What you might need to get from the store before starting...
Gorilla Automotive TW605 Torque Wrench
End Cap Oil Filter Wrench
17mm Socket, Wrench, Extender
Oil Pan
Glass Cleaner
Oil
Filter
Gloves
Funnel
Some up front notes...
The frustrating part of the oil change occurs when trying to remove the oil filter. You WILL need a solid one piece end cap oil filter wrench. Autozone, Discount Auto parts, Pepboys, some Wal-Marts carry end cap oil filter wrenches. Just make sure you get the correct size.
Contrary to some claims, you do not need to remove the exhaust headers or radiator. The filter slips out on the lower left side of the bike where the frame starts to curve back under the engine.
Starting up...
Run the bike for about 5 minutes to heat up the oil. It helps when you get to the draining process.
Remove the oil fill cap on the right side of the engine.
Place your oil pan under the engine towards the left side.
With the 17mm socket and wrench, remove the oil drain plug.
This started my adventure of "When Jonathon works on an engine, he will invariably run into something that doesn't go right. Probably because he never works on engines..."
The drain plug sits in an awkward position for removal. I yanked, tapped and pulled on the wrench but could not break the bolt loose. So...super WD40
to the rescue!
Spray, soak, tap with a framing hammer (it was close to hand).
Tried it again and presto, black sludge.
Let the oil drain for awhile. Now is a good time to rehydrate, turn on some music, perhaps do a little dance to limber up. Or just wait 10 minutes for the oil to drain...
Reinsert the plug and tighten to 16 ft-lbs. using that torque wrench I mentioned above. Note that I barely know what a torque wrench is and I have never used one before.
Now comes the fun part...
Slide your oil drain pan under the exhaust around where the oil filter rests. Some oil will likely spill onto the exhaust. You can use glass cleaner or some Simple Green to clean it off later.
Slide the oil cap wrench between the exhaust and place on the end of the oil filter. Using an extension and socket wrench, remove the oil filter.
I attempted to use this cheap little adjustable end cap filter wrench and failed miserably.
After some scrapped knuckles and much maligning of the parentage of my Bandit, I used a cringe-worthy trick to remove the filter. I stuck a screw into the side of the oil filter so that the wrench would tighten down on the filter.
I got it removed and pulled it out through the space between the frame and exhaust on the lower left side of the engine.
Next, prepare your replacement oil filter. I used the K&N KN-138. To prep the filter, rub a little oil around the rubber seal on the bottom.
The K&N filter held a present surprise, a 17mm nut welded to the end. So much easier to install and remove. I slid the filter between the frame and the exhaust on the lower left side of the bike. It takes a bit of finger tip manual dexterity to get the filter on the threaded post. Once on, you can use a 17mm socket, wrench, and extension to gently tighten the filter down. A quarter past snug is fine.
The only thing left is to add the oil back. I used the Kendall GT-1 20w-50 oil recommended by holeshot.com. Doing research on the different weights and brands will show a lot of strong opinions about what to use. In some cases, I felt like I was reading an argument on politics or religion. Ultimately, I cannot say why the 20w-50 represents a good brand to use but anecdotal research supports people using in bikes that have 130k plus miles.
The bandit takes 3.7 quarts to fill. Replace the oil cap and you should be good to go.
As a brief addendum, a few individuals recommend adding some Marvel Mystery Oil
to the oil change. I did not, but have some Mystery Oil and noticed the packaging recommends replacing 20% of the regular engine oil with Mystery Oil. The math works out to about .74 quarts. Might help engine longevity, keep seals fresh, etc.
A link to the Suzuki Service Manual I found after a few Google searches.
Gorilla Automotive TW605 Torque Wrench
End Cap Oil Filter Wrench
17mm Socket, Wrench, Extender
Oil Pan
Glass Cleaner
Oil
Filter
Gloves
Funnel
Some up front notes...
The frustrating part of the oil change occurs when trying to remove the oil filter. You WILL need a solid one piece end cap oil filter wrench. Autozone, Discount Auto parts, Pepboys, some Wal-Marts carry end cap oil filter wrenches. Just make sure you get the correct size.
