2024 New Owner With Fluid Questions

[G.R24]

Hello everyone! Happy to be a brand new owner of a 2024 NC750X DCT!

I recently bought this bike after owning a scooter for about 2 years. I'd consider myself an amateur regarding motorcycle maintenance, as I've only really done oil changes and changed my battery, so I have a couple of questions.

I bought the bike at a good price new, but I guess I got a little too eager in my inspection of the bike. I drove it roughly 400 miles same day home and it ran like a charm. I however found a couple of concerning things that I plan on dealing with ASAP:

Issue 1: When I had stopped on my ride home to fuel up, the oil pressure light came on when I killed the engine. The light turned off when I restarted the engine but saw that the oil was low so I added a quart. That was about 3 days ago and when I stopped to fuel up again today the same scenario happened. I plan on doing a full oil change the moment I get my ordered oil to come in but is this a cause for concern?

Issue 2: I also saw that my front brake reservoir is low. Is it okay to just add DOT 4 brake fluid straight to it?

 

[dduelin]

I believe I would get an authorized dealer involved with these items before I added anything. Using that much oil on a brand new bike could be a serious problem and without removing the brake reservoir lid misreading the level is a possibility.

 

[670cc]

Hello everyone! Happy to be a brand new owner of a 2024 NC750X DCT!

I recently bought this bike after owning a scooter for about 2 years. I'd consider myself an amateur regarding motorcycle maintenance, as I've only really done oil changes and changed my battery, so I have a couple of questions.

I bought the bike at a good price new, but I guess I got a little too eager in my inspection of the bike. I drove it roughly 400 miles same day home and it ran like a charm. I however found a couple of concerning things that I plan on dealing with ASAP:

Issue 1: When I had stopped on my ride home to fuel up, the oil pressure light came on when I killed the engine. The light turned off when I restarted the engine but saw that the oil was low so I added a quart. That was about 3 days ago and when I stopped to fuel up again today the same scenario happened. I plan on doing a full oil change the moment I get my ordered oil to come in but is this a cause for concern?

Issue 2: I also saw that my front brake reservoir is low. Is it okay to just add DOT 4 brake fluid straight to it?

The oil pressure light should come on when you kill the engine, but the key is still on. The light should turn off when the engine is running. Be certain you know the proper way to check engine oil level on a Honda motorcycle, per the owner’s manual. (Mainly, motorcycle upright and level, and the dipsick cap resting on threads, not screwed in. Do not check it with motorcycle on sidestand). It would be very unusual for it to be a quart low. I run mine the whole 8000 mile oil change interval and never add any oil.

DOT4 brake fluid could be added, if the level shows below the lower mark. Be sure not to overfill. Again, be certain you are taking a correct reading of the fluid level.

 

[G.R24]

I believe I would get an authorized dealer involved with these items before I added anything.

I'm hoping to avoid doing that as much as possible. My local dealer is a scam artist that charged me $25 for the oil filter alone. I hate dealing with dealerships in general, but I will if I have to.

The oil pressure light should come on when you kill the engine. It should turn off when the engine is running. Be certain you know the proper way to check engine oil level on a Honda motorcycle, per the owner’s manual. It would be very unusual for it to be a quart low.

DOT4 brake fluid could be added, if the level shows below the lower mark. Be sure not to overfill.

If the oil pressure light is normal, than I'm happy with that.

 

[dduelin]

I'm hoping to avoid doing that as much as possible. My local dealer is a scam artist that charged me $25 for the oil filter alone. I hate dealing with dealerships in general, but I will if I have to.

I understand your reluctance but if the oil was actually a quart low and not just misread you could be dealing with a warranty claim.

 

[G.R24]

I understand your reluctance but if the oil was actually a quart low and not just misread you could be dealing with a warranty claim.

Warranty claim in what way? Just go to my dealer and ask for an extra quart? Regardless I'm at 450 miles, so I'm just going to go ahead and do the first oil change tomorrow.

As for the brake fluid, I'm an idiot. I just went to look at it again with a flashlight and I can tell that some are in there. The fluid in there is just so clear and lightly colored that it looks empty. Also not used to a completely full reservoir so I didn't see the fill line.

