Today was maintenance day. We're going to talk about changing oil and adjusting chains now...if this isn't your cup of tea skip this post. I'm putting it here more as a record for myself so when I think to myself "Hey, when did I change the oil last?" I'll have an answer. Maybe some new KLR owner will find a bit of wisdom here too...
Alright, let's change some oil.
Step one, after warming up the engine grab the proper size socket and get that bolt out of the drain hole. What size socket you ask? Who cares, we're replacing it so I don't remember...when in doubt grab what's in the stock tool kit (17mm). Just prior to doing this you should remember you threw away all the drain pans from your motocross days. This means cutting up a milk carton to catch the old oil.
If you also take off the oil filler cap on the other side you'll get a nice stream like this and it'll drain faster. The KLR likes to hang on to it's dirty oil so if you're working off the kickstand like me you'll need to rock the ol' girl back and forth to get as much out as possible. If you're working off a center stand I hate you because I haven't ordered one yet.
Once all that dirty oil is out it's time to prep the replacement bolt. I went with a Tusk magnetic drain bolt. We can argue the snake oil properties of a magnetic drain bolt all day long but I've always run them.
Why replace the stock bolt? Because it's extra thick, that's why. The stock bolt hangs down just low enough that with the stock skid plate it can easily be sheared off while off road. Even with my aftermarket plate it hung just low enough that I had to be mindful for the last thousand miles that it was dangling down there in the breeze. This Tusk plug is lower profile and tucks up nicely to the oil pan well out of harms way. If it's getting sheared off you've got much bigger problems as most of the lower frame would need to go first.
This Tusk bolt also has a very deep well for the allen wrench to seat into. If you're buying something else keep an eye on how deep or shallow your chosen replacement is. Too shallow and it's easy for an allen wrench to start rounding it off.
Torque that down to
21 ft*lbs or hand tight and then just a little more (Older models are 17 ft*lbs). Make sure you have the crush washer on there first.
Old oil out it's now time to pull the oil filter. This is especially important during the first oil change since the engine has been breaking itself in and spitting little bits of metal out everywhere. The KLR is actually designed to bypass the filter if it clogs so if you leave a dirty filter in there too long you'll start cycling dirty oil, that could be very bad with the metal that's in this particular change.
Grab an 8mm socket and pull the two bolts on holding the cover on.
Hmmm...maybe wash off the engine first too...
Gently rock the cover back and forth by hand while pulling outward to get it to release. This will take a bit of work and practice especially if the bike is new. Don't pry this off with anything as the metal is soft and you could easy damage the housing and cause an oil leak. If you absolutely have to pry use something soft...like plastic. You'll eventually be rewarded with a view of the filter and more oil gushing down the side of the engine and pooling on your skid plate. Have a rag ready.
Pull the old filter and check it for damage. If the filter element is torn or chunks are missing you might have to do some serious surgery to see what's going on in the engine. This is very rare though, chances are you're going to have an old filter and a new filter that are identical other than their color...
The old filter will have a delivery tube inside that you'll need to press out by hand. Once out check it for any unusual wear and tear, coat it in some new clean oil and press it into the new filter. The large hole goes to the outside of the engine with the indexed end (left side in the photo below) going into the pickup tube inside the filter housing.
It doesn't matter how you insert it into the filter, just how the entire assembly goes back in the bike. You actually can't put it in wrong as the cover won't go back on if you try to put it in backwards....at least not without a lot of pushing and causing more damage.
Before putting the assembled filter back in check the housing for any debris and unusual wear and tear. You should also clean the area where the housing sits up against the engine to ensure a good seal and so that no debris gets back into the filter housing.
Then like an inexperienced kid after prom just shove that thing back in there, making sure the indexed end goes in the hole at the back of the housing (you see that hole up there in the picture right?)
Now inspect the cover for damage or debris, especially the rubber gasket that makes the seal. The newer KLR's have a much better gasket than the first gens. On my 05 that gasket would regularly fall off and get filthy on the floor, this gasket is molded into the cover quite well...hope I never need to replace it.
Smear that with some new oil too before putting it back on.
Now remember those two 8mm bolts we removed? Time to put those back on...but first you have to find the one that dropped into the old dirty oil. Magnetic pick up thingy to the rescue! Those bolts are
69 in*lbs....that's
INCH POUNDS. If you try to get to 69 foot pounds you're going to have a bad day.
Time to add the new oil. I'm not going to discuss oil here as that's a deep rabbit hole from which there is no return. It's a KLR...it'll probably run for 6000 miles using grape jelly as oil...buy whatever oil you want and dump it in there. At some point after 2015 they changed the sump size on the KLR's. Forever and a day they've religiously held 2.5 quarts of oil. For some reason they now use 1.8 - 1.9 quarts for an oil change where you don't change the filter or 2.0 to 2.1 quarts if you do change the filter.
Guess what? Who cares, you have a window to tell you when it's full. Dump a quart in there without even watching...you know it's using at least a quart. It'll move up the window just a little...like this:
We're shooting for getting right at that top line etched into the engine cover to the right of that little window. Start pouring the 2nd quart in there, a little slower this time, and as you get about 2/3's of the quart poured in pull on the handle bar so the bike is standing up level. You'll need to balance the bike like this and slowly add the last bit of oil until you get right to the top of the window. Unless you're working off a center stand in which case you don't have to balance anything and I hate you.
This is roughly what we're shooting for:
If you overfill it by just a bit it's not the end of the world but with my OCD I'd drain some and try again. You do what you want with your bike. This should also be the level of oil you're looking for each time you take the bike out for a ride. If you start seeing that level drop over time the bike is drinking oil and you need to find it a support group before that becomes an addiction. Or...carry oil with you and live with your bike's habit, whatever works for you. The oil will only show this level when the engine has had time to cool and the oil settles in the pan. If you've just ridden for 200 miles on a warm summer day a bunch of that oil will be coating important stuff on the inside of the engine and the window won't give you an accurate measurement. Don't top off the oil when the engine is warm using the window as a guide...you'll over fill it.
Now clean the filler cap, make sure it's rubber o-ring is in place and damage free and throw it back on (hand tight and then a little more).
Look at that..we've changed the oil! Toss the old drain plug in the on board tool kit as a spare and be sure to add the allen wrench that matches the new plug to the kit as well.
Or not. The internet was still rife with people claiming it had broken in two or that the spring was providing no tension. As the years wore on the consensus has settled on the new tensioner being a reliable part, but that darn spring still needs to be changed after a while.