[Guest]

OK I know that this is a touchy subject but I got to ask. I have 96 900 dry clutch and I am a believer that I can use good old car motor oil. I have read about the pros and cons on the subject and I see no advantage in using the expensive motorcycle oil.

I happen to have a case of synthetic 10w-30 and I am wondering if the viscosity would be ok in the bike.

I don't want to start a battle about motorcycle vs. car oil but I would like to know if it is ok to run 10w-30 or should I use different viscosity.

Sorry in advance if this starts a battle.

Rob

 

[hobbes]

I'm a minority heretic here, but I like Valvolene or GTX changed every 800-1000 miles. I think at low intervals, you render the viscosity breakdown & shearing issues moot points. Plus you keep your engine free from combustion by-products. I don't care how good synthetic is, I'm not going to keep oil in my engine 6000 miles. 10-30, 10-40, 20-50, whatever suits your climate.

 

[Fillmore]

The manual says 20w-50, but then has a chart that says other grades are OK if your average temperature is within a certain range.

10w-30 should be good for -10*c to ~33*c (14*f to ~91*f)

I stick to 15w-40 which is good to well over 100*f, but won't make it impossible to start when the temps are near freezing (Ya gots ta love desert living...)

HTH,
--Fillmore

 

[chaf]

Personally I'm all good with the idea of using car oil, especially if you have a dry clutch. However, if it were my bike, I'd probably be choosing an oil on the high side of the factory-allowed viscosity scale (20W50 for temps above maybe 50-60degF). The 10W30 will be fine as long as nothing goes wrong, but if the oil feed is interrupted briefly, or the oil gets overheated, or whatever, you're giving up some safety margin by using the thinner oil...

M.