AboutBill Silver Expertise Need help with vintage Hondas from the 1960s? I am an expert with 250-305cc bikes in particular and most all of the other pre-91 models, in general. I do NOT claim to have a great deal of experience on Gold Wings, Cruisers, ATC/ATVs and dirt bikes.
Experience I have owned/ridden/maintained Honda motorcycles for 35 years. I have written five books on Honda repairs and collecting. I was a service manager for two Honda shops back in the 1980s.
Organizations VJMC (Vintage Japanese Motorcycle Club) of North America
Publications VJMC newsletter, as editor for two years and as contributing editor currently.
Question Hi Bill:
I rode the 60 miles home from my favorite dealership after an oil change and parked my bike in the garage. While in the garage this morning, I notice a large amount of oil on the floor under my bike. Yesterday on the way home, I smelled a little hot oil, but I just assumed he spilled a little while adding it. I centered the bike to check the oil level while the engine was cold and there was no bubble in the oil window, it was past the full mark. There was oil leaking around the drain plug. So it looks to me that the tech put way too much oil in my bike for some reason. My question is this: what occurs when the bike is ridden with too much oil in the crankcase? Did I do any damage to my bike while riding it almost an hour? Is there any other place the oil may have tried to seep out of other than the drain plug, causing damage to the engine?
Answer Lee, the first call you should be making is to the dealership, if you haven't already. Check the drain plug for being tight and if it is, then they damaged the gasket or O-ring during the work. if he didn't crack the crankcase by overtightening the drain bolt.
Too much oil in the crankcase gets spun up by the crankshaft and gets fizzed up with air from the whipping action. Oil with air bubbles is not a good lubrication scenario. If you didn't ride it really hard with lots of rpm, then it may not be in danger, but have the dealership drain the oil and filter and look for any signs of metal in the oil from lubrication failure damage.
You could have oil pumped up into the crankcase ventilation system, so have that looked at too. They may have to replace or service the air filter and air box if a lot of oil got pushed up in there.
Sometimes, too much of a good thing is NOT a good thing..
