Patricia Stoll, AMSOIL Tradeshow Manager and in-house motorcycle enthusiast, is going to show you how to do that.
Today we’re going to do an oil change on a Harley Davidson Softail. This is a 2014 Fat Boy Lo with a 103 cubic inch engine. Before you begin, it’s a good idea to start your engine and let it run for a bit. This will warm up the oil so that, when you’re ready to drain it, it will flow easier.
Before we get started, you’re going to need a few tools. You’ll need an oil drain pan; a ratchet; a 5/8-inch socket; 5-inch extension; a torque wrench; a filter wrench; an AMSOIL filter, which comes in black or chrome; and AMSOIL motorcycle oil 20W-50. On Softail models, you’ll find your oil reservoir underneath your seat. If you look directly below and slightly behind, underneath the frame you’ll find your oil drain plug. Take your ratchet and your 5/8-inch socket and remove your drain plug. Now, I like to move my pan into place and remove the plug by hand. The reason I remove my drain plug by hand is I don’t like to drop it into the oil.
Then remove the oil reservoir cap to increase the oil flow. In order for all your oil to drain, you need to have your bike in a vertical position.
If you’re working on a table like this, you’re okay. But if you are working off of a kickstand, make sure you bring your bike to an upright position in order for all the oil to drain.
Next we’re going to remove the oil filter. I already put a few towels into place to catch any residual oil as I remove the filter because there will be oil that drips. I also slide my oil pan underneath for any other oil that may drop through. Take your ratchet, your 5/8-inch extension and your filter wrench and remove your filter. Once your filter gets loose, you can finish removing it by hand and quickly move it into your oil pan. Now you’re going to want to take some shop towels and clean up any residual oil that may have spilled when you removed your filter. Take your new filter. You want to put just a little bit of oil, a real light film on your gasket. Don’t overdo it. You want a light film to ensure a proper seal when you put the new filter back on.
Continue tightening it by hand until you feel the gasket snug up. Then turn it another half to three-quarters of a turn to complete the install. Now we’re going to put our drain plug back in. Make sure you clean all the residual debris off of your drain plug. I’ve already done that. You want to take a new O ring and put it on your drain plug before we start, and I like to start mine by hand. Just snug it up. Take our torque wrench and 5/8-inch socket. Finish.
The torque wrench should be set at 14 to 21 foot-pounds of torque. Mine’s set at about 16, Okay. That should be tight. We’ve replaced the drain plug and installed a new oil filter. Now it’s time to add some oil. I use AMSOIL 20W 50 V-Twin Motorcycle Oil. The Softail calls for three (3) quarts of oil. I’m going to start with 2 1/2 quarts of oil. I’m going to add the last half quart of oil, which will bring me up to 2 1/2 quarts of oil. Remember the Softail calls for three quarts of oil, and I’m only adding 2 1/2 at this point.
It’s very important not to overfill the reservoir on a Softail. So I’m going to take my bike out, run the engine up to operating temperature, come back, check my oil levels again; and then I’ll top it off as necessary. I just got back from bringing the engine up to temperature. In fact, you can still hear the bike cooling down. Remember to check the oil while it’s hot and on the kickstand. So, as you can see, we need to add just a little bit more. Okay. Now that I’ve topped it off, I’m going to put my dipstick back in, check the fluid level. The fluid level is right where it should be. We’re good to go.
As you can see, it’s relatively easy to change the engine oil on a Harley Davidson Softail.
For your specific bike, make sure you’re looking at your owner’s manual for capacity; or check out the AMSOIL lookup guide at amsoil.com.
Remember that AMSOIL offers a complete line of motor cycle oils, filters, and fuel additives for your bike. Look up is required on the AMSOIL look up guide. Then add your bike to the AMSOIL garage to keep track of all the maintenance that you have done.
If you already know what you need order your oil change now
