Engine Oil Light On

Engine oil light has been coming on every now and then. Stays on for 2-3 minutes and goes out again. I called the dealer and he says to change the oil back to regular stock YamaLube 20-40 and take the Mobil One out. Has anyone else had this problem and what cured it?

Thanks, Wade

RoadGlide said:

Engine oil light has been coming on every now and then. Stays on for 2-3 minutes and goes out again. I called the dealer and he says to change the oil back to regular stock YamaLube 20-40 and take the Mobil One out. Has anyone else had this problem and what cured it?
Thanks, Wade

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Wade,

Prior to changing oil, why don't you add about 8 oz - and see if that helps? The FJR has an oil LEVEL light, not an oil PRESSURE light. My guess is that you're a bit low. If you changed oil and filter, added 4 quarts - you are about 1 cup low.

It seams like a common problem on yama. I had the same issue on V-Star and the FZ1. Just make sure that you are above the mid level on the oil and you should be fine. Those sensors are wacky. I put over 25k on each of those bikes with out any problems.

Put Yamalube in it.. LOL You must be kidding me.....

The sensor is a level sensor and cannot tell the differance between oil and water, nevermind Yamalube and Mobil 1.

Add a slight bit of oil and see if the light goes out. If it doesn't, perhaps you've got a bad sensor.

Several of us with '06s have run into this. Do a search of threads. Bottom line is, let it warm up a little longer and the light won't come on-- or ride it the way it is; it's not huring it.

B)

Thanks for the feedback guys. As suspected, the dealer and his opinion are way off. I value the opinions of this forum any day over the dealer. For the record, the oil level is at the top of the site glass. I personally trust Mobil One over just about any oil out there. Thanks again.

RoadGlide said:

For the record, the oil level is at the top of the site glass. I personally trust Mobil One over just about any oil out there.

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+1

Yamaha has had some issues with faulty oil level sensors. Your level and oil brand is okay but you need to change dealers! :lol: ...and see if they will replace the Oil Level Sensor under warranty.

Roger

For the record, the oil level is at the top of the site glass.

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Checked this way? (Per the owners manual.)
To check the engine oil level

1. place the vehicle on the center stand. Make sure that the vehicle is positioned straight up when checking the oil level

2. start the engine, warm it up for several minutes, and then turn it off

3. Wait a few minutes until the oil settles, and then check the oil level through the check window

4. The engine oil should be between the minimum and maximum level marks.

If your oil level is over the minimum level mark and the light still comes on, ignore it but keep an eye on the oil level because you now know you can't trust the idiot light.

I won't even think of touching THE OIL TYPE but to say 'yes', use oil, and ensure it is of the correct depth. :lol:

Changed my oil at 55 miles on my '07, oil level was nearly to the top dot on the sight glass after running for several minutes and sitting for ten minutes. Fired it up the next day, outside temp aroung 45 degrees, rode off and within one mile the oil level light turns on :dribble: . I stop immediately, shut it down, and I'm thinking WTF! No leaks, start it up, no light and off I go. I've owned a dozen 1000 cc plus streetbikes (no Yamahas) and performed over a hundred oil changes and never had anything like this happen. I get home, put it on the centerstand, let it sit for ten minutes, and the oil level is perfect. Bottom line: the sensor is WAY too sensitive and if the bike had an oil pressure light instead these oil light threads wouldn't exist. IMHO if this happens to you and you know your oil level is correct, don't sweat it. However, it is great to have a forum like this so that you don't think that you are the one unlucky bastard in the world having some weird problem like this with your new machine. :glare:

Probably what happened was your engine oil was cold, you started it up and enough got pumped up out of the crankcase (it was cool enough that the oil didn't return to the crankcase as fast as it would have if it were warm) to flip your oil level light on. Like you already surmised; no worries.

mine has come on three times since i took possession of it about three weeks ago, and thankfully i've not done any messin' with it. the first time it came on when i was on the highway; not accellerating, not going up a hill, just putting down the highway. i puled over, turned it off, turned it back on, and it was gone.

took the fjr into the dealer 3 days ago for the first oil change; yesterday and today, about 3 minutes (one mile or so) into my ride, the sensor comes on. it eventually went back off. i checked my oil yesterday after i arrived at work, it was fine (as i suspected it would be), but this is getting a little annoying, nothing like your new bike crying wolf all the, you getting conditioned to ignoring it, 'til the real time it pops on and you disregard it, and mama yamaha says "go feck yourself, you didn't heed the warning light". i guess i'll bring it to the local dealer's attention so they can hand me some b.s., i can ask the phone number for the regional office, yada yada.

