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oil not showing in window

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous
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Anonymous

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Hello,

I have changed the oil and filter in my bike, let it warm up and then sit for the oil to drain back down. Even after 35 minutes there was still no oil in the window. I put approximately 2.7 quarts of oil in like my Clymer manual suggests. So, I put in more oil until it almost reached the full mark. In total 3 quarts. Does this sound normal, or is my oil going somewhere it shouldn't.
Also, the Suzuki Dealership here in Oklahoma City suggests using 20w-50 and my bike has 10w-40 stamped on it. I know it gets fairly warm here in the summer, but Suzuki must have felt pretty strongly about using 10w-40 to have it stamped on the engine. I would appreciate any input on both matters.
Thanks,
Billy Miles
 
the above reply was not meant rudely or in any other negative manner. I realize that it could be taken that way, sorry.
 
well cheese 'n' rice ask a simple question to help someone out! :twisted:
 
I am not sure what the oil capacity of your GS550 is but 3 Qts. doesn't sound like too much to me. One thing that you should note is that the amount of oil required in a change depends on whether you removed and replaced the oil filter. If you do not replace the filter, less oil is required to refill since a small amount of old oil remains in the filter and filter housing (one of the reasons that it is a good idea to change the filter when you change the oil). Perhaps the oil volume you saw in the Clymer manual was for an oil change without filter change. BTW, my 1983 GS750 takes 4 Qts. for an oil & filter change.

There is one other possibility: you are checking the oil level window when the bike is vertical (on mainstand), right?
 
78

One time I put too much oil in the '80 and I couldn't see the oil level. So I added more oil and watched the window and no still couldn't see the level. I got about six quarts in before it dawned on me to take some out.

Steve
 
Are you trying to check it on the centerstand or on the wheels? I have noticed on my 550 that on the centerstand, when it is filled to my shop manual-specified capacity, it doesn't show in the window, but if I straddle the bike while on the wheels, trying to keep it level and lean over to look in the window, it shows up at the full level. I think it was meant to be checked on the wheels, as counter-intuitive as that may seem. Too much oil is bad; too little can be worse. Double-checking in my Clymer manual, I too show that 2.7 qt is what should fill it up with a filter change, and that's what I have always done.
 
Re: oil not showing in window

To check the oil level or add oil, the bike should be on the centerstand on level ground. No oil shows in the oil window (even if the bike is full) if it is leaning on the kickstand.

Earl

78gs550 said:
Hello,

I have changed the oil and filter in my bike, let it warm up and then sit for the oil to drain back down. Even after 35 minutes there was still no oil in the window. I put approximately 2.7 quarts of oil in like my Clymer manual suggests. So, I put in more oil until it almost reached the full mark. In total 3 quarts. Does this sound normal, or is my oil going somewhere it shouldn't.
Also, the Suzuki Dealership here in Oklahoma City suggests using 20w-50 and my bike has 10w-40 stamped on it. I know it gets fairly warm here in the summer, but Suzuki must have felt pretty strongly about using 10w-40 to have it stamped on the engine. I would appreciate any input on both matters.
Thanks,
Billy Miles
Click to expand...
 
I have a 77 550 and a 79 850. Not sure on the amount of oil used-I'm at work and don't have my manual. Both my bikes call for 10W-40 but I've always run 20W-50 with no problems.

Scott
 
In regards to the oil, I use 10-W40 all the time without issue. Don't know why the dealer would suggest otherwise.
 
You have to remember 10w-40 was a newer oil back in the late seventies/early eighties. It was the cure-all oil for every engine. Not so true today, but 20w-50 is no problem to use in the summer on your bike. :twisted:
 
20W-50 is good for ambient temperatures down to around -5c (from memory). The bike's manual and workshop manual give a diagram of oil weights vs temperature.

A standard 10W-40 recommendation covers off operations in colder conditions and will handle most hotter weather. A 20W-50 is a good alround oil, particularly if the bike has mileage on it - the air cooled motors hagh wider tolerances than liquid cooled bikes.
 
If you chill your 20w50 to -5C in your freezer you'll find it gets pretty darn thick. You'll need a good long warm up if you use it in the cold. When I switched to it early in the season I had to up my idle adjuster just to keep my bike running with it at first.

Steve
 
In cold weather 20-50 can also cause the clutch to grab when cold I use 20-50
 
For You Being in OK, 20w-50 should be just fine, The weather there is simular to Arkansas, and wont get that cold before you can switch back to a 10w-40 (if your an all year rider). It does, however get more than hot enough there for 20w-50. :twisted:
 
My engine is modified, so it generates more heat than usual. When it gets colder I will cover up the oil cooler.
 
It seems that my problem in not seeing the oil in the window was putting the oil cap back on while letting the oil drain after filling. With the oil cap in place I waited over half an hour and still saw nothing in the window, bike on centerstand and all. The last time I changed the oil, I left the oil cap off while I let the oil drain, and it was at the F (in the window) mark after the suggested 2.7 quarts in just a few minutes.

So with that problem solved, how much damage might I have done with .30 quarts too much oil and less than 10 miles driven?
 
I would expect NONE. :-)

Earl

78gs550 said:
So with that problem solved, how much damage might I have done with .30 quarts too much oil and less than 10 miles driven?
Click to expand...
 
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