I need some advice on a situation I have run into. I bought a new 2014 Street Glide a few months ago and had the 1000 mile service performed by the dealer at 1,100 miles. That was a little over a month ago and since that time I have rode another 1,400 miles. So I had 2,500 miles on the bike at the time of this incident.

I rode it to work last Thursday, which is a 3 mile trip, and noticed when I started it up that it made a rattling noise but settled right down. About a mile from work the oil light came on and then went off. I flipped over to the info screen to check the oil pressure and it was at 8 psi and dropping. There was no where to pull over and the pressure went up to about 14 then dropped to 0. The oil light came back on again and the last 3/4 of a mile the pressure went down to 0 a couple of more times.

When I pulled into the parking lot and checked the dipstick there was no oil on it at all. I called the dealer and they suggested that I add a quart of oil and then bring it in for them to check sometime. They stated that Harley considers 1 quart of oil per 1000 miles acceptable but had not seen one actually use that much. My bike is garage kept and there were no leaks there or elsewhere. The bike does not smoke either.

At lunch I picked up 2 quarts just in case I needed a little more and poured in the first quart. Still nothing on the dipstick. I poured in the second quart and it barely registered. On the way home I picked up 2 more quarts and poured almost the entire 3rd quart before it was at the recommended level.

I called the dealer back and they were shocked that I had to use 3 quarts; I believe it only holds 3.5 quarts. They mentioned something about maybe the tech forget to put all the oil back in so they are coming to get my bike Friday to check for shavings or other damage. I have rode the bike another 300 miles since this incident and the oil level seems to be holding.

My concern is that with 0 oil pressure, metal on metal, that unless they replace the engine or do a complete tear down and rebuild I am going to get the raw end of the deal in the long run. Any thoughts on how I should proceed or what my options are? Should I ask for a new bike or engine?

Thanks

 

Wow! At a minimum, they should give you a free 7-year extended service plan with no deductible for anything related to the engine. That will give you peace of mind, not cost them much, and cause them to accept some accountability for their gross negligence.

 

Your break-in period is over.
Hell, I think I used <.5 ounce my 1st 1,000 miles. While 1 qt. @ 1,000 may be accurate and exceptable, it seems like a lot to me.

Consider calling a different dealer someowhere else and ask them "what's an exceptable amount of oil to lose in 1,000 miles". And if that is correct I guess I should be thankful what mine used.

 

Tell them you want the extended warranty on the engine or a brand new engine. My guess is they'll pick the extended warranty. This was 100% their screw up and they should take responsibility for it.

They didn't put enough (or any) oil in the engine!!! Really? WTF is their excuse?

 

At a minimum, I would certainly want some sort of an extended warranty... If the dealer won't do anything about it, tell them you will call MoCo and discuss it with them. That might motivate them.

 

Find a good dealership.

 

In that month and 1400 miles, how many times did you pull the dipstick?

I'm not excusing shoddy workmanship, but checking your oil should be daily routine.

 

Apparently I checked it the same number of times the tech did.

 

So it sounds like you have been riding the bike for 1400 miles since the 1000 mile service with no problem - correct?

If so, there is no way that they didn't put oil in it at the service. You would have had problems much sooner. So to me the question is, where the hell did 3 quarts of oil go in 1400 miles?

Either way, there is a problem that the dealer/Moco needs to fix. Play nice and work with them. It sucks but try very hard to be diplomatic and work towards the best outcome.

 

Your oil pressure was low but you really don't know yet if any damage occured. Oil pressure at idle is always very low. The primary indicator of a serious oil issue while riding is the oil warning light on the dash. Apparently that never came on. That's the real indicator that serious engine damage could be imminent.