OIL ?

[Waldo Jeffers]

29 minutes ago, Salish900 said:

This was my experience. Lots of T6 fans and rightly so. But my bikes got notchy really quick with it when shifting. The 900 with the slipper and assist clutch is so butter smooth, the T6 may work just fine. I'm most persuaded by the reality that when is the last time you heard of an engine failing from bad oil? All my years on forums with so many bikes, and never once can I recall a post on an engine blowing up, or pistons wearing out, or any mechanical damage from inside an engine from one brand of oil or another. Japanese bikes, like fiberglass boats, don't die, they have to be murdered! I'm a bit of a Francophile, so I justify the Motul, but don't push me hard because I can't go far in justifying it. 

I like Fabio Quartararo and since he’s French I will be going with Motul on my next oil change. Oh! And he rides a Yamaha. ✊😄

[whisperquiet]

These are my favorite oils and chain lube.....nothing else compares.

[jthayer09]

3 hours ago, Salish900 said:

I'll just mention as it hasn't been, that I've read that 300 lacks the composition to be a longer term oil since it is intended for racing. I'm not an oil expert (nor do I play one on the internet), but 300 doesn't have the stabilizers or things needed. I use 7100 for that reason, as it is more their "every day" oil. 

I can relate to this, I tried 300v for a hot summer season and I swear after 700mi it felt like it had sheared to a lower rating. All of a sudden acceleration and shifting weren't as smooth as when I initially change the oil.

Another +1 for Rotella T6 5W-40 from me, I run that from Oct-March where I live for the 5W cold rating. I then swap to Maxima 10W-40 Pro Plus+ for summer. Rotella is $20-22/gal which is insane value. Maxima Pro Plus+ is $37/gal right now on Amazon, their syn blend is $30/gal which is also fantastic. At those prices my 2 annual oil changes are cheaper than 1 using 300v.

Currently at 21,338mi on my FJ09 and I think I'm going to stick with the Rotella & Maxima combo for as long as I own it.

Edited March 15, 2021 by jthayer09

[Waldo Jeffers]

52 minutes ago, 2and3cylinders said:

I also use T6 5W-40 for all my vehicles.  My FJ shifts very well with it.  Minimizing clutch lever free play and optimizing shift lever height for your boot really helps.  Of course shifting technique and going to a 16 XSR slip-assist clutch could be a positive factor.

In my 98 VTR1000F (bought new), as soon as it hit 1,500 miles, I went with the old Mobil 1 for probably 50,000 miles before they changed the formulation.  I've been using T6 since with no issues and it now has over 111,000 miles!  Same thing with my 15 FJ, as soon as I hit 1,500 I went with the Yamaha blend, then their full synthetic because they had/have the 100,000 mile oil / filter warranty deal but it got too cumbersome to update my account.  So I went to the T6 and installed the modified threaded thing the filter screws onto so the new style concave hub filters don't leak.

That’s a cherry super hawk. 

[Wintersdark]

8 hours ago, daboo said:

I've been using Shell Rotella T6 5W-40 for years now on all my bikes.  I started when I bought a bike that had a wet clutch, and the "experts" on the forum all recommended it.  So I did what I usually do and started doing some research.

I went to Bob is the Oil Guy forum.  One of the things I realized after a few hours on the forum, was that they have their own "experts" there, and anyone can become an "expert".

But one thing did stand out for me.  Shell Rotella is sold as a diesel oil primarily.  We're not talking about a VW diesel engine, but diesel engines that are used on construction machinery or semi's where taking a vehicle offline to do an oil change, costs a lot of money.  The operators don't get moved by the marketing hype on the container.  They just want something they know works.

Shell Rotella meets JASO requirements.  I can buy a 5qt jug for around $20 at Home Depot or Wally World.  In other words, 5 qts of it is about what one quart of Motul oil sells for.  And it sure seems to work just as well.

