I,m an old new rider (or new old rider!?) anyway I just got a 2002 650 v-star  -question -whose idea was it to put the oil level sight glass where us fat old men have to lay down to look at it??? And,what's it mean when  it's totally black??  

I too am a new (again) rider and I just bought a new Suzuki C50. I was also having a problem checking my sight glass by myself because it has to be held level, not easy to do while squatting down in a very awkward position trying to see it. I solved my problem with an extendable mirror. I can straddle the bike. hold it level and use the mirror to look into the sightglass. As for the glass being black I don't know the answer to that. sorry!  

I've only run it for a few days but have prked it till I get some cycle oil - nearest dealer is 50 mi.s away I'm hoping that changing it will help even tho the dealer claimed it had a fresh oil change. Thanx for the mirror suggestion!!  

Yeah, Kawasaki like to put the site gauges in hard to see spots, too.

I've seen several people write that they placed a hand mirror against the wall in their garage, then when they pull the bike in they stop in position to see the site gauge. It's easy to see the oil level then, after turning off the engine. Of course, that only works on the bikes that don't hide the site gauge behind other things.

As for the totally black site gauge... It's been my experience that an overfilled oil sump with old oil accounts for that, or if the site gauge is on the left side, looking at it while the bike is on the side stand will make it appear over filled. Since I've never done maintenance on a V-Star, there's always the possibility that it could have a different cause on that particular bike :-)

>the dealer claimed it had a fresh oil change

Old oil left in the bike will darken the new oil almost immediately. If he didn't change the filter also, the old oil in the filter is enough to do it. Changing the oil with a cold engine can leave enough old oil in it to do that, too.

regards,
Joe  

Hi, I too have a 650 Dragstar classic, and it seems to be sighted under the footboard !!!!!! What a fantastic idea of Texas to get an extendable mirror !!! Hadn't thought of that one. I shall get hold of one and stop myself laying on the floor !!!!! THANKS !!  

Yeah, my bike (Virago) has an oil-level sight glass down at ground level.  I think some Yamaha engineer is getting his jollies at the thought of all of us riders doing obeience to our sacred cycles on a regular basis.

As far as the color goes, mine is only black when the oil needs changing.  You may need to clean the inside surface of the sight glass, which should be clear so you can see the oil.  

I have a vstar 1100 2000, I have found that when I have fresh oil the glass is clear, so I doubt the dealer did an oil change. There are two guys on the web selling mirrors that mount down low so you can sit on the seat and see the oil level.