New Motorcycle Owners Here

[digitalSniperX1]

Bought a new 2011 Kawasaki Concours 14 ABS and a new 2011 Honda Silver Wing for the Mrs. Have put 2700 Miles on the Concours in 1.5 months. Have changed oil twice using Kawasaki 10w40. Considering alternatives so I have bought Amsoils oil in both 20w50 and 10w40 and Rotella 15w40 and Amsoil 10w30 for the silver wing currently at 400 miles. I'm considering 15w40 in the Honda as well. I'd use he 20w50 through the heat of summer then back to the 40 weights. I read notchy shifting complaints the other day where someone imPlied the Rotella stands up better to shear than amsoil with a statement comparing the notchinNess to Rotella at 3000 miles to Amsoil at 1000 miles.

Any validity to this? Any suggestions?

The Honda is a CVT style automatic. Any input or advice on it would also be greatly appreciated



Thanks for reading.

 

[mount]

I can't really speak on comparisons between the Rotella and Amsoil, but I will say that you don't need a 50 grade for your Concours. It's a well built water-cooled engine and a 40 grade HDEO would be more than adequate. I would personally run the 15W-40 Rotella, or the 5W-40 T6 if you want synthetic. Rotella is cheap enough, I can change it out twice as much as I would for more premium oils, and it seems to work fairly well. Try all the oils you want and see which ones hold up the best. Remember though that your bike will probably shift smoother with any kind of fresh oil in it, so don't be quick to draw conclusions after a change.

A 30 grade for the scooter would be good. A 40 grade; i.e. what you put in your bike, would work fine too.

Whatever oils you use, make sure they both meet JASO MA/MA2 spec. That"s probably the biggest thing.

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: digitalSniperX1
...where someone imPlied the Rotella stands up better to shear than amsoil .


You can find all kinds of junk here and on the net. Rotella shears. Period.

You will get some opinions here. Choose the recommended viscosity and type and try it yourself. It's really your call.

 

[ammolab]

Originally Posted By: Pablo
Originally Posted By: digitalSniperX1
...where someone imPlied the Rotella stands up better to shear than amsoil .


You can find all kinds of junk here and on the net. Rotella shears. Period.


And are there ANY OILS that don't shear in motorcycle use? VR-1?, Redline?, Amsoil perhaps?

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: ammolab
Originally Posted By: Pablo
Originally Posted By: digitalSniperX1
...where someone imPlied the Rotella stands up better to shear than amsoil .


You can find all kinds of junk here and on the net. Rotella shears. Period.


And are there ANY OILS that don't shear in motorcycle use? VR-1?, Redline?, Amsoil perhaps?


I have seen some MC engines shear every 10W-40. Including Amsoil. It's engine/gear case specific.

 

[ammolab]

Originally Posted By: Pablo


I have seen some MC engines shear every 10W-40. Including Amsoil. It's engine/gear case specific.



I do not think the gear case is always the culprit. My BMWs do not run the tranny gears in the engine oil and they shear good oil just like any other bike.

 

[Pablo]

Originally Posted By: ammolab
Originally Posted By: Pablo


I have seen some MC engines shear every 10W-40. Including Amsoil. It's engine/gear case specific.



I do not think the gear case is always the culprit. My BMWs do not run the tranny gears in the engine oil and they shear good oil just like any other bike.


True. It's very engine/gear case specific. Some engines, some gear cases, some shared systems are shear masters, others are not.

 

[Robster]

I have a 2009 Concours 14 with 12,000 miles on it--great bike, but it chewed up a fill of Rotella 15w-40 in about 4000 miles--it sheared a lot. I'm currently running a fill of Mobil 1 10w-40 MC oil and will see how it holds up against the Rotella. If the results are close, I'll probably go back to the Rotella 15w-40 and save some money.

 

[jsharp]

My experience with Rotella 15W-40 v. Amsoil MCF is that the Amsoil has much better shifting properties. The trans got notchy with the Rotella in about 1000-1500 miles. Not so with the Amsoil. It had decent shifting for the entire interval I ran it, last time about 3500 miles.

 

[Doog]

Mobil14T 10w40 or Castrol Power 4t 20w50 or 10w40 for the Kaw. On the Honda I would check the spec on the CVT if it is a shared sump.

 

[Ken2]

Does the connie have an air-cooled oil cooler or a coolant-cooled oil cooler? I'd tend to use a 50 wt in the engine with the air-cooled oil cooler in the hottest summer months...and humidity doesn't count for machinery, only for bodies.

 

[digitalSniperX1]

Thanks for the replies.

Referring to the owners manual....the 10w40 is good until ambient temps reach 104F at which point only the 20w50 is recommended. Granted it doesn't get that hot here but 98F is fairly common come July/August.

I'd have thought Amsoil would be head and shoulders above Rotella but seems there is some disagreement there. I will definitely give both a try and will mix the Amsoil 20w50 with some Amsoil MC 10w30 if they say it's ok just to thin it down. This motorcycle requires 4.5 qts!!! Yowza that's a lot of oil for a tiny engine.

Currently the 10w40 after 1300 miles (Kawi brand) feels notchy after it is hot.

 

[Mackelroy]

Ive ran rotella 5w40 in my dual sport , works and fine.

In my other bike I dont like rotella at all, Notchy as all get out, amsoil in that bike is better.

The way that oil effects shifting isits effect on the clutch, a slicker oil will have less friction on the clutch and as a result shift smoother

BUt with 20w50, your having shift issues , I doubt oil is going to fix it.

 

[digitalSniperX1]

Im putting the Amsoil in next. I'll either mix it down with some of their 10w30 or I'll pick uP some 10w40

 

[VicL]

Originally Posted By: digitalSniperX1
This motorcycle requires 4.5 qts!!! Yowza that's a lot of oil for a tiny engine.

Tiny? A 1.4L engine is bigger than some engines running in subcompact cars. I wouln't call it tiny.

Vic

 

[mount]

Originally Posted By: digitalSniperX1
This motorcycle requires 4.5 qts!!! Yowza that's a lot of oil for a tiny engine.


My 454cc Kawasaki takes 3.5 qts. I find that more astonishing.

 

[digitalSniperX1]

Yeh but I've had 5 liter engines that didn't hold any more. That's the
Point I was making and it's a whole lot more common hEre in the US than are engines smaller than 1.4 liters. I can only think of two sold here in recent history that are under 1.4 liters.

 

[digitalSniperX1]

Yep. Agreed.