Contrary to some claims, you do not need to remove the exhaust headers or radiator. The filter slips out on the lower left side of the bike where the frame starts to curve back under the engine.
Starting up...
Run the bike for about 5 minutes to heat up the oil. It helps when you get to the draining process.
Remove the oil fill cap on the right side of the engine.
 |
| Oil Cap |
With the 17mm socket and wrench, remove the oil drain plug.
 |
| One stuck drain plug, Suzuki Bandit |
This started my adventure of "When Jonathon works on an engine, he will invariably run into something that doesn't go right. Probably because he never works on engines..."
The drain plug sits in an awkward position for removal. I yanked, tapped and pulled on the wrench but could not break the bolt loose. So...super WD40
to the rescue! |
| Is it bad that my WD-40 has rust on it? |
Spray, soak, tap with a framing hammer (it was close to hand).
 |
| Framing hammer re-purposed to loosen a bolt |
 |
| Drain plug, black sludge, and trusty oil drain pan |
Let the oil drain for awhile. Now is a good time to rehydrate, turn on some music, perhaps do a little dance to limber up. Or just wait 10 minutes for the oil to drain...
Reinsert the plug and tighten to 16 ft-lbs. using that torque wrench
I mentioned above. Note that I barely know what a torque wrench is and I have never used one before.Now comes the fun part...
Slide your oil drain pan under the exhaust around where the oil filter rests. Some oil will likely spill onto the exhaust. You can use glass cleaner or some Simple Green to clean it off later.
Slide the oil cap wrench between the exhaust and place on the end of the oil filter. Using an extension and socket wrench, remove the oil filter.
 |
| Curse you tiny oil filter! |
I attempted to use this cheap little adjustable end cap filter wrench and failed miserably.
 |
| Cheap Oil Filter Wrench |
I got it removed and pulled it out through the space between the frame and exhaust on the lower left side of the engine.
|
| Oil filter being shy |
 |
| Notice the wrench in the box image! |
The only thing left is to add the oil back. I used the Kendall GT-1 20w-50 oil recommended by holeshot.com. Doing research on the different weights and brands will show a lot of strong opinions about what to use. In some cases, I felt like I was reading an argument on politics or religion. Ultimately, I cannot say why the 20w-50 represents a good brand to use but anecdotal research supports people using in bikes that have 130k plus miles.
 |
| Kendall GT-1 Motorcycle oil |
The bandit takes 3.7 quarts to fill. Replace the oil cap and you should be good to go.
 |
| Kendal GT-1 empties with the old filter and my yellow funnel. I like my yellow funnel. |
to the oil change. I did not, but have some Mystery Oil and noticed the packaging recommends replacing 20% of the regular engine oil with Mystery Oil. The math works out to about .74 quarts. Might help engine longevity, keep seals fresh, etc.A link to the Suzuki Service Manual I found after a few Google searches.
6 comments:
Is this an old post? Obviously. But I came just to say "thanks" - it was helpful and for someone new to the sport-touring world (also have a Bandit) it made changing my oil a breeze! Great suggestion on the K&N Filter also.
Nice job on the post, but I noticed one correction that needs to be mentioned to protect your engine...
The service manual states to install the oil filter by hand until you feel the gasket contact it's mating surface, then continue tightening two full turns.!
This is much tighter than most all other m/c engine service instructions, but I can tell you from personal experience that it WILL leak if you only use the usual 1/4 turn. Mine checked out OK for the initial 300 mile trip home, and for an additional 3 - 400 miles before it began leaking rather badly. My son noticed the oil on the back tire fortunately before it caused a nasty situation.
It seems that Suzuki uses not only a different thread size and pitch on their spin-on filters, but also a different profile for the large gasket that is molded on to the filter itself. It requires more force to effect a suitable seal...
mine started leaking as soon as i started it up after change
The oil has to be synthetic?
as some are saying per manual two full turns..this will destroy the filter and make it crumple when it has a nut on the end..hand tight then snug a bit more is all that is ever needed
How often or after how many miles is it recommended to change the oil .
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