Oil and Oil Filter Change

I change my oil every 2,500 miles. There are a large number of threads concerning oil brand preferences. I think it best to change oil and filter often rather than use an expensive oil that is expected to retain good lubricative properties for extensive periods. I only use the Kawasaki OEM oil filter.

Tools:
drain pan
strap oil filter wrench or an oil filter socket
17mm socket
replacement oil filter.
new drain plug gasket
torque wrench.
4.1 liters (4 and a third quarts) of fresh oil --I think it's a must to use motorcycle specific oil or oil approved for wet clutches, Use conventional 10W-40, avoid synthetic oil until 3000 miles or more----Do a search of the many oil threads we have here and elsewhere on the internet.

1. Start the engine and warm it thoroughly.

With the bike on the side stand, place a drain pan on the floor under the oil drain plug.

Remove the oil drain plug and the gasket with a 17mm socket.

Allow all the oil to drain.

2. Always apply a film of oil to the rubber gasket on the new replacement oil filter.

For more instant oil circulation on the first start after an oil filter change, prefill the new filter with oil. It will be half full after the oil to absorbs into the air spaces in the filter. There is no sense in filling it beyond that point because it will only spill out when the filter is installed.

3. Make sure the drain pan is under the oil filter.

Remove the old filter with a strap oil filter wrench or an oil filter socket.

You can allow the oil to drain from the open oil filter mount but I wouldn't worry about draining every last drop. The oil pump will loose more of its prime and this will make the engine run without lubrication a little longer when you start it.

4. Thread the filter on until it touches the base. Then turn somewhere between 1/2 and 3/4 of a turn.

Do not tighten more than 3/4 of a turn or it will be very difficult to remove the filter. A torque wrench can be used to install the filter if a oil filter socket is used.

oil filter torque: 13 foot pounds, Service Manual (Owners manual says 23 foot pounds but I think that is a typo.)

5. Install the engine oil drain plug and a new gasket. Torque the plug with a torque wrench and 17 mm socket.

Engine Oil Drain Plug Torque: 22 foot pounds. --I use 15 ft lbs and have no problems.

A new gasket is supposed to be used each time the drain plug is installed. If you do not over-torque the plug you can reuse a gasket many times without the gasket hole locking onto the threads.

6. Pour 4.1 liters (4 and a third quarts) of fresh oil into the oil filler cap. The oil level will probably appear to be very overfull before the oil is circulated.

7. Start the engine and observe for leaks from the filter or the drain plug.

Allow the circulated oil to run back to the crankcase and the engine to cool for at least 5 hours, preferably over night.

Hold the bike vertical and do a cold check of the oil level. The level should be between the marks to the side of the oil level sight glass. If not, add or drain the appropriate amount of oil to the crankcase.

Cold Engine
Level Surface
Vertical bike
Always check on the same spot of the same floor

In my opinion, hot/warm checks of oil level are very unreliable because of heat expansion and oil dispersion throughout the engine. The bike needs to be balanced directly at center on its wheels and also on a very level floor. Therefore, it is wise to always check oil level on a cold engine and with the bike in the same position on the same surface. You will get consistent readings if you do these 3 things.

* Last updated by: Rook on 8/5/2017 @ 9:14 PM *

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A new drain plug is supposed to be used each time the drain plug is installed.

Do you mean crush washer bud?
Also... the 14R drain bolt is parallel to the filter. I guess they repositioned it.

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Rook; How about using a more expensive oil because it has better lubrication properties ALL the time. Just because you can run it longer doesn't mean you have to. To each his own, and I'm not saying you, but it amazes me how some guys can drop $$$$$$$ into a bike, and then buy the cheapest oil they can get away with. Cheap oil is cheap oil at 3000 miles or 10 miles. Not trying to steal your thread, or start a debate. I think your how-tos are the best! I'll probably delete this tomorrow. Just had to open my big mouth.

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Hagrid mentioned.."A new drain plug is supposed to be used each time the drain plug is installed"...not on my bike it aint.Them friggin Goldplugs are spendy baby.....same bolt(Goldplug like Rookster's),same gasket(actually...came off my 07...4 years on that lovely beast!Never torqued her to spec ever.But it's all good...Rook's gettin er done the real right way...another AWESOME HOW-TO!!!!WTG Rook!

