Manufacturers response about Delo 15w40

Status
Not open for further replies.
Joined
Jun 22, 2008
Messages
1,339
Location
Colorado
Pretty vague...but not surprising.

=====================================

Thank you for your inquiry. Delo 400 has 90 ppm molybdenum disulfide. We do not make an oil for motorcycles with wet clutches.

Thank you;
Glenn


-----Original Message-----

Sent: Friday, September 04, 2009 9:10 AM
To: Global Lubricants Inquiries (lubricants)
Subject: Question about Delo 15w40

I am hoping you can help....

In sorting and filtering through all the speculation on the
web about your Delo 400 15w40 and wet clutch compatibility with
motorcycles....especially your newer formulation with high amounts of Moly. Is the oil wet Clutch compatible?

John
 
John. I looked at their website and noticed that Delo 400 15W-40 no longer claims it meets Allison C4.

Allison C4 is an Allison spec that covers wet clutch performance of oils. In the past it was good indication that the oil would work well in an MC wet clutch.
 
I have an email on my computerat home from Shell telling me that both Rotella versions can be used with a wet clutch. I have run it in my bike without problems. If you want to run a HDEO, I can recommend Rotella.
 
Originally Posted By: dsmith41
I have an email on my computerat home from Shell telling me that both Rotella versions can be used with a wet clutch. I have run it in my bike without problems. If you want to run a HDEO, I can recommend Rotella.



Yeah, neither of the Rotella's have any real amount of Moly and are fine. It's just that, Delo has a beast of an add pack for a dino, but a part of that add pack is a big dose of Moly.

I really like Rotella and am currently running Delvac in the bike and it seems awesome.

Just thought you all would be interested in Delo's latest stance for their newest blend.
 
I am trying to figure out if I really need to run synthetic oil in my 04 Shadow 750. I ran 5w-40 Rotella for a short OCI durring break-in and then went to Mobil's 4T racing 10w-40 motorcycle oil. I'm trying to decide if I want to go back to the Rotella and possibly if I should go to the 15w-40 dino version.
 
I just replaced the Valvo dino in my SV650 with Rotella synthetic and it shifts a bit more smoothly. We'll see how it holds up long term but I am loving it so far.
 
90 PPM of moly isn't very much. I seriously doubt you'd have any clutch problems with Delo.

Of course, I think the fear of moly in wet clutch applications is much overblown. Look through the M/C UOA section and see all the different oils people have used, many with moly. Yet we don't hear a lot of talk of clutch issues.
 
Wow, how could Delo not be the correct oil for a motorcycle?? Directly from the horses mouth!! What else do you want???

Good on them for not recommending it for the wrong application.
 
when i tested delo 400 15w40 se
it showed
65 moly

in 2.9 hours i got it down to a susvis of 70.6 and flash of 385 with a "TR" of fuel.

zinc was 1230 for those interested.
 
Originally Posted By: cven
Wow, how could Delo not be the correct oil for a motorcycle?? Directly from the horses mouth!! What else do you want???

Good on them for not recommending it for the wrong application.


None of these HDMO oils are designed specifically for motorcycle use. Their response says exactly that and little more.
 
Thank you for your inquiry. Delo 400 has 90 ppm molybdenum disulfide. We do not make an oil for motorcycles with wet clutches

Above is the response, It says nothing about how hdmo are not specifically designed for mc use??

I get your point but everytime someone has a question about mc oil all they get is hdeo recommendations and that is not the product the manufacture calls for, some Yamaha owners manuals even say don't use diesel oil.

Purolator specifically says don't use a pureone filter on mc's yet many on this board recommend them and pat themselves on the back for saving $10 a year.

Many folks like the hdeo and some have not had good luck with them. It's your bike and money, you make the call.

IMO..$20 extra a year for the proper stuff is a easy call.
 
I'm no big fan of HDMO oils in motorcycle applications.

It's clear they aren't specifically designed for that use. Obviously Delo isn't and Chevron said that in their response - "We do not make an oil for motorcycles with wet clutches" As far as I know, none of the others are either. But that doesn't tell us that they won't work adequately in many cases and we see that all the time. It certainly doesn't say they'll cause clutch issues etc.

My point was that the Delo would probably work about as well as any of the other HDMO oils and that the moly quantity was nothing to worry about. That's all.

