Hello. I have a 2006 grizz 660 with 150 miles on it, I bought it back in October. I never have time to ride but I keep an eye on the fluids when I do go out. I did an oil change on it a couple of days ago and noticed that the oil smelled like gas, I had flooded it BAD a few days before that so I figured that some gas had just got into the crankcase. After I changed it I went for a 2 mile ride, when I got back and the quad had cooled I checked the oil again with the same gas smell, also the oil was pretty dark. When ever I get back from riding I turn the fuel off so I don't think it's draining from the carb into the crankcase. Please help. James

 

If the oil is dark after a couple miles you might be overheating and causing the oil to break down rapidly. Does it seem like it's running hotter than normal?

I don't think it's really gas in the oil, when oil breaks down it can get a gassy smell to it (remember, oil and gas are both made from crude oil so they can smell alike at times.)

And what kind of oil are you using?

 

I'm using Yamalube 10w-30, the oil is not really dark (black) just darker than it was when I put it in. It seems to be running fine and the cooling fan comes on when it should. I'm not at all sure if this has anything to do with it, but the service manual says the high temp light should come on for a few seconds when you turn the key, I have never seen that light come on at all. I called my dealer and they turned the key on 8 06 grizzs with the same results. I figured it was nothing but I called Yamaha to be sure and they said it was a misprint in the manual, but it's seems weird that something as important as the service manual would have a mistake in it.

 

Did you change the filter when you changed the oil?

 

I might try a synthetic to get rid of any gas smells that should exist. If no gas smell with synthetic you don't have a problem of gas in the crankcase.

 

I always change the filter with the oil. Yamaha says not to use any synthetic oils due to the clutch, but I'm not sure how true this is. The funny thing is the oil level never changes so I figure if gas is getting in it can't be much. My questrion is like recon99 said, maybe it's not gas just the way Yamalube smells. This bike is the first one I have used it on, so my question is, has anyone used Yamalube with the same results?

 

I used silkolene in my honda recon, it has the same ratings as yamalube. I think it's just your oil, because I had the exact same thing happen, the oil would start smelling gassy as soon as it started getting dark. I even had the powersports shop check it out when they were doing the rebuild on it, and they told me it was just the oil, and there's really no way that much gas would have gotten into the crankcase.

Maybe try a different brand, like valvoline atv or motorcycle oil, and see if you have the same results. So far I like that better than silkolene, it seems to last much longer, and it costs half as much.

 

OK. Thanks for all the help!! I can't see how a brand new quad can do that. I called the dealer (also a good friend) and asked him what kind they put in it when they sell it, he said I would have to ask a tech, but he was sure it was not Yamalube (costs to much). When I did the first oil change I did not smell like gas at all. I think you are right [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-wink.gif[/img]. THANKS!!

 

Yeah, just give the Valvoline a try. I've been using it a couple of years, and no complaints. I buy it at auto zone, most auto parts stores will have it for about $3 - $3.50 a quart. Just make sure it's for atv's or motorcycles.

 

And the jar test---- I told my friend about my problem and he said take a little oil out of your case and put it in a glass jar and let it sit for a while, if you see a rainbow, you have gas in it. I took his advice (sure I was not going to see it) But after 3 hrs of sitting there was a small layer of gas on top of the oil. Now what?