Sorry.. DOHC oil question.

[GSgirl]

Bought my 12GS DOHC late last year. Picked it up this spring. It now has 7500mi on it and still uses about 1 liter of oil every 600mi. I’ve heard some do this, but most seem not to use any oil at all. This is not my first 12GS (is my first DOHC) and all of them I’ve worn in like the manual said and none of them used much oil.

It seems I’m just unlucky with this one. What I’d like to know is how many DOHC bikes there are on this board with the same issue and if/how your dealer has proposed to solve this, given the bike is still in warranty. It should have lessened after the 1200mi service, but it hasn’t. I know it will probably get slightly better after 20 or 30Kmi but even a liter in 1200mi is an insane amount. Also I’m thinking this can’t be good for the engine all this oil, where does it go? I never top it up beyond the halfway red dot to be sure not to overfill it and I keep track of exactly how much I put in to have a record.

Has anyone here found a way to solve this, short of trading the bike in (and then who’s to say I won’t get another one that uses oil..)? Really like to know how others are dealing with this issue. Thanks!!!

 

[APE]

I think it's luck of the draw. Don't think there's anything you can do. It should improve with mileage but my 1150 was an oil burner and it never got a lot better - I just lived with it

 

[gebrauchtwagen83]

ive just done my first 650 miles on my new GSA and it seems to have used about half a window of oil. apparently according to vines this is normal before the first service.

 

[Packer]

.....Also I’m thinking this can’t be good for the engine all this oil, where does it go? .......

If it isn't leaking, it's not as you would see puddles on the floor from that amount of oil, it is burnt along with the fuel. It is either getting past the piston rings, or past the seals on the valve stems.

The owners manual will probably state BMW's opinion on what is acceptable, perhaps a litre every 1,000 miles but I'm just guessing. With the consumption you have after that mileage I'd be asking the dealer to investigate under warranty.

 

[cookie]

IIRC bmw say anything over 1ltr per 1000Km is excessive, and indicates a problem.

that is a hell of a consumption though IMO, and is about what yours appears to be using.

 

[APE]

Not ideal - but most dealers will just shrug their shoulders if you say it uses a lot of oil. Worth checking for obvious leaks though.

 

[Wilsdorf]

I would be having that looked at under warranty at your mileage.

Unless of course you have a rare two stroke GS?

 

[Norfolk Tiger]

I have 2011gsa only used 1.5l in 11000 miles.

 

[phillh]

My 2011gsa did burn a fair bit of oil up to about 1k miles, you could even smell hot oil around the headstock area which sbw said was normal, after that it hasnt burnt much and this coincided with me riding it harder as it was run in by then.

As a matter of interest, do you leave it on the sidestand, could oil be draining into left cylinder?

 

[itspilsbury]

I have heard its better to ride them hard, the rings bed in much better and form a better seal in the bore so less oil passes by and so much less gets burnt / used!
People run em in tooo gently.
Only what I've heard ????

 

[Nutty]

That does sound excessive. In 7500 miles on my last bike, it used half a litre (other than when serviced) and my current bike has 3000 miles, and hasn't used a drop.

 

[GSgirl]

What could BMW do to fix this? New engine? Does that happen? Anybody else found a solution or do you just live with this even when it's still under warranty? Thanks again!

 

[ianf]

Do you leave it on the side stand all the time? That will give you a slightly higher consumption as it'll puff out a few ml per start. It should have come down to very low by the milage you've done though.

 

[GSgirl]

Do you leave it on the side stand all the time?

Only when on a ride for short term parking. Overnight and long term it's always on the centre stand.

 

[F104]

one litre /1000km oil consumption is a norm used for diesel truck engines. Even there it would be high, but manufacturers have to set a limit before they spend warranty money on finding out what the issue is. Now one litre/1000 for a two cylinder 1200cc engine sounds sky high, even if you drive like on the track.

You haven't over filled it with oil?

If no obvious leaks, I would ask for a cylinder compression test. If that is low, then you have high piston ring blowby. The question then is where does the oil go, it could simple be recirculated back into the intake.

 

[PaulW21781]

Out of interest, how hard did you run it in when you got it?

 

[jwpzx9r]

High oil consumption is often due too being to tender with it during the run in period ... best to thrash them straight off and get the oil changed early. Too late now but if you give it a roasting for a couple of hundred miles you might just deglaze the bores a bit and set the rings a bit, but usually the damage is done if you don't set the rings early on.

 

[GSgirl]

Thanks guys!

Will check out that compression test!

I never fill it up beyond the red dot in the middle of the sight glass and do the warm engine-wait-10-min-center stand check.

Ran it in according to the manual, which for this bike was a lot different than the non-camshafts. I only use the bike for trips, all of which in hilly terrain like Eifel, Alps. Ride about 20-25k km a year.

Not being very engine knowledgable, what would possible need to be replaced on this bike to make it stop using this much oil?

 

[cookie]

oil loss is either because it's leaking out (oil on the floor), going past the rings and being burnt because they don't seal properly against the cylinders (smoke under power), or it's being sucked down the valve guides to be burnt (smoke on the overrun).

could also be blown out of the breather and recirculated into the combustion chambers because the rings don't seal and combustion gas is leaking past and pressurising the crankcase.

probably a ring issue, i reckon.

 

[jeff garnett]

710

Try 20/50 oil, it stop it for me.