I agree with you on the marginal $ savings people might see from using HDMO oils vs. M/C oils. It's just not that much money in the overall cost of ownership.
 
Last edited:
Why can't some one look objectively at a number of oils to see what each has in them,then compare them to a high cost MC oil to see if they can be used in a bike,examp HDEO to Amsoil or any other brand. Every time I read other posts I start to worry all over again that maybe I should be using something different. There must be somewhere to find this info out. Will HDEO destroy my engine or not? HELP sunruh!
 
HDEO's are all gasoline engine certified too..They are run through the same API gasoline engine tests in addition to the Diesel ratings...
This is evident with Petro-Canada Duron HDEO as well carrying certifications for CJ-4, SM (gasoline engine), and JASO MA...
 
My bike has 22k miles on it and I have been into the bottom end (clutch job) and into the top end twice (valve check) and it looks brand new. I have absolutely no doubt that HDEO's are good for the metal parts.

Where my doubt lies is the clutch. The Suzuki SV and DL clutches are some of the most bullet proof around and most get well, well over 100k on their clutches. I smoked mine in 20k miles. Everyone, (my dealer, my riding friends, StromTrooper guys), marvel that the clutch fell apart that quickly.....and it all happened with HDEO oil.

I don't care what anyone says....I have the doubt in my mind that my oil selection might have contributed to the early clutch failure. That is why I am so freaked about the right oil choices.

What I can't tell you is.....would that clutch have failed with the past 20k miles of Amsoil or M1 motorcycle oil in the crankcase???? I just don't know.

But here is how ignorant I am.....right after replacing the clutch....I promptly poured in three quarts of Delvac 15w40. Go figure.
 
Originally Posted By: boulevard
Will HDEO destroy my engine or not? HELP sunruh!


emphatically, NO!

hdeo's will not destory your 4stroke motorcycle engine.
heck it will even work in the tranny of a 2stroke.
and....and in a pinch, while not the best, would also work as the pre-mix in the gas of a 2stroke also!

would i say this about an oil from the 60's, 70's or 80's? no.
today's oils are so much better than those its is not even close.

and i have yet to see a 15w40 hdeo be EC or EC II rated.

ride on
 
I've been using Delo and Rotella 15w40 for about 20 yrs and have had zero problems. I had the Castrol GTX sludge, switch off that to the diesel oil and never have sludge since. Rotella claims their oil has been tested to work fine with a wet clutch, I can't see $0.02 difference in Delo. Probably since they haven't personnally tested it with a wet clutch, they would rather not be liable if problems arise. Hundreds of guys swear by Delo on the GL1800 goldwing groups and I've never heard problems from it. I am still a little worried about the newer SM oil though.
 
Originally Posted By: boulevard
Why can't some one look objectively at a number of oils to see what each has in them,then compare them to a high cost MC oil to see if they can be used in a bike,examp HDEO to Amsoil or any other brand.

Well, we have some VOA's and UOA's over in the VOA/UOA area to look at: here's a VOA of Suzuki dino 10-40 and synthetic 15-50 "MC specific" lubes. Nothing really stands out, in comparison to a series of UOA's from TucsonDon with HDEO's in his 'Wing. You could dig around over there for hours, but I doubt you'll find anything definitive one way or the other.
21.gif


Quote:
Will HDEO destroy my engine or not?

Based on the results RickA has shown, for example, I think we can conclude with a reasonable degree of certainty that HDEO's will not harm our bikes.
thumbsup2.gif
 
Quote:
i have yet to see a 15w40 hdeo be EC or EC II rated.

Nothing above a 30wt can be Energy Conserving. That is only for the 20wt & 30wt oils...0W20, 10W-30, etc...that also meet the other EC specs.
 
Well, I have a golden opportunity to do an experiment and that is just what I am doing. I just purchased a bike in Houston and am doing a fly and ride back to Colorado. It is a 1,200 mile jaunt.

As with a do with every used bike I purchase, I dump the oil and refill with a fresh filter. So this time, for this little run up to the mountains, I decided to pour in Delo 400 LE. I have finished the job and I have taken the bike on a 10 mile spin....trying to get the clutch to slip.....but to no avail...the front tire lifts off the ground just fine.

I imagin that Delo is just fine. My 400 mile segment tomorrow will be interesting. I'll keep you posted.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top