'02 Aprilia RSV - Australia

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Hey fellas,

So, I have an '02 Aprilia RSV with 53k klm on the clock, that's not too far off from needing another oil change (I do 3,000 klm intervals).
I believe it's spent most of it's life on Motul 5100, but I dislike it from running it in past bikes.

Since I've had it I've used Silkolene Comp 4 15w-50 and Maxima Syn blend 15w-50.

It's currently got Silkolene in it.

However, I'm looking for something a bit better, I'm not happy with how the gearbox feels with the silkolene and it seems to run a bit louder than the Maxima.
I don't want to run the Maxima because it's something I have to order in all the time.


The 3 on my list at the moment is Silkolene Pro4 10w-40 (Not the '+' model), Shell Advance Ultra 10w-40 and Mobil 5w-50.
There are other oils available but they're $120+ and I just can't justify the cost, especially when a cheaper brand is just as good.
The other issue is the Rotax motor takes 3.9L, so brands who sell by the gallon requires buying an extra bottle or a 1L/quart bottle, again, not economical for me.

My question here is, Mobil has only recently become available, and not the motorcycle specific oil, and I'm unsure if what we have available is suitable or not.
http://www.mobil1.com.au/products/product_5w50.aspx

Am I correct in thinking the 5w-50 is the same juice as the 15-50, there's nothing on the bottle I can see to confirm it'd be alright.

I'm not against using a xxW-40 oil, and if I use the Shell, it will be that, as the 50 is an order in item.
Ordering in usually requires buying the whole box or a refusal to do it at all.

Thanks in advance.
 
FWIW, I've run Silkolene, Maxima, Motul, etc, etc. Pretty much every oil I could find and is fit for a shared-sump Motorcycle, I've tried.

I didn't care for the Silkolene, Maxima, or the lower spec Motul oils. My favorite based on how the bikes run and shift, is Motul 300V 4T, followed by Redline M/C oil (but that might be harder to find in Australia.

A couple of my riding friends had Aprilia RSV's powered by the Rotax V-twin. Fun bikes.
 
Don't use 5w-50!
Most obvious reason is it sure is not in your OM as a recommended grade.
Reason for that could be the shear stability, which just isn't on par with lower-spread oils like 15w-40 or 15w-50.
If your gearbox doesn't feel alright with the Silkolene, you will hate a rapidly shearing oil as you will end up with a 5w-40 or even 5w-30 after a few thousand clicks.

Not the same as the 15w-50 and you sure don't need the 5w part in a motorcycle, esp. in Australia.

I already regret using 10w-60 this last fill. I'm sure it sheared down enough already (false neutrals and consumption are making me say that). And it's a German made full synthetic MA2 oil, not a 'car spec' 5w.

If your OM doesn't specifically say to use full synthetic, I'd be inclined to try a good 15w-40 HDEO. I know Penrite makes some rated MA2. I'd be itching to try one of their products, but they are not that easy to get here.

Edit reason: grammar.
 
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Hi Moola,

Welcome !!!

You live in Australia, so consider the Penrite 10-Tenths Racing series of oils. They are 100% PAO and Ester full synthetics, shear free, and with a high zinc anti-wear package. They are high quality, easy to find and motorcycle clutch friendly. I've used their 10W-40 in my bike, but they also have a nice 15W-50.

I would avoid the M1 5W-50 as it will probably shear out of grade very quickly in a shared sump motorcycle. However the M1 15W-50 should be more shear stable, and I have a friend who has used it in his bike for many years. The M1 15W-50 is a bit harder to find, but a better bike oil IMO.

Many motorcycle riders use a HDEO like Caltex DELO 400 15W-40 or Mobil Delvac MX 15W-40 or Castrol RX Super 15W-40. These are all heavy duty "truck" oils, but mixed fleet, so suitable for petrol and diesel engines in car or truck or bike. They are strong and shear stable oils, but affordable and easy to find. A mate uses Delo 400 15W-40 in his bike and loves it. He triied many other oils, including expensive synthetics, before he settled on the Delo. Half the price compared to special MC oils, but less consumption on the Delo. I've hear a few good reports about the Delvac too.

Me, I would either run the full synthetic Penrite 10-Tenths Racing (not 10-Tenths Premium) or a 15W-40 HDEO "truck" oil. If you plan to change oil every 3000KM then I recon go the HDEO and save some coin. The 10-Tenths synthetics I use to push out to 10,000KM which they did fine.

Seeya
 
Aprilia RSV, Australia... I just had a flashback to Troy Corser riding in World Superbike 15+ years ago.
smile.gif
 
Thanks fellas.

Motul 300v is $130 for 4L down here, which is more than I can afford for regular servicing (my bike is my daily ride)
The main reason behind having 3,000 klm intervals is due to using Motul 5100, in previous bikes I found they'd get much louder and the gearbox would go all clunky and false neutrals/missed shifts.
I found this would happen right around 3,000klm, there was also a noticable change around 1,000klm but would be good/stable enough for another 2,000.
Which, when I started using Maxima, for the most part, all went away, but I kept the intervals.

