So of course I've seen many mentions of the oil warning light illuminating briefly or flickering under hard acceleration. And the consensus seems to be that it is due to the location of the sensor at the front of the pan above the sump, and the fact that it's sensing for the presence of oil rather than oil pressure and therefore momentary illumination is nothing to worry about. My experience is not a perfect match to those circumstances so I'd like some input from the community about it. Mine is a 1997 I bought last November in somewhat scruffy but running shape. It shows 14,000 miles on the odo, but I wouldn't bet the farm that it's accurate. Anyway, since I got it I've been driving it pretty hard but I never saw the oil light flicker until yesterday. What alarmed me was that I was not accelerating very hard when it lit up and it didn't flicker, it came on solid. What I was doing was leaving it in a low gear and accelerating gradually (the reason why is another thread). When it hit about 8,000 rpm the light came right on. It went off as soon as I let off the throttle and the revs came down. I had hit 8,000 rpm and higher many times before while accelerating aggressively, but only for a second or so because redline and shift happened very soon after but as I said, never an oil light. So I'm worried about this because oil moving to the back of the engine due to acceleration doesn't explain it. When I got home I checked the oil level with the bike on the centerstand and it was maybe a hair below midway between the sight glass marks. I added oil until it's maybe a hair above the upper mark and haven't ridden yet to see if that solves it. Anybody else experienced this?
Yet another "oil light" discussion:
- Thread starter VMAX_Jon_NC
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Yeah, I wouldn't worry about it. if the oil was where you said it was. Contact Sean Morley about his oil system upgrades ( a winter project), you can do 'em w/the engine still in the frame. [email protected]
Use the search function and read up on 'popped O-ring' and oil pump improvements
Use the search function and read up on 'popped O-ring' and oil pump improvements
MaxMidnight
Well-Known Member
Agree with Mr Medic. If the bike has survived 14K of use I doubt there is an issue.
Don't feed your paranoia until you have ridden it again and seen what difference adding oil has made.
However, Mr Medic might just have added to your concerns by mentioning the ring that begins with 'O'
My advice is to ignore his advice it and DON'T investigate what has been written about the ring that shall not be mentioned.
IMO it is a non issue and only serves to cause concern where there need not be any.
Don't feed your paranoia until you have ridden it again and seen what difference adding oil has made.
However, Mr Medic might just have added to your concerns by mentioning the ring that begins with 'O'
My advice is to ignore his advice it and DON'T investigate what has been written about the ring that shall not be mentioned.
IMO it is a non issue and only serves to cause concern where there need not be any.
Thanks guys. And Sir Midnight, the reason I raised the question is because I had already seen some discussions of the O-ring and thought what I experienced might be the tell-tale sign mine needed correcting. I did ride it this morning and with oil at max fill it sustained 9,000 rpm without turning on the light so it seems things are OK. I'll just have to keep a close eye on the oil level (and accept that I'm going to have to address the dripping leak, grrrrr).
Blew mine out on a 99 with 23k miles on it.. did the fix on new motor ..super easy with motor out .. worth the 7$ oring..Agree with Mr Medic. If the bike has survived 14K of use I doubt there is an issue.
Don't feed your paranoia until you have ridden it again and seen what difference adding oil has made.
However, Mr Medic might just have added to your concerns by mentioning the ring that begins with 'O'
My advice is to ignore his advice it and DON'T investigate what has been written about the ring that shall not be mentioned.
IMO it is a non issue and only serves to cause concern where there need not be any.
So I'm curious, how did you know the o-ring was displaced?
Motor started knocking tookmog oilpan
Eric Cunningham
Well-Known Member
In English?
Yeah sorry about that I don't have a lot of time to proofread and all the rest of that jazz but it meant motor started knocking took off oil pan
brian hicks
Well-Known Member
brian hicks
Well-Known Member
My 1200 Vmax has 20000miles on the clock and when I accelerate hard the oil light comes on for a few seconds but goes off when I back off the revs slightly. The level looks correct in the sight glass so I'm not going to worry about it. It doesn't light on steady running. I suspect it's a common feature of the bike.
MaxMidnight
Well-Known Member
Correct. The oil level sensor is towards the front of the sump. Under hard acceleration the oil moves towards the rear temporarily lowering the level around the sensor thus the light comes on.
Mr Max. I've seec you in several threads persisting that the o ring is a non-issue. Why do you see it that way?
Um let .me say this.. I got a bike put like 11 k on it In on 5 mo.ths...
