Oil change for 81 GS 850

[kickindonkey]

Hi everyone! I just bought my first GS 850 about three days ago and I can't get enough. Its my first real "big boy" bike, before I had only ridden dirt and dual sport bikes. Any way I bought the bike from a guy that had it sitting for awhile but it surprisingly runs good. I have put about 250 miles on it since I got it. But there is a problem, it needs maintenance and I have no manual or anything. First things first....I need to change the oil, I have no idea how much oil, is there a filter? Or is there is a special procedure? Its a 1981 GS 850L. Any help you guys could give me would be great....along with any other new bike maintenance tips... thanks alot!

[tkent02]

http://members.dslextreme.com/users/bikecliff/images/oilchange.pdf

Cliff will be here shortly to give you the rest of the story.

[T-ray]

I just got an 81 GS850 too....oil change takes 10 mins or less. Pretty simple if you look at the instructions that bikecliff's website has

[Steve]

First of all,

Now let's address some of your questions.

Hi everyone! I just bought my first GS 850 about three days ago and I can't get enough.
I like this. You just got it and already admit it will be your first.

Its my first real "big boy" bike, before I had only ridden dirt and dual sport bikes.
Lots of good experience can be found in the dirt. You can apply quite a bit of that to the street, but now you have other traffic to watch for, too.

Any way I bought the bike from a guy that had it sitting for awhile but it surprisingly runs good.
You may think it runs well now, but if it's been sitting, you might be surprised how it runs after doing some basic maintenance, including a good carb cleaning.

I have put about 250 miles on it since I got it. But there is a problem, it needs maintenance and I have no manual or anything.
BassCliff is our official "Welcome Wagon", he will be along shortly with his page full of links to a bunch of good stuff, but one his site he has links to GS850 manuals that you can download. Click on this link to see what all he has to offer.

First things first....I need to change the oil, I have no idea how much oil, is there a filter?
If you change the filter at the same time (and you should), it will take 4 quarts of oil. Yes, there is a filter, it's behind the round cover at the bottom front of the engine, right behind the exhaust pipes.

Or is there is a special procedure? Its a 1981 GS 850L. Any help you guys could give me would be great....along with any other new bike maintenance tips... thanks alot!
Downloading a manual from BassCliff's site will get you started, but one thing to be sure to watch for when buying your oil, is to be sure to look on the back of the can. There is the API "donut" with some information. Be sure the bottom of the donut does NOT say "Energy Conserving". Fortunately, most of the oils that say that are 10w-30 or lighter, our bikes call for 10w-40 or 20w-50. If you ask for a particular brand recommendation, you will be starting a very long, sometimes heated thread, but most of the name brands will work. No need to spend mega-bucks on motorcycle-specific oil, though. Many of us are actually using truck oil. Synthetic, at that. Rotella 5w-40 in the blue jug. Available at Wal-Mart, Auto Zone and many others for about $20 for the gallon jug.

Now, where are the pictures?


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[kickindonkey]

Awesome! Great responses, as expected, thanks again for the help. I'm sure this will not be my last post. Sites like this make having this bike even better...keep up the good work!