In need of an oil change.

I already checked the suggested threads, but to no avail. I need to change the oil in my vf700f with 45,xxx miles on it. I tend to ride her pretty hard. I know I probably shouldnt have done this, but at the end of last riding season I topped it off with some honda factory synth oil. with the bike being this high mileage should I run conventional or can I go to a full synthetic? I am also not sure about brands, I have heard klots is a great oil but I have also heard of that rare case where it totally sucked in an older bike. also any filter recomendations?

 

opcorn:

Este es un chiste, no?

 

what? that doesnt even look like spanish and sure as heck not like english.

 

If it were my bike I would run a synthetic, anything to help lubricate is needed on gen 1 in my opinion. Honda makes a really good easy to find filter and Fram is garbage.

 

I wont even trust a fram on my cars. so a synth should be ok in this old engine. I have heard of this being a bad thing (at least in cars) to do without replacing the gaskets and such because the synthetic oil can re-llubricate them and cause buildups to break away opening up leaks. I am going to a honda dealer to get the oil and filter.

 

for oil, we use shell rotella T6 on all of our bikes
its a full synthetic and its $20-25 for a gallon at wally world
if you search around you will find that tons of people use it on their bikes, old and new.

 

I've always used oil suggested by the manufacturer in all my engines. I work in aircraft maintenance and we never deviate, why would one do so? Aftermarket hype?

 

I deviated because the factory honda GN4 that is recommended for my 99 is non-synthetic, the bike runs better and has better clutch action with the rotella synthetic. I can see the aircraft industry being pretty strict about everything though, as you can't simply pull over due to a mechanical malfunction.

 

I like Shell Rotella or Chevron Delo 400.

Jose

 

I somewhat sceptical abotu using rotella or anyother non-motorcycel specific oil in my bike. will it be able to stand up to the requirements of a motorcycle engine/tranny and still give the same if not better performance?

 

The T6 has a JASO MA designation on it, meaning its suitable for wet clutch operation.

 

Ok. I am going to go on a bit of a diatribe on this one.


Here is a great link talking about different types of oils and why a diesel engine oil is EXACTLY what we should be using in a wet clutch motorcycle engine.

All About Motor Oil

That article is pretty old now, but it puts what you need to know in plain English, with some links that will still get you to some information you can REALLY geek out on.




For those too lazy to read, the basic deal is as follows. Oils made from better base stocks with high ZDDP (zinc) content in their additive packages will be the best choices to use in your motorcycle engine. Additionally, oils that have the Honda recommended amounts of the "right" additives, will meed the JASO-MA standard.


Moving on ......

Back in the day, Rotella T USED to be the big boy on the block with a ZDDP content upwards of 2000 PPM and it cost you about $4 a quart at that time. Compare that to the the Amzoil, Mobil 1, Deep Purple, Redline (et al.) racing oils (2200 PPM ZDDP) you paid around $12 a quart for and the diesel oil was a WAY better deal. The racing oils on the market today are purported to still contain over 2000 PPM of ZDDP, but now they cost about $15 a quart.

Looking at current formulations of the Rotella and Delo oils (not the LE versions), they have ZDDP counts of around 1200 (down from 1400 about 3 years ago). Why do I poo-poo the LE versions of the oils? Sadly, emissions requirements have meant that engine oils are containing less and less ZDDP. The Low Emission versions of the oil only have something like 800 PPM ZDDP. That is bad for older engines, but newer engines are built out of new materials that take into consideration the lower levels of ZDDP.

So then ... why do I use Rotella or Delo in my cars? Well, because I own three vehicles that are pre-1990 manufacture and they desperately need the best oil I can get, with the highest ZDDP content I can find. Also, their catalytic converters are less susceptible to potential damage from the higher ZDDP in the oils I put in them. In my 2002 Saturn, I run the LE version of the diesel oil. It is STILL better than regular engine oil even at the lower ZDDP content levels and doesn't really cost much more.

