Engine Oil And Filter Replacement

Which is the most appropriate engine oil type?Not very critical. Anyway, see Oils page.

How do I check oil level? Bike must be in upright position. Wipe-off dipstick and dip it without screwing. Oil level must be between the upper and lower marks on the dipstick.

Tools required: A Philips screwdriver and a 10mm wrench for removing the engine guard. A 17 mm wrench for the oil drain bolt, a special HONDA tool for the oil filter (or equivalent nut type tool). Use a commercial filter removal tool (of the belt type) if you cannot afford the cost of the above tool.

Warm the engine up to the normal operating temperature. It is not wise to achieve it by idling. You better ride for about 10 minutes of stop and go operation, in order to warm the whole amount of the oil. Support motorcycle on the side stand (it makes draining easier) and remove engine guard. Remove oil filler/dipstick to facilitate draining. Remove draining bolt carefully, if you don't want to be burned by the hot oil or loose the aluminum washer (it may be stuck on the crankcase). Remove filter using the special tool, otherwise you have to be very careful if you don't want to damage the socket. You can crank the engine for one second to drain the rest of the oil. But watch out not to start the engine ! Apply a thin coat of oil to the new filter's rubber seal. Re-install the new filter, the oil drain bolt and its washer. If you have a torque wrench, tight the bolt to 35Nm and the filter to 10Nm (it's very difficult to use a torque wrench on the filter). You must be very careful because of the sensitivity of the filter's thread (you can use your bare hand to firmly tight it). Now you must fill the crankcase with the proper amount of oil. Since you replaced the filter, you have to use exactly 2.4 lt of oil. Then, screw dipstick in and warm up the engine. Re-check the oil level. It must be very close to the upper level mark, otherwise fill in appropriately. Do this check again, after a few hours of operation.

Tip 1: Before handling this messy oily things, apply hand cream on your hands. It helps very much to avoid the sticking of the used oil (also accused for generating cancer).
Tip 2: Do not forget to tight oil draining bolt, immediately before filling the new oil. Many damaged engines are the result of forgetting to properly tight this bolt.
Tip 3: Do not overfill, otherwise you risk oil leaks because of damaging a gasket or o-ring.
Tip 4: In order to facilitate engine guard re-installation, first of all you must install the front bolt.