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What type of oil to use.

  • Thread starter Thread starter Anonymous
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Anonymous

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Can I just use regular oil in my gs550 or should I buy something special? Oh yeah and while I am asking questions how much oil does it take?
 
I use reg Castrol 10/40 oil in my 850 It should say how much oil it uses by the filler 3-3 1/2 qts
 
you need oil designed for a wet clutch. ie. you need motorcycle 10w40 oil regular motor oil will work but you may have clutch slippage.
 
You will get 100 different suggestions on oil. Some use motorcycle specific oil, others use 'car' oil. any good 10w/15w-40 or even 20w-50 in real hot climates will work just fine. Mobil 1 15w-50 is well proven in these bikes, as is Castrol dino oils. I personally use Pennzoil Long Life 15w-40 in mine, with exception of 95+ degree weather when I switch to Castrol 20w-50. I have had good luck with both. Hope that helps.
 
Use anything that does NOT say "Energy Conseving" on the label. Clutches don't like it.
 
I have also been told that synthetic oil can make your clutch slip, so I stay away from it.
 
Only synthetics and dino's that carry the API 'starburst' symbol (energy conserving). Usually only in 10w-30 and below.
 
gammer said:
I have also been told that synthetic oil can make your clutch slip, so I stay away from it.
Click to expand...

If synthetic oil makes your clutch slip this week, then it was going to start slipping next week, regardless. For demanding motorcycle use, nothing is better than a synthetic. For the pocketbook, few things are better than an appropriate synthetic CAR oil. I use Mobil-1 15W-50 car oil in all my bikes (four), and have not suffered for it. I used to use conventional car oil (Castrol GTX 10W-40), but changed it more often. My valuable time and the extra cost of additional oil filters pushed me to synthetic.
 
My bike seems to shift better with the 20W 50 in it. I've tried the 10W 40, but I also live in a HOT climate.

I buy the cheap stuff cause I change the oil every 1000 to 1500 miles. Filter and oil comes to less than $10. I've been using the Wally Mart brand in my cars for several years now. I just added that to my bike and it's been fine. I was using the Pennzoil in the bike. So far, no difference and it's less than $5 for a 5 quart jug.

Someone in one of these oil threads said it best.
"You never hear about engine failure because of the Brand of OR Type of oil you use."

Just change it often.
 
I agree with the change it often idea. Any good quality oil that doesn't have the energy conserving emblem should be fine. I use the Castrol 10-40 and buy it in the five-quart containers from Wal-Mart. That's convenient because I use the containers to recycle the old oil.

I also chenge the oil filter every time I change oil. I buy half a dozen filters at a time from one of the Internet stores so I always have one ready.

The most important thing is to keep an eye on the sight glass. Check both the oil level AND the oil color. When it looks dirty, it's time for a change.

I bought my 850 in February. I think the fellow sold it to me because he thought it was just about dead. The oil was very black and there were leaks. I rode it around the block twice and then put it in the shop. The oil was extremely dirty. Something that looked like sand was in the bottom of the drain pan. There was gritty material in the bottom of the oil filter chamber. I cleaned it and replaced the filter chamber cap O-Ring and the tachometer cable seals. I ran the bike in the shop about half a dozen times--just bringing it up to operating temperature, and then changed the oil and filter. In the first 1000 miles, I changed the oil five times. At this point, the bike is running very strong. The compression is good and the oil stays clean (by sight-glass checks). Five changes sounds like a lot, but we're talking less than $50 and the bike has virtually been reborn. It's worth it. (It's also amazing how robust these engines are!)
 
A while back I put the mobil 10w-40 MXT4 Super Synthetic in my 81 GS850L and the engine started making some loud rapping and clattering noises at idle, So I tried Mobil 1 15w-50 same noises no clutch slippage just horrible noises. I drained it out overnight put some regular Mobil 10w-40 and within 1/2 of running noises were gone. Got me what was happening I guess the bike just likes plain old oil nothing fancy.
 
I normally change oil when the shifting feel goes off a tiny bit and it starts to look nasty through the sight glass.

This works out to about every 2,000 miles with Golden Spectro (expensive motorcycle-specific semi-synthetic), a wee bit less with Mobil 1, and maybe 1,500 miles with Castrol dino oil. Motorcycle-specific oils do seem to hold up a little bit better. I'm currently trying out a batch of Valvoline motorcycle oil that I found at Meijer for $3 a quart. Next, I'll probably try out a gallon of Rotella (oil intended for diesel engines) that's been highly praised around here for use in GSs.

I use 20W50 in the summer because that's what seems to last the longest and hold up the best. It does tend to cause a bit mor clutch drag in colder temps. Some will howl that you should never use anything but 10W40.

None of the above oils will hurt anything, cause leaks, or make the clutch slip. Personally, I'm experimenting to find the best cost/longevity ratio. In any case, engine oil is about the last thing we should obsess over with these bikes.

Feel free to spend $15 a quart for Motul if it makes you feel better. However, I think there are far better places to spend time and money. There are a million and one things that can go wrong, and an engine failure realted to oil breakdown is somewhere down around #999,999.
 
I use any regular name brand, (Pennzoil, Castrol, Valvoline, etc), 10W40. Most of these are turbo approved, so that means they can stand lots of heat, which our bikes are capable of making. Also, make sure they are NOT energy conserving, although I have never found a 10W40 that is. 8)
 
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