P1000 First oil change - what a pain in the rear

[BobSmithing]

Well I corrected one issue with my oil change and bought the replacement plastic push pin to hold down the oil fill cover. I went to a dealership and thought I'd get a bag of 10 to have some on hand for the next time they break. The parts counter fella said they were expensive, and I waited for him to give the punchline, but he was serious. Those little things cost $5.83 each! I bought 2 to make the time worth while so I do have one spare. But from now on, it's Amazon baby. My buddy bought a bag of 100 for $5 and only needed one. If they are the same size I have plenty from him, if they are not the same size I will by a bag which is. Just to let my friends here know.

I also got a bag of them on. Amazon to replace the ones lost on my garage floor. They have seemed to work where ever I place them and it has been in several spots.

 

[BobSmithing]

I hate to add another topic with many already in this category for first oil change but I want to vent, I will feel much better.

First I watched many Youtube videos and studied from others work, and their tips. I had everything ready and started in. I am mechanically experienced and felt like this should be no different than others I have done. Wrongo Bongo.

So...
- Taking off the plastic cover over the fill cap, one of the plastic push pins, center part broke. Great.
- Drain the oil pan, oil goes all over the skid plate, wonderful. I'm a clean freak and this was the messiest oil change for my garage floor.
- This luckily happened again when I drain the oil tank, I'm about half way through a roll of paper towels at this point. Neat.
- Remove the DCT filter cover, let's add some more oil to the skid plate and garage floor.
- Remove the oil filter cover - that barely wants to come off, and there she blows. I see a repeat oil waterfall here as well.
- Learn how to put each cover on, insert a long dowel with my left hand holding pressure so I can start the screws with my right hand because only one arm fits in there thanks to the rear passenger step and the tire. This looked easier for others in the videos I watched.
- Fill her up with oil and let it run, shut it off and try to get an accurate reading off that dipstick which has a very small Low-Full area. Ended up using just shy of 6.5 quarts so it's probably overfilled.
- Put the plastic cover back over the fill hole with a broken pin that I will try to remember to get another one
- Continue to use the second half of a roll of paper towels to clean up the BP gulf oil spill on my skid plate and garage floor, which continues dripping wipe after wipe.

What I learned and can help others with, if a hoist is available to you, use it. I did not have a big issue draining, but if it were in the air, I may use a beer box cut out to deflect the oil down and not out onto the skid. And trying to put the filters and covers back on while sitting on the floor reaching in with my right arm, holding a dowel against the cover to keep it there, would be easier if it were on a hoist. Where two hands can get to them and you can see that the spring and filter are lined up with the covers.

And just like that, I feel better.

Thanks for the tips. I'm soooo looking forward to this. Well 74 more miles to go...

 

[Russ989]

Thanks for the tips. I'm soooo looking forward to this. Well 74 more miles to go...

It’s not that awful, get the skid out of the way and you’re golden.

 

[Wellzy]

Thanks for the tips. I'm soooo looking forward to this. Well 74 more miles to go...

Well I hope the advice in here helps, I would have had a better experience if I would've taken the skids off then. I love the idea of doing this myself and saving the money but if the process is enough of a hassle, I would pay to have it done. But now that I learned, it's easier and cleaner. Again, knowing that darn oil filter cover will pop off and surprise you once the O ring lets loose, you will get a waterfall (oilfall) so have an old tee shirt or rag under there, I'll do that every time now as well. Just go one step at a time and you will win in the end!

 

[PJon]

I hate repeatedly removing steel screws from aluminum threads like our filter covers - seems like a really bad idea to me. So does repeatedly removing the skid since it's screwed into the super thin frame rails. I don't have an answer for the frame threads other than welding in thread nuts as you strip out those in the frame. But I replaced the bolts on my dual sport motorcycle's oil filter cover with studs (same as the Pioneer 1000 and Talon). Doing this might cause the problem of not being able to rotate the covers slightly so the o-ring will slip into the case (not a problem on the mtc) - your choice. I intend to put a lite chamfer on the edge of the filter openings (if there's a sharp edge) so the o-ring will slip in easier).