 

[670cc]

Warranty claim in what way? Just go to my dealer and ask for an extra quart? Regardless I'm at 450 miles, so I'm just going to go ahead and do the first oil change tomorrow.

When doing the oil change, it would be interesting to see how much oil you drain out. Then you will have an indication if the added quart overfilled it , or it's just right. Consult the owner's manual for specified capacities.

 

[the Ferret]

Howdy and welcome to the forum. Hope you get it all sorted.

Like 670, I have never needed to add oil between 8000 mile changes

 

[dduelin]

Warranty claim in what way? Just go to my dealer and ask for an extra quart? Regardless I'm at 450 miles, so I'm just going to go ahead and do the first oil change tomorrow.

As for the brake fluid, I'm an idiot. I just went to look at it again with a flashlight and I can tell that some are in there. The fluid in there is just so clear and lightly colored that it looks empty. Also not used to a completely full reservoir so I didn't see the fill line.

If a new motorcycle used 1 quart of oil in 450 miles it's not likely to repair itself and will likely always have a problem with excessive oil consumption. An authorized dealer can start the process to document oil consumption as the precursor to a warranty claim. It may well be that you didn't check the oil level correctly and there is nothing wrong with the engine but if it burns another quart of your new oil in 450 miles you'll probably want Honda to make good on the manufacturer's warranty. If you make as much as a tool mark on the drain bolt an unscrupulous dealer could make a claim hard to open and complete. Sure you might ultimately prevail with American Honda after dragging it out but the path of least resistance for me would approach a dealer openly and honestly with "Is it normal to add a quart in less than 500 miles?"

 

[G.R24]

I'll let you all know how it goes tomorrow.

One other question. I was wanting to buy a service manual for my bike. Is Helminc the only one available? They want to charge me $26 for shipping.

 

[Egg on Leggs]

The oil pressure light should come on when you kill the engine, but the key is still on. The light should turn off when the engine is running. Be certain you know the proper way to check engine oil level on a Honda motorcycle, per the owner’s manual. (Mainly, motorcycle upright and level, and the dipsick cap resting on threads, not screwed in. Do not check it with motorcycle on sidestand). It would be very unusual for it to be a quart low. I run mine the whole 8000 mile oil change interval and never add any oil.

DOT4 brake fluid could be added, if the level shows below the lower mark. Be sure not to overfill. Again, be certain you are taking a correct reading of the fluid level.

Have you checked the oil level with the bike on the min stand?

 

[670cc]

Have you checked the oil level with the bike on the min stand?

In the USA, a mainstand or centerstand is not standard equipment. We don’t know if the OP’s NC has one.

 

[davidc83]

Was the bike on the side stand when you checked the oil level? if so, you overfilled the bike with oil which can cause problems. Read the owners manual for the proper oil check on these bikes, they are not like any other vehicle. On my 2013, to check oil, the bike must be cold, start bike, allow bike to run 3-5 minutes, turn off bike, wait 1-3 minutes, and then when bike is straight up (not on side stand), remove dipstick, wipe clean, replace dipstick but do not thread it in, pull it out and check level. anywhere between the bottom dot and top dot is ok.

 

[670cc]

I'm hoping to avoid doing that as much as possible. My local dealer is a scam artist that charged me $25 for the oil filter alone. I hate dealing with dealerships in general, but I will if I have to.

If the oil pressure light is normal, than I'm happy with that.

Was the dealer’s $25 price for both the engine oil filter and the clutch oil filter needed at first oil change? Or was it for just one of them, and if so, which one?

Also, if you are not used to working on wet clutch motorcycles, be aware of the oil type requirement JASO MA, per the owner’s manual

 

[G.R24]

Okay so TLDR I am an idiot but not as bad as one.

Just did the oil change at 450 miles. When draining the oil, giving some spillage, my full drain amount was ROUGHLY 4.1 quarts. Given that the manual says that doing an oil change with the filters is 3.6 quarts, it means I only overfilled by a half quart. Oil viscosity seemed okay on a first go, so I don't think I did any real damage.

Paranoid as hell though now. I added about 3.5 quarts to the bike, and doing the warm up and having the wife hold the bike up I can't tell if I'm even getting a reading. Have to say that I hope whoever decided to create a black dipstick should burn.

