[Ivoryfaith]

He bought brand new motorcycle Pan America Special 1250 Saturday 2/26/22. We were both very excited until check engine light came on Tuesday March 1st after 138 miles. He checked oil and it had a tiny dab showing on dipstick. Do these bikes come from the factory with oil already or do they fill it at dealership?

 

[FOURSEASONS1621]

He bought brand new motorcycle Pan America Special 1250 Saturday 2/26/22. We were both very excited until check engine light came on Tuesday March 1st after 138 miles. He checked oil and it had a tiny dab showing on dipstick. Do these bikes come from the factory with oil already or do they fill it at dealership?

Yes the do generally come full of oil from the factory but the dealer is also supposed to perform a Pre Delivery Inspection. In my experience regardless of brand car truck motorcycle technicians are just not thorough and pencil whip PDIs

if there was any oil on the stick this would indicate there’s about 3 of the 4 quarts in the engine. The check engine light is more than likely unrelated to the oil level. Grab a quart of 20w50 and add until full while on the side stand. Try to clear the codes using the diagnostic menu on the pans dashboard. Record your code numbers, ride see if any faults come back up. If so, seek out a dealer who can diagnose and repair under warranty. It’s not uncommon for hiccups during the first few hundred miles. Good luck!

 

[Rasta Derrick]

Yes the do generally come full of oil from the factory but the dealer is also supposed to perform a Pre Delivery Inspection. In my experience regardless of brand car truck motorcycle technicians are just not thorough and pencil whip PDIs

if there was any oil on the stick this would indicate there’s about 3 of the 4 quarts in the engine. The check engine light is more than likely unrelated to the oil level. Grab a quart of 20w50 and add until full while on the side stand. Try to clear the codes using the diagnostic menu on the pans dashboard. Record your code numbers, ride see if any faults come back up. If so, seek out a dealer who can diagnose and repair under warranty. It’s not uncommon for hiccups during the first few hundred miles. Good luck!

HO there , 20W50 is NOT the recomended oil for a RA1250 !!! This should be the HD SYN3 full synthetic or the semi-synthetic HD blend 15W50 .
However , I'm curious about the oil level evolution on your RA1250 because I've also noticed several oil level complains ...

 

[FOURSEASONS1621]

HO there , 20W50 is NOT the recomended oil for a RA1250 !!! This should be the HD SYN3 full synthetic or the semi-synthetic HD blend 15W50 .
However , I'm curious about the oil level evolution on your RA1250 because I've also noticed several oil level complains ...

HD full synthetic (syn3) is 20W50 and is not available in another weight at this time.

 

[Rasta Derrick]

I was just making sure not filling up with the (mineral) 20W50 multigrade . However , the 1st rang recomended is still the HD syn blend 15W50 . 😇

 

[Terronaut]

I recently had the 1000 mile service done on mine, and after $415.00, and I a day or so, I decided to double check the oil level. I too pulled the dipstick out (bike on side stand) and it was NOWHERE NEAR the full level. It wasn't even near the "add a quart level". In fact (like Ivoryfaith mentioned) it was barely a dab of oil on the bottom edge of the dipstick. I was so $%$#*& mad I decided to drain the oil, in order to tell the dealership exactly how much was in it - I was certain it was almost dry. Well, when I drained it, much to my surprise there was three quarts in it. The service manual says to START with three quarts, but evidently this isn't close to the filling the crankcase. I'm going to buy 5-6 quarts of SYN 3 this week and refill the motor, until it ACTUALLY READS FULL ON THE DIPSTICK. Will try to report afterwards.

 

[briefFungus]

I recently had the 1000 mile service done on mine, and after $415.00, and I a day or so, I decided to double check the oil level. I too pulled the dipstick out (bike on side stand) and it was NOWHERE NEAR the full level. It wasn't even near the "add a quart level". In fact (like Ivoryfaith mentioned) it was barely a dab of oil on the bottom edge of the dipstick. I was so $%$#*& mad I decided to drain the oil, in order to tell the dealership exactly how much was in it - I was certain it was almost dry. Well, when I drained it, much to my surprise there was three quarts in it. The service manual says to START with three quarts, but evidently this isn't close to the filling the crankcase. I'm going to buy 5-6 quarts of SYN 3 this week and refill the motor, until it ACTUALLY READS FULL ON THE DIPSTICK. Will try to report afterwards.

Was there any follow up to this? I just had exactly the same experience - 1600km service done and oil barely shows on the stick while on the side stand.

Wondering what the Delta is to full, and just how damaging this is?

 

[Terronaut]

Was there any follow up to this? I just had exactly the same experience - 1600km service done and oil barely shows on the stick while on the side stand.

Wondering what the Delta is to full, and just how damaging this is?

I had the same experience (noted previously), drained mine and there were 3QTs (US) in the bike. I had only rode a short distance before discovering the low oil level- but the oil light had never come on so I was certain lubrication hadn’t been disrupted thankfully. Upon refill, delta was somewhere in the 1.5 quart range but I don’t recall exactly. Even then refill was finicky- looked overfull, then I let it rest, and it was fine. Might be a odd shaped oil pan or something-