Oil useage and my first close look at a goldwing
Thank you for the replies! I won't worry much about it then, its still above half, I thought you check the oil when cold and upright (like a car) is there another way I dont know about?
Jesse
Jesse
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 9,332
Likes: 3,871
From: Upstate New York
You must check the oil HOT, otherwise you risk overfilling the system. The Harley has a dry sump, and the oil tank is above the pump and feeds the pump by gravity. As the bike sits, it's normal for some oil to seep past the check valve into the sump. That's why you check the oil hot, right after shutting down the engine, so all the oil will be in the tank that's supposed to be there.
My evo uses about a cup of oil every 1000 miles or so. More in hot weather or if I'm running hard. That's with about 80K on the motor.
My evo uses about a cup of oil every 1000 miles or so. More in hot weather or if I'm running hard. That's with about 80K on the motor.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 10,135
Likes: 4,777
From: Sandpoint, Idaho
You must check the oil HOT, otherwise you risk overfilling the system. The Harley has a dry sump, and the oil tank is above the pump and feeds the pump by gravity. As the bike sits, it's normal for some oil to seep past the check valve into the sump. That's why you check the oil hot, right after shutting down the engine, so all the oil will be in the tank that's supposed to be there.
My evo uses about a cup of oil every 1000 miles or so. More in hot weather or if I'm running hard. That's with about 80K on the motor.
My evo uses about a cup of oil every 1000 miles or so. More in hot weather or if I'm running hard. That's with about 80K on the motor.
Road Master
Joined: Aug 2010
Posts: 770
Likes: 3
From: Wabash
My hd dealer told me especially on the evo......" don't bother wasting time chasing oil" it's true....some will burn up to half pint to a half qt every thousand miles, some wont burn any , andnunless you here something unusual, see a puddle or the dipstick days quart low do yourself a favor and just ride it. The biggest reason people with metric bikes d have this concern , is because they tend to have pumps, but even if they don't, most are water cooled, oil is essential to the cooling of a Harley, evo or twin cam. I check mine once every week as precaution, but you'd know it if you had a significant leak,m or if you were burning enough to do great harm. Fill it at oil change time check it weekly , if it gets a qt low or more add oil.
Last edited by Joboo1966; Apr 11, 2012 at 08:33 PM.
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2008
Posts: 10,135
Likes: 4,777
From: Sandpoint, Idaho
Yeh, duh, Just clarifying for the OP, I read the question. Did you?
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Club Member
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From: Bedford UK
I learned with a pushrod BMW twin years ago that if I topped it up it would drink the first cupful, then settle. I might as well have thrown that cupful away as waste it in the engine! My Harleys have never done that, but it is worth bearing in mind. We love them for their eccentricity, and as the miles roll by you'll get used to yours! It may well be very happy with the oil between the marks, rather than on the top one.