4 Litre BMW oil change 2018 RT

[GlobalRider]

I guess I'm too old to get used to anything that doesn't have a dip-stick.

OM

And those vehicles are definitely meant for three-piece suit types or people that hate to get their hands dirty. One of my cars is like that.

[kbasa]

And those vehicles are definitely meant for three-piece suit types or people that hate to get their hands dirty. One of my cars is like that.

Because it's so easy, I tend to check it more often, but I can only speak for myself.

I wear suits. I have no problem getting my hands dirty.

[GlobalRider]

Because it's so easy, I tend to check it more often, but I can only speak for myself.

I wear suits. I have no problem getting my hands dirty.

Dave, you know exactly what I mean.

If you open the hood, you cannot take a oil level reading for a while. If the oil is cold, you cannot take an oil level reading. Who the eff programmed that into the ECU. Some non-car guy that spent far too much time in university.

Give me a dip-stick or at least an oil sight window that does not pop out . No electronics required and I ran my section of an electrical standards lab.

[kbasa]

Dave, you know exactly what I mean.

If you open the hood, you cannot take a oil level reading for a while. If the oil is cold, you cannot take an oil level reading. Who the eff programmed that into the ECU. Some non-car guy that spent far too much time in university.

Give me a dip-stick or at least an oil sight window that does not pop out . No electronics required and I ran my section of an electrical standards lab.

I feel ya, Alex.

I had a sight window pop out of my R11S, so I wasn't surprised to see that they modified them with a circlip in later models. But yeah, there's something satisfying about dipsticks - a nice analog oil check.

I hope your day's going great. I'm probably gonna go buy coolant for the car, now that the garage is starting to have some order, so thanks again for the docs you shared over.

[BernieEcht]

Is 4L the same as "4 l" and the same as 4 liter? And I had no idea that BMW made a R1200GT.

[GTRider]

Is 4L the same as "4 l" and the same as 4 liter? And I had no idea that BMW made a R1200GT.

A very special limited production model never imported to the US and whose distribution was limited to Lichtenstein. I think…

Best,
DeVern

[bkkjack]

With this thread in mind, I changed the oil on my R1250RS today. When I was putting in the 4th liter, I watched the sight glass and stopped filling when the oil reached the top of the red circle (MAX). Remembering to put the fill plug back in - I've forgotten to do that at least once before on other bikes - I started the bike and didn't see any warnings.

Side note: I'm used to there being an oil light on the dash that stays on for a second or two after start up, then goes out. That always gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling that I'd gotten things right. Not so with this cold, German machine.

I let the bike sit for well over 5 minutes and checked the sight glass again. The oil level was about half way. Pouring in what was left of the 4th liter brought the level back up to just below MAX. I started it again, and it has now been sitting for a couple hours and the oil level is about 1/8" below MAX. However, it is sitting in a Baxley chock, which raises the front wheel a bit, instead of the back wheel being up a bit on the center stand. No matter; I'd rather have a bit too little oil than too much. I'm going to call it good.

Also, I love a sight glass. My Street Triple uses a dip stick and it's a PITA to read and launched a thousand dip stick threads on the Triumph forums.

[Lee]

With this thread in mind, I changed the oil on my R1250RS today. When I was putting in the 4th liter, I watched the sight glass and stopped filling when the oil reached the top of the red circle (MAX). Remembering to put the fill plug back in - I've forgotten to do that at least once before on other bikes - I started the bike and didn't see any warnings.

Side note: I'm used to there being an oil light on the dash that stays on for a second or two after start up, then goes out. That always gave me a warm and fuzzy feeling that I'd gotten things right. Not so with this cold, German machine.

I let the bike sit for well over 5 minutes and checked the sight glass again. The oil level was about half way. Pouring in what was left of the 4th liter brought the level back up to just below MAX. I started it again, and it has now been sitting for a couple hours and the oil level is about 1/8" below MAX. However, it is sitting in a Baxley chock, which raises the front wheel a bit, instead of the back wheel being up a bit on the center stand. No matter; I'd rather have a bit too little oil than too much. I'm going to call it good.

Also, I love a sight glass. My Street Triple uses a dip stick and it's a PITA to read and launched a thousand dip stick threads on the Triumph forums.

Ride the bike for 30 miles or so, then check the oil level after sitting on the centerstand for at least 5 minutes. See if it reads the same.
When I park our RSs in a Baxley chock the oil level reads slightly lower than a centerstand reading. Not enough difference to worry about.

