Rotella T6 still safe?

[krupted]

Hi,
I just got the FJ-09 a week ago, and I was planning an oil change soon.  I know that Rotella T6 is popular, so i was going to use, but on a local forum I am on someone mentioned in March that Shell changed the formula, and it was now causing problems with wet clutches:
As per Shell's website the formula has been changed on our beloved T6.
There are many over on the VTX boards who are experiencing clutch problems now due to this change. Shell has confirmed that the formula has changed and has added Moly to the T6.
 
No one responded to his post, does anyone here know if it is still safe for motorcycles with wet clutches?  On the Shell product page for Rotella T6 it still says JASO MA/MA2 But I don't know if that's the only thing to look for in oil?
 
Thanks!
 
Mark

[isteve]

For some reason people love using diesel oil so if anyone says anything bad about it, it turned into a fight. But I believe Rotella T4 was the last so called clutch safe oil. I think in the FJ owners manual it says not to use Diesel oil. If you just use any brand of Motorcycle oil made for wet clutches you can be worry free.

[motorberus]

T6 still has JASO MA certification on the label which means its certified for wet clutches.

[koth442]

I used Rotella T6 for a while. I've found I like Mobil 1 5w-40 more. The bike (and my truck) revs faster with the Mobil 1.

[krupted]

Thanks for the answers.
I have a 5L jug of conventional Rotella T 15w-40 that I had bought for my previous bike but never used.  I figured I'd use it on the FJ-09, then switch to something else when it is out.
Is the FJ-09 ok with conventional?  I got the bike used so I'm missing all the original stuff it came with (manual, original parts that have been replaced, shock adjuster tool...)
 
I live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.  temps I ride in vary greatly.  Right now it is ranging from ~5degrees to 25degrees C ( ~41F to ~77F)  Being summer, it should soon be approaching 35C with heavy humidity (~95F)
 
I don't understand the numbers on oil, despite having read about it I still can't figure out the weight and what I should use.  I used to use 10W40 on my old 2003 KLR650.  But could I run a 5w safely in the FJ-09 at the summer temps above?
 

[nsmiller]

Thanks for the answers. I have a 5L jug of conventional Rotella T 15w-40 that I had bought for my previous bike but never used.  I figured I'd use it on the FJ-09, then switch to something else when it is out.
Is the FJ-09 ok with conventional?  I got the bike used so I'm missing all the original stuff it came with (manual, original parts that have been replaced, shock adjuster tool...)
 
I live in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada.  temps I ride in vary greatly.  Right now it is ranging from ~5degrees to 25degrees C ( ~41F to ~77F)  Being summer, it should soon be approaching 35C with heavy humidity (~95F)
 
I don't understand the numbers on oil, despite having read about it I still can't figure out the weight and what I should use.  I used to use 10W40 on my old 2003 KLR650.  But could I run a 5w safely in the FJ-09 at the summer temps above?

Okay, let me preface this by saying that I've never used T6, but that doesn't mean I think its bad stuff. 
The issue is there are now two formulations of T6. There is traditional T6 which people have been using in motorcycles for years without problems. This has the appropriate JASO MA/MA2 certifications. There now a second, new formulation of T6 which is T6 multi-vehicle. This stuff is no good for motorcycles. See link.
 
Regarding your questions:
 
1. Will the FJ-09 run on conventional (non-synthetic) dino oil? -Yes, this is what Yamalube is. This is what you will get if you take it to the Yamaha dealer.
 
2. What oil weight should you use? -A matter of debate, but per the owners manual 10W-40 is fine, and the most popular choice. This is most likely the weight you will get from the Yamaha dealer if you live in the United States.
 
3. What do the numbers mean? -W stands for winter (not weight as many people think). The first number is how the oil behaves in cold weather. Lower numbers mean thinner, higher numbers are thicker (assuming temp held constant). This means that a 10W-40 will behave like an SAE 10 weight oil at cold temperatures. At operating temperatures it will behave like an SAE 40 weight. Weight is a measure of viscosity (resistance to flow). All oils get thinner as they heat up and thicker as they cool down. A straight SAE 5 or 10 weight oil would be too thin (like water) at your engines operating temp. A straight 40 weight oil would be too thick to lubricate moving components in the cold weather. This is why there are multi-grade oils. 10W-40 is pretty much the multi-grade difference limit that a conventional dino oil can span. When you upgrade to synthetics like T6, there are more advanced additives which allow the oil to have a greater viscosity range, hence why T6 can be 5W-40. The oil will be slightly thinner for extreme cold weather start up, this is good because it means that lubrication can get too moving parts quicker in cold weather. Both 10W-40 and 5W-40 will behave like an SAE 40 weight oil at operating temperatures.

