strange occurances...

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joesteggs

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Location
grand rapids
Hey all,
My "new" 86 vmax is acting strange.... i was going through oil like a mother, and I kept filling it up, but i would park it on dry cement and didn't see any puddles. Now I finally put 2 quarts in at the same time (my looking glass is worthless for clarity), and i had enough in that I could stick my finger in and there was oil about half an inch down. I took it for a ride last night, and on hard acceleration, I blew out massive clouds of smoke (new). My wife was following me and had to slow down to get out of it, however, when not revving around 6-9 grand, no smoke. Also, when I revved it really hard, it was like I had a big loss of horsepower at around 80mph. I left it parked while we were doing some shopping, looked at the bike and a big pool of oil under it. Rode it home, and I have had a lot of issues with the bike, and today it was running great, (no missing, popping, or surging) I revved it up to pass her on the highway and huge clouds again, then she just shut off... couldn't start again either, It would turn over once and stop. So, she is just sitting on the side of the highway right now, gonna go try to figure something out... any suggestions?
 
Too much oil is not a good thing to do. It can cause some serious problems. You need to get the "Looking Glass" cleared up. Either replace it or pull the pan and clean it with Q-Tips. If you have an 86, do something to fix the Dreaded O-Ring while you're in there.. Exhaust has to come off to accomplish any of this....

Good Luck,,,,
 
When the oil level is over full you will blow oil into the air filter box and into the carbs through the filter making it smoke really bad. Clean the air box and filter ( may want to replace the air filter ) clean the oil level sight glass to prevent over filling with oil.
 
Sounds like you have way too much oil in your crankcase. The sight glass is the only way I know of to check the oil, which method are you using?
 
honestly, really new to the motorcycle thing, and was more worried about too little oil than too much, sounds like it bit me in the ass :) Would that cause it to shut off too, or is that a seperate problem most likely? I know i have a bunch of electrical issues with the bike as well. Also, I heard 10w40 oil.... Is there a difference between car oil and bike oil besides the wieght?
 
honestly, really new to the motorcycle thing, and was more worried about too little oil than too much, sounds like it bit me in the ass :) Would that cause it to shut off too, or is that a seperate problem most likely? I know i have a bunch of electrical issues with the bike as well. Also, I heard 10w40 oil.... Is there a difference between car oil and bike oil besides the wieght?

http://www.vmaxforum.net/showthread.php?t=1198

Read here for oil info. Only two basic ideas you need to know.
#1- its clean
#2- it is NOT an energy conserving oil
 
You should have a lot of members in your area. Get acquainted and hopefully they will be like the guys here in Central Florida. Willing to get together and help. Generally people on this site will treat you like a brother. Or, even better...
 
Also, I heard 10w40 oil.... Is there a difference between car oil and bike oil besides the wieght?

uh oh, you just reopened pandora's box! hehehehehe:rofl_200:

be sure to place the bike on its center stand (if you still have it) when checking the oil glass
 
Too much oil can do alot of things, at minumum it can make the crank case overpressurize from the pistons coming down, that displaced air has to have some place to go.....It will also drag on the crank and kill horsepower

Full enough and I could see where you could get some sort of "Hydraulic" effect by attempting to compress what cannot be compressed......doing real physical damage to the internals or case........
 
HOLY SHIT!!! You have enough oil in the bike that it's a half an inch below the fill hole?

That's where I put it when I store the bike...

My guess is you're covering (fowling) the plugs with oil and it's not allowing it to start.

Dump the ALL THE OIL OUT including filter and put the correct AMOUNT of oil in per the manual. Do NOT use the looking glass until you know it's clear and useable.

Also remember when you use it, the bike must NOT be on the side stand and be on level ground. Most of us balance the bike on the tires and take a look.

Chris
 
thanks for the advice guys. I appreciate the quick responses! I will change out the oil. She didn't come with a manual, I looked at the above thread.... seems like there are alot of conflicting theory's on what type of oil should be used... is there one that is just safe to use and not necessarily the best but just usable?
 
thanks for the advice guys. I appreciate the quick responses! I will change out the oil. She didn't come with a manual, I looked at the above thread.... seems like there are alot of conflicting theory's on what type of oil should be used... is there one that is just safe to use and not necessarily the best but just usable?

Shell Rotella T 15-40 is a very popular choice for the vmax. Walmart usually has it for the best price.
 
Shell Rotella T 15-40 is a very popular choice for the vmax. Walmart usually has it for the best price.

+1 Shell RotellaT is actually diesel oil but it works great in the max and is probably the least expensive oil out there.

I get it in 2 1/2 gal. containers from Tractor Supply.

Unfortunately there are as many different opinions on the subject of 'which is the best oil' as there are v max riders. Read the threads if you want, they will bury you in the detail weeds! :rofl_200: Or just go get a gallon of RotellaT.

But most importantly....drain the 2 - 3 gallons you have in the bike now, clean the site glass and look in the VMF Links for the Service Manual links and print them out...in fact I'll get them for you:

pdf.gif
Vmax service manual

&
Haynes Vmax Service Manual
 
thanks for the advice guys. I appreciate the quick responses! I will change out the oil. She didn't come with a manual, I looked at the above thread.... seems like there are alot of conflicting theory's on what type of oil should be used... is there one that is just safe to use and not necessarily the best but just usable?

The best oil???

CLEAN OIL!

Stay away from oils with friction modifiers, they aren't good for the friction plates in your clutch.....even then they won't damage your motor, can just cause the clutch to slip....

And absolutely diesel oils are great motorcycle oils since the have more (Zinc? I think it is) the zinc is supposed to protect the bearings better if surface tension is broken....

But I don't use them, usually use Castrol 20-50 and change it often
 
thanks guys! I appreciate it. I pulled the plugs off and drained the oil last night. (all four were fouled out) I am going to go change the oil now. Figured out my sight glass isn't bad, it was just so full it was hard to see.... feeling kind of silly right now :) But thankfully it's an easy fix!
 
thanks guys! I appreciate it. I pulled the plugs off and drained the oil last night. (all four were fouled out) I am going to go change the oil now. Figured out my sight glass isn't bad, it was just so full it was hard to see.... feeling kind of silly right now :) But thankfully it's an easy fix![/QUOTE

Don't feel too silly about it. I used to work with a guy who did the same thing to an old XS11. Just feel fortunate you didn't do any worse damage than you did. Lesson leaarned, right ?
 
absolutely. :) She is up and running again. I have had surging problems in the past with her, but it seems to be worse than usual (takes about 10-5 minutes of riding till they stop) is it possible the carbs need to be cleaned because oil ran through them? Or is it an unrelated issue (possibly carb cleaning or syncing)
 
I'd Check the fuel filter, then put a sync on the carbs (A sync never hurts ) then put a couple of shots of seafoam in the tank and ride it to see if anything changes.

You might need a clean, but seafoam might take care of things.
 
I'd Check the fuel filter, then put a sync on the carbs (A sync never hurts ) then put a couple of shots of seafoam in the tank and ride it to see if anything changes.

You might need a clean, but seafoam might take care of things.

By shots, he means ounces... not cans... ;)
 
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