Link for more pics and details (let me know if the link doesn't work and I'll add the pics, iffn you care).

DR650SE Index Topic #15- LINKS, WRITE-UPS & PICTORIALS

This is another inmate's idea and it worked well for me. I didn't like repeatedly using steel screws into alum on the oil filter cover. The solution is...

advrider.com

Bolts before -
View attachment 277845

Studs after -
View attachment 277846

Great idea using the studs.

 

[CID]

Well I hope the advice in here helps, I would have had a better experience if I wouldv'e taken the skids off then. I love the idea of doing this myself and saving the money but if the process is enough of a hassle, I would pay to have it done. But now that I learned, it's easier and cleaner. Again, knowing that darn oil filter cover will pop off and surprise you once the O ring lets loose, you will get a waterfall (oilfall) so have an old tee shirt or rag under there, I'll do that every time now as well. Just go one step at a time and you will win in the end!

I'd guess that there's at least 2 cups of oil hiding behind the filters, not sure how much of that a rag will catch. Talons have room for a small pan to catch that oil, the filters and springs.

 

[StewB]

Plus, any spills will be on his floor, not yours! 🤣🤣

Great idea. I'm now looking to make friends with anyone with a hoist.

 

[TexasJackKin]

My first oil change was a piece of cake, droped it off at the dealer on Tuesday, picked it up on Wednesday...... Wanted no issues with warranty R.E. valves, at the price, I'll be doing them from now on. Plus they fixed a minor warranty issue.....

 

[Wellzy]

I am now almost ready for my 3rd oil change this season. I gotta say, I think the recommended 1,200 mile interval is soooo short. I did the break in at 100, the second at 1,200 and now I'm at 2,400 and need to do this again. If I were a farmer and only used it around the ranch, I would do this once a year or be going by hours. Since mine is a road toad and racks up miles quickly, it doesn't take long to get 1,200 when some group rides alone are over 100 miles each.

My Harley engine oil was changed every 5,000 and it was air cooled. The tranny and primary would go every other if I wanted with no issue. Why does a liquid cooled Honda that holds almost 7 quarts need the oil changed so soon? I understand the engine oil is also the transmission oil but my CRVs, Harley, or any motorcycle I have ever owned did not need to be changed so soon.

Thoughts or encouragement? (I wouldn't whine so much if it didn't cost $68ish and be such a multi step process)

 

[P1K5Dave]

That's why I ditched the expensive Honda oil and went to Rotella T6. I'm doing about 5K a year, and those oil changes come up quick.

I've been trying to come up with some kind of tray to catch the oil gush when the filters come off. My Pioneer has a Tusk aftermarket skid plate, so taking it off isn't an option. The closest I've found so far is a small cookie sheet, but it's not ideal.

Maybe I could fashion a template tray from aluminum foil and use it to scour the dollar store or whatever to find a suitable tray...

 

[P1K5Dave]

And yeah, you definitely want a bigass bag of plastic rivets. I trash them all the time. And the dipstick is a joke.

 

[LilRedDonkey]

I am now almost ready for my 3rd oil change this season. I gotta say, I think the recommended 1,200 mile interval is soooo short. I did the break in at 100, the second at 1,200 and now I'm at 2,400 and need to do this again. If I were a farmer and only used it around the ranch, I would do this once a year or be going by hours. Since mine is a road toad and racks up miles quickly, it doesn't take long to get 1,200 when some group rides alone are over 100 miles each.

My Harley engine oil was changed every 5,000 and it was air cooled. The tranny and primary would go every other if I wanted with no issue. Why does a liquid cooled Honda that holds almost 7 quarts need the oil changed so soon? I understand the engine oil is also the transmission oil but my CRVs, Harley, or any motorcycle I have ever owned did not need to be changed so soon.

