P500 Oil in airbox?

The Green Goat

The Green Goat

LGBTQ Compliance Officer -Lotta gays in this place
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Sep 7, 2020
2,158
15,957
113
Ohio
Ownership

  1. 520
Not sure what to make of this, but I was doing routine maintenance today for the upcoming MOM ride and discovered my airbox has probably 1/2"+ of oil sitting in the bottom of it. I'm thinking, that's odd, and probably shouldn't be there. My memory sucks, but I don't recall ever rolling this thing over. I keep the filter cleaned/oiled/on tight. Seems to run as well as it ever has. Only thing I can think of is the crankcase is getting pressurized somehow and blowing oil out a vent tube somewhere and that concerns me a bit.


Thoughts? Did I flop this thing and am just completely blanking out on that memory? @futzin @KyGal83 ?

1000003805
 
The Green Goat

The Green Goat

LGBTQ Compliance Officer -Lotta gays in this place
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Sep 7, 2020
2,158
15,957
113
Ohio
Ownership

  1. 520
Ok, so it's more like 2". Air intake seems relatively clean, but definitely oil-free. There's the air inlet pipe that has some muck on it, but no oil to speak off. So I guess I'm not sure where it's coming from. Perhaps its a mixture of the filter oil and water?

1000003806
1000003807
 
KyGal83

KyGal83

KGB, SNS, Duchess Sheldon, Ms. Daisy, Natasha
Lifetime Member
Feb 3, 2021
8,880
87,818
113
Kentucky
Ownership

  1. 500
Not sure what to make of this, but I was doing routine maintenance today for the upcoming MOM ride and discovered my airbox has probably 1/2"+ of oil sitting in the bottom of it. I'm thinking, that's odd, and probably shouldn't be there. My memory sucks, but I don't recall ever rolling this thing over. I keep the filter cleaned/oiled/on tight. Seems to run as well as it ever has. Only thing I can think of is the crankcase is getting pressurized somehow and blowing oil out a vent tube somewhere and that concerns me a bit.


Thoughts? Did I flop this thing and am just completely blanking out on that memory? @futzin @KyGal83 ?

View attachment 444160
Yikes... had that with mine, but it was in fact from a layover where I did not shut it off. Hopefully nothing major for you... @906UP or @Neohio ... any ideas?

On another note; I thought the 500 and 520 airboxes were the same.. but they aren't. Interesting.
 
TripleB

TripleB

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
Aug 13, 2018
15,121
134,817
113
Caryville, Tennessee
Ownership

  1. 1000-3

  2. 1000-5
The Green Goat

The Green Goat

LGBTQ Compliance Officer -Lotta gays in this place
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Sep 7, 2020
2,158
15,957
113
Ohio
Ownership

  1. 520
Pull over half a liter out of it. Engine dipstick seemed a smidge low, but nothing alarming.

1000003810
 
906UP

906UP

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Club Contributor
Jul 6, 2017
14,241
134,971
113
da Yoop
Ownership

  1. 1000-3

  2. Talon X
Pull over half a liter out of it. Engine dipstick seemed a smidge low, but nothing alarming.

View attachment 444163
Any chance you overfilled it a bit on the last oil change? Seems like a lot for it not to be low on oil.

Several things can cause this like too much oil in the crankcase, a dirty or too heavily oiled airfilter, extended high rpm runs, etc. I wouldn't worry about it too much. Clean it out and run it!
 
advertisement
The Green Goat

The Green Goat

LGBTQ Compliance Officer -Lotta gays in this place
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Sep 7, 2020
2,158
15,957
113
Ohio
Ownership

  1. 520
Make sure the drain going to rr is clear as well. I used compressed air to blow this chunk out of that hose recently.
View attachment 444184
RR?

The 520 airbox is a bit different from the 500, from what I understand. That being said, the drain hole has a clear plug clamped over it. I pulled that off and cleaned out some mud that was caked in it. There is a vent tube that runs to the crankcase. I didn't pull that off yet, but probably will. If you can see that little square chunk of foam in my 1st pic; that's where the vent comes in. My assumption is that is where the oil was pulled from as that foam is soaked in oil, so I assume it's at least somewhat patent.

The oil on the dipstick was a bit inconsistent when checking. The first time I pulled it out, it was about 2/3 down the checkered area, but the more I checked, the further up the dipstick it got. I'm gonna add a half quart and run it.
 
