Mobil-1 10W-40 Racing 4T 4-cycle Motorcycle Oil

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jul 20, 2008
Messages
931
Location
Michigan
M-1 10W-40 Synthetic Motorcycle oil used to be called "MX4T" the new bottle says "Racing 4T".

The MX4T had 1600 ppm ZDDP and was similiar in additive chemistry to it's big brother M-1 20W-50 V-Twin synthetic oil.

Does anybody know if the new Racing 4T is the identical formula...especially as far as the high levels of ZDDP were concerned?

MX4T was a real winner...hope Racing4T is as well.

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Oils/Mobil1_Racing_4T_10W-40.aspx
 
Last edited:
Originally Posted By: Pete591
http://www.bobistheoilguy.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=1455382#Post1455382

This uao is on M-1 10W-40...it was used in a motorcycle with poor results..was this Racing 4T?

It looks like a weak oil...low ZDDP...

We don't know if that was a MC oil or Auto..
 
The MX4T use to start out great in my bike and then go to [censored] after about a 1000 miles. The shifting feel would go away and I would start missing gears. I'm still looking for an adequate oil unfortunately.

Belray is the best I've tried so far but I can't get my local shop that carries it to stock the 10w-40 and I don't like how the bike runs on the 20w-50.

Is the racing 4T a new formulation? I thought they had just changed the bottle.
 
Originally Posted By: brian12

The MX4T use to start out great in my bike and then go to [censored] after about a 1000 miles. The shifting feel would go away and I would start missing gears. I'm still looking for an adequate oil unfortunately.


Yeah, using a subjective standard like "shifts better/worse" is an intellegent way to evaluate synthetic oil. BTW, no oil is going to make a poor shifting bike shift appreciably better. Poor trans design is poor trans design no matter what the oil. Mobil 1 motorcycle oil is a very fine oil, one of the better oils on the market.

Use the UOAs as your oil guide, not the seat of your pants.
 
Originally Posted By: ZGRider
Originally Posted By: brian12

The MX4T use to start out great in my bike and then go to [censored] after about a 1000 miles. The shifting feel would go away and I would start missing gears. I'm still looking for an adequate oil unfortunately.


Yeah, using a subjective standard like "shifts better/worse" is an intellegent way to evaluate synthetic oil. BTW, no oil is going to make a poor shifting bike shift appreciably better. Poor trans design is poor trans design no matter what the oil. Mobil 1 motorcycle oil is a very fine oil, one of the better oils on the market.

Use the UOAs as your oil guide, not the seat of your pants.
I've seen quite a few people use shifting feel/notchiness as a parameter on whether to use an oil or not. If my bike shifts poorly because of a bad transmission design please explain to me why it shifts great for the first 1,000 miles with the mobil. Better yet, maybe you could explain to me why I have no shifting issues with Belray over a 3,000 mile interval? I'd say the Mobil was not holding up. I could care less about UOA's if I'm missing gears. I guess if you just putt around on your bike anything will hold up but I ride mine the way it was intended to be ridden.
 
I'll take that question one step further -- please explain the mechanical properties of an oil that would enhance or detract from shift quality? Is it merely viscosity? Is it some particular component of the additive pack?

I too have heard the "it shifts better" or "it shifts worse." I've never figured out exactly what in an oil would affect that.

There's a part of me that feels that "shift quality" is really a function of timing and shift quickness. I find that if I time my shift to just the right moment, and give it a good swift action, it'll click into gear nicely. If my timing is off, or I'm lazy, it'll notch into gear.
 
Originally Posted By: TucsonDon
I'll take that question one step further -- please explain the mechanical properties of an oil that would enhance or detract from shift quality? Is it merely viscosity? Is it some particular component of the additive pack?


Some of what I have heard from the factory reps are: Extreme Pressure Additive, Low Temp Viscosity Enhancer, Lubricity Improver, Heat Dissipation Additive, and Adhesion Improver.
 
Friction modifiers can also affect clutch engagement which affects shifting. I've tried stuff in my race bike that fubar'ed my clutch enought that the plates would just spin and spin....
 
It is totally Psychological. Maybe if you put 90 weight in your gearbox, you might notice a difference. That one makes me laugh.
 
There are so many variables that affect shifting quality, I wouldn't even know where to begin. Under-cut gears or not, difference in shifting drums, wear of clutch plates, ambient temperature, etc, etc.

When are people going to accept that synthetic oils are not more "slippery" than conventional oils? They just withstand higher temperatures, and maintain their viscosity under greater extremes. Who ever started that myth anyway? Was it Amsoil? So, if synthetics are not more "slippery" then how can they affect shifting quality? Difference in viscosity? Maybe, but that doesn't mean that conventional oils of different viscosities wouldn't do the same thing.

Some of you guys that use shifting quality to evaluate oils need to find a better "yardstick" because you are showing your oil knowledge inexperience.
 
I will agree that "spent" oil WILL affect the way a bike shifts.

My dirtbike and ATV's will shift like [censored] on worn oil. We all know that motocross bike will destroy even the best oil in a hand full of hours.

My UOA's showed that the oils sheared out of grade substantially. Regardless of they type brand or price of the oil.

This is why I use inexpensive HDEO oil, because of shearing I have to change the oil every 10-12 hours.

I can feel the difference in my clutch with fresh oil and with used sheared down oil.
 
I've owned many motorcycles over the years and none of them shifted the same. Some, like my Kawasakis shifted like butter, and others like my SV650 are notchy and miss shifts. My BMWs and Moto Guzzis were super clunky and had to be shifted carefully. Oil is probably the least culpable part of the equation in shifting quality. Point in case are Harleys. Old Harleys shifted terrible back in the old AMF days and yet today with advances in quality control and better engineered transmissions, Harleys shift great.

So, my point is: if you put super high quality synthetic oil in an old AMF Shovelhead, would it shift better? Right...next issue.
 
Originally Posted By: daman
Racing 4T 10w40;

1600ppm phos

1700ppm zinc

rest assure it's a great oil..


Anyone know off hand what the phos / zinc numbers are for Mobil 1 15W-50 car oil? I'd really like to know how they compare, as this is what I normally use in my Virago.
 
Originally Posted By: ViragoBry
Originally Posted By: daman
Racing 4T 10w40;

1600ppm phos

1700ppm zinc

rest assure it's a great oil..


Anyone know off hand what the phos / zinc numbers are for Mobil 1 15W-50 car oil? I'd really like to know how they compare, as this is what I normally use in my Virago.

what 15w50??

red cap
gold cap
silver cap
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top