Hey Brad
Thanks for your thorough and exhaustive response....
I am intrigued by your suggestions and I am more than game to try them.. You are right in that you say I am not totally happy that my engine appears to consume oil.. I am not devastated by it but having used the "hard" break in procedure I am a little disappointed by the dropping oil levels...
Back to your earlier response.. I live in Texas.. so long hills just aint gonna happen.. but Im interested in 2 points you make about this..
Firstly I do have a tendency to chop the throttle closed and I always thought this was a good thing in that it created pressure on the rings and that helps seat them and form a good seal.. now I am wondering...
secondly can you explain why you propose using a different grade of oil?? From pure ignorance I guess I do not get why this would be relevant???
Once again thanks for your input...this is not a huge issue for me but rightly or wrongly I have always felt that an engine that "burns" oil isnt a good engine...
An engine/All engines will use some oil Stw
It's just dependant on a number of factors. Some of which we can control ourselves.
IMO if i had an engine that was drinking oil like a fish, and it was making top power, and i was consistantly winning races with it. Then i'd happily give it all the oil it could ever need/want of the highest quality/price point
You may be a little biased regarding your belief about oil burning engines. From what you describe to be your consumption level, it could be deemed to be acceptable all day every day as long as it's not changing for the worse and using more than "your engine normally uses".
That's the key point here, in that we are attempting to establish a consumption level that's both acceptable to you and also consistant for your particular engine
I personally wouldn't like to be pouring 300V down its throat in the amount you describe, given its price point. I would rather be tipping in some cheaper oil that's going to do the job well in this magnificent engine
I'm a bit of a tight ... but i'm not cheap, and just carefull with my money.
Chopping the throttle will help to draw oil up past the rings into the combustion chamber due to negative cylinder pressure (not helpfull). From there it can only go one way. Out the exhaust.
Consider reviewing/modifying your riding style/throttle technique.
Try to be smoother in that regard. Closing the throttle quickly (not chopping) will be normal on a race track when going at 10/10 ths, and you would also expect the engine to be consuming more oil.
Try to get some progressive loading on the engine without lugging it.
Lots of high throttle position is required (>85%), as the engine revs build you would be cranking the throttle on untill you get to nearly "full throttle"(not RPMs). Do it in the highest gear you can
I do this on every hill i can find in the highest gear i can reasonably run for the full period of engine break in. From my experience UOAs indicate that the initial run-in period on DUCATI engines is quite short. I think it may be in the initial 1000 Kms with some finishing off in the remaining 1500 Kms. This is reflected in the Owners Manual.
IMO the gear box/transmission takes longer.
I don't believe that because you ran it in hard, it has hurt your machine. These things are hard to kill.
I suspect your run-in proceedure was possibly focused on getting the revs into it, and less on loading the engine to build lots of positive cylinder pressure.
There is a difference.
From what you say about a lack of hills, a session on a dyno will be beneficial in rectifying any oil control issues your engine may have remaining.
As your engine/transmission is virtually run in, you can't hurt anything now and full RPM with high throttle positions on a dyno will be no problem.
The sooner the better
You have little to loose and something to gain.
The thinner 10w-40 oil regardless of film strength issues may help to achieve improved oil control if you use it for a short period of time as i stated before.
In accordance with your Owners Manual it will be fine. Esspecially for a short period for the purpose of the exercise. You won't hurt anything while the temps are cooler.
In a small way it will also give you an opportunity to evaluate the effectiveness/fitness for purpose of that grade of oil.
Please don't get me wrong. Here in OZ i would be largely inclined, and do run with a somethingw -50 oil. Our climates are similar.
Without specific data, i would be inclined to think Motul 7100 as opposed to 300V is likely to be better suited to longer OCIs and by extension will likely have lower volatility. Thereby have less tendancy to burn off as is what happens with all oils. It's also cheaper
A change to a different type/brand of oil can also help in using less oil, and can potentially bring the single biggest improvement in that regard.
It just may be possible that your particular engine doesn't like the 300V regardless of the grade in your application.
You may simply have to try another oil. IMO it's part of the fun of exploring the possibilities. These Italian women can be fickle you know
Amsoil products are a known quantity to me so i use them instead. They have low volatility and tend to not burn off as much as some oils.
Regards,
Brad
