[kofilatte]

Dear group,

I'm a new VN 750 2005 owner. I just did my first oil change using the Kawasaki recommended filter and oil. The oil gauge is right in the middle after a couple of minutes of warm up. However the light does not go off. I'm puzzled and some what scared that I did something wrong.

Need some help or advice.

Thanks in advance!

 

[kofilatte]

The problem went away after 10 minutes or so of driving.

VN750 2005

 

[Loran in Npvl IL]

Running the bike for 10 minutes with the oil light on while riding is not good. I always prime my oil filter (by repeatedly pouring oil in it after letting it set between pours) before putting it on because it takes too long for the light to go out otherwise. If I don’t prime the filter that way, I have to loosen the filter, start the bike until oil is spraying out around the filter and quickly tighten it (very messy). If neither one is done, my oil light doesn’t seem to go out either (only run it for a few seconds, like that though).

 

[kofilatte]

Thanks, I'll do that next time! Guess I missed that when I was reading the manual!

 

[kofilatte]

It seemed that long (10 minutes) since I was so worried/nervous looking at the light... I took the same route again and it was less than 2 minutes... Regardless I'll follow your advice!


Thanks!!!

 

[Dan]

I would be asking my dealer's mechanic about that. I believe the oil light should turn off the moment you start the engine, oil change or no oil change. It's possible the oil pressure sensor sending unit is acting up.

Dan - Seattle

 

[Ironman]

What oil filter did you use? Some brands use cheap material in the anti flow back valve and sometimes they stick, preventing oil from flowing. Get one of the brands recommeded elsewhere in the forum.The light should go out immediately after the bike starts. I'd suggest you do another oil change right now. Running the engine without sufficient oil pressure will leave lots of metal in the oil. Remove the drain plug, reach in and carefully pull out the washer, spring and screen. Clean the screen off with paint thinner, let it dry and put it back in followed by the spring and washer (or is it washer then spring? Check when you take it apart so you can put it back together correctly) First thing you do is set the filter back into the box it came in so it'll stand up while you fill it. Fill it up and let it sit until that oil soaks into the element. The level will drop and you can add some more. Repeat until it won't take anymore, but leave the oil level in the filter about an inch from the top. That's so it won't spill when you put it on. Put some aluminum foil over the starter to protect it from oil and take off the old filter. Screw on the new filter, fill it up until there's just a bit of a bubble showing in the window and you should be good to go. If the light doesn't go off within a couple of seconds now, you probably should ask the dealer about it.

 

[Ernie]

I have a little procedure of my own which I follow when I change my oil & filter. First (after warming engine up) I drain the oil & let it drip for 10 minutes or so. After cleaning the oil screen & replacing it along with the plug I refill with fresh oil up to the top mark on the level window. Only when I have done this do I remove the filter & replace it with a new Kawasaki one. I place a quantity of rag over the starter motor to keep the mess to a minimum. After this I start the engine & the oil light always goes out after a couple seconds. I run the bike for a couple of minutes to check for leaks then stop it & recheck the oil level, it usually needs a small top-up. This may sound like a weird procedure but my theory is that this will help the oil pump stay primed throughout the oil change, therefore minimising the amount of time that the engine runs with low pressure. Leaving the filter in place until the sump is refilled will create a vacuum that will stop the pump from draining. I know that the little bit of oil left in the pump will be old oil but then again, if the oil is changed regularly, it should not be of concern. My 1993 VN750 A9 has done over 70,000 miles now so that is proof enough to me that I must be doing something right. I never need to top up the oil between changes so I hope the engine will be good for a good many more miles yet. The only major failure I have had on this bike is the final drive/driveshaft spline problem which occured at 18,000 miles. I don't suppose I need to remind many of you about the importance of regularly greasing the splines! I learned the hard way & had to get another final drive unit & driveshaft. All this happened a week before I went on a 2 week tour of France & Spain.

 

[Dan]

Ernie, what keeps the oil from running out when you swap filters after filling the engine with new oil? Am I missing something?

Dan - Seattle

 

[Ernie]

The oil will run out of whatever is above the filter when it is removed but the pump is between the filter & the sump & will stay primed as long as the sump contains oil.

 

[Bruce]

If ya check the Yahoo group you'll find that the oil light staying on is normal/common. Now 10 mins is excessive so I'd recommend, as others have, to prefill the oil filter - that always a good idea on any engine.

 

[whistle clean]

When I changed the oil filter and oil on my wifes 750 I used a piece of tin foil and simply pushed it up beneath the oil filter nice and snug...like a baby's bib so when I removed the oil filter and oil ran out...it met the tin foil and flowed into the drain pan without getting anything messy.

 

[twins4life]

I'm new here but this is what I read.

There is a dealer service bulletin about this. Something to due with an air pocket. Anyway the factory says to unscrew the oil filter till the air is pushed out then retighten. This is done while idleing.

 

[whistle clean]

I'm new here but this is what I read.

There is a dealer service bulletin about this. Something to due with an air pocket. Anyway the factory says to unscrew the oil filter till the air is pushed out then retighten. This is done while idleing.

Can you share with us where you read about this?

Thanks!

 

[Red Baron]

Burping the oil filter is a common trick and it is a trick that has been posted on the vn750 yahoo forum many times and works. The best way though, to avoid the need to do this, is to pre-fill the oil filter and before you put it on. I prefill mine before I start to drain the old oil, then I keep filling it as it gets absorbed into the filter while the old oil drains. You spill just a tiny bit when you put the new filter on, but using alum foil over the starter prevents having any mess to clean up. I've never had a problem with my oil light staying on doing it this way.

If you want a lot of good reading on all kinds of maintenance items go visit Gadget's page here

http://www.gadgetjq.com/gadgetsfixitpage.htm