Motorcycle oil in a car?

[iunderpressure]

Does motorcycle oil have any additives that aren't good for car engines? I know they usually have higher zddp levels.

 

[Clevy]

You can use them in a car with no ill effects if it's just one oci or you are using it for top up oil. If you were using it exclusively then you MAY experience cat failure. I have a couple cases of amsoil 20w-50 v-twin oil and I keep a quart in each vehicle for top up oil. Now if you have a vehicle with variable valve timing or something like that and the motorcycle oil is a different grade then what's specified for your car you might experience issues however if the grade is consistent with the manufacturers spec I don't see much of an issue other than exhaust

 

[ARCOgraphite]

Nope. Been recommending this exact thing years for guys to use in yard equipment and classics and hot rods to get a lighter highly additised oil. Mobil One Racing 4T was one of their most spectacular oils. Guys are supposed to getting an oil education here but many are still afraid that if the picture of the vehicle on the bottle doesnt look like a car, then it's the wrong stuff I can understand warranty concerns though. Most superbike Bike oil is API service SH or SL - but with improved basestocks over the group I+II blend of the Eighties.

 

[tudorart]

I think some of them are old relabeled Diesel formulas

 

[iunderpressure]

I'm not scared to try stuff in my volvo. I just used rl 0w20 during my last change.

 

[Garak]

It's fine, if the specifications and viscosity meet the standards your vehicle requires. After all, plenty of motorcycle and power equipment oil is API rated, albeit with older standards. Of course, not everyone has a brand new vehicle requiring SM/GF-4 or better. The only issue I have had with motorcycle oil is the cost, particularly if you're going with the oil from a motorcycle brand (i.e. Yamalube).

 

[dparm]

Totally fine. I've run [4-cycle] Motul motorcycle oil with no ill effects. Add packs are a touch different but nothing significant enough to cause a problem.

 

[iunderpressure]

One of the upper managers, at Lucas here in town, told me he runs their motorcycle oil in his personal vehicle because of the added additives.

 

[hardcore302]

if it's ok then why do they differentiate? not trying to troll, just curious.

 

[Clevy]

Originally Posted By: hardcore302

if it's ok then why do they differentiate? not trying to troll, just curious.

Marketing. Plain and simple. Think about it. Let's take a shared sump bike for example. A quality diesel oil like rotella(cheap too) has the JASO spec yet some people think they have to spend the big dollar on a motorcycle specific oil. Then you get the few people who used an automobile oil in their bike and the clutch slip issue and you now have a very large,uneducated market for it. Most people don't realize that oils with the second number of 30 or less are energy conserving and contain friction modifiers,which may cause the clutch slip problem however most oils with a higher number tend to have far less therefore no slip. So in all honestly if a shared sump bike calls for 10w-40 you can use any oil with the second number 40. Now a 0w-40 will tend to shear faster than a 15w-40 however both will work. Now if you have a Harley it calls for 20w-50. Harley went as far as inventing a problem called bearing skate and warned emphatically that synthetic oil will cause this phantom issue and only their oil would save your bike. Bike oils traditionally had more zddp to compensate for not having friction modifiers but now bikes all come with catalytic converters and the oils are trending to lower levels to extend cat life so sure the commercials tell you that the bike oils are specially formulated for a bike but in reality the differences are minimal. The key is to be sure on a shared sump bike that the oil has very low levels of moly. As far as a Harley is concerned only the primary needs to be moly free. Maintenance is the real key. Change the oil often. People and manufacturers created the demand for it. Scare tactics to make you feel like only their oil will keep your bike from exploding which really isn't the case. For shared sump look for the JASO stamp on the bottle. Just about every diesel oil has this stamp so there really isnt a need for those expensive motorcycle specific oil.For a Harley any 20w-50 will do.

 

[semaj281]

Originally Posted By: hardcore302

if it's ok then why do they differentiate? not trying to troll, just curious.

I'm wondering the same thing. I thought wet clutches had something to do with it, but I guess not.

 

[JAG]

Friction modifiers increase or decrease the coefficient of friction (COF). They may or not affect wear. Some additives increase COF, like ZDDP and some types of detergents. A COF-increasing detergent can be used to counteract the COF-reducing additive like MoDTC. Not all detergents have that affect and they are less likely to be used in PCMOs since fuel efficiency is especially important. The effect on COF of additives also depends on what the materials are in the two adjacent parts are. So the effect on clutch slipping is different from piston rings on cylinders. There are differences in types of viscosity index improvers used in MC oils vs. PCMOs so they are more shear stable. Gear protection is also taken into account. Corrosion from infrequent use is too. ZDDP concentrations are high due to less emission control stringency. There are other differences that I forget...Mobil's website describes the differences fairly well.

 

[Robenstein]

Originally Posted By: iunderpressure

One of the upper managers, at Lucas here in town, told me he runs their motorcycle oil in his personal vehicle because of the added additives.

Well seeing the UOA/VOA of their bike oils, they are pretty bare bones and look a lot like a car oil, just without friction modifiers.

 

[dparm]

Originally Posted By: JAG

Friction modifiers increase or decrease the coefficient of friction (COF). They may or not affect wear. Some additives increase COF, like ZDDP and some types of detergents. A COF-increasing detergent can be used to counteract the COF-reducing additive like MoDTC. Not all detergents have that affect and they are less likely to be used in PCMOs since fuel efficiency is especially important. The effect on COF of additives also depends on what the materials are in the two adjacent parts are. So the effect on clutch slipping is different from piston rings on cylinders. There are differences in types of viscosity index improvers used in MC oils vs. PCMOs so they are more shear stable. Gear protection is also taken into account. Corrosion from infrequent use is too. ZDDP concentrations are high due to less emission control stringency. There are other differences that I forget...Mobil's website describes the differences fairly well.

One of the motorcycle magazines did a big comparison with VOAs and everything. They showed the additive differences and nothing was that shocking. Their end conclusion was that the two are pretty much interchangeable. IIRC Motul 300V moto contained more boron than 300V auto, for example. That was the only difference aside from a slight viscosity difference.

 

[lexus114]

Originally Posted By: iunderpressure

I'm not scared to try stuff in my volvo. I just used rl 0w20 during my last change.

Wow! 0W20 in an older Volvo turbo!! Your a much braver man than I am!

 

[Ken2]

Motorcycle oil in a car is a waste of money. If you want more ZDDP, use diesel engine oil---10W-30 or 5W-40 or 15W-40. The only diesel engine oil with the JASO-MA wet clutch certification is Rotella. Others might work as well, but they haven't paid to be tested. Friction modifiers are a big unknown. Rotella contains some moly friction modifier and still passes JASO-MA. Schaeffer's #707 20W-50 motorcycle oil contains two friction modifiers, moly and their proprietary Penetro, and also passes JASO-MA.