Oil change light

[splake0]

So if you change your own oil is there a way to turn off the oil change light? I mean without BUDS.

[jcoats1]

Oil change light? All you have is an oil pressure lite, and if it is on it is probably to late...

[splake0]

Oil change light? All you have is an oil pressure lite, and if it is on it is probably to late...

Was told it would have a change oil service light. Does it not?

[trikermutha]

What year is the Spyder?

[ARtraveler]

Was told it would have a change oil service light. Does it not?

No oil change service light that I am aware of. There is an oil pressure light mentioned above, and a low gas light. Have not heard about an oil change service light.

If we are wrong about this...anyone who knows for sure...please come on and let us know.

[splake0]

what year is the spyder?

2015 rts

[BajaRon]

There is no 'Oil Change Light'. But as mentioned, there is a low oil pressure light. I'm hoping that you're just asking and you don't actually have the oil pressure light (called an 'Idiot' light, nothing personal, just what they are called). If your oil pressure light is on while the engine is running, regardless of the reason. You need to shut off the engine until you can determine why. No oil pressure for any length of time will kill your engine. Game Over!

This light may come on for a few seconds after an oil change, this is OK. And the reason you should not rev the engine after an oil change for the first 30 seconds or so after the light, if it did come one, goes out.

[splake0]

There is no 'Oil Change Light'. But as mentioned, there is a low oil pressure light. I'm hoping that you're just asking and you don't actually have the oil pressure light (called an 'Idiot' light, nothing personal, just what they are called). If your oil pressure light is on while the engine is running, regardless of the reason. You need to shut off the engine until you can determine why. No oil pressure for any length of time will kill your engine. Game Over!

This light may come on for a few seconds after an oil change, this is OK. And the reason you should not rev the engine after an oil change for the first 30 seconds or so after the light, if it did come one, goes out.

I am aware of an low oil light and the ramifications that go with it. I was told that there is a change oil light when an oil change is required. But it appears (by all the comments) that there isn’t such a light.

[BLUEKNIGHT911]

I am aware of an low oil light and the ramifications that go with it. I was told that there is a change oil light when an oil change is required. But it appears (by all the comments) that there isn’t such a light.

If a DEALER told you this ....... run from them and never go back .... find a reliable dealer ..... Mike

[JayBros]

If a DEALER told you this ....... run from them and never go back .... find a reliable dealer ..... Mike

Amen!!! When I did my first oil change the operator's guide says the oil pressure light goes out in 5 seconds and they were the longest 5 seconds of my Spyder ownership life but it went out right on time.

[carbonation]

The Spyder does not have an OLM (Oil Life Monitor). No oil change light.
Your 15 should recommend 9000 mile oil changes.
I recommend you make believe the light comes on about half that.

[RudyB]

Why if you use the proper oil you can go the full 9200 miles

[Mikey]

[Little Blue]

You can change the oil at 9000 miles or 1 year. Check it out in your owners manual. Enjoy your Ryde Time and be Safe. .....

[JayBros]

Why if you use the proper oil you can go the full 9200 miles

Because the Rotax engineers have tested the living daylights out of engines using the oil they prescribed and have found the engines can easily withstand such use. Equally important, the corporate lawyers have carefully consulted with the engineers and have determined that if a customer follows the engineers recommended service interval the company as a whole can prevail to an acceptable degree in suits brought by owners for engines that fail when owners follow the engineers' recommended change interval. Remember too that with the 1330 ACE engine the oil and filter change interval is 9,300 miles or one year, whichever comes first.

[carbonation]

Why if you use the proper oil you can go the full 9200 miles

I suggest you dive into researching "used oil analysis".
I can assure you that at 9200 miles, your 40 weight oil will check in at a 20 weight.
By 4000 miles, you are in the 30 weight range because of the shearing effects on the viscosity improvers in the oil.
If everyone thinks that's OK, go ahead and change with a 5w20 oil in the first place. If 20 weight is good enough at 9000 miles, it must be good enough at zero.
Do what you want, your choice.
There is more to oil science than a manufacturers recommendation, because their goal is only to get past warranty.

[2dogs]

I run Amsoil 10W40 and it shears down to 20W in approx. 4k/5k miles and remains there until 9k miles. All confirmed by oil analysis results.

[Steve W.]

I suggest you dive into researching "used oil analysis".
I can assure you that at 9200 miles, your 40 weight oil will check in at a 20 weight.
By 4000 miles, you are in the 30 weight range because of the shearing effects on the viscosity improvers in the oil.
If everyone thinks that's OK, go ahead and change with a 5w20 oil in the first place. If 20 weight is good enough at 9000 miles, it must be good enough at zero.
Do what you want, your choice.
There is more to oil science than a manufacturers recommendation, because their goal is only to get past warranty.

Do you think there might be ANY possibility that the engine is DESIGNED to run on an oil that has the characteristics of a 20w oil? And that BRP's engineers did a lot of testing and found that 40w oil 'degraded' to 20w after 15000 km, so they specified the 40w oil?

If 5w20 oil started as 5w20 and STAYED that way for the specified interval, yeah, we would all be running it, but my manual calls for 5w40, so that's what I use.

.

[JayBros]

A number of years ago, late '14 or early '15, a gentleman from BRP Care named Steve posted an explanation about the viscosity shear in oil in motorcycle engines wherein the engine and transmission shared the same oil as in the 1330 ACE engine. He said that such oil did shear down fairly rapidly, like in 2,000 miles or so then stabilized and remained pretty constant.

