[OlBull]

Does anyone have the correct amount of oil needed to fill the crankcase on a 2015 B5?
The owners manuel says 2.75 litres...I know thats wrong..Appreciate the info

[Richard230]

I changed the oil and filter (and cleaned the pickup screen) on my 2011 B5 last month and was only able to put 1.7 liters of oil in the engine before the oil level reached the top of the sight window. This was in spite of leaning the bike from side to side to drain as much oil as possible from the sump. When checking the oil level, I follow the manual's instructions and check the level after a ride, when the oil is hot. After turning off the engine, I place the bike on the center stand, wait two minutes and then check the oil level.  On my bike it shows the level to be at the upper mark on the sight glass after two minutes.  When the engine completely cools down, the level is over the top of the window.  I can only assume that the manual's 2.75 liters of oil capacity is correct when the engine is completely dry inside, such as after a rebuild or when it was new at the factory.     There must be about a liter hiding somewhere in the engine after you drain the oil out of the sump.   

[pmanaz1973]

My method has been to drain everything you can (two beers) - clean screen, change filter and dump 2 quarts back in it and repeat in no more than 2000 miles.  Unless you are visibly burning oil, don't sweat the piss-poor sight glass madness.  Trust me, you will know when the top end is starving for oil it rattles like a garbage can full of marbles being pulled down a dirt road.

[caricabasso]

There are many discussions about the amount of oil.
However what says the service book is correct, the amount of oil is 2,750 cc.
The important thing when you change the oil is to remove all because the chamber rod contains exactly 800 cc.
The new models have a drain plug just below the chamber connecting rod, for older models need to run the motor shaft (after removing the spark plug ) to download it all over again.
I can always download an amount close to 2,700 cc that, given the oil contained in the filter, as it says the maintenance book.
Even skid motion to the left and right helps to discharge small quantities of oil content on the left side of the primary transmission and other areas of the engine

[Arizoni]

On my 2011 G5, after the main oil tank is drained, tipping the motorcycle to the left and right results in a little more oil draining out.

At this point, it takes about 1.8 quarts of oil to refill the engine to the proper level.

As caricabasso mentions, the newer engines have an additional drain plug on the bottom right below the crankshaft.
This plug allows the draining of the oil that is laying in the pocket under the crankshaft, an area that doesn't get drained on the older UCE engines.

Because this area below the crankshaft gets its oil only from the oil pump, it will not immediately refill when the new oil is added to the oil tank.
For that reason I recommend filling the main oil tank with 2 quarts of oil, replacing the filler plug and starting the engine.
Let it run for a few minutes and then shut if off, allowing at least a minute for the oil in the upper end to drain back to the oil tank.
At this point, add enough oil to the engine to bring the oil level in the sight window up the the middle and it should be good to go.

[singhg5]

The answer is anywhere between 1.8 to 2.7 litres, because it depends on how much oil is drained OUT.

Measure the volume of drained dirty oil. If it is 1.8 litres, then add 1.8 litres of fresh new oil.

If you are able to drain out 2.7 litres (that is ALL of oil from crankcase as mentioned by Caricabasso), then add 2.7 litres to your bike. In my bike I can never get out all of the oil. Some of the used oil remains inside crankcase. 

Since you have a 2015 model, you should be able to get out about 2.2 litres of oil without a lot of effort. There are 2 drain plugs - one in front and second towards back of crankcase floor. In addition there is 1 oil screen compartment at the floor of crankcase. Take OFF all THREE to drain from all three positions.

The oil filter compartment is separate. It is above the oil viewing window, on the side of crankcase. That is the fourth place that needs to be opened, where some oil is accumulated. Replace oil filter too with oil.

WHY is there so much variability ?

It is because of two reasons. One is that newer models have more drain plugs than older models, so it drains out more oil as the drain plugs are able to reach different parts of crankcase. Second is the procedure employed to drain oil varies from person to person. These include temperature of oil, tilting of bike, soft kicking the engine etc, etc. Not everybody follows same procedure and so get different amounts of oil out of crankcase.

Before you drain the oil, check the oil level in the window. It has a 'min' and a 'max' mark. Replace oil to that level - just above the middle of the two marks or just reaching 'max'. Do not overfill.

