2023 Honda Ruckus oil

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Nov 20, 2013
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Eastern Wa.
I'll be getting a new Honda Ruckus hopefully in the next couple of weeks, waiting on shipping. Oil spec is Jaso T 903 MA 10w30 SG or higher. I've got quite a bit of valvoline regular blue bottle non syn 10w40 motorcycle oil, MA2 SL rated. Is this safe to use in this? Ive noticed there isn't a lot of 10w30 in the stores, mostly 10w40. The manual says to dump the factory fill at 600 miles or 1 month and 2,500/6 month intervals after that. It says to clean the oil screen at 7,500 mile intervals. Ive heard these honda 49cc engines aren't picky about oil and can last a long time. Anyone have experience with these? Thank you.
 
I'll be getting a new Honda Ruckus hopefully in the next couple of weeks, waiting on shipping. Oil spec is Jaso T 903 MA 10w30 SG or higher. I've got quite a bit of valvoline regular blue bottle non syn 10w40 motorcycle oil, MA2 SL rated. Is this safe to use in this? Ive noticed there isn't a lot of 10w30 in the stores, mostly 10w40. The manual says to dump the factory fill at 600 miles or 1 month and 2,500/6 month intervals after that. It says to clean the oil screen at 7,500 mile intervals. Ive heard these honda 49cc engines aren't picky about oil and can last a long time. Anyone have experience with these? Thank you.
Not a picky engine. Liquid-cooled, so oil temps are well controlled. But given the 20oz oil capacity, and small 49CC engine pulling my 315lb self at wide-open-throttle all day long - I stuck to 500-mile OCIs. I used many oils in my 2020 Ruckus, but liked Mobil1 0W40 the best. Ran that oil until I sold the Ruckus (with just under 4000 miles) a few weeks ago.
 
Not a picky engine. Liquid-cooled, so oil temps are well controlled. But given the 20oz oil capacity, and small 49CC engine pulling my 315lb self at wide-open-throttle all day long - I stuck to 500-mile OCIs. I used many oils in my 2020 Ruckus, but liked Mobil1 0W40 the best. Ran that oil until I sold the Ruckus (with just under 4000 miles) a few weeks ago.
0w40?
 
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Thank, just checking it wasn't a mis-type. It's a great oil with a good additive package. Have run it in my 2010 Acura TL-SH AWD, must be a Honda thing, lol.
 
Thank, just checking it wasn't a mis-type. It's a great oil with a good additive package. Have run it in my 2010 Acura TL-SH AWD, must be a Honda thing, lol.
I use it in every liquid-cooled internal combustion engine I have. Air-cooled applications get RedLine 50WT for now. Once that runs out - M1 15W-50 for all air-cooled applications.
 
Not a picky engine. Liquid-cooled, so oil temps are well controlled. But given the 20oz oil capacity, and small 49CC engine pulling my 315lb self at wide-open-throttle all day long - I stuck to 500-mile OCIs. I used many oils in my 2020 Ruckus, but liked Mobil1 0W40 the best. Ran that oil until I sold the Ruckus (with just under 4000 miles) a few weeks ago.
How often did you clean the screen? I thought doing it every oil change is overkill. I've got 3 bottles of valvoline 10w40 conventional motor cycle oil, I was thinking of using that.
 
How often did you clean the screen? I thought doing it every oil change is overkill. I've got 3 bottles of valvoline 10w40 conventional motor cycle oil, I was thinking of using that.
I cleaned it every oil change. May be overkill, but on first few cleanings I did find some unknown material on the screen. Very small specks, 1-3 pieces each time. Later on, the screen was clean almost every time, but I still did it out of habit while I'm at it. I think the initial findings were just pieces of Hondabond from engine assembly at the factory.
 
I cleaned it every oil change. May be overkill, but on first few cleanings I did find some unknown material on the screen. Very small specks, 1-3 pieces each time. Later on, the screen was clean almost every time, but I still did it out of habit while I'm at it. I think the initial findings were just pieces of Hondabond from engine assembly at the factory.
Did you reuse the drain plug gaskets on both drain plugs? I talked to one guy who had a ruckus for 10 plus years and never took the oil strainer off just changed the oil twice a year no issues.
 
Did you reuse the drain plug gaskets on both drain plugs? I talked to one guy who had a ruckus for 10 plus years and never took the oil strainer off just changed the oil twice a year no issues.
I think 1st owner lost the drain plug gasket, because I never remember having one. As far as the oil strainer - it has that big rubber o-ring in the plug, and I just wiped it and reused every time. No defects or any related issues noted. Main thing to remember is just keep it snug. It's very easy to overtighten and strip the threads, or make it impossible to remove at next oil change. I believe Honda specs 18 foot lbs for the drain bolt and 14 foot lbs for the oil strainer cap. I just went finger tight + 3/4 of a turn. Seemed snug enough to not vibrate itself loose, and never any leakage or trouble removing it next time.
 
I've got quite a bit of valvoline regular blue bottle non syn 10w40 motorcycle oil, MA2 SL rated. Is this safe to use in this?
Going back to original question - yes, use it with confidence. I may have been a little too OCD with my OCIs. But given the capacity, and how much time this engine spends at redline (basically full time), I would recommend keeping your OCI to 1k miles or 1yr, whichever comes first. I had a dedicated 20oz Gatorade bottle for correct oil amount at oil changes, and it was on full mark everytime. I believe by dipstick low level is 14oz, and full level is 20oz.
 
Unless you have a local dealer close by or can order 10w30 online I'd just pick up the 10w40 and run that. I can't speak for this model but I know back in the old days in motorcycle owners manuals you could actually use a lot of different ones. I think a lot of newer Honda's have actually switched to 10w30 mainly due to economy reasons
 
Walmart sells an MA2 10W-30, and it's less expensive than the boutique or motorcycle brand oils. Last time I looked the full syn was $7 and some change a qt...
 
In for pictures of the 23 Ruckus.. :giggle:

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In for pictures of the 23 Ruckus.. :giggle:

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SPOT THE DIFFERENCE. It's there I promise 😄

- 2002 Honda Ruckus/Zoomer
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- 2023 Honda Ruckus
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It basically became somewhat of an icon at this point, so Honda just lets it roll on as long as it sells. Why mess with perfection, right? lol. Still upset that all other countries received an updated Honda Zoomer X, which is basically a Ruckus sized scooter, but with a 110cc fuel injected powertrain. Not the same as crappy powertrain in Honda NAVI thankfully. But sucks that USA never got the Zoomer X...
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