Total Motorcycle Community Forums

Good evening peeps:)
I know i might be opening a can of worms here but i would like to know if most of you guys using heavy automotive oils as alternative to highly overpriced motorcycle oils?

Example...Yama-lube 4 for my virago cost here around 6.80/quart.I need three ($20.4 less filter)
I buy castrol 50W40 and it runs just as good but total price is about $6 less filter.BTW I change oil every 2000 miles as it only takes 10 minutes.

Anybody else in the club?

No.

You have to be careful that you use an oil which was designed for motorcycle use. The clutch and transmission require an additive which motorcycle oils furnish. If you use an automotive oil in a motorcycle with an oil bath clutch, you are inviting trouble. I change oil every 1200 miles.

xsyamahadg wrote:The clutch and transmission require an additive which motorcycle oils furnish.

No, the clutch requires the absense of an additive that automotive oils furnish.

xsyamahadg wrote:I change oil every 1200 miles.

Why?

An oil change is cheap insurance. I disagree about the additive.

xsyamahadg wrote:An oil change is cheap insurance.

Nothing cheap about throwing away four quarts of good oil every 1200 miles.

xsyamahadg wrote:I disagree about the additive.

Automotive oils have anti-friction modifiers added to them. Bike clutches don't get along with those additives. Were you referring to something else?

I'm not sure about this, but I think certain Harleys have seperate oils from their clutch and their engines and those guys say it's ok to use automotive oil for their engines. If you use the same oil for your clutch and motor, I highly recommend using motorcycle oil only. If you don't, your most likely going to burn out your clutch much faster.

I have an image coming to my mind. Much like the Middle East, this thread is going to be a fight about oil.

I go by what my Yamaha manual tells me and by everything I have learned in my past experiences. Again, I say use the oil designed for the bike, and change it often, there isn't any cheaper insurance against engine/transmissiom/clutch problems.

Many of the motorcycle mags I've read had this argument one time or another. Much of the time it is best to go with motorcycle specific oil if it is a wet clutch since automotive oils are usually "energy saving" in which will cause a moto clutch to slip.

I buy oil that's has a similar rating: 10w40 SG and avoid the ones with the energy saving label.

Mobile 1 oil automotive for me seems to be good alternative to moto specific oil.

Side note: If it's rated for 5000 miles then I will bring that baby to 5500 since I'm a cheap bastrd.