Oil change: pre-winter or post winter?
- Thread starter Onagoth
- Start date
Pre. Oil gets contaminated and acidic after use. You use fresh oil so that acidic oil isnt sitting for months on seals and gaskets........
The next fantasy to dispel is having to change it again in the spring. No need oil doesnt spoil by its very nature its millions of years old (dinosaurs right?) Just use whatever flavour you prefer in the fall tuck your baby away and come spring your ready to roll.
The next fantasy to dispel is having to change it again in the spring. No need oil doesnt spoil by its very nature its millions of years old (dinosaurs right?) Just use whatever flavour you prefer in the fall tuck your baby away and come spring your ready to roll.
Onagoth
Well-known member
Maybe you can dispel another myth I've heard....that leaving oil in a bike (after a fresh oil change) all winter and then starting it up in the spring stirs up all kinds of **** that can (unlikely) damage the engine.
+1 nothing better then fresh oil during winter storage. Before you cover it with blanket and hook up tender make sure to start it so that new oil could cycle a bit, never leave old oil sitting through the winter.
ride2rideagain
Well-known member
For the 12395u823409x12 time, it's PRE. But to each their own. kneedragger88s post explains why.
Nope. Nothing will collect in the oil except maybe a teeny tiny bit of moisture, which will evaporate pretty quick on your first ride.
However! Frequently starting it through the winter will build up this moisture, as the engine never gets warm enough to get rid of it. So don't do it!
+1.
Starting it frequently, or even once or twice and not riding it and getting it up to full operating temperature for a while will result in moisture accumulation in the motor and exhaust system. This will start or accelerate corrosion and rusting. Don't do it. Oil does not breakdown it only becomes contaminated. That is why it gets black as you ride it over time. The oil is still good but dirty so we change it and the filter.
Oil sitting in your bike's engine over the winter is no different than if it is still sitting in the conatiner it came it. It is just sitting there.
For fuel injected bikes I have had great luck doing:
- run the tank low in fuel
- fill the tank with high octane fuel and a good fuel stabalizer like Opti2. Not that Canadian Tire crap! (works best if I put the stabilizer in the tank just as I am fueling it up)(or put stabilizer in a gas can and then fill the can, this mixes them, then pour contents into the bike's tank)
- change the engine oil and filter
- start the bike, check for leaks
- go for a short ride getting it up to operating temperature and the stopping/accelerating/turning will aid in completely mixing the fuel/stabilizer in the tank and get it into the fuel lines...
- remove the battery and take into the warm basement
- stick a rag in the muffler outlet and maybe the engine air intakes to help keep mice.... out
- roll bike in garage (if unheated) so that a short thin board is under each tire to get them off the cold/freezing concrete
- go sit by the fireplace until spring
- I have heard of too many batteries being damaged or having their life shortened by leaving them continuously connected to a Battery Tender. Optimates 3 & 4 are a totally different item and seem to cause not problems. Optimate's are what Honda and other manufacturers demand their dealers use or no warranty on any battery.
- I never hook anything to the battery and simply check the battery once every 2 months with a voltmeter to ensure it is aroud 13 volts. Never needed to charge one yet in the past 5 years.
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handlegrip
Active member
Why not ride in winter when possible? That's what I do. Storing a motor with clean oils is better than storing a motor with soiled oil.
Make sure it had a good ride before you turn it off. I don't know what the big deal is about the sacred winter storage is. Just keep your battery inside
Replace every 4 years whether it needs it or not (don't take chances batteries are cheap) I don,t even use fuel stabilizer any more, the new
fuels are so clean that a couple of months in a cold settings will do little to them. Hey it works for me and I did not retire my ride until it hit 175,000. KMS. (mainly due to transmission problems.) Keep it clean.
Make sure it had a good ride before you turn it off. I don't know what the big deal is about the sacred winter storage is. Just keep your battery inside
Replace every 4 years whether it needs it or not (don't take chances batteries are cheap) I don,t even use fuel stabilizer any more, the new
fuels are so clean that a couple of months in a cold settings will do little to them. Hey it works for me and I did not retire my ride until it hit 175,000. KMS. (mainly due to transmission problems.) Keep it clean.
Gryphon
Well-known member
Lots of good info in replies already...
But some sarcasm so let me be clear.
Motor oil will not 'break down over winter'.
Dirty, used motor oil however is highly acidic and contains particulate contaminants in suspension.
These will all settle out and create 1/2 inch of sludge in the bottom of your oil sump (or oil storage in dry-sump system) over the winter.
You will face a big job in spring, trying to get sludge mixed up in oil again so it can be drained and therefore removed...
Much easier to simply drain oil after your final ride of the season.
Nice clean new oil is the ONLY way to store anything, even for just a coupla months, there's actually no debate...
So, you have 'heard recommendations' for post-winter oil change - ie. wait until spring!?
LoL, heheh...
You're not playin' us, are you Matt?
Riceburner
Well-known member
Oil change, clean and prep before storage. In the spring, put the batt in and ride. You might go a shorter interval for the next oil change if you like.
ride2rideagain
Well-known member
I would...Oil isn't that expensive. If you do have expensive oil and cannot part with it early, I'd drain it into a clean container, and put cheap oil for the winter so atleast the bike sits with fresh oil. Then re use the other oil come spring.
matt365
Well-known member
That's nothing... I'd leave it in. If you said 4,000k? yeah.
Neither. Change it when it's due.
The only exception is when the change is almost due (less than quarter life left) when the season is over. Anything more than that is a waste of time, money and the environment.
When it's due? For me, 7-9,000Km, depending on several factors. Never sooner than 6, never later than 10.
The only exception is when the change is almost due (less than quarter life left) when the season is over. Anything more than that is a waste of time, money and the environment.
When it's due? For me, 7-9,000Km, depending on several factors. Never sooner than 6, never later than 10.
Mr.Azim
Well-known member
That seems a little long to me..... but if your service manual says that, do what you will. Mine says to change every 6,000 km's or 6 months (excluding winter storage).
Whatever your bike is... change according to the recommended service table in your owner's manual. Unless you're riding in race/track environments, in which case should be much sooner (after every race weekend or every second track day).
If I don't follow the recommended factory specs, it's because I'm changing oil sooner, never later.
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My oil analysis says to change it every 7,500Km and that's the only figure I consider relevant. That analysis was done after 6,500Km in a lot of stop and go traffic in the middle of the summer with my oil temperatures frequently exceeding 120 degrees. There were no unusual findings and the oil was still well within it's operating parameters with plenty of additives left and viscosity in the ballpark. I'm sure my engine is safe with up to 10,000Km per oil change depending on the conditions I ride in. I use only Mobil1 15W-50 for the past 110,000Km and use 3.5" oil filters (Mobil1 M1-110) that are considerably better quality than Suzuki OEM spec.
That's always a good general recommendation for those that won't be bothered with oil analysis.
Good for you. I found that extended intervals make a lot of sense on long trips. Change oil/filter, ride to Death Valley and back, change it again. One less worry and more time to ride.
