Oil dilemma

[Bobby]

My 07 TD is for some unknown reason to me, dripping oil from the vent tube exiting underneath behind the oil pan. Not a lot, but enough to raise concern. I've recently done an oil change with Mobil1 0-40 & had trouble shifting into neutral when idle, along with a little slippage in 4th & 5th, so I switched back to Amsoil 10-40. Over the winter I swapped out my clutch to Barnett clutch. Looking for opinions.

 

Bobby

[BratmanXj]

Overfilled the oil? Oil level should be 1/3-1/2 up the sight glass on the right side of the bike when the bike is standing upright.

[Kirby]

Sounds like you've got too much oil in the crankcase. Shouldn't fill over half way up the sight glass with the bike standing straight up. If too much oil it will puke it up into the air plenums under the tank and then drain back though the vent hoses to the ground.

[Bobby]

I'm 1/3rd up the sight glass with the bike straight & level. By using Mobil1 would this cause clutch slippage. It doesn't specify whether or not it's for wet clutches so I changed back to Amsoil. I'll take it out tonight for a scoot & we'll see what happens.

[Freebird]

Sounds to me like you used the wrong Mobil 1. I use nothing but Mobil 1 Motocycle oil. I'm not sure but I think that the 0W/40 is energy conserving oil and if so, then yes, it will cause your clutch to slip. You can look at the bottle and see if it has the energy considering logo on it.

[Flyinfool]

It depends on which Mobile 1 you used.

If an oil does not specifically say it is for a wet clutch I will not use it. If the oil say it contains friction enhancers or something for economy, it will most likely not work. Others do use certain oils that do not specifically state for wet clutch and it works out ok for them. To me there is not enough of a price difference to be experimenting using oil that was not made for a motorcycle.

 

If it was the oil causing the slipping, it will take a while to flush it out of the clutch, you will not have instant grip. A lot of shifting and riding in the friction zone will help to clear the old oil out of the clutch.

[Bobby]

Thx Jeff. The oil stated it was Mobil1 engineered for European technology. Living in Canada (Windsor, Ont.) I don't recall ever seeing a "Mobil1" specific for motorcycle or wet clutch application. I suppose I'll have to shop around for an alternative oil, opposed to only sticking with Amsoil, which can get rather pricey ($15. Cdn per liter) but all in all it's the performance that's the overall priority here.

[Flyinfool]

https://mobiloil.com/en/motor-oils/mobil-1/mobil-1-4t-motorcycle-oil

http://www.castrol.com/en_us/united-states/motorcycle-oil/4-stroke-engine-oil.html

[djh3]

Thx Jeff. The oil stated it was Mobil1 engineered for European technology. Living in Canada (Windsor, Ont.) I don't recall ever seeing a "Mobil1" specific for motorcycle or wet clutch application. I suppose I'll have to shop around for an alternative oil, opposed to only sticking with Amsoil, which can get rather pricey ($15. Cdn per liter) but all in all it's the performance that's the overall priority here.

 

You all got diesels up there? Check out Shell Rotella T6. Its full Synthetic 10w40 I think and JASMO rated for bikes. It is a diesel oil.

[camos]

Thx Jeff. The oil stated it was Mobil1 engineered for European technology. Living in Canada (Windsor, Ont.) I don't recall ever seeing a "Mobil1" specific for motorcycle or wet clutch application. I suppose I'll have to shop around for an alternative oil, opposed to only sticking with Amsoil, which can get rather pricey ($15. Cdn per liter) but all in all it's the performance that's the overall priority here.

Both Canadian Tire and Walmart carry Rotella T dino and synthetic. It is made for diesel engines but works just fine with wet clutches. I usually buy a 20 litre pail when they come on sale.

[RedRider]

Look at the API Donut.

 

You do not want an oil that says "Energy Conserving" or "Resource Conserving" in the lower ring.

 

 

You want it to look like this:

 

 

RR

[Bobby]

Thx for all the feedback. Great info & options. You guys rock!

[Yammer Dan]

Castrol 20/50 nuff said

[Bones]

I just looked up the 0W-40 Synthetic oil you used and it is confusing. I found some that shows the SAE circle with "Energy Conserving" on it and some listing without. Evidently you used the one that was. "Energy conserving" oil will make your clutch slip. You can use Mobil1 Synthetic oil. I do all the time, but you have to be sure which you use. I typically use the 10W-40 Synthetic. It is not "Energy Conserving" and my clutch is never bothered.

 

Happy hunting.

[GeorgeS]

I'm 1/3rd up the sight glass with the bike straight & level. By using Mobil1 would this cause clutch slippage. It doesn't specify whether or not it's for wet clutches so I changed back to Amsoil. I'll take it out tonight for a scoot & we'll see what happens.

 

 

Yes!! it will cause slippage, if you are using the standard Mobil 1 Car Oil !! ---- Switch to a standard " MOTORCYCLE OIL "

You might have to go thru 2 Oil Changes to get ALL of the Car Oil out of your engine.

 

If Clutch still slipping, the simplest next step is to install a BARNETT , Clutch Pressure Plate. About a 2 hour job. Easy to do.

No real need to replace ALL the Clutch Plates, unless its a VERY High Milage bike .

[Bobby]

Yes!! it will cause slippage, if you are using the standard Mobil 1 Car Oil !! ---- Switch to a standard " MOTORCYCLE OIL "

You might have to go thru 2 Oil Changes to get ALL of the Car Oil out of your engine.

 

If Clutch still slipping, the simplest next step is to install a BARNETT , Clutch Pressure Plate. About a 2 hour job. Easy to do.

No real need to replace ALL the Clutch Plates, unless its a VERY High Milage bike .

 

Thx much for your reply. I did swap out my plates over the winter with Barnetts plates, however I stayed with OEM spring. I think I'm going to eventually switch over to the Barnett pressure plate with all the good reviews I've read. Thx again.

[Bobby]

This is what I ended up doing George. Thx for advice & replys to all the brothers on my post. I did go with Rotella T6.

[Kretz]

Think this is an old thread but I'll throw in my 2cents worth too fwiw.

Never ever use car oil in a wet clutch m/c.

Car oils have all sorts of friction modifiers & additives in them that will do a bike wet clutch no good at all.

For metric (Japanese) cruisers check that the oil you use is certified to JASO MA (or the later MA2 spec)

On the recommendation of many before me, I've been using Shell Rotalla T6 in my Kawasaki Vulcan for a few years now never any problems. In the RSTD I did use Motul 7100 full synthetic. But at Cd$70+ for a jug of 4L it's a bit steep.

Rotella T6 (I use 5W-40) is also a full synthetic, (actually a diesel & heavy machinery oil) it does meet JASO MA & last time I looked was around Cd$47 for 5L.

Kawasaki spec a 10W-40 but all the 5W means is that the oil is thinner on winter startups, which is a good thing.

Hope that helps.