Oil change before or after winter ?????

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afaltu

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HI GUYS . WHATS THE OPINION OF THE FORUM ABOUT THE OIL CHANGE ON BIKES.:confused: IF IT SHOULD BE DONE BEFORE STORING THE BIKE FOR WINTER OR BEFORE WE START RIDING IN SPRING . I AM GETTING THE CONFLICTING VIEWS FROM DIFFERENT PEOPLE.:confused:
 
Definetly before, that way the bike sits all winter with fresh fluids that haven't been contaminated with dirt, water, whatever.
 
cheapie oil in to rinse out the system, and another round to fill it back up for it's winter sleep.

spring, drain, cheapie flush, then fill with the good stuff..

bit of overkill with the repeated flushing but cheap oil is cheap.
 
^^ definitely overkill, change it before... oil doesn't go "bad" through the winter months but old oil gets acidic, hence the need to do it before winter
 
I have to do this on the weekend before Boo goes sleepies for the winter.
 
Fill the crankcase right to the filler hole with cheap oil. Come spring do a complete oil and filter change and keep the cheap stuff for the following winter. Also make sure you put a note on it, not to start the bike until you have done your change in the spring.
 
I do oil changes before and after winter storage. The fall winterization gets the old crappy stuff out so it does not get acidic over the winter. The spring change makes sure you are good to go with clean oil at the start of the season. For the cheap cost to do an oil change why not be safe?
 
I am a guy that winterized over 200 bikes last winter alone.
The advice of changing before and after is wrong. Pointless.
The reason that changing before storage is a good idea is because the combustion process always has a certain amount of blowby (this is why oil gets black) this blowby causes a chemical reaction in the oil causing it to become acidic. Leaving oil in a cranckcase for months allows the acidic oil to attack seals,gaskets, etc.
So when your done. Run the bike till up to temp. Drain the oil and change the filter. Replace with the flavour of choice and proceed with the rest of the winterize process (remove battery, max air pressure, stabil etc) . The oil will be perfectly fine and good to go in the spring.
There is so much bad info on these forums. Ask the other camp the reason for a double change..........
Been servicing and winterizing bikes for 30 years now. Learned a few things along the way.
 
JFD said:
cheapie oil in to rinse out the system, and another round to fill it back up for it's winter sleep.

spring, drain, cheapie flush, then fill with the good stuff..

bit of overkill with the repeated flushing but cheap oil is cheap.
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Waaaaay overkill. Just change in good oil, run it for a few minutes and store it. In the spring jump on and ride. After 5000km, change it again. One oil change, not four!
 
If the oil's got less than 1000km's on it I usually leave it in :D
 
I change mine every 5k. Been doing this for years with no issues, if the oil is not due for changing then it stays in till it is in the spring. Kneedragger is correct that the oil does become acidic over time, but with todays modern engines and the advancements in oil tech, I really don't see it being an issue over a 4 month period.
 
Malks said:
I do oil changes before and after winter storage. The fall winterization gets the old crappy stuff out so it does not get acidic over the winter. The spring change makes sure you are good to go with clean oil at the start of the season. For the cheap cost to do an oil change why not be safe?
Click to expand...
How could the oil be dirty when the engine is not running all winter?
 
if its near the 5000km mark, i'll change it a bit early for the winter. if not, then it sits until spring and gets changed whenever i hit the 5000k mark.

oil will not go bad between now and march. but change it as often as makes you happy.
 
kneedragger88 said:
There is so much bad info on these forums.
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There is so much bad info on the 'net in general! The chumps that blindly follow a random internet post are almost as bad as the posters themselves.

Savvy sUrfers pay close attention to the source - I'm glad you have yet to be discouraged by any of this and continue to post USEFUL information! :thumbup:
 
Before, but I also like to seal up the intake and exhaust not only to keep the critters out but also to keep the engine from breathing in moisture during temperature changes.
 
kneedragger88 said:
I am a guy that winterized over 200 bikes last winter alone.
The advice of changing before and after is wrong. Pointless.
The reason that changing before storage is a good idea is because the combustion process always has a certain amount of blowby (this is why oil gets black) this blowby causes a chemical reaction in the oil causing it to become acidic. Leaving oil in a cranckcase for months allows the acidic oil to attack seals,gaskets, etc.
So when your done. Run the bike till up to temp. Drain the oil and change the filter. Replace with the flavour of choice and proceed with the rest of the winterize process (remove battery, max air pressure, stabil etc) . The oil will be perfectly fine and good to go in the spring.
There is so much bad info on these forums. Ask the other camp the reason for a double change..........
Been servicing and winterizing bikes for 30 years now. Learned a few things along the way.
Click to expand...

It could be argued that when you change the oil in the fall you can't get all the oil out of the engine, so when you put in the 2.5 to 3 liters of new oil, there is still 0.5 to 1 liters of the old oil in there so there are acids still present.
I personally don't think anything would happen if you just follow the manual....but I change oil frequently even though my manual says 10000km.
 
Kneedragger ought to know: have you ever seen an engine ruined by these acidic by-products if the oil was changed on a regular basis? What exactly are these acids, anyway?
 
murf said:
It could be argued that when you change the oil in the fall you can't get all the oil out of the engine, so when you put in the 2.5 to 3 liters of new oil, there is still 0.5 to 1 liters of the old oil in there so there are acids still present.
I personally don't think anything would happen if you just follow the manual....but I change oil frequently even though my manual says 10000km.
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The % of acid that would be left though would be minimal as compared to the old oil. I change my oil every 1000km or untill it doesn't shift nice, and before winter.
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