Some people do not like this window. But I am not so averse to it and find it works for me. Once you get a hang of it, you will be able to read it without a real problem, when the bike is on a level ground. 

[caricabasso]

Allow me to insist.
The old models do not have the second drain plug.
I recently changed the oil to an Army of a friend of mine who has this second cap.
From the picture you can clearly see what I took Dalal chamber connecting rod cap togleinto this: exactly 850 cc oil



Allow 850 cc old oil is counterproductive because it is one-third of the total capacity.
If you do not have the cap the oil can be removed altogether too patiently.
The key issue is to turn the crankshaft with the crank, after removing the spark plugs and oil filter, for many times until they drop more.
Even heel the bike to the right and to the left contributes to slide the oil in areas where stagnates.
It 'still a task that requires at least a half hour.

[Richard230]

I guess it is time to ask when RE installed the second oil drain plug on the UCE?  As near as I can tell, my 2011 B5 only has one large drain plug located at the rear of the sump. There is a bolt installed in a device (attached with two other bolts) that looks like it could be an automatic tension system for the primary chain drive.  This bolt is located at the left lower front of the engine case, immediately next to the primary chain cover.  Is this the bolt that will drain the crankshaft area, or is this a bolt that secures the primary chain automatic tensioner spring?  Needless to say, my owner's manual (published in 2006) doesn't mention anything other than removing the main oil bolt to drain the main sump and removing and cleaning the oil pick up screen - and of course adding 2.7 liters of oil to refill.    Did the subject secondary drain arrive very recently during another round of UCE secret modifications (improvements)?   

[Arizoni]

The two bolts on the bottom left side of the engine hold the primary chain tensioner in position.  DO NOT MESS WITH THEM.

Don't quote me but I think Royal Enfield added the forward, crankcase drain plug in late 2013 or early 2014.

[mattsz]

Richard230, your 2011 B5 (same as I have) does not have the newer crank-case drain plug near the front of the engine...

[singhg5]

Allow me to insist.
The old models do not have the second drain plug.
I recently changed the oil to an Army of a friend of mine who has this second cap.

From the picture you can clearly see what I took Dalal chamber connecting rod cap togleinto this: exactly 850 cc oil    ......   850 cc old oil is counterproductive because it is one-third of the total capacity.

+1.

Fully agree that it is very significant amount of dirty oil that would have remained inside and contaminated fresh oil immediately.

Since older bikes do not have front plug to drain as much oil, I replace oil + oil-filter every 2000 miles instead of factory recommended 3750 miles for oil change / 1875 miles for oil-filter changing interval.
 

[Richard230]

Richard230, your 2011 B5 (same as I have) does not have the newer crank-case drain plug near the front of the engine...

I am starting to get the message.     I'll be changing my oil and filter at 2K mile intervals, too.  My bike doesn't appear to burn a drop of oil between changes, so I can't do what some old American V8 car owners (like the guy across the street from me) did and never change the oil, just keep adding new oil as the old oil gets burned along with the car's fuel.  Top cylinder oiling anyone?     )

[suitcasejefferson]

Despite the fact that this would seem to be the simplist on earth, it is not. The Enfield is not one of those bikes where you just drain out the old oil, replace the filter, and refill it to the top of the sight glass. I've been doing this for 40+ years on Japanese bikes without a problem.

I could just post a number, but as has been said, every Enfield seems to be different (again not the case with Japanese bikes), so here is the procedure I used to determine the correct amount to pour in after draining and changing the filter.

Drain the oil as best you can. Use all the plugs, whether your bike has 2 or 3. Rock the bike from side to side and front to back. With the bike on the centerstand, put all the plugs back in. Don't forget to clean the screen. Clean up any spilled oil. Now move the drain pan over and under the filter cover, and remove the filter and cover. More oil will come out and run down the side of the engine. I use WD-40 (I buy it by the gallon) to rinse it off the engine. Reinstall a new filter and the cap.

