What is the best Oil.

[LERecords]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

I wouldnt worry. I asked my girls bro who lives out in MI and he had 2 bikes. Says you'll be fine as long as its in a garage. if not then you probably want to change the oil just in case

 

[interactive3]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

Well, the 2008 manual says to use 10w-30 or 20w-40 engine oil. I dont know if it's different for the other model years.

If it's the same for all the model years, then why are some of you comfortable with ignoring the yamaha engineer's recommendation and using 5w-40 and 15w-40 oils?

The argument can be made to use lighter weight oil when you're in a cold climate region so the oil isn't molasses when you first crank it up. However, since most of us run the bikes during the warmer months, you should really be sticking with the 20w-40 or 10w-30..

oil info:
Motorcycle Oil and Filters

 

[segue00]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

Why do I feel good being wrong?

 

[JohnP]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

I was also told to change the oil before storing for winter because of the acid build up in the motor oil.

I found this on the web:

As the engine operates, combustion gasses acidic by-products from the sulfur in the fuel. The acids combine with moisture (every gallon of gasoline burnt produces ½ gallon of moisture) which dissolve bearing surfaces.
All modern motor oils contain sodium hydroxides (NaOH) to combat the acid build up in the oil. As the oil becomes contaminated and turns acid, the NaOH gets used up. Preventing acid buildup is one of the primary reasons for changing motor oil.

 

[sportrider]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

O and I use car oil...its alot cheaper then motorcycle oil...they rip us off dont ya know! :spank:

FYI: beware of oils containing "energy conserving" friction reducers. those are the death of a clutch!!!

 

[interactive3]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

FYI: beware of oils containing \"energy conserving\" friction reducers. those are the death of a clutch!!!

I've been following a few oil threads. I found a great web page. Generally oil is oil, but this really clarifies things. Synthetic oil is far better if you're not running the "correct" weight. I probably won't be using energy conserving oil and I'm now pretty sold on the Rotella T Synthetic.

Here it is :
All About Motor Oil

 

[abacall]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

FYI: beware of oils containing \"energy conserving\" friction reducers. those are the death of a clutch!!!

Crap. I totally forgot about that! I just put in some Pentosynth 5W 40. The bike runs great and I haven't noticed any diverse effects on the clutch, but upon some further research I found that it does use friction modifiers. Looks like I have to do another oil change. :spank:

 

[cp04]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

Last time I stored a bike I left the same oil in, and when I got it out of storage changed it immediately. I can see the advantage to changing before you put it away though.

 

[Scab]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

Not true! I used turkey gravy once and the result was not what I expected.

Dude...she's hot! Gotta love a chick that knows how to gobble.

 

[ant_mb]

Re: Oil change now, or wait till Spring?

It really depends on who you ask, where you keep your bike (outside or garaged). Because of winter coming up . If you do I would make it a thicker oil to protect it through the cold months. I am Kinda in the same situation

Maybe I don't fully understand oil, but why on earth would you want a thicer oil for the winter. Won't it take longer for a cold thick oil to get around your engine than a cold thin oil?

 

[opds9091]

Re: How to do an oil change

same here, i just did a oil change and went to MOBILE 1 synthetic, my bike is not the same, in a bad way. Do you think i should just drain it, if so which oil should i use and let me know what weight and brand but SYNTHETIC?????

 

[BranNwebster]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

Why do I feel good being wrong?

♫ If using Rotella T is wrong then I don't want to be right.♫

 

[moo cow]

Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

i have a 2005 fz6 that has always had mobile 1 synthetic oil in it since it's first change. bike has a little over 8k miles on it. this past oil change i used honda's synthetic oil (10w40, same as the mobile 1) and have lost appx. 20 miles per tank. i normally can get 200-210 miles out of a tank under casual riding. last two tanks have been 175-185. riding style hasn't changed. i even bought gas from two different stations to eliminate that option.

any advice?

 

[champion221elite]

Re: Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

This is going to be somewhat of a 2 part answer to your question.


Yes, it is certainly possible for an oil change to effect your fuel mileage. For example, I was getting roughly 38-42 mpg with my FZ6 during the break-in
(0 to 600 miles). After changing my oil with conventional dino Yamalube 20w-50, I noticed my mileage increased to 46-50 mpg. I can't say for certain if the increased mileage came from the clean oil, or a better performing engine after the initial break-in.

I'm wondering if part of your decrease in fuel mileage might be more weather related instead of oil related. Fall has been around for some time now, and winter is right around the corner. This means cooler weather and more time spent letting the bike idle. The fast idle will increase fuel consumption and lower your overall MPG figures. Also, it's possible the ECU has not fully adjusted for the lower ambient temperature.

Keep us posted with your fuel mileage. Keep track of each tankfull, and then re-evaluate your mileage after the next oil change. It's certainly possible that some oils will deliver better fuel economy than others simply based on their additive packages and/or true viscosity.

 

[Scab]

Re: Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

Don't panic. Fuel mixtures will also change during the winter months and you will not get as good mileage with the winter blends. Gas mileage always drops in the winter.
And yes, oil viscosity can affect mileage. It is a minimal effect, but an effect nonetheless. It is why new cars have gone to the lower viscosity oils such as 5-30 or 0-30. That little bit, stretched over the entire fleet, is what helps them to meet the CAFE requirements for fuel mileage.
But, if your change was to a different oil, but with the same viscosity, any change due to oil should have been insignificant. My bet is winter fuel blend.

 

[Hellgate]

Re: Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

Scab hit the nail on the head. Also check the amount of oil on the dip stick, too much and it will cause increased pressure in the case and more drag for the engine. If there is too much just get a $5.95 bulb syphon from Sears and pump the excess out via the dip stick hole. :thumbup: Can of corn!

 

[moo cow]

Re: Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

thanks for the tips! hellgate, i think you are on to something with the oil level. on the dipstick the oil was at the top of the 'hash marks'. not overfilled but filled to the max limit. i drained some out so the oil line is right in the middle of the hash marks.
i'll report back after my next tank and see if that helped.

 

[Hellgate]

Re: Has your oil ever caused a change in gas mileage?

thanks for the tips! hellgate, i think you are on to something with the oil level. on the dipstick the oil was at the top of the 'hash marks'. not overfilled but filled to the max limit. i drained some out so the oil line is right in the middle of the hash marks.
i'll report back after my next tank and see if that helped.

Cool! I hope this helps. :thumbup:

 

[formula154]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

I just changed my oil for the first time. I used Rotella 5W40. I don't know what was in it before I changed it. It was used ,04 that I bought in june, it only had 4000 miles on it. I will say for sure that it downshifts a lot better. It probably upshifts better as well but it isn't real noticeable. The down shift is greatly improved and it seems to be running cooler.:cheer:

 

[wolfc70]

Re: Rotella T - you guys are using wrong weight!

Coconut oil. Hands down the best in all engines.:rockon:

I put NEO Synthetics 0W-5 qualifying oil in my deepfryer. It is not heating up any faster. How do I go about getting a refund?