valvoline m/c oil, lc, in an 05 bmw f650cs

[tweeker43]

aluminum - 35
chromium - 1
iron - 18
copper - 9
lead - 1
tin - 1
moly - 2
nickel - 1
manganese - 1
silver - 0
titanium - 0
potassium - 5
boron - 34
silicon - 10
sodium - 72
calcium - 1274
magnesium - 229
phosphorous - 1019
zinc - 1039
barium - 1

tbn - 5.8
sus@210 - 53
flash - 355
fuel - antifreeze - 0%
water - 0%
insolubles - .2%

this is mostly 10w-40. since this change i've switched to 2 qts 20w-50 and .5 10w-40. there are 5095 miles on this oil; better than 8000 on the bike when this sample was taken.

bmw says 6000 mile oci.

terry will be sending me more info soon.

the unit averages are my averages.

 

[fuel tanker man]

That oil has sheared two grades. A mid 20 weight. Veritable P-E-E water...

You need to change the oil every 3000 miles at the latest--regardless of what BMW says. They're catering to the euro crowd with those OCI's if you ask me. Folks in Europe tend to want longer OCI's and it looks like BMW is giving them just that, but perhaps at the expense of the machine.

You did well by switching to the 20W50. The 20W50 will shear to a 40 weight early on, and it will continue to act like a 40 for at least 2000 miles I would think.

Just drain and refill at 2500 to 3000 miles if you don't want to be running a 20 weight for 2000 or more miles.

Your wear metals in this UOA reflect insufficient lubrication; the 20 weight oil just wasn't up to the task. This UOA bolsters my oft espoused position that short OCI's in motorcycles are the only way to go.

One more thing. If someone suggests that synthetic oil wouldn't shear in this application, have them follow you to the 'cycle UOA's in this forum. Synthetics shear too. Change early, use a good thick oil, and your bike will thank you.

Dan