Was the dealer’s $25 price for both the engine oil filter and the clutch oil filter needed at first oil change? Or was it for just one of them, and if so, which one?

I spent just over $40 on the oil kit. 25 on the main filter, 11 on the clutch filter and 3 for the washer.

We don’t know if the OP’s NC has one.

No center stand, but it's my first accessory purchase next paycheck.

a new motorcycle used 1 quart of oil in 450 miles it's not likely to repair itself and will likely always have a problem with excessive oil consumption. An authorized dealer can start the process to document oil consumption as the precursor to a warranty claim.

My claim wasn't 'the bike is burning oil', it was 'the dealer didn't put enough oil in'.

 

[the Ferret]

The bikes come from Honda with oil in them, that is not part of the new bike set up by the dealer.

In my experience most new bikes come from the factory slightly overfilled, not by a huge amount maybe 1/2 qt. Something I've noticed when doing the first service on my bikes.

Something else, the oil doesn't have to be directly on the full line (although most motorcyclists anally try and make it so). It can be slightly above or slightly below with no adverse effects.

I agree the black dipstick is a stupid idea. A white or light grey one would have been much better.

 

[dduelin]

I’m glad you got it sorted. FWIW the motorcycle ships from Japan prefilled with oil. IF it was low it came that way from the factory.

 

[670cc]

Okay so TLDR I am an idiot but not as bad as one.

Just did the oil change at 450 miles. When draining the oil, giving some spillage, my full drain amount was ROUGHLY 4.1 quarts. Given that the manual says that doing an oil change with the filters is 3.6 quarts, it means I only overfilled by a half quart. Oil viscosity seemed okay on a first go, so I don't think I did any real damage.

Paranoid as hell though now. I added about 3.5 quarts to the bike, and doing the warm up and having the wife hold the bike up I can't tell if I'm even getting a reading. Have to say that I hope whoever decided to create a black dipstick should burn.


I spent just over $40 on the oil kit. 25 on the main filter, 11 on the clutch filter and 3 for the washer.

No center stand, but it's my first accessory purchase next paycheck.

My claim wasn't 'the bike is burning oil', it was 'the dealer didn't put enough oil in'.

From the information presented, I believe the oil level was fine from the Honda factory, and you misread the level and overfilled it. As already noted in a previous post, the dealer may be tasked via a checklist with verifying the oil level, but not actually filling it. It will have been properly filled at the factory. The oil need not be right at the full line. Anywhere between the marks is acceptable.

I don’t know Honda’s manufacturing process for NC’s, but I watched Goldwings being built in the old Ohio factory. The bike had all fluids added, and was run a dynamometer before it left the factory. Obviously it had oil in it then.

At oil changes, I often just add 3.5 to 3.6 quarts and walk away. I don’t fret over the exact dipstick reading because there are variables in the reading process, plus oil temperature and frothing can affect the reading. If I put the measured amount in, that’s the main thing.

 

[genespleen]

Sanding the end of the dipstick, just enough to slightly roughen the surface, helps immensely in reading oil levels.

 

[G.R24]

At oil changes, I often just add 3.5 to 3.6 quarts and walk away. I don’t fret over the exact dipstick reading because there are variables in the reading process, plus oil temperature and frothing can affect the reading. If I put the measured amount in, that’s the main thing.

This is going to have to be my line of thinking. I checked the oil 3 times today doing the proper method and got 3 different results. I'm so paranoid I'm going to post how much oil I used from a gallon jug just to make myself feel better. (Picture isn't uploading. Here's a link:
https://ibb.co/6r1KJHP )

So now I have only 2 things to be paranoid about:

1. Maybe it's just me but it sounds like the engine is struggling to get fuel when idle. My last scooter was a single cylinder so I'm not used to the sound. Also, and I know that this is most likely normal, but the engine is supposed to idle at around 1500 RPM right?

2. Not getting the best fuel economy. I'm 6'3 250 lbs and in a very windy area. In city I'm getting about 48 mpg. I downloaded the fuelly app and will give an update after about 5 fill-ups. At my height do you think a GIVI windscreen would help fuel economy?