"Motorcycle" oil?

[beaterman]

Hiya all, I have a question (a pretty stupid one ) about what oil to use in my GS500e. The oil filler cap says to use 10w-40. Does this mean I can use regular auto oil? Or does it have to be "motorcycle" oil? I'd appreciate any advice.  

[GRU]

some people use car motoroil in their GS....i think most use castrol gtx 10W40......i use castrol 4 stroke motorcycle 20W50 just to be safe

[cernunos]

You know, I believe I have seen that question posted hear several times in the past, so it makes you wonder. I always ran "auto" oil in my bikes years and years ago...ran some aircraft oil for awhile there. But now I see this tidbit batted back and forth more than the shuttle-chicken in a badminton game and I would like the plain naked truth too. So, Srinath, Kerry, GRU, and all you other GS500 gurus...what is the naked truth?? What will happen to this happy person's bike if oil of other than "motorcycle-specific" is run in it? Lovin' the bike, lovin' the forum.

C.......

[GRU]

So, Srinath, Kerry, GRU, and all you other GS500 gurus

OMG i am a GS guru?  

i feel so special now    

[Kerry]

Hiya all, I have a question (a pretty stupid one  ) about what oil to use in my GS500e. The oil filler cap says to use 10w-40. Does this mean I can use regular auto oil? Or does it have to be "motorcycle" oil?

Uh, that's a fairly big can o' worms you got there.  

I've been feeding my GS500 $4/qt, full-synthetic auto oil (Mobil1 15w50) for nearly 30,000 miles - until this last oil change.

However, my father has been riding since the 50's and he has never used anything but plain old auto oil.  I hear you say, "Maybe that's because he's ridden on nothing but pre-90's motorcycles."  Maybe.

But he recently rolled through here on his way home from Alaska, riding an almost-new Honda ST1300.  While he was here he rode down to WalMart, bought a sufficient amount of $1/qt "dino juice", and changed his oil and filter on my driveway.

I dunno ... if a big, Honda-precision 1300 can eat up 12,000 miles in a month on plain old auto oil with no ill effects, surely I could afford to "cheapen up" with my GS500.   So on this last oil change I went with a $2.34/qt synthetic blend auto oil.  It's even 10w40!

[beaterman]

Well, I kinda figure that oil is oil, but just wanted to be sure, what with the higher rpms the GS runs at compared to a car. Thanks for all the quick responses! Y'all are great.

[cernunos]

GRU, you should feel special, 'cause you are...you answer with a good word when needed...and a back-hand at other times. If you all want to use good oil that isn't too expensive and help support a company that supports (at least to some extent) our environment...look at Chevron. Bebe researched all the oil companies and she puts her seal of approval on them, so they can't be all bad. And your friendly local Chevron dealer will gladly special order for you. Love that GS, love this forum.

C.......

[beaterman]

By the way, do you carry a spy camera in your jacket Kerry? Do the stockers at Wal-mart think youre plotting a terroist attack and taking pre plan photos?

[Kerry]

By the way, do you carry a spy camera in your jacket Kerry? Do the stockers at Wal-mart think youre plotting a terroist attack and taking pre plan photos?

I DO usually carry my camera in my jacket pocket.  That is, I did until a couple weeks ago when I started thinking about landing on it in a crash.  Now it's usually relegated to the tank bag.  

I got no strange looks at WalMart, but then nobody was in the "oil aisle" with me.  (And I didn't use the flash, as you can tell from the blurry pic.)  The camera can sure come in handy when you don't have the equipment (or the inclination) to jot down a bunch of notes....

[Cal Price]

Is there ANYTHING you don't have a picture of.......No don't answer that, we can have too much information!

[Rema1000]

Maybe they think he is doing price comparisons for their competitor... wait a a minute, this is Wal-Mart, and they have no competitors unless youcount the DoJ and INS.

From what I've read here (<-hearsay), modern auto motor oils have many additives, which were never intended to see a wet clutch.  Some additives can interfere with the clutch, I think causing the clutch to slip (?).  The advice I've seen is to avoid oil with an "Energy Conserving" label.   Usually, there is a section of "performance" oils at the store, mostly 20W50 or so, which lack the "Energy Conserving" label, and which are better for motorcycles.  Bizarrely, there is also really cheap oil at Wal-Mart, like "Tech2000" which is so cheap that it is also lacking these additives, and is therefore superior to the "typical" auto oil (at least as far as working with a wet clutch).  I'm unsure about whether SG (newer oils) are any worse with a wet clutch than SF.

But even if you do experience problems with the clutch, I also read here that you can change the oil and it will burn off quickly.  And that there is no permanent damage done.  So if you don't notice a problem, then there isn't one, and if you do notice, there's an easy remedy.

There are separate issues about whether auto oil may break down faster than "motorcycle" oil due to high shear stress in the motorcycle clutch, the high RPM, etc.  That's a separate issue.  If it bothers you, you can reduce your oil-change interval, or use a synthetic.

(...just repeating what others here have said...)

[indestructibleman]

just read this article:

http://www.yft.org/tex_vfr/tech/oil.htm

[Kerry]

Is there ANYTHING you don't have a picture of....

In just over 3 years of owning a digital camera, I've only taken some 4200 pictures.  That's not even 4 pictures a day!  Gee, I'd better get a move on....  :mrgreen:

[cernunos]

Here is a link to the Chevron web-site with info on different types of oils for engines, links to environmental issues, faq's and other interesting tidbits.  www.chevron.com/prodserv/nafl/auto/content/motoroils.shtm#choose

If you have Q's about oil, this could go far in answering them. Love that little White Owl and the fuzzy forum.

C.......

[werase643]

if the owners manual...says....10W-40 American Petroleum Institute(API) rated to SG...SH or whatever....the higher letter is compliant to the lower letter .... the cheapest wallmart oil is ok for the bike as long as you meat min requirements.   very few of us will have a high mileage engine go bad..... most will die from lack of checking oil level....not wear of the bearings from Tech 2000.... which i used in an endurance racebike for 4-6 hr races(worked fine...bike still running after 6-8 years of abuse on the track).

also this is a good read....again

http://www.yft.org/tex_vfr/tech/oil.htm

like indestructableman posted!!!!!!!

[werase643]

Is there ANYTHING you don't have a picture of....

In just over 3 years of owning a digital camera, I've only taken some 4200 pictures.  That's not even 4 pictures a day!  Gee, I'd better get a move on....  :mrgreen:

i'm up to 33990 on my digital cam :mrgreen:

[oldsport]

if the owners manual...says....10W-40 American Petroleum Institute(API) rated to SG...SH or whatever....the higher letter is compliant to the lower letter .... the cheapest wallmart oil is ok for the bike as long as you meat min requirements.   very few of us will have a high mileage engine go bad..... most will die from lack of checking oil level....not wear of the bearings from Tech 2000.... which i used in an endurance racebike for 4-6 hr races(worked fine...bike still running after 6-8 years of abuse on the track).

also this is a good read....again

http://www.yft.org/tex_vfr/tech/oil.htm

like indestructableman posted!!!!!!!

All good advice I'd say.  - Not that I have any scientific data as the man at yft.org asks for.

I think a factor that should be considered is how the bike's ridden.  If it spends most of it's time below 7-8000 rpm then changing the oil at recommended intervals is fine.  If it's at 7000 to redline often or for extended lengths of time, then changing it more often is probably wise.  

How about this. Triumph requires a full synthetic "T" racing oil for my 04 Bonneville.  The Triumph brand is something like $16 a quart and an oil change is $80 at the dealer; but a change is required only every 8000 mi.