Very true, and the V-twin Kawasaki motors are famous for dropping exhaust valve seats when they overheat due to clogged cooling fins.
Kohler ECV980 EFI Air Cooled V-Twin Oil Choice - My plan below. Is there a better choice?
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That true. The point is to keep the cylinder and head free of trash. Most other engines, when they overheat, cook the oil
and throw a rod. Proper oil and a little maintenance, they will last well past 2000 hours.
The T6 is fully synthetic (GTL based) vs. The T5 is a synthetic blend. Kawi recommends using heavier oils (15W50 or 20W50)
in the summer to minimize oil consumption.
I am probably going to try Redline 15W50 for my first oil change in my Kawi FR631 this weekend, see how it runs. I think (could be wrong)
all these are flat tappet engines, so high zddp is very good for them. A high filtration efficiency (synthetic media) oil filter, and a high quality air filter can also help with extending engine life.
Idling the engine before shut off: Kawi also recommends this. The manual says something about how this helps avoiding run-on, or detonation after shutting the engine off. ( Which they claim is harmful).
in the summer to minimize oil consumption.
I am probably going to try Redline 15W50 for my first oil change in my Kawi FR631 this weekend, see how it runs. I think (could be wrong)
all these are flat tappet engines, so high zddp is very good for them. A high filtration efficiency (synthetic media) oil filter, and a high quality air filter can also help with extending engine life.
Idling the engine before shut off: Kawi also recommends this. The manual says something about how this helps avoiding run-on, or detonation after shutting the engine off. ( Which they claim is harmful).
Also true. I've got a 17HP Kawi FH500V on a 2000 Wright Stander 36" that has 1540 hours on it...but... my inlaws had a Deere rider with a V-twin Kawi back in 2012 (was a 2008 model IIRC) that dropped an exhaust valve seat on one of the heads with 550 hours on it, it had an oil weep that collected debris around the fins on that one cylinder. Kawi motors aren't what they used to be, which is why I selected a B&S commercial turf motor on my 2014 Ferris ZTR.
I'm curious do these air cooled V twins have failure modes of lube related parts or are they like the smaller engines that typically have fatigue failures of exhaust valves, valve springs, con rods, etc and almost never see lube related failures if the levels are maintained no matter what the lube type/quality used?
There are many options for you. I prefer a quality synthetic oil in air cooled equipment. M1 10w40, 15w50, or M1TDT 5w40 are a few choices to consider. A 30 weight syn will work also however I prefer to stay in the 40 wt range myself. Go with 100 hour intervals. At 40 hours of use a year you will notice that the oil won't look like it has had much use.
There is something I do not get at all, maybe someone can enlighten me..
Manufacturers will recommend different grade oils depending on prevailing ambient temperature/season.
The point being, they tend to recommend heavier oils when the ambient temp is warmer.
I get the XXw number being dependent on the ambient temp, but I dont get why the 2nd viscosity number have anything to do with
ambient temp. Once it warmed up, would the engine "operating temperature" always the same, regardless of the outside temp?
It certainly is for car engines, once it is warmed up. It is thermostat controlled, right.?
Is this not also true for small, air cooled OPE? Do you guys expect, that a small enir cooled engine like a Kawi or Kohler
will run hotter when it is hot outside? Is this because the air cooling system on these is rudimentary and sucks,
and cannot adjust for the hotter outside temp?
What mechanism is there to modulate the amount of cooling air or the degree of cooling that takes place?
Seems to me the engine runs at a constant RPM, so the cooling fins will see a constant amount of airflow. I cant think of anything
that could help here. Some cfm air is available for cooling, and beyond that we pray and hope for the best. (?)
If the engine temp goes up as outside temp goes up, then it is really important to pick a high quality synthetic, to try and help the engine run cooler, no? One of the claims expensive boutique oil blenders such as RedLIne make is lower engine operating temperature.
Would this not be really important then? Maybe we should then also avoid mowing when it is hot outside.
Also: I am under the impression that the SAE viscosity grade has some connection with the thermal transfer capability of the oil.
Recall reading that the tinner oils work better in this respect. I have no good understanding why it would be so.
Seem to recall some article saying that a xxW60 oil was worse in this respect then a W50.
Manufacturers will recommend different grade oils depending on prevailing ambient temperature/season.
The point being, they tend to recommend heavier oils when the ambient temp is warmer.
I get the XXw number being dependent on the ambient temp, but I dont get why the 2nd viscosity number have anything to do with
ambient temp. Once it warmed up, would the engine "operating temperature" always the same, regardless of the outside temp?
It certainly is for car engines, once it is warmed up. It is thermostat controlled, right.?
Is this not also true for small, air cooled OPE? Do you guys expect, that a small enir cooled engine like a Kawi or Kohler
will run hotter when it is hot outside? Is this because the air cooling system on these is rudimentary and sucks,
and cannot adjust for the hotter outside temp?
What mechanism is there to modulate the amount of cooling air or the degree of cooling that takes place?
Seems to me the engine runs at a constant RPM, so the cooling fins will see a constant amount of airflow. I cant think of anything
that could help here. Some cfm air is available for cooling, and beyond that we pray and hope for the best. (?)
If the engine temp goes up as outside temp goes up, then it is really important to pick a high quality synthetic, to try and help the engine run cooler, no? One of the claims expensive boutique oil blenders such as RedLIne make is lower engine operating temperature.
Would this not be really important then? Maybe we should then also avoid mowing when it is hot outside.
Also: I am under the impression that the SAE viscosity grade has some connection with the thermal transfer capability of the oil.
Recall reading that the tinner oils work better in this respect. I have no good understanding why it would be so.
Seem to recall some article saying that a xxW60 oil was worse in this respect then a W50.
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