Change oil but not oil filter? and other advice?

3228 Views 4 Replies 3 Participants Last post by Guy, Oct 9, 2007

Dennis in NH

Discussion Starter · Oct 6, 2007

I see in my manual for 2004 V Star 650, I should change oil every 4000mi and filter every 8000mi. Is this good and typical for other bikes? I'm kind of anal and want to change oil at less than 3000mi instead of 4000mi but shouldn't I change the filter every time?

I guess I don't want to put new oil in there and have it get dirty from a dirty filter? am I just being paranoid?

Also, can I drain oil ok even if my bike is not vertical? That is, it has a kick stand (not center stand) so it leans left. I noticed that the drain bolt is on the left so maybe oil will flow out better. Also, maybe I can get on the bike and hold it veritically while oil is draining.

My 10 quart container is too tall to fit under the bike. Anyone use a turkey pan (which will fit) to collect the oil (3 quarts for me) and then pour it into another container for transport to recycle place?

As you can tell, this is my first motorcycle oil change.

Thanks,

Dennis

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TFee3

· #2 · Oct 6, 2007 (Edited)

My C90T manual says to change oil every 3,500 miles and the filter every 7,000 miles. I'm like you, though. If I'm going to change the oil, I change the filter, too. Not changing the filter doesn't make sense to me, either. But, if you follow the manual, and something goes wrong while it's still under warranty, it's their problem. Mine is still under warranty, but I still change the filter every time.

I bought a motorcycle jacking, thinking I could lift the bike, and it would be easier to change oil. The problem is that when I put the jack under the bike where it balances and both wheels go off the ground, it blocks either the plug or the oil filter. So, I use a cake pan.

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· #3 · Oct 6, 2007

I also change the filter with the oil, just the way I was taught. I use a 1 gallon Breyers Vanilla ice cream bucket to change mine, but my bike sits fairly high for a cruiser(sport model).

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Dennis in NH

Discussion Starter · #4 · Oct 8, 2007

Thanks folks.

I ended up buying an oil pan from VIP that was short and open (6 qt capacity and no cover) for about $3. The lack of cover gave my hand some room to move when trying to get that 17mm socket on the drain bolt. The only problem is I had to pour the oil into my 10qt covered pan for storage until I can dump it at the recycle center. The nice thing is that I can see the condition of the used oil (very dark brown).

I didn't change the filter -- didn't feel like messing with it this time around. Next oil change I'll do it.

This was 2500mi and the oil looked pretty dark. I'm not going to go by the manual with 4000mi oil changes -- seems too long. Perhaps because I run my bike at highway speeds a lot (70-75mph) constant twice a day 3x per week lately. It was good to see a clearer oil through my sight window. Heck, I couldn't tell the oil level initially because it was too dark -- even with a flashlight.

Dennis

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Guy

· #5 · Oct 9, 2007

My opinion is if you're gonna get oily, might as well change the filter. They're cheap, and the old one is dirty.

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