what type of engine oil do you use?

Hi,

I use Castrol GTX Magnatec, 5w-40 fully synthetic on my XJ700 Maxim X

 

I use any certified Dino Oil. Usually Walmart or Canadian Tire 5W 40. I used synthetic in the VFR though.

 

I use Havoline 15w40 here in sunny Florida. The old 700 seems to do well with it. I change the oil every 1,000 miles and the filter every 3,000.

 

what kind of oil to use

Ok im doing my first oil change on the motorbike. What type of oil does it use? 10w40 ect. Also what should i go with. synthetic or regular. Should i get a special kind of oil made for older bikes that have lots of miles on them or just regular oil?

 

Re: what kind of oil to use

depends on the conditions that you normally ride in and how much cash you want to spend. synthetics the best and more expensive but not always nessacery. if you only ride in summer then you should tend to get a thicker oil. if you ride in winter you should get a thiner oil. or if you ride all year round a middle of the range oil would be used.

 

Re: what kind of oil to use

can u use regular car oil in the right weight range ?

 

Re: what kind of oil to use

I could be wrong (it's happened before, anyway...), but that "specially formulated for older bikes" oil sure sounds like something that came up in the marketing department rather than the lab.

 

The first oil change I did on my XJ was Motul 3000 20W 50 oil.

Due the the fact that our winters are so much milder over the Canadian/American ones. I did not feel the need to go down for a 5W 30 oil.

 

so is car oil alrite , or do u need motorbike oil ?
cheers brenton

 

I used car oil for years - until it went to the SJ formulation - then it went to hell. Now I'm using Canadian Tire's Motorcycle oil - 10w30 - it's actually re-badged Shell oil, and been pretty good last couple of years - and certainly worth the price (about $2.99 Canadian per liter).

The trick here is the API Certification level - that's the starburst thingy on the label? Yeah - the one that specifies what grade it is - SG, SJ, SL, etc...
Anyway, what you want to watch out for on ANY oil is a label that says "Energy Conserving" --- DON'T USE THIS IN OUR BIKES. Our wet clutches don't like it. What it means is the oil has special 'friction modifiers' in it to make it more slippery, great for engine internals and even the transmission - but guess what happens when it gets on clutch plates and friction material.... Yeah - 'nuf said.

Essentially, any oil - car or motorcycle - that DOESN'T have friction modifiers will do well in our engines.

A note on synthetics. I'm a HUGE fan of synthetics. But.
Our engines a) weren't designed for it, and b) likely haven't had it for 99% of their lives. These are problems because of how good synthetic oils are. Part of the problem is finding a synthetic that's not that "Energy Conserving" -- good luck. And even if you do manage to get it, it can cause problems in older engines.... like what, I hear. Like causing gaskets and seals to shrink, or sudden seal or gasket breakdown. Like cleaning the inside of the engine TOO well, and removing the crud that was holding your head gasket (or whatever) together from the inside. Yes - I've seen these.
If you've got a 'new' vehicle/engine (ie within the last 5 years), I'd STRONGLY suggest that synthetic is worth it - especially in bikes. Keep up good changing frequency, and you'll keep that engine running damn near forever. For older engines that haven't been living on it since early on -- I'd say stick with quality dino-juice and you won't go wrong.

 

cool thanks, i use castrol gtx 2 , havent noticed and problems
cheers brenton

 

Thanks Brenton

If the GTX2 works, I might give it a try next service. It would be around 1/2 the price and shold be able to get 2 services out of a bottle.

I read the friction modified oil was no good for wet clutches either, so thats why I steered clear of any car oil as I thought the majority of them were friction modified. Still if it works for you, might be worth a try.

 

I'm using Caltex Halvoline Premium. For 1980 engines onwards.

No problems with it at all. Don't mind paying a few extra bucks for a good oil as it's peice of mind protection.

 

I've been using Rotella 15W-40 as well. My RJ seems to be fine with it.

Greg

 

yeah , well i dont have any clutch slip under full throttle that i can notice. so it seems fine, i use it in my vr6 so it has to be good enuff lol i dont think it has and friction reducer in it, but ill have to dbl check on that.
cheers brenton

 

late poster:

I use yamalube 20w50 and Castrol GTX 20w50... can't really tell the difference... I have run 10w30 in the fall but again it didn't make much difference once the bike was running.

 

I don't know what the PO used but I changed it after I bought it. I used Valvoline 4 Stroke Motorcycle Oil 10W40.

 

I threw in some Amsoil at the end of last season. I'm not a big proponent of expensive synthetics by any means, but I was having some shifting issues so I decided to give it a go to see if it made any difference. That, and having a searing hot turbo to cool off every shutdown prompted my decision, but once I recoup the "investment" by doing and extended oil change (6000-10000km depending on gearbox feel) I'll go back to the regular stuff. I was using 15-40 diesel oil as well, not so many mystery ingredients, and made to take the pounding a 23:1 compression ratio engine will subject it to. The bike is 23 years old, doesn't burn oil and runs well, so I figure the last few years of its life won't require anything better than what it has run so far. We used to use Rotella by the bucketfull when I was a mechanic. Nothing special, but a decent oil. I don't know why there is such a buzz about the stuff. It's amazing how some products achieve mythical status by a group of users so quickly (not meant as a putdown SnoSherriff, I have seen Rotella mentioned on scores of motorcycle websites). Personally, having changed thousands of gallons of oil over the years, I admit to having a fondness for Petro Canada products, not because they are superior, but I am familiar with them and know they do the job in industrial applications.