Just add a few ounces of oil at a time until the light doesn't appear anymore....

jestal said:

Just add a few ounces of oil at a time until the light doesn't appear anymore....

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but it's not coming on when it should be. i've not been on a hill, i've not been accelerating, or going around a curve. in one instance i was on the highway (level) and had been for proabably 3-5 minutes, and the two other occasions i was 3-5 minutes into my ride on level ground.

The oil level float switch is on the left side of the oil pan directly to the rear of the drain bolt.

Whenever the red light comes on you can perform a simple test. Come to a stop and tilt the bike to the left. This will raise the oil level on the left side of the pan. The float switch should rise with the higher oil level and the red light should go out. I don't know if there's a time delay associated with operation of the switch. Probably not.

When the float is at its high position the switch is closed and the red light is off. When the float is below its high position the switch is open and the red light comes on. The light will also come on if the wire from the switch is broken or disconnected.

dean said:

jestal said:

Just add a few ounces of oil at a time until the light doesn't appear anymore....

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but it's not coming on when it should be. i've not been on a hill, i've not been accelerating, or going around a curve. in one instance i was on the highway (level) and had been for proabably 3-5 minutes, and the two other occasions i was 3-5 minutes into my ride on level ground.

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Try warming the bike up for about 2-3 minutes before you drive off.

It's done the same to me 3-5 minutes into a ride too.

Works for me.

B)

Sounds like a Gen II thing.

he says to change the oil back to regular stock YamaLube 20-40 and take the Mobil One out.

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Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha....what a moron.

Find a different place maybe, you do not want an idiot to work on your bike.

(Yes, I know the first post is a month old)

There MAY be hope.

I got the oil warning light on my 04 FJR early in it's life. Riding down the interstate, steady speed, all warmed up. It came on twice I believe in a couple days. Oil level was fine.

Never happened again.

if the oil level sensor light is supposed to go back off once it detects the oil level has returned to a safe level, what would it mean if the oil level indicator light stays on and doesn't go off?

i ask, and am reviving this old thread, as once again, i took the fjr to the dealer for the 8000 (or was it 7?) service, and once again the oil light came on 5 minutes into my ride. not at the beginning, but 5 minutes in. i knew the oil level was fine. the light did not go back off. turned the ignition off and back on and it was fine. then on the way home, same thing on the highway. gotta love having to pull the clutch in and turning your bike off and back on at 80 mph in rush hour (yeah, i know, the traffic can't be too bad if i'm crusing at 80).

bad sensor? that's what i'm wondering, since the light never went back off on its own, i had to reset it. i can tell a difference between that light and my fj light, it's like digital and analog. the fjr light is either on all the way or off. whereas on the fj, if i've truly been low on oil, you would see the light creep on, stay on, then creep off, maybe flicker or barely light up.

dean

cincinnati

Yamaha has had low-oil-level indicators on their motorcycles for at least 25 years -- those of you seeing them for the first time are not the first riders to pull over and shut-off your engine, I assure you. Regardless of what you may think of them, I think they do provide a service with regards for the intended use of the FJR -- long distance high-speed riding (given enough state-lines crossed, you may actually need to add a little oil someday -- and that light will tell you).

Still, now that we've got computers, there may be some circuitry involved (I don't know?) -- with regards to switching the light 'on' and turning it 'off'? So, 'dean' (Cincy), you may have a problem....?

Mine works exactly as it should.

And that is: turns the light 'on' when the level in the crankcase lowers enough for the float to 'set' the switch and then, a little later, switches the light 'off' when the oil returns to the sump and subsequently raises the float.

The previous is dependent upon:

• Oil level (goes without saying)
• Oil viscosity -- thick oil, once pumped away from the sump, takes longer to return
• Temperature (both: ambient and coolant/oil) -- cold oil is thicker (see above)
• Engine speed -- higher revs (rpm) pumps more oil and will tend to move the oil away from the sump faster ( and, thus, exasperate the 'issue')

The 'issue' above is a perfectly normal mechanical attribute ('dean' excepted?) to the 4-cycle internal-combustion engine. (You know, some are 'dry-sump', not the FJR, and don't even have oil in the crankcase/sump -- they work OK, too...)I'm pretty sure this topic has been discussed in-depth previously? :blink: :huh:

Aplogize for any redundancy....