Changing your oil

[Ginger Phil]

To an expert this might seem the easiest job in the world but if you're a newbie to scooters (like I am) then even this simple job can seem a bit daunting at first.

To start with you'll need a bottle of oil. I'm a cheapskate so I buy Halfords own brand 10w/40, 4-stroke Mineral oil for £4.99 a litre.

To change the oil simply undo this big nut under the bike and let it drain:



Once all the oil has drained tighten the nut back up and unscrew the dipstick (I still love that word!!) ;D
Your bike should need around half a litre of oil poured in, keep inserting the dipstick until the oil level reaches around halfway up the thin part:



And that's all there is to it.

** Remember to change your oil after the first 186 miles (300 kilometres) **

[scooterboy]

Thanks for the reminder, I keep forgetting to change my oil.

[Ginger Phil]

scooterboy said:

Thanks for the reminder, I keep forgetting to change my oil.

No worries chap.
When I first changed mine the oil was pitch black which just goes to show you that it doesn't take long for the oil to get dirty.

[beefjurky]

JUST WATCH FOR THE SPRING WHEN YOU UNDO THIS BOLT

[Ginger Phil]

beefjurky said:

JUST WATCH FOR THE SPRING WHEN YOU UNDO THIS BOLT

Tell me about it!! I unscrewed the big nut and the spring pinged out and into the tray I was using to catch the oil.

[Rusty]

What oil do you use for the gearbox? Is it the same 10 W40 or do they suggest something else?

[beefjurky]

they say to use sae 10w - 40 gear oil which is a little different to engine oil, but for the first time i changed the gear oil i used the same as the engine, seemed to be ok,this time i was a little more flush so i splashed out and got gear oil as-well,so i will tell you if i notice any difference

[chinaman]

how oftem do you need to change the oil??

thanks

[spaniel00]

It's suggested every 300kms (186 miles). That seems okay for running in the engine, but after the first 700 kms every 1500 kms should be okay.

[Ginger Phil]

I've got to be honest folks - what's all this gear/transmission oil malarky?
I've seen it mentioned in the book but I've never put any in.

Shall I use a few more "shocked" smilies? ;D

[Rusty]

The transmission needs oil as well. On my 2-stroke scooter it has it's own oil supply (has to as the engine has no oil). This may or may not be the case with the 4-stroke scooters.

The cover plate is off in the photo, but if you have this it will be just under the Taishan logo.

Please excuse the oil all over the floor. Had a moment!!

[Ginger Phil]

Cheers for that, I'll have a look in a bit....

[Ginger Phil]

Call me blind but I still can't see where to put this oil. There's loads of nuts but none of them seem to be where you pour the oil, surely the Taishan plate hasn't got to come off as that's not an easy job?
Here's a few pics, can you see where I'm supposed to put the oil?

[Rusty]

Does it have the larger 12mm drain plug at the botom anywhere? Perhaps the 4-stroke scooters transmission uses the oil from the engine??

[Ginger Phil]

rkr said:

Does it have the larger 12mm drain plug at the botom anywhere? Perhaps the 4-stroke scooters transmission uses the oil from the engine??

Well that's the thing, I've had a good feel about underneath (I can't see much because the bike is so low to the ground) and I can't feel any big draining bolts, there's definitely nothing like the oil draining bolt.

So I take it from my pictures you can't see anything either?

[beefjurky]

the drain bolt for my boatian is near the spring for the back brake it is only a ten mm bolt not a big one like the engine oil. The best i can try and explain it is the bolt for filling it up is on the side(where it says taishan or boatian).Its just a little different to the rest of the bolts also should have a washer on it and its the same for the bolt to drain oil it also has a washer on it. It only takes 110ml of oil so you need a syringe or something of the like to squirt it in, and it is a bit of a hassle doing it, the bolt to drain the oil on my scoot had been overtightened in factory and knackered the threads in the engine block so had to tap it out again myself Good luck

[Ginger Phil]

Cheers for the info. I'll go and have another look later on but I won't hold my breath in finding a bolt which doesn't look like all the other bolts.

[Ginger Phil]

By jove I think I've cracked it!!

I took your advice and looked for a nut with a washer which looked a bit different to all the rest, and here it is:


(As you can see the top is completely flat whereas all the others aren't)

I undid the nut and poured some oil in, it's tricky isn't it? I just held the nozzle tight to the hole and squeezed the bottle, it seemed to go in.

I looked under the nut and blow me I saw a draining bolt:



Although I'd found the nut and draining bolt I still wasn't 100% sure I'd poured the oil in the right place so I did the obvious thing and undid the draining bolt and guess what? A load of clean oil came out.

Cheers for all your help guys, I'd never have managed it without ya!! ;D