What's the best oil for my bike?

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Saw this:

Quote:
1. What kind of vehicle you have
2. What your owner's manual says -- not just viscosity, but certifications (look for acronyms like API SM, ILSAC GF-4, etc.) and change intervals as well
3. Where you live
4. How you drive (easy? hard? fast? slow?)
5. What your daily drive is like (short trips? long trips? city? highway?)
6. Whether your car has any known problems

If you have any preferences -- synthetic vs. conventional, store-bought vs. ordered online, how long you'd like to go between oil changes, etc. -- or any other info you think might be important, let us know that as well.


So I figured, why not? I'm doing a lot of research on oil. So far, my main source has been this article, which is a little outdated (maybe 05 or 06? Can't quite tell, I know it's at least 04 or later): http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Oils1.html

I distilled it into this: http://fjowners.wikidot.com/oil

In that article, it mentions that "by 2010, GTL will become an important part of synthetic oils". Curious, I looked them up, and found this forum.

Fascinating! Found lots of people discussing things really in depth using terms I had only recently taught myself, and a few I didn't know. Then I saw that thread quoted above, and figured--why not ask?

What's the best oil for an FJ1100/1200? I drive an '86, but I don't think it should make a difference, since the engines are virtually identical through the production line up to 93 in the US, 98 in others.

1. 1986 FJ1200
2.

Quote:
Type API Grade SE or SF
Viscosity
Up to 15°C (60°F) SAE 10W30
Above 5°C (40°F SAE 20W40

3. Austin, Texas, though I'd like recommendations for colder locations as well.
4. I ride the bike fairly hard, honestly, as do most riders of the FJ--though there are definitely a sizeable minority who ride it as a touring bike more than a sporting bike.
5. I use the bike as my daily driver, but I also occasionally take huge trips on it. Last November I did a 1660 mile in 35 hour trip, sometimes cruising at 120 mph for extended periods through parts of arizona and new mexico. I also do city riding, sometimes in traffic; this is an oil coiled bike, so I try to avoid that like the plague, and sometimes turn off the bike if I have to sit still. Rare, but it happens. I'm pretty good about being a fairly aggressive driver so as to at least keep moving at a moderate pace, cutting onto ramp lanes to skip some cars, and then coming back on to the right lane at the end of the lane, etc.

tl;dr: Long rides, high speed, city driving with lots of shifting and low speed, high heat, and every once in a while very cold. Highway and twisties, stopsigns and long straightaways.

If I should use different oils for different types of riding, I'd be glad to know that.

6. Known problems: clutch slips a little bit, but fairly sure I just need to rebuild my clutch. (This bike is a torque monster, with roll-on speeds that are competitive with many high end modern bikes.) When I use regular oil, the bike consumes some oil. The previous owner told me this was the case and I didn't believe him, and he told me that he had switched to synthetic. At the time, I erroneously believed synthetics should not be used in wet clutch bikes, so I put Shell Rotella T non-synth. Sure enough, the bike consumed some oil, and I had to top off.

So I did some more research, and decided to try synthetic Rotella. Bike consumes VERY little oil, or maybe none--I have a small valve cover gasket leak that could be the source of what little oil is burned off right now.

Bike experiences some transmission missed shifts occassionally, can't find rhyme or reason to it yet, but I think it's *mostly* (if not entirely) only when I don't shift 'postively' enough.

But basically, no real problems. I have been driving the bike this way since I got it last November, and have put 13k miles on it already, with only two oil changes (about to do my third any day now).

Supposedly the bike was put on a dyno at 50ish k miles and was very near full rear-wheel horsepower readings, and had been garage kept its whole life by its prior three owners. It did sit for a year, and I did an oil change before ever riding with that old oil.

I'd also love to hear a recommendation on oil filters. Just started reading this: http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Filters.html#OilFilters

Haven't read anything else on the topic, but would love some more info.

As far as what oil I want: The best, cheapest, and the longest interval possible, haha. I'll order online or buy at a store, whatever it takes. I just want to know how to best take care of my bike.

Thanks!
 
No 1200 listed for that year! Here is what Amsoil has:

1986 YAMAHA FJ1100 1100

Lubricants & Fluids

Engine Oil

SAE 10W-40 Synthetic Motorcycle Oil (MCFQT)

10W-30 Advanced Synthetic Motorcycle Engine Oil (MCTQT)

Filters

Oil Filter

WIX 24940 Oil Filter
 
I assure you the Amsoil site is wrong; The FJ1100 was made in 84 and 85 only, and was bored out to 1200 in '86, and continued to be an 1200 until it ceased production. Not that it really matters, I guess... Just, don't know why they have it wrong.

In fact, you can still buy FJ1200 engines today, they're popularly still used in certain classes of stock car racing (Legend racing and one other, can't remember).

Is Amsoil held as the gold standard? I don't understand what you are saying by posting what Amsoil says.
 
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Since you mentioned cheapest...wait until AAP has Rotella T6 on sale and stock up. I should have bought 4 gallons when it was $13.99/gal, before rebate. They have a $5/gal rebate often...limit 2/year/address.

It's JASO MA and many many riders use it. I switched from M1 MX4T at $8/qt.
 
The website you are reading has some interesting thoughts and information. The section on filter surgery and filter recommendations can help you choose good quality filters. Many riders use Rotella T6. There are many good motorcycle oils available. Use a good quality oil that you get on sale and change it at reasonable intervals as you seem to ride hard and aggressive. Enjoy the bike.
cheers3.gif
 
[quote

I'd also love to hear a recommendation on oil filters. Just started reading this: http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Filters.html#OilFilters

[/quote] Did you read the first paragraph of this guys qualifications? Oil Filters

All About Oil Filters

I am not a lubrication, filtering, chemical or mechanical engineer. I have a degree in engineering, but I studied electrical engineering. I now study physics. You may feel free to question my abilities to gather facts and draw conclusions in the area of oils and filters. This guy states that Harley Evo and Twin cam motors use the same oil filter in his list of oil filters. Which they don't, so take his recommendations with a grain of salt. If you look thru the UOA'S here, there's a guy with a high mileage Honda with over 160k on it, I believe that he has used most of the popular oils on the market. That should give you a good direction on what you could use for max results.,,
 
As for the best oil I would rate it as Klotz, Motul, Bel-Ray, and Amsoil. I would probably use 10/15-50 for the heat and 5/10-40 if it would be consistently cold.
 
Rotella 15/40 doesn't shear as fast in my bike with a wet clutch.
As for oil filters I use Baldwin filters. I use the largest one that will fit on the bike that still have the right bypass pressure.
 
Any motorcycle specific 10-40 oil will do the job for you. Sync's have some advantages over the dino, but a lot depends on how long you want to go between oil changes.
 
Quote:

Type API Grade SE or SF
Viscosity
Up to 15°C (60°F) SAE 10W30
Above 5°C (40°F SAE 20W40
Your question is open ended, and the replies will be all over the map. The best oil is the one you find that meets the specs given, is easy on your pocketbook, and changed at reasonable intervals before excess engine wear occurs. You will have to do some investigation on your own to find what that magic fluid will be for you.. Now in my case, for years I ran M1 15w50 in my oil head BMW. And after much trial and error later on, I found that plain old Havoline 20w50 met every point in my Honda ST1300. I'm currently using LiquiMoly 10w40 in my Can-Am Spyder. For your filter question, you can use a regular Purolator Classic or the before mentioned Baldwin with consistant results.
 
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