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 6/6/2012 @ 12:55 AM *

A new drain plug is supposed to be used each time the drain plug is installed.
Do you mean crush washer bud?

yup, thanks, hagrid. fixed that.

Rook; How about using a more expensive oil because it has better lubrication properties ALL the time.

I'm not against that except when I bought $70 oil it was plain old normal oil after 500 miles of use. The cam chain rattled and first gear banged in, shifting was just lain average. I have only tried 4 or 5 oils but so far the best oil I used is fresh oil and that includes fresh, cheap oil.

Not trying to steal your thread, or start a debate. I think your how-tos are the best! I'll probably delete this tomorrow.

oil threads start all the time..I actually thought about trying to write a consensus of all of the oil threads we have and include that with this how-to. I think it's fine if it gets touched on here. Prolly not go more than 6 or 7 posts in this section.

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Hagrid mentioned.."A new drain plug is supposed to be used each time the drain plug is installed".

He was pointing out my error..I wrote that the plug needs to be changed (which I am now going to go fix). The plug should be good for ever but the gasket is supposed to get changed every time you remove the plug. I have used my gasket over and over. Fine if you don't overdo the torquing. If you torque too much, that can be hard on the soft aluminum threads in the oil pan and as some of us have found, the gasket expands and squashes onto the bolt threads. I had to chisel one off one time.

THANKS< Grn!!

* Last updated by: Rook on 6/6/2012 @ 10:02 AM *

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@Rook: I should have pointed that out to you privately. It just now occurred to me and I apologize
if I came off a little authoritative. And I was mentioning the 14R cuz if someone reads your tutorial they may have trouble finding their drain bolt. Maybe Grn could send you a snap of his scoot?

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No problem, hagrid, I can tell you know more than I do so I am glad to be corrected. Thank you for proofing the turtorial. Any time anything looks wrong, I am glad to be made aware of it. If I disagree, then I just don't correct it. The issue is adressed in the comments. In this case, I obviously wrote the wrong thing so I changed it.

Thanks.

and, I imagine some day people will start writing 14r specific tutorials but there is no harm in pointing out as much stuff that applies ti the new bike as possible. Wish I had one.

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"I can tell you know more than I do so I am glad to be corrected."

Not so fast young man. While it is true that theory and abstracts come easily to me, experience trumps mastery of technical
descriptions and schematics. Healthy portions of both disciplines are best and your tutorials display just that prominently.

;)

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I am of the opinion that if the bike was parked with the motor hot, you're better off not to warm the engine before an oil change. All the oil should have drained down into the sump and firing it up may make it run out better, but it seems like more old, dirty oil would end up clinging to parts inside the motor. Just a theory, I haven't measured the drained oil in both scenarios.

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^^I've had the same idea, Danno. I have not ever tried to compare oil drain quantity of hot engine vs cold but it seems definite that all of the oil DOES take a VERY long time to drain all the way back to the pan after the motor has been shut down. You can tell by how long the oil drips from the drain hole after the pan has been emptied. I've let my bike sit and drain for a couple hours and it will still drip when you lift it off the side stand. Let it sit another hour and it will drip more. There may be some value to running the motor so that all the impurities get stirred up and suspended in the oil. However, draining the pan cold should be the best way to eliminate the largest amount of old oil.

I guess if one wanted to be as thorough as possible, the bike could be drained hot and then allowed to sit over night to be drained a final time after as much oil as possible has run to the pan. There will always be a couple ounces of oil that pools in the head and perhaps elsewhere in the engine.

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Sorry for bein such a newb, but I always hated using the hash marks to tell oil level. Can someone post a pic of the window with oil at the proper level?

If you fill a motor with the recommended amount...including filter....and start the bike(to 'fill' the filter)...then shut off...let sit...and raise the bike vertical and check...it should always be at that same spot unless it's burning oil.Between the lines...that's what the manual says.Bike vertical.Do it like that...you won't have any issues with oiling.Checking the level is very simple.Vertical bike....check sightglass.Go from there.You won't get an accurate read if the bike is on rearstands.If you've drained the oil...and replaced with the manual amounts....it will never be 'wrong'.

