How much is too much....oil

[Yanbo]

Right..... I was topping up the oil on my 2012 696 yesterday after a boo boo that made it loose just over a litre and like a noob I fear I may have put a wee bit too much in...ie it’s above the top fill line. However when the bike is leaned over even by a few degrees it goes within limits. This would lead me to think that if it is over then it’s not by much. Therefore.....do I;

1. Leave it as it’s not a few litres over and let it burn off?

2. Drain some out to get the level exact? If so what’s the best way to do this? Cracking the sump plug a little?

I’ve heard horror stories about too much oil turning into a foam and not doing its job as a lube but at the same time I’ve been told that has to be a major overfill.

Also to check it warm or cold?

I’m a newbie to Ducati so apologies for the basic questions but thank you in advance for your advice.

[mickj]

I would take some out by cracking the sump plug and draining a little out. Too much oil can pump itself out through the overflow and possibly onto the tyre, not good.

[Stevedesmo]

The difference between just right and over the line is a very small volume of oil, however if you want to drain a bit, doing it via the sump plug can be messy and hard to control

If you remove the filler cap and lean the bike over to that side, some will drain out, have a pan placed to collect it and all good
Of course, you need a good grip on the bars and a bit of muscle to hoik it back up vertical again, but it works and is easier to control!

[Yanbo]

Thanks for the replies. I think leaning the bike over may be the better option in this case. I have some syringes and plastic hose from when I bleed brakes on my mountain bike. If I do get the Bike lent over then maybe I could suck some out using those? Then it wouldn’t have to lean so far and may be less messy

[Stevedesmo]

How many arms and hands do you have?

[Gerry]

If you have a local vet ..... go ask them how much for the biggest syringe they have .... and explain fork oil level .....engine oil type use ... I think the last one I got was £2 or around that ... I always have one or two handy ...

[Dukedesmo]

Doesn't sound like it's much over, unless it's seriously overfilled I wouldn't worry about it - in fact my Monster was using* so much oil it would soon correct itself (and then run low :( ).

* soon to be remedied, hopefully.

[Paul_]

Is it still within the top of the sight glass window?

I over filled mine last year by 2 or 3 mm over the max fill line and like you thought about draining some out via a vacume pump and the oil fill cap. Couldn't get a piece of hoze small enough to get in far enough and after checking it every so often found no signs of foaming.. I've just riden it as normal the last year with no problems.

Will be a little more careful when filing it up during this years oil change.

[Yanbo]

Right all sorted! I used the leaning bike method combined with a syringe with a 6inch hose on the end put through the oil filler hole. It was fiddly and uncomfortable but I kind of used my body to lean the bike on then sucked the oil out. It took a while for the oil to drain in so had to put up with a 180kg odd bike on top of me for a few minutes but it worked hahaha.

Lessons I learnt:

1. As someone suggested get the biggest syringe you can (I didn’t so it took a few goes)

2. Warmer oil would have been easier to work with but didn’t want to risk burning myself on the engine!!!

3. Don’t overfill in the first place ��

Thanks for all the replies everyone!