Four Stroke Oil Level - High

[shawnee83]

A few weeks ago I spent the afternoon doing some basic PM items such as oil & filter, spark plugs, engine fuel filter and the fuel water separator filter. Much to my discomfort, the oil level appeared to be at least 1/2 quart high prior to changing it. According to Yamaha, the service intervals for these items appears to be about every 100 hrs. I did some reading about the high oil level and it appears to be a phenomenon of these 4 strokes to "make" oil. More specifically, to mix unspent fuel with the oil. I think that going forward I will be keeping a closer eye on my oil level as I admit to not checking it very often. Also, I will be monitoring it to see if I need to change it more frequently to control this issue. Has anybody else here noticed this and if so, how do you handle it?
FYI - I have a 2006 F225 Yamaha with about 335 hours.
Thanks
JS

 

[Brent]

I would change thermostats and poppet valve.

 

[bigk23surf]

I bet all the oil was not drained out when the last oil change was done and it was overfilled. Read the manual on how to drain the oil. The motor needs to be tilted to get all of it out. First time I changed oil in a f225 I noticed it and have since drained it all and never had the problem again.

 

[DaleH]

A lot of 4-strokes "making oil" is caused by owners NOT breaking the OB in properly and the rings aren't set, allowing fuel to weep past the rings.

 

[juniorg]

I have a 300 yammie. My boat mechanic is an Fdny boat mechanic and he told me the same thing u must break in the motor correctly. For the first 200 hrs yamaha told him the motors should not be babied. You should run them wot for at least 1 min every time to burn the fuel that leeks down to the oil pan.

 

[DaleH]

The proper break-in is well described in the owner's manuals, the problem -as I see it -is that most baby them too much and don't throttle them up onto plane like they should.

This happens in cars too!

 

[shawnee83]

Thanks for the feedback everyone. When I changed mine, I trimmed the motor basically level. I ran it about an hour afterwards and rechecked it before heading home. It looked right about where a set it and clean. I did read about the not draining all the way problems too. I didn't get the boat until it already had about 295 hrs so I have no idea how the break in was done. Based on the prior owners lack of knowledge there is no telling. I figured with such low hrs it should be good. I do run WOT even for just 20 or 30 seconds if I can when I take it out. Hopefully, it was just from the last oil change being not drained. I will definitely be checking it every pre trip until I'm satisfied all is well. My motor called for 5.9 quarts by the way. I just left a little of the last quart in the bottle. Close enough. I also am just getting to the end of the batch of fuel that was treated with a quart of Yama Lube Ring Free I think it's called. Anyway, that last hr it was running good. All gauges as they should be. Crossing my fingers.

 

[Angus]

Hey Dale, Shawnee, OK I know I could read the owners manual like you said Dale, but its down at the beach, I am in Raleigh. I am just approaching 20 hours on my new F225 motor and after reading your posts realized I have most likely been running the boat with a diaper on it. Anotherwords taking it real easy during the break in period. What do you suggest? I currently have roughly 18 to 20 hours of running time, alot more time on the boat, but just roughly 18 to 20 hours running time. I want to make sure I set the rings right, etc. In Raleigh for Fathers day, but will be back on the boat next week. I have been trying to keep it under 4000 RPM's, but sounds like I may be making a mistake by doing that. I know I can read the manual, but any advice? Thanks!

 

[grouperjim]

Most of the people who think they have too much oil in their F225/F250 is simply because of the way they are checking it. You can't just pull the dip stick and check it. It will give you a false reading of being too high. You have to break the seal inside of the dip stick tube. This is done by drawing the dip stick, wiping, reinserting. The second draw will give you the level in the pan rather than the level in the tube.

Yamaha no longer recommends 5.9 quarts for these motors regardless of what is printed in the manual. It's 5 quarts now. I personally do no more than 5.5 quarts.

 

[shawnee83]

Good information Grouperjim. Yes, I checked it that way. About 10 times hoping that I was indeed getting false readings. I wish. I also adjusted the trim to make sure the motor was as level as possible. I'm hoping that the prior oil changer just didn't drain it all the way. With the 5.9 I put in it was reading about an inch below the high line. I may use your method on the next one and drop back to about 5 quarts per your advise. I will be keeping a close eye on it going forward. Thanks for the tip.

