Oil Pressure!!

Not sure whether to panic or not.

2009 model 1250SA with 6500km's on it. Purchased from dealer about 6 weeks ago. Went for first reasonable ride this morning. 30-40 minutes in and poking through a reasonable right hander at 130-140 and oil light flickers. WTF!!!. Clutch in and roll-off. Light then comes on and stays on. Thought oil level was OK (checked before leaving), no oil trail, no smoke, no rattles or vib's.

Tip-toed into next town and straight to bike shop (Suzuki dealer). Oil level little bit low but OK, sounds OK. Light does not come back on when bike re-started (apart from turn-on as it should) mechanic suspects switch or oil pressure relief valve, and comments that the oil does "tend to splash around a bit in these engines when pushing them". He did not think I should be worried. He was of the opinion that if there was a problem with the pump or some other mechanical issue then the light would come on and stay on.

Turned around and headed for home - relaxed a bit and punted reasonably hard - surprise surprise - half hour later light starts flickering again - then stays on. Same deal - get home, stop the bike for a couple of minutes - restart and no light. Went through wiring loom - nothing obvious in terms of potential earths or shorts.

Do not know what oil is in it, I was going to dump it this week anyway. It does look fairly dark for a machine with such low km's. The clutch also has a fair rattle in neutral which everyone has told me is nothing unusual for these machines.

This is not good - supposed to be leaving for Cairns next week (from Hunter Valley). Will ring the dealer I got it from on Monday.

Dicky switch? The way the light flickers intermittently (a lot higher frequency than the rate the oil pressure could possibly fluctuate) before it finally stays on I am inclined to think it is the switch breaking down - or is this just wishful thinking?

Dump the oil and put the recommend weight semi synthetic in.
Re test.

As a side note these clutches Do Not rattle!

GNB wrote:
Dicky switch?

Good chance, I've had the same problem in cars. Oil pressure switch faulty or clogged.
Change the switch and the oil and filter.

Ive gone through 2 oil pressure switches on the aprilia .$22 each .
Id replace it and see how that goes .Be careful ,the thread might be tiny and tapered . Get a Suzuki one .

2wheelsagain wrote:Dump the oil and put the recommend weight semi synthetic in.
Re test.

As a side note these clutches Do Not rattle!

Mine always has.

Kaupy1962 wrote:

2wheelsagain wrote:

As a side note these clutches Do Not rattle!

Mine always has.

+1

Kaupy1962 wrote:

2wheelsagain wrote:Dump the oil and put the recommend weight semi synthetic in.
Re test.

As a side note these clutches Do Not rattle!

Mine always has.

What do you mean by rattle? when are you hearing this rattle?

I think rattle is the wrong word. It shouldn't sound like a Ducati, but the clutch does make some noise.

Which should disappear when the clutch lever if pulled in slightly .

If the bike is 6 weeks old and bought from the dealer, it's their obligation to fix the thing. As several have already noted, it could just be a faulty switch. Take it back to them and get it sorted.

Yeah and there will be a slight 'rattle' when the bike's in neutral, which goes away when you draw in the clutch. Pretty much every bike I've had had that characteristic.

Noise\rattle\sound - disappears when the clutch is pulled in. No definitely not that outstanding Ducati racket...

Spoke to two more guys today (2010, 2011 machines) - both said they had the noise from brand-new, and both were told by their dealers that it is not a problem. One has 9K on it, the other closer to 20K. Noise still there, but no different from when new.

Sorry 2wheelsagain - yours must be a special.

Anyhoo - lets see what a new oil pressure switch can do - Suzuki has "heaps" in stock - I think that must say something. Mechanic seems confident that is the problem. We will throw in some fresh runny stuff in as well - as recommended in the service manual. And say a little prayer.

Thanks for the comments - all appreciated

My 2010 1250S also doesn't have any rattles/noises from the clutch. But clearly my gearbox is not like others! So there are variations.

My 2010 1250S also doesn't have any rattles/noises from the clutch. But clearly my gearbox is not like others! So there are variations.

GNB wrote:

Sorry 2wheelsagain - yours must be a special.

It is. It doesn't have a knob behind the bars

gus wrote:Which should disappear when the clutch lever if pulled in slightly .

Yep. It does Gus

GNB

I don't know if this helpful but I was concerned about the level of oil in mine - bought less than a thousand kays ago from the second owner. It has between 10 and 11K on it. I am a very new owner. All ears.

This is not sage advice. I have questions too.

I had ridden it 120 kays, about half of that a bit quick, and when I pulled up and put it on the centre stand, the oil level was way low - only just visible in the sight glass. It was full. I was alarmed, but later in the day, when getting ready to go home, I looked at it again. It was at an acceptable level. I rode home.

