thicker oil in uk what brand diesal oil and what thickness in gs 500

[jackinacabin]

Hi ... My bike is going through a fair bit now ... its over 55k miles  runs fine  . I want to get oil in bulk to be economic but dont know what thicker oil would be ok ... so what weight oil and what brand do folks use in high mileage gs 500 in uk .. Cheers folks

[jackinacabin]

found cheap smith and allen oil at 2.90 ish a litre, is this ok for a gs 500 
Smith & Allan Motorcycle Oil 10w-40 4-Stroke 4T Semi Synthetic 20 Litre 20L 
        post the description in e bay uk and you will see the oil ...
thanks muchly

[jackinacabin]

still wondering if the cheapy oil above is ok or if diesal car oil is a good option and weater a thicker oil is a good idea to reduce the use of the oil ... Any ideas . Thanks in advance folks .

[Watcher]

Not from the UK so I don't know that brand.

Diesel oils are typically JASO MA compliant and so can be used in a motorcycle, but I still don't believe they should be used in a motorcycle.  A high revving motorcycle engine with a transmission and wet clutch is nowhere near the same as a slow revving deisel engine and engine only.  The transmission can be quite destructive, as can the clutch, so I'm a firm believer in motorcycle oil.

10w40 is the recommended viscocity, but I have run 20w50 before with no issues.  That viscocity range is listed in the manual.
If you can find it a 10w50 may be a good option, not so thick at air temp but a little thicker come operating temp.

[olosh]

i would advise against thicker oil, especially as winter is coming. Get cheapo 10-40 semi synth from Wilkinson's or Home Bargains and change it every 2000 instead of every 4000. Job done.

[1018cc]

 I'm one of the diesel oil brigade. I've been running 10W40 diesel oil for the last 35,000kms in my GS500 (76,3xxkms on the odo now) and everything still seems to be running sweet as a nut. I religiously change it every 5,000kms though.

[MichaelM3]

I'm with 1018cc on this topic. The change interval appears to be more important than the oil.

I too am part of the diesel brigade. There is a truly 'mixed' fleet of vehicles / engines in my shed. Buying oil in bulk makes it cheaper per unit, but this is balanced by the fact I change oil more frequently than required in the manual(s).

Without doing the maths, I'm guessing that I'm probably only breaking even on the expensive oil / longer change interval versus the cheaper oil / shorter change interval balance sheet. However, and this is bit I like, the shorter change interval means that I have a serious look at the machines more frequently. Also, whenever possible, I schedule most maintenance jobs to coincide with an oil change.

[jackinacabin]

Havent checked in for a spell ,,, but thankyou for the advice ... After reading the posts I think I will get the cheapy semi synthetic 10/40 and change it often ... thanks folks