The Green Goat

The Green Goat

LGBTQ Compliance Officer -Lotta gays in this place
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Sep 7, 2020
2,158
15,957
113
Ohio
Ownership

  1. 520
Any chance you overfilled it a bit on the last oil change? Seems like a lot for it not to be low on oil.

Several things can cause this like too much oil in the crankcase, a dirty or too heavily oiled airfilter, extended high rpm runs, etc. I wouldn't worry about it too much. Clean it out and run it!
Don't think I overfilled it. Like I said in the previous post, it was a bit low, but I also kept getting inconsistent readings. I did heavily oil the air filter prior to TO24 and I do only run it with the pedal to the floor, so there's that.
 
Neohio

Neohio

Beast of the East
Lifetime Member
Supporting Member
Club Contributor
Dec 22, 2016
14,573
73,616
113
Painesville Ohio
Ownership

  1. 1000-5
RR?

The 520 airbox is a bit different from the 500, from what I understand. That being said, the drain hole has a clear plug clamped over it. I pulled that off and cleaned out some mud that was caked in it. There is a vent tube that runs to the crankcase. I didn't pull that off yet, but probably will. If you can see that little square chunk of foam in my 1st pic; that's where the vent comes in. My assumption is that is where the oil was pulled from as that foam is soaked in oil, so I assume it's at least somewhat patent.

The oil on the dipstick was a bit inconsistent when checking. The first time I pulled it out, it was about 2/3 down the checkered area, but the more I checked, the further up the dipstick it got. I'm gonna add a half quart and run it.
There is a clearish drain hose on the 500. Remove the valve on the end, remove other end from airbox and blow it out.
 
KyGal83

KyGal83

KGB, SNS, Duchess Sheldon, Ms. Daisy, Natasha
Lifetime Member
Feb 3, 2021
8,880
87,818
113
Kentucky
Ownership

  1. 500
As a reference, here are 2 photos on the inside of my air box. I have a drain hose/vent that terminates near the right rear tire, that was clogged when I took these last November.

IMG 5890
IMG 5891
 
Last edited:
futzin

futzin

Well-Known Member
Lifetime Member
Sep 10, 2019
4,131
30,691
113
Kentucky
Ownership

  1. 500

  2. 520
Not sure what to make of this, but I was doing routine maintenance today for the upcoming MOM ride and discovered my airbox has probably 1/2"+ of oil sitting in the bottom of it. I'm thinking, that's odd, and probably shouldn't be there. My memory sucks, but I don't recall ever rolling this thing over. I keep the filter cleaned/oiled/on tight. Seems to run as well as it ever has. Only thing I can think of is the crankcase is getting pressurized somehow and blowing oil out a vent tube somewhere and that concerns me a bit.


Thoughts? Did I flop this thing and am just completely blanking out on that memory? @futzin @KyGal83 ?

View attachment 444160

I have nothing substantive to contribute but I will note this is the second time in recent days a tag has not resulted in a notification. Strange.
I know I'm unsocial, but still... 🙂

Has the machine leaned heavily to driver for a time with the engine running?
(near SPIM)
 
KyGal83

KyGal83

KGB, SNS, Duchess Sheldon, Ms. Daisy, Natasha
Lifetime Member
Feb 3, 2021
8,880
87,818
113
Kentucky
Ownership

  1. 500
I have nothing substantive to contribute but I will note this is the second time in recent days a tag has not resulted in a notification. Strange.
I know I'm unsocial, but still... 🙂

Has the machine leaned heavily to driver for a time with the engine running?
(near SPIM)
You unsocial? Never! (insert sarcastic giggle) …
 
Last edited:
KyGal83

KyGal83

KGB, SNS, Duchess Sheldon, Ms. Daisy, Natasha
Lifetime Member
Feb 3, 2021
8,880
87,818
113
Kentucky
Ownership

  1. 500
Thoughts? Did I flop this thing and am just completely blanking out on that memory? @futzin @KyGal83 ?
You did have a SPIM in June.. in mine. (I should check my box, 🤔). I do not remember you flopping yours, there was a close moment on trail 11… but not close enough to warrant that.
 
advertisement

About us

  • Our community has been around for many years and pride ourselves on offering unbiased, critical discussion among people of all different backgrounds. We are working every day to make sure our community is one of the best.

User Menu

Buy us a beer!

  • Lots of time and money has gone into making sure the community is running the best software, best designs, and all the other bells and whistles. Care to buy us a beer? We'd really appreciate it!

    Beer Fund!

    Club Membership!