[brownie0486]

If the manual says 4L and you have drained the oil on an oil/filter change and added 4L, why would one worry about where the oil sits in the sight glass?

4L is what's called for and you added 4L after an oil drain, why are people worrying about what the sight glass shows? What am I missing here that people have to question oil level when the proper amount has been added.

[Rich]

If the manual says 4L and you have drained the oil on an oil/filter change and added 4L, why would one worry about where the oil sits in the sight glass?

4L is what's called for and you added 4L after an oil drain, why are people worrying about what the sight glass shows? What am I missing here that people have to question oil level when the proper amount has been added.

There is the possibility that 4L of old oil didn't fully drain. Everyone has their technique, and sometimes it isn't fully kosher. And then you add 4L of new oil and bingo, overfill....

I changed the oil today on my 1250GSA. Added 3 3/4 liters, ran it for a couple minutes (the engine was still hot), shut it down and put the bike on the side stand for 10 minutes. I then put it on the centerstand and rechecked it after a few minutes and it was right at the top of the red circle. Another 1/4 liter and I would say it is overfull. Am I wrong?

[brownie0486]

There is the possibility that 4L of old oil didn't fully drain. Everyone has their technique, and sometimes it isn't fully kosher. And then you add 4L of new oil and bingo, overfill....

I changed the oil today on my 1250GSA. Added 3 3/4 liters, ran it for a couple minutes (the engine was still hot), shut it down and put the bike on the side stand for 10 minutes. I then put it on the centerstand and rechecked it after a few minutes and it was right at the top of the red circle. Another 1/4 liter and I would say it is overfull. Am I wrong?

Your first sentence seems to be the answer imo.

0.264172 ounces may be technically "overfull", but again, the boxer isn't going to notice that in any negative way according to two master bmw mechanics.

Do you believe the motor will suffer damage being .26 ounces over?

[k12lts]

Your first sentence seems to be the answer imo.

0.264172 ounces may be technically "overfull", but again, the boxer isn't going to notice that in any negative way according to two master bmw mechanics.

Do you believe the motor will suffer damage being .26 ounces over?

It's not .26 ounces, it's .26 Quart. More like 8+ounces. I use Castrol Power Plus 4T that comes in quart containers. 4 quarts with a new filter fills mine up to the top of the red circle every time.

The 4L specification may be the "dry fill" for a new engine. There is always some residual oil left in the engine after it drains, so the refill amount will be less.

[brownie0486]

It's not .26 ounces, it's .26 Quart. More like 8+ounces. I use Castrol Power Plus 4T that comes in quart containers. 4 quarts with a new filter fills mine up to the top of the red circle every time.

The 4L specification may be the "dry fill" for a new engine. There is always some residual oil left in the engine after it drains, so the refill amount will be less.

Got it, still, a 1/4 qt over isn't going to harm the boxer motor one bit according to two master bmw technicians I've spoken with.

The reason this came up at all was I don't put the motor on the center stand [ too much effort for me ]. On my camheads, the sight glass is on the left side. Told to check it that way thusly: Any air in the sight glass, add 1/2 qt and carry on, stop worrying about the level being "perfect" in the sight glass. That it can be over or under by 1/2 qt. without causing any issues.

I know a lot of members here have a lot of knowledge, the above suggestion came from two well heeled techs with a combined 40+ years of working on boxers. One works on my motors here in Az, the other is on the east coast but posts on advrider [ where I asked him the question of how to check it on the side stand on the camheads ].

[Rich]

Got it, still, a 1/4 qt over isn't going to harm the boxer motor one bit according to two master bmw technicians I've spoken with.

My knowledge on this subject, although limited, has me believing I'd sooner be a 1/4 short than over. I see no reason to overfill any engine with oil.

[PGlaves]

Without knowing the total volume of the crankcase, and the designed air volume with the oil at the proper level I can't say by how much. But I can say that increased oil will cause increased crankcase pressure. And this is particularly true give the design of a boxer engine where both pistons are retreating toward the crankshaft at the same time.

In the earlier models with no circlip at the sight glass the crankcase pressure was known to sometimes eject the sight glass. And it can of course lead to leaky crankcase seals.

So how harmful this might be remains a question but there is potential for harm from an overfilled crankcase. Just food for thought.