08-24-2016, 01:03 AM
One thing about this, seems it is an unusual problem since the old-timers for the most part don't seem to be aware of it, including me.
But the engine designers seem to know about it. I now understand why all manufacturers state you need to warm the engine up for ten minutes before either checking or changing the oil. It's to get all the passages filled to either get an accurate reading or to help ensure that you don't get an air lock.
One of the guys on the ZX-10R forum, a moderator who's also a retired multi-engine flight instructor and generally sharp guy (except when he disagrees with me
) suspects he may have spun a bearing because of inadvertently running his engine after starting it up with this airlocked condition. That spun bearing problem, while not endemic to that model of Kawasaki, has been reported in a few instances, as well as the airlocked condition.
That's enough to convince me to actually do what the manual says from now one, since I don't relish paying for a new engine.
But the engine designers seem to know about it. I now understand why all manufacturers state you need to warm the engine up for ten minutes before either checking or changing the oil. It's to get all the passages filled to either get an accurate reading or to help ensure that you don't get an air lock.
One of the guys on the ZX-10R forum, a moderator who's also a retired multi-engine flight instructor and generally sharp guy (except when he disagrees with me
) suspects he may have spun a bearing because of inadvertently running his engine after starting it up with this airlocked condition. That spun bearing problem, while not endemic to that model of Kawasaki, has been reported in a few instances, as well as the airlocked condition.That's enough to convince me to actually do what the manual says from now one, since I don't relish paying for a new engine.