One objection might be that the viscosity doesn't exactly meet what your bike manufacturer recommends.  I haven't worried about it.  Within a minute or two, my bike's engine temp is to the point where the oil is up at the 40 weight.  If it concerns you enough, there's also a Shell Rotella T6 in a 15W-40.

FWIW, my BMW F800GT doesn't use oil, and it has over 65,000 miles on it...all with Shell Rotella T6.  Chances are, some of you won't even get that many miles before you sell the bike.

Chris

 

I'll point out that Shell Rotella meets JASO MA but as a diesel oil it's not graded in the same way as regular oil, and does not carry an API Service SG (or any, really) rating.  This doesn't mean it's worse, but for someone looking for The Right Oil, one should get oil that actually has both ratings.  The Rotella has a diesel certification grade, but I don't know the specifics of the API Service SG vs what the Rotella has.  Maybe it's better, maybe it's worse, maybe it's just different; I don't know as it's a wholly different rating system.  

With that being said: I too have run Rotella in almost every motorcycle I've ever owned, and run Rotella 5w-40 in my Tracer in the winters - I have daily starts at 15 - 20 degrees below freezing for a couple months straight; 10w oil is noticeably thicker at those temps.  But every one of those bikes has been ridden through winters, 15k+ per year. And (even more anecdotally), every motorcycle forum I've ever been on has a whole pile of posters in every oil thread saying the same thing.

 

I totally get the worries, and people wanting to baby their babies.  But the reality is, if the $$$ oil has the same certifications and grade as the cheap oil, it protects in exactly the same way, to the same level.  

 

[Wintersdark]

7 hours ago, Salish900 said:

I'm most persuaded by the reality that when is the last time you heard of an engine failing from bad oil? All my years on forums with so many bikes, and never once can I recall a post on an engine blowing up, or pistons wearing out, or any mechanical damage from inside an engine from one brand of oil or another. Japanese bikes, like fiberglass boats, don't die, they have to be murdered! I'm a bit of a Francophile, so I justify the Motul, but don't push me hard because I can't go far in justifying it. 

And this is it.  Modern oil is pretty amazing stuff.  So long as you actually do oil changes (and really, particularly on a bike where changing your oil takes literally 5 minutes, why wouldn't you?) you're gonna be fine.  And even if you don't?  You've got to go REALLY REALLY long on old oil to materially damage an engine.  Even if you're planning to keep your bike for hundreds of thousands of miles, just doing oil changes as specified and running the cheapest (but meeting certifications) conventional motor oil is going to be fine.

[daboo]

17 minutes ago, Wintersdark said:

I totally get the worries, and people wanting to baby their babies.  But the reality is, if the $$$ oil has the same certifications and grade as the cheap oil, it protects in exactly the same way, to the same level.  

I get a chuckle out of how riders treat their motorcycles.  A lot of riders treat their bikes better than anything else they own.  Probably better than their wives and kids even.  Their car might go 10-15,000 miles between servicing.  It'll never get the valves checked.  And the only time they think about the brakes is when the noise of metal on metal gets louder than the stereo.  

Their bikes though...they obsess on.  Nothing is too expensive for the bike.  (Forget it kid, you'll have to wait for next Christmas to get a new bicycle.  We're broke.)  Oil changes?  We won't go 30 miles past the oil change interval.  And it has to be the absolute best oil.

I was going through South Dakota one time and pulled into a McDonalds to get out of the heat and get a milkshake for a break.  A BMW GS owner came in at the same time.  When he got seated, he was calling around to find someone to change the oil.  And it had to be a "BMW" mechanic.  That's ridiculous.

Chris

[2and3cylinders]

13 hours ago, daboo said:

I can buy a 5qt jug for around $20 at Home Depot or Wally World.  In other words, 5 qts of it is about what one quart of Motul oil sells for.  And it sure seems to work just as well.One objection might be that the viscosity doesn't exactly meet what your bike manufacturer recommends.  I haven't worried about it.  Within a minute or two, my bike's engine temp is to the point where the oil is up at the 40 weight.  If it concerns you enough, there's also a Shell Rotella T6 in a 15W-40.

