Oil ????

[EDGE1]

Hi Guys i see alot of people go for the mobil 1 semi or fully synthetic oil etc etc, and as ive only just bought my venture ive looked on the net to see what people recommend, as im in the uk i cant get some of the American oils easily!

But i was looking at a UK V-Max Specialist website today and they strongly recommend 20/50 mineral oil only . As they say the synthetic runs hotter and causes the clutch and starter clutch to slip ??? I know its a V-Max website but is the engine that different ? Cheers Edge

[twigg]

Welcome to the Forum.

 

The Search function works really well and this topic has been discussed a gagillion times.

 

Quick answer .... The 20W/50 will be just fine in the UK. Do not use Castrol GTX or any other "car" oils. Use either a motorcycle specc'd oil or a diesel motor oil.

 

Some like Synthetic and mostly it won't hurt a bit providing it has no friction modifiers, so get one specc'd for wet clutches.

 

Really .... search, it's all here.

[allwx]

The claim that synth oils "run hotter" sounds like bs to me.

 

There are a lot of seat-of-the-pants claims flying around that are not demonstrable by the science. Oil issues really get the dander up! Everybody has their pet ideas about motor oils. Browze around the shelves for motor oils and see the fancy bottles they come in, you know there's more at work with manly-men and their motor oils than just simple lubrication.

 

If 20W50 means the same viscosity in UK that it means in the US, then it probably is not the best thing to run in a Venture motor. The 20W50 weights are more for air-cooled big twins like the Harleys and the Roadstars, and then only in the hot weather.

 

The US Venture owner's manual calls for the use of Yamalube oils which are weighted oddly compared to what we find on the shelves at the stores. Those Yamalubes are weighted at 10W30 and 20W40. I don't know of any oil maker that markets those weights in the US. More common for motorcycles are 10W40 and 20W50. If you look at the bottle of Mobil 1 20W50 it sez on there, for V-Twins, which means HDs and the like. These are air-cooled motors that in hot weather can run hotter in places than a similarly laid-out liquid cooled motor. Plus, Yam recommends these weights in ALL their bikes, from little air-cooled twins to inline-4s running 14krpm redlines, to Roadstars, to Ventures. The motors vary enormously, but they want us to run the same odd-weighted oils in all of them. This tells me that it really doesn't matter all that much.

 

In any case, the Venture is a liquid-cooled short-stroke overhead cam V-4. Yamaha does not recommend the use of a 20W50 oil in the Venture, at least not in the US. It probably would be OK to use the 20W50 in the hot summer, but if you also ride in winter, it probably is not a good idea to do cold starts at 25f with a 20W50 oil in there. Although, a synth 20W50 should flow better at cold temps than a 20W50 conventional oil, just 'cause the synths tend to flow better in the cold.

Edited August 5, 2011 by allwx

[Yammer Dan]

Now to turn everything upside down. I've been riding since 1963. OK first one (old 1926 Indian) didn't have motor. I'd push it 1/2 mile up hill so I could ride it back down!!But since 1965 I have used Castrol 20/50 in all my bikes and never had a oil related problem. Uncle that knew more about engines than I ever will steered me in that direction. Granted there have been a lot of changes in oils since then. But IT WORKS GREAT and doesn't cost anywhere near as much as all those fancy ones they claim are so much better.

My thoughts are use a good name oil. There are a ton of them out there. Some don't like wet clutches. No Friction Modifiers. If you don't like your ride don't change the oil. Insures you will be replacing it sooner!! Use a good oil and change it as you should.

I'll stick with my car oil (Dino Oil) it has done great for me. Still about 2 bucks a Quart.

[Guest Slab_Ryder]

Within 2 miles of riding, after switching to Synthetic Oil, my clutch started to slip, on my 08 RSV. I recommend YamaLube 10W40 MINERAL

[EDGE1]

Thanks for the advice i reckon ill go with mineral . Cheers

[easternrider]

In my venture, I run yamalube 20 50. My mechanic says that these big bikes need the heavier oil. It seems to have quieted the clunky shifting. And for the older bikes, like mine, never use synthetic. Thats my two cents worth

[Seaking]

In my venture, I run yamalube 20 50. My mechanic says that these big bikes need the heavier oil. It seems to have quieted the clunky shifting. And for the older bikes, like mine, never use synthetic. Thats my two cents worth

 

Seems you guys up the highway always have to go heavier on the oil

 

I always use Yamalube 10W40.. good for the whole year range of oil for around here..

[Grisolm1]

I have a pressure gauge, here is my findings to date. Mobil 1 15-50 silver cap car oil. 0 --- YES 0! Oil pressure cruising hot on highway at 3000 Rpm. PO gave me 2 jugs so I changed it, no difference with fresh oil. Valvoline VR-1 20-50. 15 lbs at same condition. Haven't tried Rotella 15-40 yet but sure not going back to Mobil1!

[KevinR]

When I bought my '06 Midnight Venture I was told by the previous owner that the bike had always had used 20W/50 semi synthetic but he didn't know what brand as the previous owner had passed away so he had 1 change done following that regimen, then sold it to me. I did a change 2 weeks ago, went to Valvoline 4 stroke MC oil, JASO certified of course but not synthetic, and next day started noticing clutch slippage on moderately hard acceleration. Now I see that 20W/50 isn't recommended but something thinner. Could this be the reason for my slippage? Before the change I'd had towed a trailer w/ 2 up and never had any slippage no matter how hard I hit the gas. Also, are the synthetic blend oils the semi he was referring to? I'm going to Rotella ASAP and hope that corrects the problem. Any comment?

[Condor]

YAWN.....!!

[Grisolm1]

The valvoline VR1 I am using now does have friction modifiers which are supposed to be a no no for these bikes but I have no clutch problems in 500+ mi so far. If the oil you are using has friction modifiers then this may be your issue, not the weight. If I end up having clutch slipping I'm going to find a 20/50 dino that doesn't. I like having oil pressure when cruising on a hot day. Yamaha specifies SM rated oil which the valvoline is. Not sure they specify JASO but they may. I just see SM on the sticker in the trunk.

[Monty]

I only use Rotella 15W40 dino oil, and I have 72,000 miles on it so far. It never uses a drop, and the oil doesn't even get very dirty between changes. I have put it through some extremely hot days also.

 

I'll stick with what works for me.

[KevinR]

Thanks for the input, I'm getting Rotella tomorrow. The Valvoline 4 Stroke is SJ and JASO rated but I wonder if maybe 20W/50 is maybe just too "thick" between the plates and causing the slippage, sure doesn't seem like at 40,000 miles the clutch should be shot as someone at the dealership said it probably was, especially since I couldn't make it slip before. Mechanic there tried to tell me 40K was just about the time the clutch goes bad on RSV's but I'm not buying it from past bike experience.

[flb_78]

actually, somewhere between 40-60,000 miles, the clutch will probably start slipping, not from worn clutch plates, but from a weakened clutch spring.

[Sylvester]

Ditto

 

YAWN,

[Yammer Dan]

Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[Jethroish]

Within 2 miles of riding, after switching to Synthetic Oil, my clutch started to slip, on my 08 RSV. I recommend YamaLube 10W40 MINERAL

 

Wow! Ive been using Rotella syn. for about 30,000 miles now without a problem.