Valvoline 10W-40 motorcycle oil. . .

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I just changed the factory fill on my new Kawasaki Concours and put in Valvoline 10W-40 motorcycle oil and used the appropriate Purolator motorcycle filter. I've never used Valvoline oils before, but this one scored in the top five in the most recent Amsoil motorcycle oil testing. At $3.99 / qt., that price seems reasonable for a motorcycle oil.

Any comments on this oil, pro or con?
 
Their oil will do a good job in your bike whether amsoil says so or not. And the price isn't bad. Have you considered using one of the hdeo's available"? I believe Rotella has the jama's approval, and the price is good.,,
 
Probably nothing wrong with the Valvoline, but for less money you can get a better oil in Rotella 15W40 (non-syn). Saw a 2.5gal container in Tractor Supply this morning for about $25.
 
when i tested this c r a p i wanted it out of my bike before i got 50 feet.

the *WORST* clutch feel i have ever had in 35+ years of riding.

the bottles i used had an atv and motorcycle on it and were jaso ma rated.

as soon as i dumped their c r a p the clutch feel was back to normal.

oh yeah, and it sheard out of grade in under 3 hours. which almost all 10w40s do.
 
Thanks for the replies. . .I've only got 50+ miles on that oil so far, but I haven't noticed much difference from the factory-fill. The clutch feels the same.

The oil I bought was motorcycle-specific. . .not for ATVs. Valvoline has separate ATV oil now. Most motorcycle oils shear down--I ran Mobil 1 v-twin in a BMW that sheared down to a 30 weight in about 6500 miles (mostly highway), so the shearing does happen regardless of the oil.

I intend to run this to 5000 (manual specs 7500 for dino) and then change to Mobil 1--I'll submit a UOA on it when the time comes.
 
Food for thought: A mechanical engineering professor at Cal Tech did an accurate study a few years back on how hard on oils bikes with shared transmission/crank systems are compared to cars. Basically he found that bikes with shared transmission lube are a minimum of FOUR times harder on oil (shearing in the transmission being the problem) than a car is. This was a well done, controlled test at a major university. Based on that, running your oil 5K in a bike is like putting 20K on the same oil in a car. I really doubt that you would want to do that. Shorter change intervals are definitely advised in a bike. When you compare the price of your new bike to a few quarts of oil, it is raving false economy to try to extend oil changes. "Penny wise and Pound foolish."....is an understatement, especially if you want to keep the bike long term.

...also, from what I have personally seen on oil analysis I sent in on my bikes, you can see that shearing to a lower grade IS common and not specific to one brand.

Bottomline: You would be well advised to shorten your oil change
interval, especially with a 10W-40 Dino oil.

.....good riding......
 
Thanks RC46 . . I get that the bikes are harder on oil. I've been riding 25+ years and have been doing my own maintenance for the past 10. I do my own maintenance so I can do things the "right" way and I take great care in picking out lubes for my bikes. This particular bike is the 1st liquid cooled inline 4 I've ever had--it has much in common with modern cars, including computerized fuel injection, VVT, catalytic converter etc. I'm guessing it's easier on the oil than air-cooled bikes, despite the shared tranny.

The BMW I spoke of in the post above didn't have a shared tranny and it still sheared. . .granted, that was an exceptionally long OCI, but it was a good syn (Mobil 1), so I expect the dino will shear quicker.

I also note that Kawasaki specs a 7500 OCI for dino oil, which tells me that their engine / tranny system may not be as hard on oil as some others. Personally, I think that's a lot of miles for dino oil in a motorcycle, which is why I'm only going 5000 on this OCI. When I switch to Mobil 1 I'll keep the 5000 OCI and life should be good.

I'll do an analysis on the Valvoline when I change it and see how it held up--there isn't much info on here about Valvoline M/C oils so it should be interesting.
 
A lot of newer, liquid-cooled motorcycles have long OCIs specified by the manufacturer. Honda's Goldwing and ST1300 both have 7500 OCIs, IIRC. The Connie fits right into that automotive-like maintenance schedule.