 

I don't recall seeing T6 in 5 quart jugs in a brick n mortar store.  Online yes, but never any cheaper per oz.  Even a gallon at WM is about $22.  Never 20 let alone for 5 quarts.

And 15 FJ is an easy change.  I'm lucky the hole I drilled in my skid plate lined up almost perfectly with the drain plug. 

T6 is cheap enough to change every 4k but IMO it could easily go another 2 or 3k unless you've done a lot of dusty riding, and then I'd worry more about the air filter.  Which, if It's not too bad, I do vacuum clean and touch up with a light mist of K&N oil but that's for another thread.

 

[2and3cylinders]

I have a friend who drinks deeply of the Blue Cool-Aid, and only buys Bavarian or Berlin made.  Cracks me up given how expensive they are and really not any more reliable, faster or attractive.  Back in the day I had an R5 with a Earles front end, and later a /2, and while they were comparably more dependable (having come from Brit bikes), they were boring both visually and on the road.

[daboo]

1 hour ago, 2and3cylinders said:

I don't recall seeing T6 in 5 quart jugs in a brick n mortar store.  Online yes, but never any cheaper per oz.  Even a gallon even at WM is about $22.  Never 20 let alone for 5 quarts.

I think the jug says it is 4 quarts, but over here on the "left" coast, they reinvented math and so I called it 5 quarts. 

I went about 9 or 10 thousand last summer between oil changes.  Some of that was in 100+F temps.  It bothered me when I realized I had missed the oil change...but not too much.  The bike was running perfect and after some clean oil, it seemed to be about the same.

Chris

[dazzler24]

Slightly off topic but related in an unrelated way.... If that hasn't got you curious nothing will.

 

[2and3cylinders]

I have seen 2.5 gallon jugs though...

[2and3cylinders]

Just now, dazzler24 said:

Slightly off topic but related in an unrelated way.... If that hasn't got you curious nothing will.

 

I coincidentally recently saw this video too.  Good on RE!  And that is why I change the oil if not also the filter as soon as I get a new bike home and/or in less than 100 miles!

[edgarjessop12]

Cheers Guys,

The Motul 300V is fantastic oil , and you can feel the difference in the smoothness of the transmission , NOTHING else though.

And there is no difference in the oil change periods whether £20 a gallon or £60 a gallon. But cheap oil is definitely not as good as quality oil.

I am 74 years old, and need to get a grip and realise my flipping age. this Tracer 900GT is the slowest bike I have owned for 40 years.

And I absolutely love it. I got recommended to use Motul 300V at the Isle of Man TT races years ago, 1 race is 228 miles at an AVERAGE speed

of 135 mph, as I am a self confessed anorak of the TT races 1964 to 2019 never missed until Covid Virus stopped it. I also did track days .......

But not done one for 2 years and will not be doing one again. So I much appreciate your comments thank you all.

I am now changing to Motul 7100.    But as for money prevention is better than cure. 

I also emailed Motul and got a brilliant helpful reply 👍👍

Edgar Jessop. 

[2and3cylinders]

The East Midlands will be even prettier soon but I've never been to the IOM.

Had reservations for 15 until our then new governor screwed up the economy and I had to cancel.  Been on my bucket list since 70 but I'm a half dozen or so years your junior.  I have a mate who's 73 who has a track and race bike, teaches track days, and is faster than ever.  He keeps saying he'll quit each season but of course doesn't.  I say life begins at 140 mph on 2 wheels but I stopped racing after the 2nd kid only due to expenses. Whereas all 3 left the nest years ago, my bod has too many issues because if I knew then what I know now when I was younger...Rod Stewart Ooh Lala

And yes I don't consider my FJ all that powerful but anything more than a mouthful is a waste at our ages...

And synthetic does permit extended replacement intervals.  Test your oil 2 changes in a row and the report will tell you how far it can go.