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Maintenance of your motorcycle is one of the crucial aspects of the bike’s longevity, and motorcycle engine oil plays a big role in it. Many people face low oil levels or unusual decrements in engine oil at a rapid pace.
Engine oil decreases in the motorcycle when active chemical properties in the oil lose their effectiveness due to oxidation or excessively high temperatures over time it will not work in optimum condition. If there is a defect in the cooling system (radiator cooler, oil cooler) hot oil won’t get cooled efficiently.
There are essentially two reasons you could lose engine oil in your motorcycle excluding horrific crashes, and people get confused and opt for wrong solutions which can harm their motorcycles. But you guys don’t have to worry cause my friends and I have faced similar kinds of problems and through many trials and errors, We’ve found the solution and would like to share it with you guys.
You can also read our article on when should you change motorcycle engine oil and how often you should do it (Oil change intervals).
Reducing Oil Level & More Consumption Of It
A motorcycle engine requires lubricant to keep running efficiently. Engine oil is the lubricant of the entire engine, it lubricates the piston, crankshaft, camshaft, valves, bore, and other moving parts to avoids the formation of carbon deposits in the engine. The basic idea is to reduce the friction between the moving parts and increase the efficiency and lifespan of the engine.
Oil leaks caused by damage to moving parts of the engine or loss of chemical properties in the engine oil due to excessively hot engine temperature over the period will result in more consumption of the oil hence low or reducing engine oil level.
So here are the two major reasons for low oil levels and more consumption of engine oil.
1. Every engine oil has its Ignition point, if the engine gets warm then the oil starts getting vaporized slowly over time. This is the first and most common reason for the depletion of oil in your motorbike and you shouldn’t worry about it.
How To Fix It: Just top up or refill fresh engine oil when necessary.
2. The second reason for low or more consumption of engine oil where people get confused and try to solve this problem with top-up and refills. These will cause more harm than good along the way. Oil leaks from worn-out engine parts or excessively high engine temperatures over time will cause engine oil to lose its chemical properties thus losing its tolerance and effectiveness.
How To Fix It: As you know that engine oil acts as a lubricant and coolant to some extent, proper top-ups and oil change intervals will keep the process of engine lubrication and temperature control in check. If there are damaged or worn out engine parts such as piston rings, gasket, valves, seal, or any other moving part which is causing the leakage fix it as soon as possible.
By understanding and correcting these issues will fix your motorcycle’s engine oil problems. Keep in mind that engine oils that have high ignition and evaporation point with high viscosity rates will have a strong tolerance level to extreme riding or weather conditions, and the engine oil evaporation process will be much slower.
Symptoms Of Low Engine Oil In Motorcycle
There are few symptoms you can look out for that can let you known about your engine oil situation. It is very important to take action immediately as ignoring these symptoms might be lethal for the engine and unexpected engine oil seizing might occur at high engine rpm.
Here’s the list of symptoms that can immediately let you know that your motorcycle is running low on engine oil.
- Excess Heating: If the engine oil fails to provide lubrication to the moving parts (i.e. Piston Assembly, Crankshaft Assembly, Connecting Rods, Gear Train, Et Cetera.) then there would be more friction resulting in engine heating.
- Burning Smell: Engine oil less than the specific level suggested by OEM ( Original Equipment Manufacturer ) the engine won’t be lubricated properly resulting in more friction causing the burning smell.
- Less Mileage / Low Fuel Efficiency: A reduction in mileage or low fuel efficiency will be caused if the engine is not working at its expected thermal temperature. A heated engine consumes more fuel resulting in poor fuel efficiency or less mileage.
- Reduced Torque And Power: Low oil levels in motorcycles create a high friction level between the moving parts in the engine. Due to this, you will experience a dramatic drop in the motorcycle’s torque and power output, hence reaching a higher speed would be much tougher.
- More Vibration: Because of inefficient lubrication and more friction, there would be an increased vibration level you will notice straight away.
- Slight Change In Exhaust Sound (Misfiring): The combustion chamber of the engine won’t be able to work at optimum performance due to low engine oil level resulting in insufficient burning of gas/petrol. Carbon and Knox residue from the gases will be formed in the exhaust or outlet valve. As a result of this exhaust gas won’t leave the engine in an optimum way causing misfiring.
- Oil Pressure Warning Indicator: Low oil level will be indicated by a warning light in a motorcycle’s instrument cluster( i.e. TFT Display, Digital Display ), it will be an easy and quick way to find out about the oil level in your motorcycle.
This list of symptoms is easy to recognize and shouldn’t be ignored. Look out for these low oil level indicators when you go on a group ride with your buddies or a solo ride like a badass lone ranger.
What Will Happen If Engine Oil Is Empty In Motorcycle
Low engine oil level is a serious problem but a motorcycle with no oil or empty crankcase is a nightmare that every rider should avoid.
A motorcycle with no engine oil would create more friction between the moving parts of the engine and would start getting overheated as there would be no oil to cool and lubricate it, which would ultimately result in wear and tear of the engine parts and engine seizing.
If you don’t want your motorcycle to be a wreck and keep it in ideal condition follow proper oil change intervals, and if your bike needs an oil top-up don’t feel hesitant to do it.
But what if your oil is getting consumed more than its limit or how it suppose to be. Then this following list will show why your engine oil is rapidly decreasing.
- Inspect For Any Leaks: There could be a leak in the crankcase because of the loose contact, inspection is very easy as one can see it without any help from a mechanic. Commonplace for leaks can be a crankcase, valve cover plug, or oil drain plug.
- Worn Valve Guides: This inspection is quite difficult as one must open the engine head completely and then check for a leak, a mechanic is required for this inspection.
- Worn Exhaust Guides: This procedure is the same as one would check valve guides the only difference is you have to inspect two guides that are Inlet valve guides and exhaust guides. A mechanic is required for this inspection too.
- Worn Piston Rings: If the piston rings and the cylinder liner contact is loose, engine oil is consumed more because some of the oil is burnt as a specific amount of oil leaks inside the engine.
- Worn Cylinder Or Cylinder Valve: If the engine cylinder has endured some significant amount of worn, then the piston would heat up more and thus oil consumption would be high because of the high friction.
Conclusion
These are some efficient ways to check why your motorcycle is running out of engine oil way quicker. If you find the problems mentioned above in your motorcycle, fix them as soon as possible then you can enjoy your joy rides without any inconveniences.