.....the motor let go...orange was out.. got new motor checked it oring was good..changed it ...12k miles later pop orange mod came out also..so what ima do on number 3??. Yep o ring mod and brace and rubb er puc... I ride my bikes for real..all year long...sometimes I can't warm it up properly...some times I hit 105rpms...either way Ima address the 2x weakpoint in this motor... don't be silly bro...
.....the motor let go...orange was out.. got new motor checked it oring was good..changed it ...12k miles later pop orange mod came out also..so what ima do on number 3??. Yep o ring mod and brace and rubb er puc... I ride my bikes for real..all year long...sometimes I can't warm it up properly...some times I hit 105rpms...either way Ima address the 2x weakpoint in this motor... don't be silly bro...
MaxMidnight
Well-Known Member
Mr Semi239, I don't know how many Maxii were sold world wide but what I do know is that the oldest is 38 years old and the youngest 18 years old.
I also suspect that a significant number have been and still are running perfectly happy with a displaced O ring.
I've been on this site since 2007 and have read countless threads on a myriad of topics. Some come up regularly and point to weak points in the bike.
One thing I don't read about is engines blowing up on a regular basis due to lubrication failure. If the O ring was such a big issue then I would expect to have read many posts on the issue but they just aren't there.
Additionally, if it was an issue then wouldn't Yamaha addressed the problem? Engine failure isn't good publicity, would be extremely costly in repairs and reputation and would affect sales (think Honda camshafts). That they updated the oil delivery pipe in '01 (?) is, IMO, more likely to do the the original tooling wearing out rather than an acknowledgement of a fault some 16 years after its debut.
I'm not saying that engines haven't failed but just because the O ring may have popped it doesn't automatically follow that was the causal fault. Owners have been known to not top the oil up or change it regularly and others have abused the engine beyond the design limit.
In previous threads on this and other sites I have asked for factual evidence that engines have had lubrication failure in significant numbers down to the O ring causing oil starvation. I'm still waiting.
As always I'm happy to be proven wrong.
BUT...paranoia is a terrible thing (mea culpa) and I can recall the oil dripping down to my elbows as I sated mine.
Two things to do if you feel the need i) Replace the orange ring with the Kawasaki oval ring (# 92055-1147) ii) Let the engine get operating temperature before giving it a handful of welly. Better still fit an oil pressure gauge so you know when the oil is at operating temperature.
I ride my bike like ride it ride it...like main transportation ride it.. normally if I let my bike run for a full 4 min b4 I get on it its a miracle
... normally it's choke crank ruiuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnn ..fall off choke time to go...so I may not be the advice guy on mechanical matters. But both my bearing spun motors had oring bussed out
.
... normally it's choke crank ruiuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuunnnn ..fall off choke time to go...so I may not be the advice guy on mechanical matters. But both my bearing spun motors had oring bussed out
.
MaxMidnight
Well-Known Member
It will take more than four minutes to bring the engine up to operating temperature.
In your post #14 you say that you hit 105 rpm (should that be 10500?) - that may also be what caused to the failures.
In your post #14 you say that you hit 105 rpm (should that be 10500?) - that may also be what caused to the failures.
Robby Tweak
Active Member
I only have a Vmax for a couple of months now and i was noticed/adressed to the
O ring "problem" soon on motorforums.
I ordered a modificated O ring from exactrep in the UK and another site in Germany offered a oil pan enlargement kit who also solves the Oring problem permanently. I can only say that if you feel comfortable to replace it, to do so. For me it gives me a peace of mind and it is not much work to do. Greetings Robby
O ring "problem" soon on motorforums.
I ordered a modificated O ring from exactrep in the UK and another site in Germany offered a oil pan enlargement kit who also solves the Oring problem permanently. I can only say that if you feel comfortable to replace it, to do so. For me it gives me a peace of mind and it is not much work to do. Greetings Robby
gcurtis102
Member
I put an oil pressure gauge on mine just for the peace of mind. Pressure is higher (60 - 70 psi ) on start up and drops to ( 15-20 psi) after warm-up. I have been told this is normal.
I agree with Max Midnight. Many gen 1 bikes were sold over a 22 year model life and if the O ring was a problem we would know about it by now. I bought my gen 1 with about 35000 miles on it and completely stripped the engine to get all covers and cases powder coated for cosmetic reasons. O ring was displaced, but there were apparently no ill-effects on the motor (such as wear to the camshaft journals in the heads) so I re-assembled it replacing only service items such as plain bearings, oil seals, camchains and tensioner blades. It runs really well. I fabricated my own bracket to support the oil delivery pipe in the correct position, and replaced the O ring. I am now thinking that it was not necessary, but if the engine is in bits there is little reason not to do it.