Now, here is the important part. Fill up the crankcase to the top, measuring the amount you put in. Start the engine and let it run for several minutes, till it is nice and warm and shut it off. With the bike in the centerstand, the oil level should not drop. Let the bike sit overnight. The next day the level should have dropped considerably. Mine dropped so far there was no oil visible in the sight glass. Fill it up again, measuring how much it takes. Again start the engine and run it several minutes and shut it off. Leave it sitting on the centerstand. Check it again the next day. If it is still full, fine. if it is still a little bit low, top it off. This time it will stay at the top of the sight glass.

If you have kept track of all the oil you put in since draining and changing the filter, then you will know how much it takes to fill it next time. This may seem like a complicated procedure, but it only needs to be done once. Once you have the TOTAL amount of oil it took to fill it, write it down and keep it in a safe place. Next oil change, don't even bother with the sight glass. Just pour in the amount you have written down. This will seem like you are overfilling it, but it's not.

Again this may seem ridiculous, and I would have to agree. But this is an Enfield. It is not like everything else. And I for one am very happy about that.

Just remember, once you know the right amount, you will never have to go through all that monkey motion again.

[Ryland3210]

I'm a newbie to this forum, so excuse my ignorance.  I pulled the two plugs and strainer cover to drain all the oil I could.  The oil that came out of the rearmost plug was typically dirty, while the oil out of the front plug looked brand new.  Front what I have read so far, that seems like the front cavity oil does not circulate with the rest.  When trying to determine how much oil to add, I noticed what looks like a fill plug on the top front of the crankcase right over the small drain plug below that the clean oil came out of.  Does it make sense to refill the oil through this port?  My theory is that this cavity will fill first, then overflow to fill the main reservoir.  If so, that might make filling to the level indicated by the sight glass straightforward.  Does this make sense?

[Arizoni]

No.  Do not use that plug to put oil into the engine.
 Use the oil fill plug that is located behind the cylinder adjacent to the rear of the electric starter motor.

I think the oil coming out of the forward plug looking cleaner was just an optical illusion. 

The way the oil system works is, there is the main oil reservoir with the sight glass on the right side of the motorcycle.  The reservoir covers the bottom of the engine under the transmission.
The oil fill plug dumps into the right side case which has holes that drain it into the oil reservoir.

The oil pump takes the oil from the reservoir thru the pump inlet screen and pumps it thru the oil filter.  Excess oil is released by a pressure release valve back to the reservoir.

The filtered oil travels either to the right end of the crankshaft or into a vertical hole that carries it to the hydraulic valve lifters or the rocker arm bushings on top of the cylinder head.

The oil entering the crankshaft is thrown off onto the bearings and the cylinder wall and builds up in the lower part of the crankcase.
(This is the oil that is being drained out of the forward drain plug.)

With the engine running, the oil that is thrown into the crankcase is picked up by the crankshaft flywheels that straddle the connecting rod.
The flywheels throw the oil over a partition onto the top of the transmission gears.  After lubricating the gears, the oil drains back into the oil  reservoir.

The oil that was sent over to the vertical passage in the cylinder that leads to the hydraulic lifters and rocker arm journals flows down the pushrod tunnel lubricating the cams and cam gears in the right hand engine case.  From this case, the oil flows back into the oil reservoir,

While all of this is going on, oil is free to pass into the left hand engine case from the oil reservoir.
In the left engine case the oil lubricates the primary drive chain, the starter motor sprag clutch and the wet plate clutch.

Because the oil level sight guage is on the extreme right side of the right side engine case, the engine oil level can only be checked with the motorcycle on the center stand.

Even this can be deceptive if the floor the motorcycle is sitting on is not perfectly level.  A slight bit of angle on the floor can make the engine oil level look overfilled or underfilled.

Also, if the motorcycle is leaned to the left, like when you use the sidestand, much of the oil that flowed into the left hand engine case won't return to the oil reserve without tipping the motorcycle to the right.  That can cause a incorrect reading in the sight glass.

The best way to check the oil level is to park the motorcycle on the center stand on a level surface.  Don't look at the sight guage yet.

Start the engine and let it run for at least 30 seconds and then shut it off.
Let it sit for at least a minute and then look at the oil sight guage.
It now will show you what the real oil level is.