Oil advice for GL1800
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Seriously any oil is better than no oil but I'm a little more particular with my wing than my old pickup. I don't buy the high priced motorcycle specific oil because I think it's a rip off but I do buy a name brand, Rotella T5 10w30 synthetic blend.
Same on this side of the pond. Any oil that meets the spec will work. I use the Honda brand.
Most people don't know that their favorite oil that they've used for years has silently gone through numerous iterations of "formula", sometimes adding or removing significant amounts of additives like ZDDP.
Outside of the spec it's a religious debate based mostly on anecdotal evidence and once in a great while an "I sent it to the lab" story.
Most people don't know that their favorite oil that they've used for years has silently gone through numerous iterations of "formula", sometimes adding or removing significant amounts of additives like ZDDP.
Outside of the spec it's a religious debate based mostly on anecdotal evidence and once in a great while an "I sent it to the lab" story.
the only time I really knew how the oil performed in the engine, was when I sent a sample to Blackstone labs.
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The reason that I sent in the oil sample, was because of my wife being sick and hospitalized so much, I failed to keep track of the car's mileage..... prior to that even, I changed it the 1st week of December annually, and usually with only 8,000 miles on the car.... Daily trips to the hospital and back over that one year's time almost doubled the normal miles driven....
Our only "saving grace" if it were, is the car has always been on pure synthetic, since after the 1st change by the dealer. This made a believer out of me, I will be a synthetic guy from now on.
Dave is using T4 10w30 synthetic blend,
I chose T6 5w40 synthetic for a specialized reason, as my bike is an '02 which possibly has the potential to shear the ADG ( Alternator Drive Gear ).
. I wanted 5w oil to minimize the torque on the ADG during engine starts... I did a lot of Internet Truth searching, it just makes 'me' feel better.
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The reason that I sent in the oil sample, was because of my wife being sick and hospitalized so much, I failed to keep track of the car's mileage..... prior to that even, I changed it the 1st week of December annually, and usually with only 8,000 miles on the car.... Daily trips to the hospital and back over that one year's time almost doubled the normal miles driven....
Our only "saving grace" if it were, is the car has always been on pure synthetic, since after the 1st change by the dealer. This made a believer out of me, I will be a synthetic guy from now on.
Dave is using T4 10w30 synthetic blend,
I chose T6 5w40 synthetic for a specialized reason, as my bike is an '02 which possibly has the potential to shear the ADG ( Alternator Drive Gear ).
. I wanted 5w oil to minimize the torque on the ADG during engine starts... I did a lot of Internet Truth searching, it just makes 'me' feel better.
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1,580 Posts
Rotella T5 10w30 synthetic blend. Inexpensive and available at Wal mart.
I do not know what supermarket oil is.
Walmart, other store brands like you will find in the Auto Parts stores, or over here, the Farm & Ranch vendors somethings have their own 'in house' oil brand... all of it comes out of the same hole in the ground.
And all of it goes through the same refinery... then it acquires a few Additives for a specific brand.
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14 Posts
Crisco, Wesson, Mazola, Del Monte...
T5 is no longer S rated (for gas engines). A few years ago they reformulated to excel on the C rating (diesels) and the detergents and such for that usage means it lost the SJ or whatever it was rating it used to have.
I don't think it's going to cause the Goldwing to blow up and I didn't run right out and change what I had in the engine at the time, but I've stopped using it. Not sure about all the flavors of Rotella, but some.
I don't think it's going to cause the Goldwing to blow up and I didn't run right out and change what I had in the engine at the time, but I've stopped using it. Not sure about all the flavors of Rotella, but some.
Joined
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26,544 Posts
I have a jug of it, may have had it a while since I usually keep some but it has SM on it.
I personally always used AMSOIL 10w30, shifted much smoother and is made from the high base products! Its worth the extra cost. P.S. Also always used the OEM filter! To me oil changes are the cheapest money spent to protect you and your investment!
all oil filters are not alike, that is for sure.
yesterday, I changed oil on my Bad Boy Zero Turn mower, it has a Kohler engine.
I have a Wix filter for the 1800 laying on my shelf for the next oil change.
Wondered if it would be okay for the mower?
Just to be on the Safe Side, I had bought a full kit of parts to perfom the annual change, all 3 filters, air, foam air precleaner, oil....
so, it was easy to look at the new Kohler oil filter and compare it side by side with the Wix filer.
both are exactly the same diameter and length, and center bore thread.
But, the Wix only has 6 oil return holes in it, whereas the Kohler has 8 oil return holes...
Since this is an Air Cooled engine, and oil is the life blood of an Air Cooled engine, I was glad to have the Kohler filter in my hands....
the cost at the local dealer was horrible, but I needed to do it right the first time, so that I could get a feel for buying online at a savings of 2/3rds of what the dealer wants.... I like to deal locally, but .... paying $35 for filters when I can get the same exact branded parts online for less than 1/3rd that?
yesterday, I changed oil on my Bad Boy Zero Turn mower, it has a Kohler engine.
I have a Wix filter for the 1800 laying on my shelf for the next oil change.
Wondered if it would be okay for the mower?
Just to be on the Safe Side, I had bought a full kit of parts to perfom the annual change, all 3 filters, air, foam air precleaner, oil....
so, it was easy to look at the new Kohler oil filter and compare it side by side with the Wix filer.
both are exactly the same diameter and length, and center bore thread.
But, the Wix only has 6 oil return holes in it, whereas the Kohler has 8 oil return holes...
Since this is an Air Cooled engine, and oil is the life blood of an Air Cooled engine, I was glad to have the Kohler filter in my hands....
the cost at the local dealer was horrible, but I needed to do it right the first time, so that I could get a feel for buying online at a savings of 2/3rds of what the dealer wants.... I like to deal locally, but .... paying $35 for filters when I can get the same exact branded parts online for less than 1/3rd that?
Actually the oil flow thru the filter is the reverse of that, enters the outside and exits the center, more surface area of filter material that way. I doubt there's enough volume of oil flow through that two (?) cyl Kohler that it would even notice two less holes in the filter....
now that it is daylight, I realize I stated that backwards.
thanks for catching that.
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