I don't much care for Silkolene either, it's just what was easily available locally.

I believe Redline is non-existent in Australia, would have to order it online.
We mainly get global brands.
Royal purple needs to be ordered also.

RSVs are a great bike, a lot of bang for the buck and so far has been my most reliable bike, haha.


My understanding with full synthetics was that their winter viscosity doesn't really correlate with dino/mineral oils.
That with the stability of their viscosity, a 5w or a 20w is essentially the same.
Is that correct?

I'm in Tasmania, and our winter can be pretty chilly, although not as chilly as the UK or parts of the US.


I looked into the HDEO a while ago, and the info I found showed what we have available here, is not the same as overseas, so I wasn't confident enough in them that they were suitable.
Although sounds like some care, I wasn't aware of Caltex Delo 400.
Also Caltex servos down here don't usually stock their own brand oils, I haven't seen a caltex bottle of anything on a shelf for a loooooong time (or atleast none I've noticed).

I'd still prefer to run a motorcycle oil though.


I've also used Penrite 10-tenths stuff in previous bikes, I found it to be on par with Yamalube in being worse than Motul, I had to change it out at less than 1,000 klm.
Seemed like I just put water in, became very clunky, noisy, false neutrals and came out of gear a few times.
Now that bike did have issues (Suzuki Across), but I also had issues with it in my ZX7R, although not nearly as bad.

Reason for looking into the Mobil oil is on RSV forums a lot of people seem to use and prefer it.


I wish I was interested in bikes in my slightly younger days to watch the WSBK when the RSV and VTR were racing.
 
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Hi Moola,

Yeah you have to find the oil grade that suits your bike.

I ran the full synthetic Penrite 10-Tenths Racing 10W-40 in one bike, but in another I used the mineral Penrite HPR30 (20W-60).

Here is a list from Penrith of their motorcycle specific oils and their car / truck oils that are suitable for motorcycle wet clutches
Penrite Bike Oils

I heard of some people using the HPR Diesel semi-synthetic 15W-50 as a slightly heavier option over the usual 10W-40 MC or 15W-40 HDEO. It looks like you may want a 50 grade oil.

Going by this Caltex Oz List there are three suppliers in Tasmania, I'm sure they could fix you up with some Delo 400 15W-40 HDEO.

There is also the Castrol Power1 10W-40 motorcycle oil, as either GPS semi-synthetic or Racing 4T full synthetic.
Castrol Power1

As for cold starting, a 10W is good down to -25C, a 15W is good down to -20C and a 20W is good down to -15C. I personally don't get out of bed below -10C, so it's never been a problem for me.

Personally, I have run a lot of car oils in motorcycles, and never had a problem. If I don't like it then I swap it out. I have never used M1 5W-50, but I have used a lot of Castrol Edge 10W-60 in motorcycles, and I liked it. I used it for ten years in one bike without a problem. It's also a car oil.
 
Moola, if you are still around. I was speaking to a mate with a Yamaha SRX 600, air-cooled single. He runs nothing but M1 5W-50 in it for years without any problem. He likes it as a bike oil.

Since you were asking about the M1 5W-50
 
Yep, still about.


I don't want to gamble too much, as I don't like the idea of using different oils all the time.
So I'm kinda looking for somthing that I can easily stick with and will perform better than the Silkolene I'm currently using.

I know one of those servos mentioned on that Caltex link quite intimately.
Around 14 months ago my '96 ZX7R got ran over by an old lady in a van too busy talking on her phone.
I was about 5 seconds away from being on that bike.
I don't recall seeing oil in there though, just miscellaneous bottles.

I've heard good and bad things about the Castrol, seems some love it and some hate it.

I've got a mate who just put the Shell Advance Ultra in his Ducati 749, will see how he thinks of that, as he also had similar oil related clunky gearbox issues.

Cold starting I agree is not an issue, our coldest of mornings is around -2c or so, and it's not very often we get that, maybe an average or around 0c - 2c, enough to have frost on the side of the roads and sometimes on the road.

Nice to know the Mobil 1 likely won't cause clutch issues, but still unsure.
 
I have had two Aprilias with the Rotax v990 engine and the best oil I have used is regular old 15w-40 Rotella/Delo/super tech. They hold up throughout the entire oci (4750 miles btw) without shearing enough to effect shift feel. This works significantly better than the semi syn Motul many people with Aprilias recommend.

On a side note. If you want to solve a lot of possible starting problems and defeat the dreaded dash reset these bikes are known for just go down to local auto parts store and pick up some replacement 4ga or 6ga battery cables and like magic the starter spins super fast and you drastically limit the chances of ruining the sprag clutch.

almost forgot about replacing the stock regulator rectifier because the are junk and never fully charge the battery. There are people that sell drop in replacements but you can also modify a 2008 Honda CBR one to work.

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