Getting the bike vertical to check...you can feel the balance point...that's where ya check the oil at.BETWEEN the marks.Anywhere between the marks.

* Last updated by: Grn14 on 2/8/2013 @ 8:08 PM *

If you are new to the bike, it may be hard to get your head down there and hold the bike vertical at the same time. Vertical is where the bike balances with 0 effort so I just hold my hand on the seat and my calf against the muffler with my other knee on the floor. Then put my head down to as close to look (like doing a very low bow on one knee). You might want to have someone look for you while you balance the bike at vertical, then mark the level with a piece of tape on the glass. It's a little heavy and scary the first few times if you are not used to it. Should be fine if you leave the side stand down. Also, you can put a 2 x 4 under the side stand and that should put the bike almost at level....you do need to feel the bike balance at level though. A few degrees tilted makes a big dif in the level.

Also, it's been my experience that ONLY checking the oil on a cold motor is the way to do it. It takes hours and hours for every bit to run down to the crankcase after the motor runs. If the bike runs up to temperature and then sits for 20 minutes, the reading may actually be higher because of heat expansion. You need to check it cold.

If you add oil, you need to give it 45 minutes to make sure it all runs over the clutch plates and down to the level. You can't get an accurate reading immediately.

If the bike is vertical and cold and the oil level is between the lines, that's good. I've run mine almost to the low mark when it was using oil and it never blew up. Get 'er somewhere between the lines and you're ok. above or below, I would do something about that before running the bike.

* Last updated by: Rook on 2/8/2013 @ 8:29 PM *

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"If you are new to the bike, it may be hard to get your head down there and hold the bike vertical at the same time"...yup...can be dicey the first few times.I just hold the brake lever and throttle,step back a bit,and pull the bike up.WITH that partial bow;)Cold...yes...most definitely.

Rook for President......

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Alternative way to check oil level: Sit on bike, hold level, reach down and take picture of sight glass with smart phone. No fuss :)

...probably the best one man way to do that! Thanks toncinator! I have tried using a hand mirror. Might work in good light.

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Great thread, Rook - Thank you (and everybody else who chimed in)

Question: Why the hell would Kawasaki make us have to read the sight glass with the bike centered / balanced instead of while resting on its side stand

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good question. I wondered the same thing myself...or "why not a dipstick?" My guess, there is always potential for variation in the height of sidestands (even if OEM) not to mention the variation of "level" in garage floors. Gravity is always straight up and down and as you can tell, a few degrees makes quite a difference in the oil level check. Always check cold and always while parked in the same place, exact same position. totally reliable.

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I'm going to assume they build engines upright, formulate capacities; aim the window right there on the cover; emboss 2 sight levels into the cover; call this [level in the middle of those sights >to aim for<].

Book: If you changed oil filter; start engine for a few minutes and then shut off. Wait more minutes so the oil from the top comes down. Stand bike upright on wheels and level bike. Sight in window that if the oil is above the middle of the upper and lower levels, remove. If lower than the middle of the upper and lower, then add.

In between the lines: Seems like the bike does not run hot enough if the oil is a start and stop process in less than 3 minutes? How cold is that engine oil getting now waiting for the oil to come down from the top? Book says if you changed the filter, add this much more. If not, start and stop adding this much. If full engine rebuild, then this much in L or Qts, start and stop for these 3 capacities: it's all about formula.

What I see is cold as the level, I read in between the lines of the book. I'm going to check in the morning. Why? I didn't say I had the bike propped up against the wall all straight and level, strapped to the wall. I figure whatever stays up in the top end, that part does not count, the upright calls the ball in the morning. I either suck it out or add seeing I have to aim in the middle of the upper and lower bosses.

If I look inside that crankcase I see two capacities. Air and oil. The more oil, the tighter the compression. Less oil level is less compressing and no bumper helper stepper-upper-winkie-dinkie... Say Nut'Inn To Knowbody.

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Seems like the bike does not run hot enough if the oil is a start and stop process in less than 3 minutes? How cold is that engine oil getting now waiting for the oil to come down from the top?