 

In general, diesel oils are a good way to go if you don't want to take the 'motorcycle specific' oil route -- good tough oil, and usually pretty cheap -- and yes, I'm thinking the Rotella here - it's good stuff.

But those of us in Canada can get the m/c specific stuff at discount now that Crappy Tire carries it under their name -- I've seen it sent for oil testing, and comes back quite good. And at $3 a liter, can't go wrong....

 

I used to use Can Tire's semi-synth as well -- it was good oil. Then a couple of years ago they changed the formulation and added the friction modifiers -- haven't been able to find another without them.

Again with the warning about switching to synthetics -- if the bike hasn't used it before (and semi-synth doesn't count) you MIGHT run into trouble with seals & gaskets. Switching to synth has been known to cause shrinkage and cracking.... and it's impossible to tell if it will on your bike or not. Just an FYI

 

Oil recommendation question

I have an '85 Maxim 700, it has 6500 miles on it. I bought it late last year, so I have not yet changed the oil. Can anyone recommend what weight oil I should put in it and what amount I should buy?
I don't have the owners manual, and haven't yet ordered my XJ CD as I just discovered this site (will be ordering before the end of the week).
Thank you in advance for any input!

 

Re: Oil recommendation question

I cast one Vote for:

Castrol 20/50 Preferred by those who've had Checkered Flags waved at them for a livin'.

I swear by it.

 

Re: Oil recommendation question

yeah that's what I use, castrol 20w50 motorcycle oil, but there has been good reviews on yammie lube (aka yamaha brand 20w40)

 

My experience has been that synthetic causes excessive slippage on a wet clutch set up.
I also ran regular "car oil" for 3 years in my bike without considering that it might be a problem. I just switched to using "4 cycle oil" formulated for motorcycles and I have noticed that the clutch works better and the oil doesn't seem to be breaking down like the "car oil." This could be an illusion on my part! I do know that when I ran 20-50W "car oil" the oil seemed to be really thin and dirty. This is all of course in an air cooled motor with no oil cooler installed.

 

So if i do a seafome oil change, thats drain oil, add seafome add non expensive oil, run for ten min on center stand go thrugh all of the gears, drain, then add the good stuff and ride for five min change oil filter. My question is what kind of cheap oil, and good oil should be used. I ride the bike evrey day, it is my only meens of transport. most riding is done in town, lots of lights,stop sighns and traffic. Any suggestions will help greatly.

 

Cheap oil is whatever you can get:

Bulk, cheap or on Sale.
Since you are going to be doing a No-Load Flush ... Use some lighter viscosity stuff for a couple of flushes.
10/40 -- 10/30 ought to thin-out nice with the Seafoam and clean-out whatever you need flushed-out.

Good oil is Castrol 20/50.
Good protection for long, hard, high-on-the-tach, all-day riding.

 

Hey Snow, be careful with that 15/40 like you said it is designed for diesel engines.
From my knowledge of diesel engines these oils are formulated with much heavier duty detergents.

I was once told of someone using it in their car engine many years ago, I do remember that they were crying theblues, I dont remember what happened. After that I just always kept it in my memory banks not to use diesel engine oil in gas engines.

I hope you all the best having used this oil!

 

BTW Sno I have been using Castrol Syntec 5W-50 oil in my bike and haven't had any adverse effects in about 5500 miles that I've used it.

just my .02

 

I'm running Castrol 20W50 with no adverse effects.

 

Rock Oil Gaurdian 15w50: "Guardian Sigma is designed specifically to meet the individual requirements of performance 4 stroke motorcycles, having the highly sought after JASO MA approval is testimony to this. High revving superbike engines produce almost double the horsepower per cc compared to a car engine. Guardian Sigma has been formulated to protect these highly tuned engines with integrated gearboxes, while allowing wet clutches to operate correctly, even under the most severe conditions."
Wank, Wank, Wank. No Gumming, No Coughing, never missed a beat.

 

clutch, you almost made me a believer! We dont have that Rock Oil up here in the North!?

In fact never even heard of it.
But then I never heard of Vegemite either.
(we had a foreign exchange student who introuced it to us)

 

I use Shell Rotella (15-40)with Triple protection or what ever its called and a fram oil filter, the bike seems to like it. So it works for me.........

 

The manual seems to call for 20w40 - but I can't seem to find it in local outlets like WalMart. Of course, reading this thread it would appear that with a wet clutch, I need to go with a motorcycle specific oil.

