by wwguy » Sat Mar 30, 2019 11:01 am
Actual oil consumption rate will depend on how you ride the bike. When they introduced OI Beta said that the OI map in the ECU was programmed to pump at variable rates between 100:1 at idle and 32:1 at wide open throttle. So a slower rider happily puttering about will consume significantly less oil than a rider who rides on the throttle all day long. But generally speaking, assuming you're riding mid-RPM, and assuming Beta's OI map is linear between both ends of the rate range, and assuming that your OI system is working as designed, you'd probably be pumping somewhere between 50:1 and 60:1, which should consume 2 to 2 1/2 ounces of oil per gallon of gasoline. That's obviously based on some assumptions and speculations, and unfortunately, anything else is just more of the same. Some may chime in with comments like "I use 1 tank of oil for 3 tanks of gas" but that's not very useful to you unless you know they ride or how low they run their oil and gas tanks before refilling them.
Personally, my OI system doesn't use any oil, because I removed it 200+ hours ago. While others have occasionally reported OI system failures for a variety of electrical and mechanical reasons, I never had any problems with mine (that I knew of.) But it was maddening knowing that there was no method to verify proper oil flow rate and/or consumption during operation or routine maintenance. I sleep better running premix, which is easy, reliable, repeatable, and verifiable.
Beta's primary reason for introducing OI was to comply with the strict Euro 4 emissions standards required for them to produce the bikes. OI doesn't offer any incremental engine reliability, longevity, or performance. There's some risk in running it, which goes away by switching to premix. I'm not trying to tell you (or anyone else) not to run it, but I do believe all new Beta riders deserve to understand what it means to buy into it (pun intended.)