[nsmiller]

This video is very helpful for understanding oil viscosity.
 
 
[video src=https://youtu.be/tYkg0oDUXs8]

[krupted]

This video is very helpful for understanding oil viscosity. 
 
 

That was a great video.  Thanks for linking it, and for your explanation too. 

[Cruizin]

This video is very helpful for understanding oil viscosity. 
 
 

That was a great video.  Thanks for linking it, and for your explanation too.

 
As long as a bottle of oil says jamso ma on it, it is safe for motorcycles. I use t-6 in every bike and car that I own.
 
 

[DavidS]

I swear by T6, and I think the frequency of your oil changes matters a bit more than the brand of oil
 
I change my oil every 2-3K miles, or whenever I'm bored and it's raining outside .........

[2and3cylinders]

Yes, there are now two (2) Shell Rotella T6 synthetic motor oils, as follows:
 
The old 5W-40 JASO MA/MA2 we've grown to love and use in our scooters called "Shell ROTELLA® T6 Full Synthetic Heavy Duty Engine Oil with Triple Protection Plus"
 
http://rotella.shell.com/products/t6-full-synthetic.html
 
And the new interloper 5W-30 that is NOT JASO MA/MA2 called "SHELL ROTELLA® T6 MULTI-VEHICLE FULL SYNTHETIC"
 
http://rotella.shell.com/products/shell-rotella-t6-multi-vehicle-5w-30-full-synthetic-heavy-duty.html
 
http://rotella.shell.com/products/t6-full-synthetic/_jcr_content/par/textimage_1335213348.stream/1388525673850/2c4570ceb0dcc96c0e045d7d6f3c7796f77a84ed6a3d6752bb50d245468c48b2/rotella-t6-brochure.pdf
 
Now for you very new Yamaha motorcycle owners with less than 600 miles on its clock, Yamaha has their FREE Yamalube Oil 20-year / 100,000 mile extended warranty, the caveat being you must use proper Yamalube oil and filter for your vehicle starting at approximately 600 miles.

[nsmiller]

Now for you very new Yamaha motorcycle owners with less than 600 miles on its clock, Yamaha has their FREE Yamalube Oil 20-year / 100,000 mile extended warranty, the caveat being you must use proper Yamalube oil and filter for your vehicle starting at approximately 600 miles.

 Good luck proving that your bike with ridiculously documented oil changes failed at 75,000 miles due to using Yamalube Oil. Such a warranty is worth about the same as the paper its printed on.

[2and3cylinders]

Now for you very new Yamaha motorcycle owners with less than 600 miles on its clock, Yamaha has their FREE Yamalube Oil 20-year / 100,000 mile extended warranty, the caveat being you must use proper Yamalube oil and filter for your vehicle starting at approximately 600 miles.

2&3Cylinders said: "You must register on the website and update your account at each oil change and keeps receipts.  So far I've done so but also have an extended 4-year Yamaha warranty I paid only $370 for as a belt and suspenders.  Yamalube is actually pretty good oil and what can you say about oem filters; I get them for about $9 a pop."

[duhs10]

...Now for you very new Yamaha motorcycle owners with less than 600 miles on its clock, Yamaha has their FREE Yamalube Oil 20-year / 100,000 mile extended warranty, the caveat being you must use proper Yamalube oil and filter for your vehicle starting at approximately 600 miles.

 
Dang! I wish someone would have told me that... I use Yamalube and OEM filter with every oil change. I buy Yamalube by the gallon from my local dealer to save a few bucks. Every 3rd oil change or so I have enough oil leftover that I don't have to go get anymore. I also change the filter with every oil change despite the fact that the manual says to change it with every other oil change.

[britelitebob]

2&3Cylinders said: "You must register on the website and update your account at each oil change and keeps receipts.  So far I've done so but also have an extended 4-year Yamaha warranty I paid only $370 for as a belt and suspenders.  Yamalube is actually pretty good oil and what can you say about oem filters; I get them for about $9 a pop."

Thats nuts, I'm lucky if I can even remember when I did my last oil change