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 So far, my main source has been this article, which is a little outdated (maybe 05 or 06?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!
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!