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+--- Thread: Oil level sight glass (/showthread.php?tid=1910)
Oil level sight glass - ohiorider_imp - 06-03-2017
Is this sight glass Honda 'retro?'
How long should the bike sit on the center stand after a ride before checking the oil level? Or put another way, if the bike is on the center stand cold, and oil appears to be toward the low side of the window, is this the time to add a bit of oil?
I've ridden for over 500,000 miles, and aside from one early Oilhead ('95 R1100RS) never had an issue determining oil level before starting out on a ride, or during a ride.
A dipstick would have been nice.
RE: Oil level sight glass - LongRanger_imp - 06-03-2017
It's not retro. The first-gen CB750 (SOHC) had a dipstick, not a sight glass.
RE: Oil level sight glass - flynrider - 06-03-2017
(06-03-2017, 02:42 PM)ohiorider_imp Wrote: Is this sight glass Honda 'retro?'
How long should the bike sit on the center stand after a ride before checking the oil level? Or put another way, if the bike is on the center stand cold, and oil appears to be toward the low side of the window, is this the time to add a bit of oil?
I've ridden for over 500,000 miles, and aside from one early Oilhead ('95 R1100RS) never had an issue determining oil level before starting out on a ride, or during a ride.
A dipstick would have been nice.
I don't have the manual in front of me, but I recall that it says to wait 2 or 3 minutes after shutting down the engine before checking the window.
If it's near the bottom of the window after sitting overnight, I'd add a half quart and check it again. It doesn't take much oil to go from the bottom of the window to the top.
My old Kawasaki KZ bikes all had the sight glass (and I hated them), but I think Honda has favored dipsticks for the models I've owned (except of course the CB11). Not sure why they went with the sight glass, but I suspect the design of the bottom end didn't allow direct access from the filler to the sump.
RE: Oil level sight glass - the Ferret - 06-03-2017
You are not supposed to check the oil level cold, although I don't know why? Seems to me after sitting over night that it would be easy to see how much oil is in there, but that is apparently not how Honda wants you to check it.
I believe the instuctions say to warm it up for 3-5 mins, turn it off, and let sit for 3-5 mins before checking the oil level in the sight glass. It only takes a few ounces of oil to take it from low in the site glass to high in the site glass.
I rarely check mine. It's not leaking oil and it's not burning it that I can see, so I just change it evey 4,000 miles, and trust that the right amount of oil is in there.