I am considering adding an oil pressure guage to my 2014 t100, and am wondering what the benefits are? What should the pressure for this bike read? I thought it would be easier to check the pressure and know if my oil level is low versus having to start it up put it on a center stand and check it. Are there any particular kits that you guys like? What about an oil temperature gauge? What temperature should the oil be and and what is considered too hot?
Couple of ways do this Gil. I have one on each one of my bikes. Here is a picture of the one I have on mine. I bought both the gauges on my America from Newbonneville.com . I also did some on my two old T-3 bikes with a fitting of my own design. Here are some pictures: ...J.D.
I like dials and data, OBD Bluetooth may give an option, you can pick them up for £10-20. This is an idea I have been considering to give more info on my Street Twin. Apparently there are apps that let you build additional dash boards, obviously limited by sensors on the bike, might be limited to oil temp rather than pressure. I recently saw someone had used this to add a rev counter. Wish I had thought of this for running in for peace of mind as trying to remember speeds for gear muddled my little head.
Yes it’s always nice to know wates going on but air cool bikes heat up quick and cool quick and I must say I’ve never had an oil pump fail though I did have a bmw k100 that developed a leaking oil pump seal and on thoes models the water pump and oil pump shared the same shaft so had to get that fixed quickly I am not against gages some like them some don’t i think Kawasaki put an oil ten gage on one of their bikes and then removed it because riders thought there was a problem as the tem rose so high at the lights trust that wasn’t to long thanks for your time
Oil pressure gauge won’t tell you that your oil level is low until probably too late. Don’t forget that you have a low oil pressure warning lamp on the clocks at eye level. Even with an oil pressure gauge you need to check the oil level. I have an oil temp gauge. With its location on the Bonny, replacing the oil fill cap, you can’t read it when your riding. It is a nice thing though, better than a plastic cap.
Where I live, it gets really hot in the summer months [well over 100°f]. Gauges do not help with oil level. Check your sight glass before startimg up. Oil level should be mid-point. Air cooled engines can run hot with a lot of stop and go traffic and hot weather. Oil temp over about 220°f makes me concerned. I have also learned from watching my oil pressure to set my idle speed a bit higher [1100rpm] in very warm climates to keep oil pressure up when idling a lot in traffic. Liquid cooled engines are not as much worry because the engine temperature is much more stable. The thermostat and cooling fan take care of all that. ...J.D.