 

[warthog5]

Yamaha no longer recommends 5.9 quarts for these motors regardless of what is printed in the manual. It's 5 quarts now. I personally do no more than 5.5 quarts.

Really? is that all? 8 1/2qts in a DF-300 Suzzy.

 

[shawnee83]

Yep. 5.9. It's printed right on top of the motor on the front. Same info in the manual as well. With 8.5 I imagine that the oil temp stays prety low in those motors. That's usually better, in cars anyway?

 

[Brent]

Yamaha no longer recommends 5.9 quarts for these motors regardless of what is printed in the manual. It's 5 quarts now. I personally do no more than 5.5 quarts.[/quote]


Hi Jim

I emailed Andy at SIM and he wasnt aware of the change and said to follow the manual


Will you share the source on using less oil?

Thanks

 

[grouperjim]

Will you share the source on using less oil?

Thanks

http://www.yamahaoutboards.com/owner-re ... aintenance

Follow the steps below for filling and checking your oil level on all four-stroke models.

1. Fill the engine with 2/3 of the recommended oil capacity from your Owner’s Manual. The engine will retain oil and not be able to drain completely. Using 2/3 of oil capacity is to prevent over filling.

2. Add oil only at the specified location which is designated by a yellow filler cap.

3. Remove the dipstick and wipe with a dry rag, then reinsert the dipstick.

4. Remove the dipstick again and now verify the oil level. Do not exceed the half way point on the crosshatch marks.

or here.......Central Marine Service Department which is one of the largest Yamaha marine engine dealers/servicers in FL

http://www.centralmarineservice.com

There is also a specific Yamaha bulletin covering the subject.

 

[Brent]

Thanks Jim.
Makes sense

 

[shawnee83]

Thanks Jim. I may be changing mine again sooner than that service interval. I'm just going to keep an eye on it though and if it gets back up to the high line before its due then thats when I'll change it. Next time it will be 5 quarts and check. Thanks again for the info.

 

[grouperjim]

Thanks Jim. I may be changing mine again sooner than that service interval. I'm just going to keep an eye on it though and if it gets back up to the high line before its due then thats when I'll change it. Next time it will be 5 quarts and check. Thanks again for the info.

It won't hurt anything to run it with 5.9 qts. It was that way for years. Yamaha just got tired of the Internet threads about "high oil levels" and "making oil" so they decided to recommend using less than the stated capacity. Some of the making oil complaints may have been legit but the majority of it was simply due to over filling or the dip stick seal issue.

 

[shawnee83]

I thought I'd post an update on my high oil level situation. Last week when I had my boat at the shop to raise the engine and change the lower unit oil, I checked my oil level and found it high again. I'm unfortunately guilty of not keeping up with it as I promised my self I would back in June when I was dealing with this. Anyway, I talked to my tech about it and he suggested that I change my thermostats. He said a common cause of this was unspent fuel mixing with the oil from the engine running too cold with a stuck open thermostat and fuel/water not burning off. He didn't have time to do it right then and I wanted to run my test on the raised engine and Permatrim. He gave me the OK on that for the weekend and he offered to come out to my yard this week and do the work on site. I got the call today after he completed the job that he found my port side thermostat stuck wide open. Of course he replaced both. I'll be back to my boat this weekend to test it out. I'm hoping that it fixed it and also maybe some of the slight power loss that I've felt I've had these last 3 months. Should have done this sooner but I was too busy being an amateur mechanic.
FYI - as mentioned by GROUPERJIM above, my mechanic also said that Yamaha has changed the recommended amount of oil to put in. I think he too said it was around 5 quarts.

 

[HOTPURSUIT]

It would be a good idea to get the fuel contaminated oil out and put in fresh as soon as possible. I had the same issue when I first purchase mine and the previous owner was a little light on the routine maintanence

 

[shawnee83]

It would be a good idea to get the fuel contaminated oil out and put in fresh as soon as possible. I had the same issue when I first purchase mine and the previous owner was a little light on the routine maintanence

Absolutely, I forgot to include that detail in my post, but he did change the oil out. No way I was going to leave it in as it was too high and contaminated. I would usually do the oil myself but it was easier to just let him do it while he was already working on it. He also used his pocket knife to put a hash mark on the back side of the dip stick at the new changed level so I could monitor how the oil level was doing. Total bill with oil $230. Happy with that. Crossing my fingers again that the thermostat was the problem.