By the way, I have a 1982 XJ650J (or so says the title...) - but am a bit confused about the front brake... mine has 1 rotor - but I see a lot of pics with 2....? do I really have a J model?

 

The 650 Maxims (XJ650n) Have single rotor. The Secas, and I believe the bigger Maxims, have two.

The J at the end makes yours an '82.

 

Thanks! That clears things up! As for oil - I guess if I can find car oil without the anti friction stuff in it...

By the way - are these bikes designed for leaded or unleaded fuel? I think the octane needs to be at least 91 - but do I need to add a lead substitute?

 

87 octane regular unleaded gas is fine for these engines.

There will likely be one or two that vehemently insist premium is needed, but I try to use what the manual specifies.

 

Canaweb:

The 20w40 oil was fairly common "back in the day" when our bikes were built, but technology has allowed wider viscosity ranges these days.

15w40 or 20w50 should be fine in your bike, depending on your expected temperatures.

Herb

 

Been through several oil changes now with Rotella T 15w40 diesel. Good stuff. The added detergents are beneficial for removing excess deposits and the higher shear numbers are what interested me most for motorcycle use. One of the most thorough articles I've seen on oils (and also pertaining to motorcycles) is here:

http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Oils1.html

Here are a few interesting excerpts that may raise a few eyebrows:

1)"Shortly after Mobil lost their lawsuit, most oil companies started reformulating their synthetic oils to use Group III base stocks instead of PAOs or diester stocks as their primary component. Most of the "synthetic oil" you can buy today is actually mostly made of this highly-distilled and purified dino-juice called Group III oil. Group III base oils cost about half as much as the synthetics. By using a blend of mostly Group III oils and a smaller amount of "true" synthetics, the oil companies can produce a product that has nearly the same properties as the "true" synthetics, and nearly the same cost as the Group III oil. The much more expensive traditional synthetics are now available in their pure forms only in more expensive and harder to obtain oils. To the best of my knowledge, Delvac-1, AMSOil, Redline, and Motul 5100 are the only oils made from pure traditional synthetics."
2)"As you can see in the table above, synthetics offer real advantages when your engine is very cold and when your engine is very hot. The viscosity numbers shown above are at 212°F. At 32°F the PAOs and Diesters have about one third the viscosity of the mineral oils, meaning they pump through your engine three times better. Since about 75% of all the wear on your engine happens in the first five minutes after you start it up, synthetics offer an advantage in significantly reducing engine wear. "
3)"Semi-synthetics" are oils which are a blend of petroleum oil and no more than 30% synthetic oil. If the manufacturer adds no more than 30% synthetic oil and does not change the additive package, they do not have to recertify the oil. These days, since everyone has agreed that Group III base oils are "synthetic," I'm not sure "semi-synthetic" means anything at all. The manufacturers love this stuff: it costs about 15% more to make the oil, and they get to charge about double. I don't recommend"

Unfortunately the last time I went to buy oil, the local Autozone was out of RotellaT, so I purchased Castrol 20w50 semi-synthetic "for high revving engines". Haven't used it yet, so we'll see.

 

so.. with the local cycle shop charging $5/qt for 20w-50 'motorcycle' oil, looks like I have no choice but to pay that or use car oil? I can't seem to find oil without the anti-friction stuff.
XJ650 manual specified 'SE' but it appears that we're way past finding oil with those letters.....
is RotellaT also in the $5 + per quart price range?

 

no its not, its actually like 10 bucks or so at walmart for 4 qts.

 

Hey, I've been working on fixing up this old 1982 Yamaha Maxim 750, and I need to get oil for it. I've read through all the information, and it's a big help, but can someone just give me one straight answer to the question, what is the best oil for me to get for a 1982 Yamaha Maxim 750 in Southern California? I already know how much oil to put in and stuff, I just want one straight answer to this, 'cause I get most of this information, but some of it is still a little overwhelming. I'm only 17, and have been working in a school autoshop for one and a half years now. Oh, also I know how to do the oil change and everything too.

Thanks Guys,
Eric

 

I respectfully Submit you were told Wrong
Diesel (hi way truck) oil is a V good choice for auto engines, as the demands /ratings for Diesel usage are significantly higher, the additive packages are Much longer lived given the typical 50,000 mile change intervals. Serious stability.
Lotsa Detergents though, not suggested for worn out barely running Junk motors.
Delvac , Mobil's Diesel equivalent to Mobile 1 is amongstl the v best oil one can buy and at 15/-- weight of hi enough viscosity to be real life usefull. Google it
Beyond that Oil is a religious Topic and the lower the value of the machine that is being oiled the more importance oil selection is to the owner
World is a Strange place sometimes

 

What is the best religion? Catholic, Judaism, Islam.

Which is the best girl? Blonde, Brunette, Redhead.

Once these easy ones are answered - then we can have an unemotional discussion about oil.

Then maybe tires.........

 

Hahaha, alright, good point, but what's the best temp range for a So Cal area climate? like how some guys were sayng 15d40 for Florida. Would anyone say that I shouldn't just use car oil? Because I think I gathered that earlier on in this topic.