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A few months back, I purchased a Honda Shadow / Phantom TA200 (in other countries, called a Shadow?) from John Bohn, another member of this forum and long time friend (going on two decades). I knew it was time to get the oil changed, but didn't realize it would be a major issue to sort, when I first began this. Had I known, I would have cracked the top on a fresh bottle of whisky - something most foreigners should do from time to time, if living in Southeast Asia.
We have a local foreigner here (Battambang) who has a long history with motorcycles, and provides quality mechanic service. However, to be honest, I just didn't want to bother him over such trivial thing. (He typically has engine rebuilds and such, waiting for him at the shop.)
Firstly, I had to locate an Owners Service Manual for the motorcycle, online. I did that: Honda Shadow / Phantom TA200 Owner's Manual - PDF (Hosted on my Dropbox account.)
Secondly, I attempted, multiple times, to locate a (READ: any) Cambodian motorbike shop that could do an oil change on this motorcycle. Well, friends and neighbors, this is the part of living in Southeast Asia that causes you to pull your hair out.
The common reply, after asking ANY shop owner if they could perform an oil change for me on this particular motorcycle, was, "I don't know how to do an oil change on that motorcycle." So, they know how to change the oil on 3.6 million shitty little scooters here. But, anything that remotely resembles a "real" motorcycle is just beyond their capacity, right? Yep, that is ko-rect.
So, I just enlisted Tha and Chan to help me get this sorted. Tha was coming by today anyway, as he was sorting some maintenance issues on her motorcycle. So, I figured I would just have him change the oil while he was here, on the Phantom. I know other guys, either in Thailand, or here in Cambodia, who own similar motorcycles. (I've seen quite a few at the local foreigner's shop, in fact.) So, I figured I might as well take a few photos while this was being done and do a little write up on it. Pretty simple, really.
Start by running the engine to warm up the oil. Shut the engine off.
Remove the dipstick.
Remove the drain plug, spring and strainer, and place a basin under the engine. Let the oil drain completely.
Images of the parts to be removed to change the oil.
Replace strainer, spring and drain plug. (Use a 17mm wrench.) Fill with 1 Liter of appropriate oil (see page 53 of the manual) and replace the dipstick. If you do not have a funnel, visit the nearest banana tree.
From Phnom Penh Post
Thursday 7th June 2012
By Chhim Sreyneang
On the eve of the 1st Phnom Penh Bike Week on May 26, the Post caught up with Chhan Raingsey, a 31-year-old big bike enthusiast, Cambodia Biker Club member and marketing manager at INTRA Co, to discuss his thoughts on the growing big bike trend in Cambodia.
When did you start liking big bikes?
I started liking them since I was about 10 years old. I bought my first big bike, a Honda Hornet with 250cc, in 2009. I bought it at a reasonable price – only US$2,500.