What is your oil change interval on your Kawasaki Versys X300? New GoPro Hero 10 and wireless mic.

[@lew3057]

I change it every 1500 Km (Canada) - synthetic 10w40. The bike seems to like it. Usually, I change it in the spring (April) before I start riding for the summer and then about halfway through the summer (July). That tiny little window that lets you check the oil works best when I have the bike up on the center stand. Oil has to work hard in the small high-revving engine so I make sure it's always good.

[@trekOCLVone]

Oil change every 1000 miles is great! I am of the same opinion. More is better. With my recent oil change interval at 1300 miles the oil still looked fresh as drained it out however, it is dark in the little sight glass window. Also the center stand when used to check the level in the sight glass window will over fill the engine a bit. After having the bike just held level I put 2.75 quarts in the bike. So now rather than hold the bike and have multiple little dabbles added I just put in 2.75 quarts and done. Thanks for your comments.

[@govinda102000]

Definitely often when new and every 2-3k after break in due to clutches breaking in/wear.

[@trekOCLVone]

I've been doing this.

[@anaveragehuman2937]

@@trekOCLVone Kawasaki says 7600mi/12000km intervals. Why choose so short an interval? I'm new, honestly asking.

[@trekOCLVone]

@@anaveragehuman2937 There will never be a consensus on when to change the oil in your motorcycle. Manufacturers had been extending the oil changing intervals in recent years citing the advancements in oil technology. I gathered a lot of what I call data points (testimonials and reviews) and at least in some cases the recommended intervals are now way too long. One example that really caught my attention was Mobil 1 synthetic "Extended Performance" that states on the bottles that it is guaranteed to last 20,000 miles. That is a lie. Many data points I've run into state that 10,000 intervals will lead to real trouble. Even the gold standard Toyota Camery engines completly failing at 140,000 because of the owner adherence to the recommended 10,000 between oil changes. My guess is that the manufacturers are out doing each other on stated cost of ownership but who knows. I would never go 10,000-mile intervals in my car, and I would never go 7,600 miles in my Versys X300. Today's engines are doing more - flat out producing more horsepower more torque and doing additional work like turbochargers and for bikes wet chutches. In the X300 there is the wet clutch that is a major contributor to the oil getting all fouled up with clutch material and that will clog up the oil filter. This is nothing new for bike however with the Versys X300 only holding 2.7 quarts that isn't a lot of oil to stay clean all the way out to 7,600 miles. In fact, with what I've learn it will not get to 7,600 miles before even the clutch behavior is significantly degraded. So, that is what I call a clue. I plan on keeping my X300 for years to come and clean oil will be of great value to delay engine trouble and a worn-out clutch. After the break in oil change at 600 miles I changed the oil again at 1,700 and it also had little sparkles and was really dark. After accouple more changes contaminants have been visually reduced. I'm now on plan to change my Versys X300's oil every 2,500 miles. As the bike gets older that may need to change as the engine gets more worn contaminates will again increase. Well, that is a long answer, but it is based on a lot of investigative time and other people's horror stories. There is no downside to changing the oil at 2,500 but going with the Kawasaki's recommended internal is going to bite you in the butt.

[@anaveragehuman2937]

@@trekOCLVone I'm thinking about starting motorcycle riding and see the differences between something like a Versys 300 or a CB500x with 7k or 8k miles OCIs and then KTMs that are measured in hours! :D I'm the same with my cars, change a bit early and I imagine I'd change early if I ever get a bike. I appreciate the long answer. Thank you.