Having said that, when I owned a Wing and ST1300, I never let the miles get that high before changing out oil. My gauge tended to be the clutch, once it started getting that notchy feeling I'd go ahead and replace, usually around every 4 - 5k miles. That was running Shell Rotella Synth 5W-40.

Vic
 
The oil tests on the ST1100 on here indicate that oils can hold up well in bikes. For me gear change quality is what I go by, regardless of how far the oil has gone. I have an ST1100 and mostly go by 10,000kms oil and filter changes (easy to remember!), unless it is convenient to change earlier due to planned trips or elapsed time.
 
Its usable oil not alot of additives. Its friction seems strong clutch wise.

If you like it, might try Exxon super flow, the shifting is alittle better and really the same price, also has synthetic componentry in it.

I'll only say the Valvoline is usable
 
. . .Just an update on this OCI. . .I just got back from a road trip consisting of a few straight days of twisty, hilly roads in central PA, about 400 miles of high speeds on the slab for hours on end in scorching North Carolina heat, and a couple hundred miles on the Blue Ridge Parkway in moderately high temps. I think this OCI will have beat the oil as much as it can be beat in a liquid cooled engine / shared tranny. I don't hit the rev limiter, but I run moderately high RPMs in hill country.

As of this writing the oil has about 2800 miles on it and I haven't detected any difference in shifting quality despite the harsh conditions I've put it through. I'm planning on taking the bike to Maine next month which will subject it to another 1500+ miles and some low ambient temps (40s-50s). This OCI will have seen some real-world temperature extremes and varied operational conditions--the test should be interesting.

Any guesses to how it'll hold up? Will the TBN hold up? Shear? Wear metals are expected to be elevated because I think the engine is still breaking in.

--Rob
 
JMO...I would not run any oil that long in a new MC motor....dino or otherwise. Maybe change it out before your next long trip??
 
I have used Valvoline 10W-40 in my Goldwing and have been real happy with the performance. Change the oil every 3,000 miles.
 
. . .Just to reiterate, this is NOT the factory fill--I've changed the oil once at about 600 miles per the manual. The manual actually specs 7500 mile OCIs for this bike, which is the longest OCI I've seen recommended by a m/c manufacturer. When the Valvoline comes out, it will have about 4500 miles on it. . .well within the recommendations of Kawasaki.

I don't mind changing the oil on my bike. . .but on the other hand I don't want to be wasteful to my wallet or environment. If the manufacturer says 7500 mile OCIs are OK (on dino no less), then going to 5000 mile OCIs seems a good compromise between conservative maintenance and economy in my opinion. If the UOA comes back with good numbers with the Valvoline, then the Mobil 1 I put in should not have a problem going to 5000 miles IMO. If the numbers for the Valvoline are REALLY impressive, I may just continue running that oil because of it's lower cost.

That being said, I expect the Valvoline to be pretty much used up, but if the TBN is still high enough at 5000 miles, the shear-drop within reason and the wear metals are within normal ranges, how could a more expensive oil do better? I'm also considering using Rotella 15w-50, at some point for a comparison, but I'm concerned about the higher 15 weight when the bike normally uses 10w-40 (I ride year 'round when I can).

--Rob
 
"The manual actually specs 7500 mile OCIs for this bike, which is the longest OCI I've seen recommended by a m/c manufacturer."




Actually Robster, Honda Gold Wing and Honda Valkyrie have manufacturer recommended OCI of 8000 on conventional oil. I have a Valkyrie and run Rotella 15W40 in it with OCI around 4000. Not because I think it needs it but living in the north and running a number of bikes, the Valkyrie just doesn't get the miles.

In your case, I agree that 5000 mile OCI is sensible provided riding style is also sensible and riding environment is relatively clean (minimal dust). Rotella is a much better value than Valvoline M/C oil and will provide all the protection you need.
 
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