Thoughts or encouragement? (I wouldn't whine so much if it didn't cost $68ish and be such a multi step process)

the environment where these machines are made for! if your running roads all the time like the cycles you mention, you could go a lot longer between changes. unless those roads are gravel!

 

[CID]

A full synthetic will buy you higher mileages between oil changes (no idea on how many). I'm not willing to pay Amsoil prices but Mobil 1 or T6 will be in my future.

I just retired from dirt bikes so I'm still learning about SxS's, the DCT is far more complex than my old tech dual sport motorcycle (I used 15w-50 Mobil 1 for it's entire life and it has 71,454 miles with the original wet clutch untouched). That bike got oil changes at 3500 miles but only held 2 quarts of oil. Once I get a feel for SxS's and the DCT, I'll be switching to Mobil 1 or T6.

 

[Wellzy]

A full synthetic will buy you higher mileages between oil changes (no idea on how many). I'm not willing to pay Amsoil prices but Mobil 1 or T6 will be in my future.

I just retired from dirt bikes so I'm still learning about SxS's, the DCT is far more complex than my old tech dual sport motorcycle (I used 15w-50 Mobil 1 for it's entire life and it has 71,454 miles with the original wet clutch untouched). That bike got oil changes at 3500 miles but only held 2 quarts of oil. Once I get a feel for SxS's and the DCT, I'll be switching to Mobil 1 or T6.

I am an Amsoil fan and used it in many toys and small engines, for my cars I'm Mobil 1. I'm using Honda for the first few changes in the Pioneer but want to switch to synthetic. My holdback would be the cost when this stuff is getting drained so soon. One change a year I would totally be filling it with Amsoil, but being on my third oil change, I can't put that much money into each change.

 

[Lloydtheredneck]

i run by hours not miles. i also dont ride 'hard' 98% of my riding is 20-35mph on gravel roads/prairie trails. i wind it up tight from time to time but mostly a gentile pedal just out watching the world go by

 

[VegasTalon]

I also just did my first oil change. Changed both filters, and it topped off full on the dipstick with just 6 quarts. Manual says it's supposed to take just over 6 quarts. I checked oil level without screwing down the dipstick. Did I miss something?

Did you run engine 4 minutes and off 2 min then check. That's what ma ual says.

 

[Scoop]

It’s not that awful, get the skid out of the way and you’re golden.

My 100 mile oil change is coming up.

I have the Trail Armor full skid set in the box waiting for install.

Gonna make it easy on myself and change the oil during the install.

 

[CID]

i run by hours not miles. i also dont ride 'hard' 98% of my riding is 20-35mph on gravel roads/prairie trails. i wind it up tight from time to time but mostly a gentile pedal just out watching the world go by

I'm usually a gentle driver so, after 6,000 miles, I've have decided to do 1500 mile oil changes instead of 1200. Knowing Honda's Africa Twin uses a 1000 cc engine with a DCT option, I wondered what their maintenance schedule is for them. Imagine my surprise to learn Honda recommends 8,000 mile oil changes. That's a YUGE difference. (yes, we're ~1000 lbs. heavier) And they only hold ~4.4 liters (4.6 qts)

From here, for the curious -

Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L Maintenance Schedule

The Honda Africa Twin CRF1000L Maintenance Schedule and scheduled service intervals. Including valve checks and and other regular services.

maintenanceschedule.net

 

[Russ989]

My 100 mile oil change is coming up.

I have the Trail Armor full skid set in the box waiting for install.

Gonna make it easy on myself and change the oil during the install.

That’s a good plan, the biggest obstacle is getting the spring behind the filter caps and even that’s not that bad.

 

[sheamus]

Oh man this thread reminds me of when I went from my Tacoma to the Frontier. The taco was best oil change ever. The even routed the filter to up top where it was really accessible with a drip catch. Brilliant. The Fronty was a b**** and required removing skid pan, but it still got everywhere. Now I have a Sierra, and I have heard they are worse yet (just finished my last free change). I'll be adding a pioneer this spring, sounds like more fun...