The next day, I consulted the mechanic who had done the last service. (not a Suzuki dealer, just a damn fine mechanic who is a motorcyclist and does bikes as well as cars). He explained it to me this way, "those engines hold a lot of oil in the upper engine when they are running and it can take a long time to drain back down" Satisfied, I rode home. Looked at the bike the next day. The oil level was right where it was when I bought the bike.

Considering that, I am thinking: What type of oil are you using? (viscosity) Mine has 20/50 synthetic. It might benefit from a lighter oil, if it gets more of it back to the sump where it gets pumped from more quickly. Thoughts please. What do other people run? No, I am not trying to hijack your thread.

If I had a problem with a flickering oil pressure light, I would try slightly overfilling to see if the problem goes away. This might rule out the possibility that your pump is pumping a bit of air once the engine and upper cylinder fill with oil, and could indicate whether your pressure sensor is at fault (or worse) if the flickering light does not stop. a 250 ml overfill would probably cause no harm to test, and it might be possible to get the oil back out with a shop syringe. No need to drop all the oil and it's tidier.

As for clutch rattle, I've noticed the difference in sound, clutch pulled/out and wouldn't regard it as significant.

Comments

jstava wrote:GNB What type of oil are you using? (viscosity) Mine has 20/50 synthetic. It might benefit from a lighter oil, if it gets more of it back to the sump where it gets pumped from more quickly. Thoughts please.

The book list 10w-40 which might explain why your oil is staying up top.

So I noticed. It still has the oil in from the previous owner. I couldn't see the point of the heavier oil in a new(ish) liquid cooled engine. I'll go back to 10/40 and stay with it, I think, next service.

GNB

I started a long anecdote about a sensor switch problem I had on a car - this is the short version - engine noise is a pretty good indicator of whether there is an actual pressure problem. Mine wasn't noisy, just replaced the switch in the next 100 keys.

On the Bandit, the oil pressure switch is a little exposed. on the front of the right side of the engine. Yes, there is is rubber cover, but it can trap water forced in during washing too, if a pressure washer is used. Then corrosion of the wire connection could be an issue. On mine, a 2007 1250S, the little wire is unprotected (no sheath) for the last couple of inches. It might be damaged by stones, though gains some protection from exhaust header.

This is the first place I'd look, checking for corrosion, however minor. Check and clean. It should be possible to check the operation of the circuitry, but not the switch itself, by earthing and unearthing the wire. If you get a clean "on and off" with a good earth, then the problem is not the wiring, but the switch or more.

Considering the position of this electrical connection (low, exposure to wet road spray or water from cleaning, proximity to exhaust) its a good candidate for heat related, intermittent connection faults where any oxidation of the connection exists at all. I'm thinking it might be a good idea to seal the connection with some sort of product, possibly with the sort of stuff (paint like) used to seal battery terminals on cars. This works admirably to protect against corrosion where an oxidation free connection is established.

A hand operated vaccuum/pressure pump with a gauge (like a laboratory pump) can be used to check the operation of the switch and verify that it opens and closes the circuit, but would require a bit of simple engineering to cobble up a fit to the pump so one could see what pressure the switch turns on and off at. Of course, one would need to know the design pressure which activates the switch and this is information I don't have. (No workshop/service manual - yet, and it might not contain this kind of detailed info anyway) Considering the cost of such a pump, it would just be simpler to just buy a new switch and A/B test it. Hey, I don't have one either.

Disclaimer - This is all homegrown stuff. Take it for what it is. I am a new owner of my Bandit, and certainly no mechanic or expert. There are probably forum members who have more to say on this, and may well disagree with what I have written.

I doubt the warning light comes on as a result of using 20W-50 oil,so unless you live in Siberia, it shouldn't be a factor.
Take the bike back to shop you bought it from, and tell them you want to test the oil pressure. The pressure gauge is hooked up to the main oil gallery (B). After the bike is warm, you should see a reading of 14-57 psi (100-400 kPa) 3000 rev/min.
Under NSW laws (not sure about other places), if you buy a bike from a dealer that's under 5 years old and with under 30 000 k's, you have a minimum warranty period of 3 months or 3000km from the time you bought it. They must rectify any defect, unless it's a battery, or consumables like light bulbs, pads etc.
Good luck and I hope it's just a faulty switch (most likely). Keep us posted!

Balancing the TBs helps with clutch rattle

Just got back from trip to Cooktown

5700k round trip - included 3 x 1000K plus days

The Shop replaced the pressure switch the day before I left and changed the oil with Yamalube 10W40 Semi-syn while they were at it.

The bike went like a dream on the trip, and not a flicker from the oil pressure light.

Only gripe was the screen could be a couple of inches higher - but there are plenty of options out there to fix that.