Shadow ll Oil Consumption
Discussion
Advice Please.
I have a 35 year old SY2 (my first one, so still learning) and at the end of last year it seemed to be smoking increasingly badly, although oil consumption seemed OK. It was suggested that I use super unleaded fuel and avoid the cheap supermarket stuff as it was designed to run on 4 or 5 star after all and the cost difference is marginal.
Things seem to have improved, with noticeably less smoke, although I haven't been out much over the winter, this being a 'weekend' car. Has anyone experience of what oil consumption I should expect from an 80k mile RR engine so I know what to anticipate in the coming months, or if there is something adrift!
Plus has anyone had a similar experience to mine?
Hope you can help.
Thanks!
I have a 35 year old SY2 (my first one, so still learning) and at the end of last year it seemed to be smoking increasingly badly, although oil consumption seemed OK. It was suggested that I use super unleaded fuel and avoid the cheap supermarket stuff as it was designed to run on 4 or 5 star after all and the cost difference is marginal.
Things seem to have improved, with noticeably less smoke, although I haven't been out much over the winter, this being a 'weekend' car. Has anyone experience of what oil consumption I should expect from an 80k mile RR engine so I know what to anticipate in the coming months, or if there is something adrift!
Plus has anyone had a similar experience to mine?
Hope you can help.
Thanks!
My Shadow 2 used to smoke a bit, especially on start-up.
The problem is that the valve stem seals on a Shadow are made of wax impregnated cord, which dries out and lets oil seep into the cylinder.
Replacement is quite easy. However, do not use original spec valve stem seals but use the ones developped by Introcar. They are more expensive but are also much better suited to the job.
http://www.introcar.co.uk/engine-components-c34072...
The problem is that the valve stem seals on a Shadow are made of wax impregnated cord, which dries out and lets oil seep into the cylinder.
Replacement is quite easy. However, do not use original spec valve stem seals but use the ones developped by Introcar. They are more expensive but are also much better suited to the job.
http://www.introcar.co.uk/engine-components-c34072...
Thanks ecurie.
Really excellent advice and thanks for that. Happily, the stem seals were replaced as part of a much larger engine rebuild a couple of years ago at a reputable RR specialist so I am hoping that they should be OK.
Its just quite hard to know what is 'reasonable' for my car. Estimates elsewhere seem to vary wildly from 200 to over 1000 miles per pint. I was hoping that I could get a sense of what others are achieving in order to decide which next steps - if any, are required. It may actually be that the smoking is the result of supermarket fuel I was using and the car is OK. (ethanol is the problem is seems) I have now changed brands and its a quite a bit better!
An interesting point made was to run the engine with oil level about half and not to top right to the full mark. Any thoughts?
Thanks again for your comments and happy motoring.
Really excellent advice and thanks for that. Happily, the stem seals were replaced as part of a much larger engine rebuild a couple of years ago at a reputable RR specialist so I am hoping that they should be OK.
Its just quite hard to know what is 'reasonable' for my car. Estimates elsewhere seem to vary wildly from 200 to over 1000 miles per pint. I was hoping that I could get a sense of what others are achieving in order to decide which next steps - if any, are required. It may actually be that the smoking is the result of supermarket fuel I was using and the car is OK. (ethanol is the problem is seems) I have now changed brands and its a quite a bit better!
An interesting point made was to run the engine with oil level about half and not to top right to the full mark. Any thoughts?
Thanks again for your comments and happy motoring.
I guess my oil consumption is now around 1 pint/1000 miles (on a 117.000mls engine).
It used to be more but that was mainly due to the sump gasket leaking.
I suppose you use the correct 20/50W oil.
Apparently, the level indicated on the oil dipstick varies wildly. On some Shadows (like mine) you need to fill it to the max, on others filling it halfway corresponds to the amount of oil needed. The best way to check this is when carrying out an oil and filter change. You will then know exactly how high the dipstick level should be with the correct amount of oil.
Also make sure your flame trap is clean as this is often overlooked. It is the rubber covered tube running from the top of the air intake to the oil filler neck. At the oil filler's end there is a mesh screen with is often filled with crud. Wash it in paraffin and replace the rubber seals. This will often result in less oil consumption and leaks.
It used to be more but that was mainly due to the sump gasket leaking.
I suppose you use the correct 20/50W oil.
Apparently, the level indicated on the oil dipstick varies wildly. On some Shadows (like mine) you need to fill it to the max, on others filling it halfway corresponds to the amount of oil needed. The best way to check this is when carrying out an oil and filter change. You will then know exactly how high the dipstick level should be with the correct amount of oil.
Also make sure your flame trap is clean as this is often overlooked. It is the rubber covered tube running from the top of the air intake to the oil filler neck. At the oil filler's end there is a mesh screen with is often filled with crud. Wash it in paraffin and replace the rubber seals. This will often result in less oil consumption and leaks.
Sounds like your car is very good on oil and I am using 20/50. Mine may be OK but as yet I haven't done a proper consumption test yet. I am going to the Laon in France event in May so that should give me a good opportunity to objectively judge - I hope.
Your comments about the dipstick are very interesting and make sense of the comments about not filling to the full mark. Thanks!
Also the flame trap idea is well worth investigating so thanks for your excellent guidance on how to do it. I will give that a try too!
I appreciate your time and thanks again.
Your comments about the dipstick are very interesting and make sense of the comments about not filling to the full mark. Thanks!
Also the flame trap idea is well worth investigating so thanks for your excellent guidance on how to do it. I will give that a try too!
I appreciate your time and thanks again.
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