Why do I like Rotella T or Delo for my VFR? I have yet to see a bottle of motorcycle specific oils sold off the shelf, that lists its ZDDP content (which is actually around 1200 PPM). What I DO know is that 1200 PPM is EXACTLY the same ZDDP content as the Rotella or Delo. If you bother to read the standards ratings on the Rotella or Delo, you will also notice that JASO - MA is listed. That means it officially meets the standard recommended by Honda for our (and every other road going) motorcycle on the planet. WOOHOOO! The down side is that Rotella and Delo are getting harder and more expensive to find. If you are just NUTS about maximum performance oil, you could always buy the “cheap” Delo or Rotella and spend another $13 on Redline engine break in additive. The break-in additive has STUPID levels of ZDDP. Based on what I see at the Redline website, it looks to me like a full bottle would bump 3 quarts of oil to almost 3000 PPM ZDDP and half a bottle would put you at close to 2000 PPM ZDDP. Whatever you do, DO NOT PUT ANYTHING IN YOUR CRANKCASE THAT CONTAINS MOLYBDENUM. Your clutch will slip like a greased manwhore on a Crisco covered slip and slide. Not that I have personal experience with adding moly to my engine …. or uhhhh …. greasing manwhores. Although a greased up slip-n-slide is a ton of fun.

I did a quick internet search and Autozone (in my town) sells the Rotella, in a 1 gallon jug for $18. With Redline motorcycle oil running $14 a bottle (online pricing), I am WAY happy that I can get Rotella instead and I will continue running Rotella until such time as the non-LE version of the oil is no longer made. Then I might have to bite the bullet and consider a boutique oil. However, since MANY of the fleets of diesel vehicles in this country are more than 10 years old, there will still be an ongoing need for the standard Rotella and Delo, so I foresee it being available for a while. Although now that I think about it, I might want to go hunt down a couple of 50 gallon drums just to play it safe. Also remember that there are "synthetic" versions of the Rotella and Delo, but I don't see a JASO certification on them, so I don't feel bad that I have never felt like tracking them down. The dyno version is priced just right and lets me go 5000 miles between changes in my cars.

So, with ALL that explanation behind me, here is what I like to do. On a motorcycle, I change oil every 3000 miles. Using a very high quality oil like Rotella T or Chevron Delo lets me change at that interval but costs about $20 less per change than using a boutique, motorcycle specific engine oil.


Jose

 

Well......142,000 km on same engine since August 2006 and have changed oil every 10,000 km using Motul synthetic. Not a single problem evn comes close to surfacing that could possibly be oil related. The synthetic is more expensive, and if and when I ever get a new bike, I will probably revert to a cheaper "Motorcycle Rated" oil. I mean really. The vast majority of people here and everywhere put what, 4 - 5,000 miles a year on their bikes? People die of old age before these give up the ghost anyways.

 

dahose, that was an amazing article you linked to. I just read the whole thing and learned WAAAY to much. besides my car which is being built to a performance standard, I think I am going to switch my girlfriends car, any future cars I may own, anmd my motorcycle to rotella.

 

The peanut gallery demands more opinions and testimonials, we are not quite amused just yet. op2:

 

So what do the dudes run for oil in those Harley engines that are airworthy rated for about 20k? Harley oil?

 

I run Rotella in all my bikes. For the guy who said he only trusts 'motorcycle designation oils'... good news. Rotella has that.

JASO MA is what you are looking for.

'Dino oil' - Shell Rotella® Products | Shell Rotella



'Synthetic T6' - Shell Rotella® Products | Shell Rotella

 

Just add some Slick Fifty to your oil and you'll be fine. Case closed.

(For the record, I believe this is my first post ever referencing the Slick Fiddy solution. I feel like I really belong to this forum now. And for those newcomers - no, I'm not serious. Don't add the shit).

 

Around 4 years ago I switched to Amsoil in my 1984 VF750F, and it was good!

It was good with dino oil too.

It's all good.

By the way, I use the "expensive" Napa oil filter. Dare I say, it is good!
















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