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Curious oil consumption incident..!!??

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  • #1

    Curious oil consumption incident..!!??

    About three weeks ago I got caught in a traffic jam caused by an accident. I barely moved 1/4 mile in about 15/20 mins. I started getting worried because I could feel the bike getting very hot. I did some lane splitting but since it's illegal in FL I didn't want to get caught either, so I worked my way over three lanes so I could do a u-turn and take another route home.
    As soon as I made the U-turn I could tell the engine wasn't happy, so I just babied it until I could get some airflow going and cool the engine back down. It made a little knocking noise but it went away right away as I got underway.
    The next day during my routine inspection before riding the bike I noticed the oil level was low..!!!! I topped it off, it needed 1/3qt.
    This is a very strange occurrence because this bike NEVER consumes oil, and I've put maybe another 200 miles on it since then with no change in the oil level and no oil required..???
    Does anyone know, have any ideas, what would have caused this???
    1980G Standard, Restored
    Kerker 4 - 1
    850 Rear End Mod
    2-21 Flashing LED Arrays on either side of license plate for Brake Light Assist, 1100 Lumen Cree Aux Lights,
    Progressive springs, Showa rear shocks
    Automatic CCT
    1980GH Special, Restored
    Stock Exhaust, New Handlebars, 1" Spacer in Fork Springs, Automatic CCT, Showa Rear Shocks
    '82 XJ1100 (Sold)
    Automatic CCT, RC Engineering 4 X 1 Exhaust, K&N Pods, #50 Pilot Jets, YICS Eliminator. Sorely missed.
    Tags: None
  • #2
    My best guess would be if it got hot enough, some clearances moved around some and that coupled with the thinned-out hot oil allowed some oil to get places it normally didn't get. Short answer, it burned it. A oil cooler will help with this by keeping oil temps down. You might want to change the oil, as that no doubt accelerated it's breakdown....
    Fast, Cheap, Reliable... Pick any two

    '78E original owner - resto project
    '78E ???? owner - Modder project FJ forks, 4-piston calipers F/R, 160/80-16 rear tire
    '82 XJ rebuild project
    '80SG restified, red SOLD
    '79F parts...
    '81H more parts...

    Other current bikes:
    '93 XL1200 Anniversary Sportster 85RWHP
    '86 XL883/1200 Chopper
    '82 XL1000 w/1450cc Buell, Baker 6-speed, in-progress project
    Cage: '13 Mustang GT/CS with a few 'custom' touches
    Yep, can't leave nuthin' alone...

    Comment

    • #3
      I agree about changing the oil ASAP due to thermal breakdown, thanks. Funny thing was that I didn't see any smoke either, and I looked for it after I got underway again. Weird !!!
      I do have an oil cooler I bought to put on it, but my Kerker exhaust prevents me from installing the SOFA/adapter i got from TC. I do have a 4X2 Jadine spaghetti turn out exhaust that will allow me to install those items but BikerPhil discouraged me from installing it because of the heat generated by the pipes that would run under the pegs... !!!!
      Last edited by Cobia; 11-27-2011, 04:04 PM.
      1980G Standard, Restored
      Kerker 4 - 1
      850 Rear End Mod
      2-21 Flashing LED Arrays on either side of license plate for Brake Light Assist, 1100 Lumen Cree Aux Lights,
      Progressive springs, Showa rear shocks
      Automatic CCT
      1980GH Special, Restored
      Stock Exhaust, New Handlebars, 1" Spacer in Fork Springs, Automatic CCT, Showa Rear Shocks
      '82 XJ1100 (Sold)
      Automatic CCT, RC Engineering 4 X 1 Exhaust, K&N Pods, #50 Pilot Jets, YICS Eliminator. Sorely missed.

      Comment

      • #4
        Wow

        Wow, 20 min with no air running across the motor in Florida A big +1 on changing the oil and filter. Oil will burn up and break down in those kind of temps I would keep a close ear to make sure none of the valves warped at all, any new noise would require investagation before many miles to avoid dropping one I would also check the new oil and change it as soon as it starts to get dark, 1000 miles tops, as it wil be picking up any burnt oil still in the motor


        Originally posted by Cobia View Post
        About three weeks ago I got caught in a traffic jam caused by an accident. I barely moved 1/4 mile in about 15/20 mins. I started getting worried because I could feel the bike getting very hot. I did some lane splitting but since it's illegal in FL I didn't want to get caught either, so I worked my way over three lanes so I could do a u-turn and take another route home.
        As soon as I made the U-turn I could tell the engine wasn't happy, so I just babied it until I could get some airflow going and cool the engine back down. It made a little knocking noise but it went away right away as I got underway.
        The next day during my routine inspection before riding the bike I noticed the oil level was low..!!!! I topped it off, it needed 1/3qt.
        This is a very strange occurrence because this bike NEVER consumes oil, and I've put maybe another 200 miles on it since then with no change in the oil level and no oil required..???
        Does anyone know, have any ideas, what would have caused this???
        1979 XS1100 Special (Mad Max, OEM) Current
        1980 XS1100 Special
        1990 V Max
        1982 KZ750 LTD Twin
        1986 700 FZR Yamaha Fazer (faster then expected)
        1979 XS750 Special (my 1st Special)
        1974 CB750-Four



        Past/pres Car's
        1961 Catalina 389/1970 Torino GT 351/1967GTO 12to1 comp./ Roller cam/ T-10/ 456 gear/Tri-power/1967 GTO 400, 1969 Camaro, 1968 Z28, 2001 BMW M Roadster 0 to 60 in 4.5 sec. Jaguar XK8

        Comment

        • #5
          I know mine rarely used oil, but if ran hard in hot weather it would use oil, sometimes quite a bit. I recall a trip I took in eastern Washington one summer, and after running at high speed across the desert near the Hanford reservation in 100+ temps, the bike ate a full quart of oil in the space of one tankful of gas. Got back into cooler temps, and the oil use went away....
          Fast, Cheap, Reliable... Pick any two

          '78E original owner - resto project
          '78E ???? owner - Modder project FJ forks, 4-piston calipers F/R, 160/80-16 rear tire
          '82 XJ rebuild project
          '80SG restified, red SOLD
          '79F parts...
          '81H more parts...

          Other current bikes:
          '93 XL1200 Anniversary Sportster 85RWHP
          '86 XL883/1200 Chopper
          '82 XL1000 w/1450cc Buell, Baker 6-speed, in-progress project
          Cage: '13 Mustang GT/CS with a few 'custom' touches
          Yep, can't leave nuthin' alone...

          Comment

          • #6
            Oil cooler

            The European XS1100's came with an oil cooler as standard. They do dissipate heat when the bike is stationary, via the black feed pipes and the radiator itself. Having said that though, the oil cooler is designed to have air flow through it in order to work really well. It certainly will do no harm to have one but I don't think it's a wonder solution to the bike remaining stationary in the sort of temperatures in some parts of the USA which we never see here (or rarely) in Europe.
            XS1100F 1980 European model. Standard. Dyna coils. Iridium plugs. XS750 final drive (sometimes). Micron fork brace. Progressive front springs. Geezer regulator/rectifier. Stainless 4 into 2 exhaust. Auto CCT (Venturer 1300) SOLD. New project now on the go. 1980 European model.

            Comment

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