconds at the most).
**Doesn't smoke when accelerating.
**I do a bit of short distance commuting but mainly weekend rides doing 300kms over two days.
**Yes I do leave it on side stand and then move to centre stand but I have been topping it up to nearly full (when hot). I can trial seeing if the oil level stabilises at a particular level but from my observations so far I don't think it does.

Well from everyones feedback so far nobody is saying its kaput and I should be worried which is good.

Thanks very much for help so far.

Great to here from lots of Brits I'm a Lincoln lad myself.

Burge
 
I think the original spec was for 10W40, but I think the manufacturers changed that to 20W50. Which is a thicker viscosity oil and does help reduce the rattle, especially on start up.

15W50 oil is better then the original spec 10W40 oil, but it’s still a thinner viscosity oil good down to -15 deg C.

I don’t suppose you get much ice and snow where you live, so you might want to consider using 20W50, which is more suitable to your annual temp range, and might help a little with your oil consumption.

Ian
 

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