[Stu Pedaso]

I am trying to figure out if I should be concerned about my oil consumption. I have an '02 M620 with 2000 miles on it. OIl was changed at 600 mile service, however I have lost about a quart in 1400 miles. I have been told to watch the base gasket for a leak- there is some oil on the motor, but not a significant amount. The only real "leak" I see is from the filler cap. Kinda doubt that I would lose a quart though that though...

 

[scrappy]

Tony,

I have added a total of one qt. since my 600 mile check; I now have 2500 miles. I top it off every 500 miles or so. I would say your poll is a little flawed and maybe you should fine tune the answers a bit to get a better idea of what is really going on out there...

scooby ;D

 

[Stu Pedaso]

how so? If anyone has some input for changing the poll, PLEASE let me know. I want everyone to get the best info out of this as is possible ;D

 

[Guest]

Hi Tony,
I entered the last box, only at oil change. But I would like to also say that the bike doesn't use any perceptible amount of oil in the 3000 or so mile oil change interval. The machine is an '03 M1000SEI. with 4200 miles on the clock. These machines have the brand new generation Dual Spark 2 Valve engine which Ducati claims will not consume much oil.
Mike

ps,
Tony is your machine running rich by any chance? Rich mixture will wash the oil down off the cylinder walls. This will dilute the oil and can increase consumption. Just another idea to look at, Mike

 

[Skier]

Ciao,

I am with Mike.
No consumption what so ever, and exatcly the same great bike with 16000km on the clock.

Skier

 

[Stu Pedaso]

I am sure there are 100 other posts on the topic of running rich/lean. Can you tell by the smell of the exhaust, or is there some other way?

 

[Finger]

Tony.. do you have any smoke coming from your pipes? If you do, what color is it and when does it happen?

 

[Stu Pedaso]

to me it looks white, because I typically notice it at night. Its not all the time, just when I start it up or go hard on the throttle. I know it would be light blue if it was due to oil, but like I said, it is kinda hard to tell. :-/

 

[Andrew_Cornett]

Burning oil is white not light blue. I say this because I own 2-stroke motorcycles which run oil in the gas and which of course burns off and they pump lots of white smoke.

A quart is a lot of oil. Get the base gasket fixed, make sure to fill the oil all the way to the top line after an oil change, run the bike for a few minutes, let stand for a few minutes, the add more to make sure it is closer to the top line than bottom line and then change every 3k. If all goes as planned you should not have to add any oil in-between. I have only had to add twice so far and even when my base gasket was leaking the two times was less than a full quart.

 

[Guest]

Half a quart after about 2500 miles. Kinda snuck up on me, so NOW i check regularly.

 

[mnztr]

Best way to tell how rich/lean your bike is running is to check the plugs. There are many charts on the web that can help you to 'read' you plugs

Mark

 

[hcajandig]

Tony,

If it makes you feel better, my bike burned a quart of oil between the 600 mile and 2000 mile mark. I changed the oil at 2200 miles and the bike hasn't burned a drop in the last 1500 miles since then.

Heath

 

[Crack]

Burning oil is white not light blue. I say this because I own 2-stroke motorcycles which run oil in the gas and which of course burns off and they pump lots of white smoke.

 

[Guest]

My oil consumption is about a quart every 1000. I check or top off every ride. I try to keep the oil level in the lower third of the marks at the check glass. If the oil level is kept in the upper part of the window, oil level consumption seems to be greater.

I have seen some oil smoke (I know the color and smell) during start ups since new. I am now about 4000 miles.

I also run slightly rich, even with open pipes. Plugs indicate this, and I have followed my son on my bike and can smell and see it. Seems richest at W.O.T.

 

[test-reg]

most manufacturers pick a number somewhere between 700 and 1000 miles to a quart for warranty claims on oil consumption unless there is a smoke or leak problem.