Oil (consumption)
 

Hi all,
I am a bit dissapointed in the oil-consumption of my KLR. Bought a KLR650 built 98 with 4000 km last year. Has now 8000 km.
Always use semi-synthetic 10W40 and refill with bike upright against wall till oil level is just above max-marker.
Found that the bike uses around 650-700ml on 1000 km (mixed conditions: country road, highway).
I find this quite a lot. I plan to do longer trips (Nord Cape next june , Panamericana year after), and think it is quite annoying to carry 2 litres of extra oil.
Any hints, tips greatly appreciated...!
Gijs.

It seems like a lot of oil to me too, (unless we were talking about BMW's). I rarely have to add oil between oil changes (3,000 miles) and if i do it's only a minute amount.

I hope you don't have a mechancal issue. It's not noticably burning oil is it?

Kurt

Hi Kurt,
nope, no burning (blue smoke) behind bike.
A kawa-dealer told me, one should not do anything as long as the engine does not consume more the 1 litre per 1000 km. According to him the Kawasaki-factory finds this within engine-tolerance.
I had the thought as well, that the previous owner might not have broken in the engine properly (drove only 1000 km / year). Any thought ?
Gijs

BMW has a similar spec for thier oil head boxer's. I have one and it burns almost no oil. Others tell me they burn up to 1qt per 1000 miles. I've never heard what the difference might be. Sounds like a similar thing with the KLR's. But, a 650 is nearly half the displacement of a boxer engine, so it still seems like a lot to me. Also, seems like dealers are always saying, "It's supposed to do that."

Anyone else have ideas?

Kurt

My KLR has suddenly gone from never burning oil to burning the same amount. The only cause I can think of is some sand that fell into the chamber during recent roadside sparkplug cleaning sessions. Aside from leaks and the airbox, there's only burning to explain losing oil, right?

James

Another reason for burning oil:
A big single cylinder (650 cc) has a big piston which while moving up and down slides from one side of the cylinder lining to the other side...

Allot of KLR dealers and riders overtighten their chains.
This can cause excessive torque on the countershaft sprocket, causing damage to the seal behind it.
It's not easy to detect, because there is normally chain lube deposited in that area.
If you don't see smoke from the exhaust and don't pull much soot out of the exhaust port with your finger, clean around the front sprocket area to detect a leak there.

Hey Gijs- My girlfriend and I just passed the 13000 mile mark on our KLRs after riding for the last five months through the US, Mex and Central Am. Almost like clockwork both bikes will burn 1/2 liter every 1000 miles(1600km) with semi-syn oil of differing brands. I thought it was a bit high also but the amount has not changed at all despite varied conditions, weather and speed. I think it is an acceptable amount all things considered. Cheers. www.rtw101.com