V85TT -- Found the oil leak... maybe not...

[brother dave]

I have a 2021 Centenario.  It seems to consume about 150 CC every 1K miles... so about a quart every 6K miles.  I use Motul 10W60.  Given the rings discussion here and on Adventure Rider I think I will start keeping a closer watch on it....

[tommy2cyl]

There is value in this thread for me to learn of other owner's rate of oil loss per miles ridden.  The more  owner's that comment, it will form a data base for what may be considered "normal"  or common with the V 85.  Of course there are a lot of variables with temperature, altitude, type of riding
surface and rider throttle input, but still, I would encourage other owner's to contribute their experience to form a general basis so a range can be
considered "normal", and at how many miles oil consumption may have changed noticeably. Any info on how the bike is primarily ridden and location, oil choice,  would only add more to the discussion.  Thanks for any future responses. 

[Cam3512]

I’ve had mine for over 5 years.  Where is the evidence of bad rings leading to oil consumption? I try to stay on top of this stuff, but have never heard of this.

[mondtster]

As another point of reference, I have one of the first V85TTs that made it into the US. I've owned it since new and performed all the service work on it. It has 33,000 miles on it with 5000 mile oil change intervals using either Motul 7100 10w60 or Silkolene 10w60 after the initial service at 1000 miles. There is no discernable oil consumption between changes but the oil turns dark fairly quickly, suggesting to me that the blowby is higher than I'd prefer.

My guess is that the rings don't really go bad but instead get stuck or the oil ring gets plugged up over time. Disassembly, cleaning, and reassembly would probably cure some of the oil consumption complaints that are blamed on bad piston rings.

[Bulldog9]

I’ve had mine for over 5 years.  Where is the evidence of bad rings leading to oil consumption? I try to stay on top of this stuff, but have never heard of this.

This has been an issue. Not universal, but I have seen several issues on the various threads.

[John A]

Is there a published oil consumption limit in the owners manual?

[Vagrant]

Having had the issue in my 2020 my suggestion is.
If under warranty and using more than 1 ounce in 1000 miles, get it into the dealer and bitch. Make him do a compression and leak down and call Piagio especially if it's a 19-21. Keep the paperwork from that visit.
If out of warranty, put in oil as needed but if it starts running ratty like low power, missing etc. Get ready to put rings in it.
JMHO, but I bet the cheap (Chinese?) rings will come back to haunt them. Maybe even as bad as past cam/lifter issues.

That being said, once fixed, I traded my 20 for a 22 and just bought an extra 23 to take to Az for the winter. I love these things.

[DesertPilot]

Update: 2025

Oil consumption on my 2020 V85TT has continued to get worse and now, at 18,0421 miles, a year after I began this thread, the bike is only getting less than 1100 miles/qt.  No matter what the local shop might say about, "Some oil consumption is normal for air-cooled engines," this seems a fair bit more than 'some' or 'normal'.

With the next big service internal coming up, and the bike long out of warranty, my options seem to have become"

1) Do the service myself, keep pouring oil in for the next few months, see if things deteriorate to the 'you have to bring spare oil along on a ride' point.  Which, with only 250 ml between the fill marks, they're already approaching.

2) Do the service myself, then take the bike to the shop, point to the oil consumption figures, and say, "What's all this then?"

3) Take the bike to the shop, point to the oil consumption figures, and say, "What's all this then?" have them get things sorted, and don't let my wife see my next bank statement.

4) Other.

Question: do any of you know what VIN numbers were purported to have oil ring problems? 

[PJPR01]

Sounds like a trade in discussion may be in order if the dealer you bought it at and is currently servicing it considers this normal.  If that's the case, they should value it at full price...if not, then they should be able to fix it.

What's the worst case scenario?  Tearing the bike apart and putting in new rings?

I know it's a long shot, but have you tried for one oil change to go down to 10W-30 or 10W-40 and see if that makes a difference on consumption.

[DesertPilot]

Sounds like a trade in discussion may be in order if the dealer you bought it at and is currently servicing it considers this normal.  If that's the case, they should value it at full price...if not, then they should be able to fix it.

What's the worst case scenario?  Tearing the bike apart and putting in new rings?

I know it's a long shot, but have you tried for one oil change to go down to 10W-30 or 10W-40 and see if that makes a difference on consumption.

Worse case scenario would be swapping in new rings, as you say.  Which I'm not in a real hurry to do myself because it's outside the range of jobs I usually do so I can't guarantee getting it right..  This means that one way or another, I'll have to talk with the shop, either to schedule the work or arrange a trade.  Thanks for your comment!  It helped me boil this all down to that one simple trade-off.  I'll have to think this one over.

[Vagrant]

FYI, as I recall Guzzi only allowed 3 1/2 hours for the job. No way It could be done in that time as far as I'm concerned but might be worth paying the dealer to do it. A big wet dream perhaps but if he has a good relationship with Guzzi he might get a tiny bit of "policy adjustment".

[John A]

Another place to look is the intake valve guides. Oil can be pulled past them, some builders fit seals on them. Maybe it has that problem as well as rings. I’d try conventional oil that doesn’t burn off as clear as synthetic so you can maybe see some evidence where it’s being consumed.

[DesertPilot]

Another place to look is the intake valve guides. Oil can be pulled past them, some builders fit seals on them. Maybe it has that problem as well as rings. I’d try conventional oil that doesn’t burn off as clear as synthetic so you can maybe see some evidence where it’s being consumed.

I too have wondered.  In a perfect world I'd get someone to follow me to see if the exhaust was smoking as I rolled on or rolled off the throttle.  In this less-than-perfect world, I suppose I could try to Do Something Clever with a GoPro, but my odds of success seem slim.

Current plan is to do the 18.6k service myself later this month, keep track of oil consumption a bit longer, then Do Some Serious Thinking.