[BajaRon]

Do you think there might be ANY possibility that the engine is DESIGNED to run on an oil that has the characteristics of a 20w oil? And that BRP's engineers did a lot of testing and found that 40w oil 'degraded' to 20w after 15000 km, so they specified the 40w oil?

If 5w20 oil started as 5w20 and STAYED that way for the specified interval, yeah, we would all be running it, but my manual calls for 5w40, so that's what I use.

.

It is interesting that the shear characteristics for both the 998 and the 1330 engines are very similar. Allowing for riding styles, loading and environment variables. I would say that they are nearly identical (other than the relatively high oil usage of the 998, which really does not affect this conversation).

It is also interesting that Rotax, the maker of both engines, recommended 20w/50 weight oil for the 998 in the Aprilia motorcycle. The same engine that the V-Twin Spyders use with combustion modifications for increased torque at the expense of some HP.

BRP did not have a 20w/50 weight oil at that time. But they did have a 10w/40. And that is what their manual recommended in the beginning.

Since then, BRP has consolidated their lubricant offerings and now has neither a 20w/50 or a 10w/40 weight oil. But they do have a 5w/40 weight. And this is now their recommend lubricant for both the 998 V-Twin and the 1330.

The service interval for the V-Twin is still 4,500 miles (all the way up until the last production year of 2016). This has not changed. Which is interesting because 4,500 miles is about where the oil really starts to show a steep decline in viscosity. Makes sense to change at this point.

So, why would the 1330, which is arguably at least as hard on oil as the 998, have a service interval over twice what is required for the 998. It is know that there was a lot of pressure on BRP to reduce service costs and extend service interval times for the new Spyder engine which came out in 2014.

We can speculate all day long as to the 'WHY'. And everyone is entitled to their opinion. But you have to ask yourself. Was the original recommended 10w/40 a better choice than the 20w/50 recommended by the company who manufactures the 998 V-Twin? And is the 5w/40, now recommended, a better choice than the previous 10w/40 recommendation?

I have to say, all very interesting. Just don't expect any universally satisfying answers.

[SportsterDoc]

Lot of good background in post 20, Ron...may explain a lot.

My rough guidelines remain:

Dino oil: 3K intervals
Synthetic blend: 4K intervals
Pure synthetic: 5K intervals

No way I am going 6K or more between oil changes, even with pure synthetic.

I would have done the first change by now, but the factory oil still looks new. I do plan to switch to 10W50 Castrol synthetic by summer.

Factory oil is rated, per the manual, up to 104 F and I have been in 111 F already, but not high speed or long distance.

Most of my M/C served well with Castrol 20W50, both Sportsters used H-D 360 (no particular good reason) and the Moto Guzzi Motoul 10W60.

My first synthetic experience was Castrol 20W50 in the Bonneville. With an oil cooler and twin oil pumps, although air cooled, never behaved hot, even across the desert from LA to Las Vegas in the summer and a ~500 mile one day trip on the Extraterrestrial Highway loop.

Not pushing Castrol, but do recommend selecting a quality brand, then continue with same.

In 1977, I sold a 71 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu to a friend. I had used only 10/30 Quakerstate, since new; but my friend liked Castrol (which I have mainly used for Japanese bikes). He switched, but complained that it was using oil. The 307 (Quad carb, aluminum high rise manifold, Hooker headers, aftermarket dual exhausts) had about 70,000 miles, but no oil consumption could be noted on the dip stick, between 3,000 mile interval oil changes.
After a couple years, he in turn sold it to a mutual friend, who went back to the original oil and then had no notable consumption between oil changes. Did the additives conflict?

[EdMat]

It is interesting that the shear characteristics for both the 998 and the 1330 engines are very similar. Allowing for riding styles, loading and environment variables. I would say that they are nearly identical (other than the relatively high oil usage of the 998, which really does not affect this conversation).

The service interval for the V-Twin is still 4,500 miles (all the way up until the last production year of 2016). This has not changed. Which is interesting because 4,500 miles is about where the oil really starts to show a steep decline in viscosity. Makes sense to change at this point.

So, why would the 1330, which is arguably at least as hard on oil as the 998, have a service interval over twice what is required for the 998. It is know that there was a lot of pressure on BRP to reduce service costs and extend service interval times for the new Spyder engine which came out in 2014.

.

One might think that from the oil in the 998 getting freshened on a regular basis it might even out perform the oil in the 1330. Could it be the clutch not locking up as quickly with the 998 caused the oil to breakdown a little faster? Just some thoughts.

[PW2013STL]

Why if you use the proper oil you can go the full 9200 miles

You can. I did on our RT without any issues. Traded it in at 84,000 miles and it was running strong. We took the RT to Alaska and back on one oil change (9600 miles) I then sent that oil in for testing. The results were good, and it was recommended to go an additional 1000 miles, or 10,600 on the fresh oil, and have that tested.
I did not do that, but I do go 9200 between changes. I do use full synthetic.

[Mazo EMS2]

Uhhhh guys.....I think this one fell off the tracks, going from "is there an oil change light" to an oil brand debate......Who lured you in?..LOL

[VStarRider]

Back on topic ... when I drain my oil, I like to start up the engine and run it wide open for 5-10 seconds ... polish up the cylinder walls and pistons.