I believe the oil gets hotter and probably holds most of that heat if you run the bike 2 minutes. My engine feels warm after running just two minutes. The problem is now that you ran the bike and circulated the oil, it takes a hell of a long time for most of it t o return to the crankcase. Run the bike two minutes and then check two minutes later, you will definitely get a very low reading through the sightglass. It takes at least 45 minutes for most of the oil to run back to the crankcase. The reason I think cold checks are the way to go is when I do an oil and filter change, I pour in 4 whole quarts + about 1/3 of a quart more. The oil level is high. Run bike saturate filter. Let stand for a few hours. Oil check will be between the lines on the glass, close to the top line. That's the way it stays every time I look as long as it's a cold check and I do believe there is some value to checking it in the same spot on the floor every time too.

What I see is cold as the level, I read in between the lines of the book. I'm going to check in the morning. Why? I didn't say I had the bike propped up against the wall all straight and level, strapped to the wall. I figure whatever stays up in the top end, that part does not count, the upright calls the ball in the morning. I either suck it out or add seeing I have to aim in the middle of the upper and lower bosses.

Just do an oil/filter change and pour in what the book tells you is the correct oil capacity. the book tells me the gen1 takes 1 gallon 10 oz. 4 quarts + about 1/3 of a quart. (I beleive the 14r capacity is different.) Run the bike then do your cold check 8-10 hours later with the bike strapped to the wall. That's your level line right there. If it changes in the future doing the oil level check the same way you did it the first time, oil got used.

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Just changed my oil last night (Tues) at 505 miles on the ODO. Decided to change it cold. Last time I ran it was 2 days ago (Sun). I figure I'm gonna do it again at 1,000 miles anyway, so what the heck; bought 2 sets of everything yesterday (oil, filters, crush washers). Next time I'll ride it to get it hot and wait 3 - 5 hours for it to cool and for the oil to drain back to the bottom, then drain it.

Anyway ... Last night I removed the drain bolt & oil filter a little before midnight, and when I checked it again this morning at 9:30 (so about 10 hours) it was still dripping about 1 drip every 15 seconds. I'd call that done enough.

I do wonder ... if I rolled the rear wheel up onto a 2x4, so 1.5" higher, and set the kickstand on a 1x4 (0.75"), so the drain hole is definitely the lowest point of the motor, instead of being pretty much level with the bottom of the motor, would that get a little more oil and nasty stuff headed toward the drain hole.

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Next time I'll ride it to get it hot and wait 3 - 5 hours for it to cool and for the oil to drain back to the bottom, then drain it.

No, running the motor will stir up and suspend the sludge and particles in the oil so they will come out when you open the plug. Getting the oil hot will reduce viscosity which will make it evacuate faster than cold. Open er up while she's hot. Whatever is trickling down from the top engine will take as long as it takes no matter if you have the plug in the pan or not. If you drain it hot, you can still let it sit over night to let the oil that has circulated drain back and run out the hole (as long as your sure nothing will get up inside there overnight---like a mouse or beetles). If you are worried about engine contamination, recap the pan after it slows to a trickle and drain the last few ounces the day after. If you let all the oil sit and cool off, the larger contaminants will settle to the bottom of the pan and they are less likely to drain out with the oil. Probably a finer point, but I still prefer to drain hot for the aforementioned reasons.

Last night I removed the drain bolt & oil filter a little before midnight, and when I checked it again this morning at 9:30 (so about 10 hours) it was still dripping about 1 drip every 15 seconds

yep. that's what i mean. it takes for ever for all the oil to drain back which is exactly why hot checks are useless (not to mention hot oil expands and thus increases the volume of oil in the engine). I agree, a drip every 15 seconds is as bout as empty as you can get.

I have used a rear stand to drain oil which elevated the rear tire about 8" higher than the front tire. I think about the same amount of oil comes out either way. Lower the bike off the rear stand and the drip becomes a stream. Oil gets trapped in the front of the pan with the rear elevated. Also, lifting the rear up makes the oil splash more when it is running fast. I always got oil on the floor. Side stand is the way to go. Sit on the bike and level it to drain the last drops.

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