Ping, belch smoke, rattle

[obiwankenobi]

So my new to me 1150RT w/ 48K on the clock is pinging under moderate load. Yesterday on the way home from work, in 5th gear, 75 mph +/- I rolled on it to pass a car, motor pinging like a pin ball machine during a super bonus round and I happen to look in the mirror and see smoke pouring out of the pipe. I let off and the smoke is gone. Roll on it again, pings and smoke.

 

The 48K service was just completed and according to the dealer all previous maintenance was done at their shop.

 

In the cool morning air (4 am or so) there is no ping, no smoke, I use premium fuel from Chevron so its probably not cheap fuel?

 

I have found it to be some what of an oil pig, 2 quarts over 3K miles. Dealer says that is normal when the bike is ridden hard, which they define as speeds in the 70 - 90 mph range.

 

Thoughts, ideas? I have an extended warranty until Feb 09 so if its a major repair I think it would be covered?

 

Keith

[realshelby]

No matter what anyone says that is too much oil to be using! At 48K engine should be completely broken in. At no time should you see smoke from a warmed up engine. If you ride it hard enough to keep the "carbon" build up down nothing should be coming out of the pipe. I am sure your oil use and pinging are related. At load the fuel/air charge is being contaminated by engine oil. Automatic detonation. No matter what grade of fuel you are using. Can't say what is causing the oil to get into the combustion chamber, but I would certainly alert the dealer. Hard to argue with smoke coming out of the exhaust pipe!

[chrisx]

what color smoke? ping can be caused by weak spark, timing, carbon buildup or lean out. is it rpm related? i.e. can you shift down and have it stop pinging?

[obiwankenobi]

Greyish white, rpm was pretty high around 5K, I was in 5th, not sure dropping to 4th at that rpm would have been ideal?

[Tony_K]

Sorry man you fried a valve (or worse). You've got blow by. A top end job is in your very near future.

 

Pinging is pre detonation and bad news for the valve train. I wouldn't ride it any further as the bill will only go up and up if you do.

Sorry

[realshelby]

Since these are not water cooled.....greyish/white is almost certainly oil smoke. Smoking under acceleration is usually a sign of a broken ring land, broken/worn piston rings. I would like to know if the engine exhibits signs of "blow by". If you could get the crankcase vent pipe disconnected from the air box you might see evidence of blow by from the crankcase. I don't know the oilhead engine well enough to know if it has problems with intake valve seals or other problems related to the top-end of the engine that might pass oil into the intake tract. If you are seeing smoke out the muffler I would imagine your catalytic convertor is unhappy as well.

[Ken H.]

Yup, certainly time for a compression and leak down test as a first step.

[obiwankenobi]

Gee, I've put 4K on it and all it has done is cost me money, the 48K service was $800. Guess the previous owner did beat it more than the dealer let on.

 

Anyone have experience with McGraw extended warranty? Is something like this covered?

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

I have found it to be some what of an oil pig, 2 quarts over 3K miles. Dealer says that is normal when the bike is ridden hard, which they define as speeds in the 70 - 90 mph range.

 

Manual says up to 1q per 1K is OK, but your usage - despite being within those bounds - is the highest I've ever heard of here.

 

Where are you keeping the oil level? At bottom, mid, or top of check window? How are you checking the oil? The reason I ask all this is that if you overfill, the violent crankcase ventilation of the boxer engine tends to blow oil through the breather into the airbox; after a whole lot of this, you can start to get oil ingested into the intakes, which will result in detonation.

 

Take off the left-side tupperware panel. Look at the bottom-left-rear corner of the airbox, and you should see a drain plug. Remove this, and be prepared to (maybe) catch some oil...

[obiwankenobi]

I check the oil in the morning when the engine is cool, bike on center stand, oil level mid to top of sight glass. This morning it took nearly 2/3rds of a quart to bring it up to that level. I had no ping on the way home today, pretty much the same conditions.

[Tony_K]

Seems your adding oil beyond necessary parameters. Do what was stated earlier. Remove the drain on the airbox. Oil WILL come out and you will be telling yourself "um I added too much oil".

 

Middle to bottom of site glass for oil level.

 

Keep an eye on that pinging it will be the death of the bike. Don't say you weren't informed

[obiwankenobi]

Seems your adding oil beyond necessary parameters. Do what was stated earlier. Remove the drain on the airbox. Oil WILL come out and you will be telling yourself "um I added too much oil".

 

Middle to bottom of site glass for oil level.

 

Keep an eye on that pinging it will be the death of the bike. Don't say you weren't informed

 

The bike just came back from the dealer for its 48K service, I had not added any oil prior to yesterday morning so, I doubt there is oil in the air box from my adding too much oil.

 

I will however check that this weekend.

[AZBaldur]

I check the oil in the morning when the engine is cool, bike on center stand, oil level mid to top of sight glass. This morning it took nearly 2/3rds of a quart to bring it up to that level. I had no ping on the way home today, pretty much the same conditions.

There's too much oil in there, for one thing. Check the oil level with the engine at operating temperature, meaning 5-6 bars on the RID. There is a significant difference between the displayed oil level in a cold engine vs. a hot one. Put the bike on the center stand like you do, wait 15-20 minutes for the oil to drain down into the crankcase, then check the oil level. Anywhere between the bottom of the circle and mid-level is optimal.

[indy]

Take off the left-side tupperware panel. Look at the bottom-left-rear corner of the airbox, and you should see a drain plug. Remove this, and be prepared to (maybe) catch some oil...

 

Hmmmmmm....verly interestink. Not to get off topic but is there any amount of oil in the airbox that would be considered normal? The reason I ask, a few nights ago I changed out my air filter, looking into the bottom of the air box with a flashlight I spotted a slightly thick film of oil. Didn't think much of it, but still was surpised it was there.

 

Indy

[Joe Frickin' Friday]

Hmmmmmm....verly interestink. Not to get off topic but is there any amount of oil in the airbox that would be considered normal? The reason I ask, a few nights ago I changed out my air filter, looking into the bottom of the air box with a flashlight I spotted a slightly thick film of oil. Didn't think much of it, but still was surpised it was there.

 

It's gonna get lightly misted over time simply by virtue of the crankcase breathing, but there ought not be a lake in the bottom of the airbox.

[No_Twilight]

Couldn't the pinging be caused by the oil? The oil could be coming from the airbox. So perhaps he just needs to keep the oil level lower.

 

--Jerry