[@trekOCLVone]

@@anaveragehuman2937 Great ! To make the X300's oil change easier even with my T-Rex Racing Heavy Duty Skid Plate (which I would recommend and have many videos on why) please see my video on the use of an oil -pan valve that replaces the oil pan drain plug. This makes the oil change a piece of cake. This is the link directly to the oil pan valve video right here on my KZbin X300 channel: kzbin.info/www/bejne/gWPQZJaIg915kLc&ab_channel=trekOCLVone

[@jacklanier41]

Heat is the main cause of the oil turning dark. Not a problem. These engines are over-stressed so I would change the oil a little more often compared to its higher CC counterpart. Just a matter of physics. Having said that the recommended OCI from Kawasaki should be just fine for the life of the bike. The versys will probably outlive all of us.

[@trekOCLVone]

The Ninja engine is as reliable as they come. That is one reason why I bought the X300.

[@danoalex2977]

The ninja 300 engine is engineered to run at high rpm.

[@anaveragehuman2937]

I don't see the actual OCI mentioned anywhere here so I looked it up. Kawasaki manual says 600mi/1000km break in change then every 7600mi/12000km. I don't understand why changing the oil in a quarter of the recommended time would be better. It wouldn't be a bad thing to change early, surely, other than cost (money/time).

[@aaronswingle]

I've got a 2021 Versys X 300. Had the dealership perform 600 mile service with oil change. Mechanic used Yamalube from drum. I've since done 2 oil changes at home, 1200 and 3500 miles. Both times the oil looked dark in sight glass and there was a pearlescent swirl as it drained into pan. I was thinking maybe it was debris from the wet clutch, hopefully not the engine wearing. Kawasaki Conventional 10w-40 is the oil I've been using. Check out Licking County Pathfinder Routes if you like curated scenic rides. Glacier Pass is sweet.

[@trekOCLVone]

We are on parallel paths - my first oil change was at 550 miles and my second oil change was at 2200 miles (1700 from #1) and today I just performed the third oil change at 3900 miles. As I mention in the video the oil looked really dark but when the oil was draining I could see the oil really wasn't that used and looked semi-transparent. So I think that today oil change could have/should have waited to the end of the riding season here which is November (ish). I am trying different oils and have Valvoline and genuine Kawaski synthetics on the shelf. Next I will try Mobil 1. I didn't use the center stand and balanced the bike on a flat garage floor and at the oil right in the middle of the sight glass I had put in 2 3/4 quarts along with a new genuine Kawasaki oil filter. I'll remember that next time to get the correct amount of oil in the first pour. Thanks for sharing.

[@aaronswingle]

@@trekOCLVone Thanks for the info on the amount of oil used to fill. I just added another 1/4 of a quart tonight, thinking maybe my engine was using oil. Only 400 miles since last change, so thanks again for the peace of mind!

[@Motocampster]

I think the oil gets dark quick because of the high revving engine I have 2500 miles on my oil right now and it is really dark I'm going to change my oil every 3000 miles

[@trekOCLVone]

I'm thinking the same and not letting the interval go past 3000 miles.

[@trekOCLVone]

High Def is now finally up. My video upload is 12 gigabytes utilizing 4K 30 frames per second. File size with 4K video is crazy big and that is with standard bit rate. I tried high bit rate and the GoPro file is 3.9 gig for 5 minutes of video. That is more crazy. I've been going by mileage. But I think it makes sense to change it in the fall before putting the bike up for winter even if it doesn't have many miles ridding in a given year. As of today the oil I see in the sight glass is very dark with only 1200 miles on the bike this year.

[@toddjordan6371]

Change it every 1000 miles.... always dark from the beating

[@bigyin.7710]

Wondered why the video quality was poor. I change my oil annually, I don't use the bike much.

[@trekOCLVone]

High Def is now finally up. My video upload is 12 gigabytes utilizing 4K 30 frames per second. File size with 4K video is crazy big and that is with standard bit rate. I tried high bit rate and the GoPro file is 3.9 gig for 5 minutes of video. That is more crazy. I've been going by mileage. But I think it makes sense to change it in the fall before putting the bike up for winter even if it doesn't have many miles ridding in a given year. As of today the oil I see in the sight glass is very dark with only 1200 miles on the bike this year.