Mobil 1 / Amsoil / Honda (syn oil) ?

[MtnEX]

The guy I bought my quad from said he just had it serviced.
The oil looks like it should.

However, it's over-full a little and I'd swear the oil is too thin. I hope it's not in a way, but if I had to bet based on what I see I'd put my money on 10w30. It seems that thin.

I'm not anti-thin oil... but I don't think it's right for this application. I'm thinking it should be 15w50 or 20w50, and probably synthetic.

So I can really only think of 3 oils I might be able to get that fit my thoughts....

Mobil-1 15w50 (silver cap now SM/CF) ?
Mobil-1 20w50 V-twin
Amsoil 20w50 motorcycle

I thought about honda oil also but only recall seeing dino 10w40... and I am a skeptic of MFG brand oils, as they do not "MAKE" oil... which usually ends up that it is contracted to the low bidder to label the product for them.

So anyways, what do you guys think about these oils?

What about filters? What do you run?
Honda OEM?
Wix?
K&N?
etc?

[projectgoon1]

i run a k & n filter and it gives a nice boost and as for the oil i run 10w 40 high performance a racer at my local track recommended it as does the manual hope i helped

[jeepthing07]

I hear the honda GN4? is good stuff but i dont know who makes it.

I use these oil filters they are made well and are cheap. http://www.hiflofiltro.com/

[chayes627]

i would def go with amsoil 20w-50 http://www.exriders.com/vbb/showthread.php?threadid=358636&goto=newpost
there is another thread about oil. as far as oil filters i am using wix filters now. they are supposed to be some of the best

[NXGHOST]

Our family owns several ATV's. Honda, Sukuzi, Arctic Cat (Made By Kymco) I was getting sick and tired of running Honda Oil in the Honda, Suzuki Oil in the Suzuki etc. I recently bought my kid an Arctic Cat DVX90, made by Kymco. Same quad as the Mongoose 90. Arctic Cat claims you need their oil which is funny cause Kymco makes it and they recommend their oil for best performance. It is obvious manufacturers claim an oil is specifically made for their vehicles. They word it as if there is a special Honda ingredient that they keep secret! I now use one oil in all my quads and it is available at Auto Zone for $3.99. Since I change oil often (every other ride) I don't care for synthetics, clean oil is good oil IMO. All my 6 ATV's run fine on this oil..Here she is,



http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/41XF4RN82CL._SL500_AA280_.jpg

[QuadManiac]

I and many other quad owners swear by Rotella Synthetic 15-40, available at Walmart for about $15 a gallon.

You are correct, the manufacturers have no secret ingredients related to their brand of oils. They just buy oil to their specs relabled with their brand name from a major oil supplier. There is very little difference between these oils and the standard brands, as long as they are wet clutch compatable.

[NXGHOST]

Originally posted by QuadManiac
I and many other quad owners swear by Rotella Synthetic 15-40, available at Walmart for about $15 a gallon.

You are correct, the manufacturers have no secret ingredients related to their brand of oils. They just buy oil to their specs relabled with their brand name from a major oil supplier. There is very little difference between these oils and the standard brands, as long as they are wet clutch compatable.

I also thought of using the Rotella.

As far as manufacturers relabeling oils to their specs I bet their specs are something like this,

"We need a 10w 40 oil with our name on it..."

[MtnEX]

Shell Rotella is good oil.
I've never seen the Synthetic version in 15w40 though.
Just dino 15w40 and Synthetic 5w40.

I ran the 5w40 in a 4 cylinder and it didn't hold up to well.
I got down a quart pretty quickly at a point after I had some miles built up. I had the same experience with Mobil 1 10w30 too. Yet it runs 5,000 miles no problem on plain old Havoline. I don't know what to make of that.

Anyways, I think I will drop by another autoparts store and see what is actually on the shelf. NAPA has Amsoil here, but not the motorcycle stuff. $10 qt mail order Amsoil seems like a bit much effort.... I mean Mobil-1 15w50 is on any shelf, and one of the parts stores is sure to have the Mobil-1 20w50 V-twin.

Oh yeah, I got the bike in the shop on a level floor. She's well over-full with oil. They must have just dumped 2 full quarts in there, and that along with the amount that doesn't come out... well over-full. It's drippy thin too.

No wonder there is some over-rev oil smoke.

[drew416ex]

I really like my amsoil. I run it in everything I own now. As far as which one. I run 20w50 in summer and 10w40 in winter if it gets cold enough.

[brian76708]

IMO synthetic oil is a waist of money on a used motor because all the damge has already been done so as long as you change it often pretty much any oil is good i dont know why all you people are so worried about which oil to use.

[drew416ex]

Originally posted by brian76708
IMO synthetic oil is a waist of money on a used motor because all the damge has already been done so as long as you change it often pretty much any oil is good i dont know why all you people are so worried about which oil to use.

um, yeah... :rolleyes:

[MtnEX]

Originally posted by brian76708
IMO synthetic oil is a waist of money on a used motor because all the damge has already been done so as long as you change it often pretty much any oil is good i dont know why all you people are so worried about which oil to use.

Could be the damage is already done.
Could be I'll be harder on it than the previous owner.


I used to think synthetic oil was a waste of money too. But that was when dino was $1 and syn was $5-$10... and before I thought about how much time I spent changing oil & filters.

I still don't let anything run real far between drains, but the flexibility is nice if I want one more use.

When it starts looking dark, it's coming out, even though they swear it's still OK. So I don't guess I really get my $'s worth out of synthetic. I just happen to think the tolerances on air cooled engines have to be to the point where they contaminate the oil to quickly to get really long extended drain intervals.

[AnDy7]

I use the Amsoil 20w-50 and wow it made a big difference. I would suggest it to anyone:macho

[NacsMXer]

Originally posted by MtnEX
The guy I bought my quad from said he just had it serviced.
The oil looks like it should.

However, it's over-full a little and I'd swear the oil is too thin. I hope it's not in a way, but if I had to bet based on what I see I'd put my money on 10w30. It seems that thin.

I'm not anti-thin oil... but I don't think it's right for this application. I'm thinking it should be 15w50 or 20w50, and probably synthetic.

So I can really only think of 3 oils I might be able to get that fit my thoughts....

Mobil-1 15w50 (silver cap now SM/CF) ?
Mobil-1 20w50 V-twin
Amsoil 20w50 motorcycle

I thought about honda oil also but only recall seeing dino 10w40... and I am a skeptic of MFG brand oils, as they do not "MAKE" oil... which usually ends up that it is contracted to the low bidder to label the product for them.

So anyways, what do you guys think about these oils?

What about filters? What do you run?
Honda OEM?
Wix?
K&N?
etc?

I run the Mobil 1 15w50. It used to have the red cap but now has the silver cap like you said, but with a red label.

Pretty easy to identify, no friction modifiers that the other Mobil 1 oils may contain so perfectly safe for these engines. Stuff works great in the summer when it gets hot. I personally wouldn't bother with the 20w50 Mobil 1, it's essentially the same thing. I would rather have a 15w oil on cold startup than a 20w oil personally.

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Images/Products/M1_15w50_top.gif

As far as oil filters, just get the Honda filters from the dealer. You can also buy Emgo filters in bulk off of Ebay for cheap, they are an equivalent quality oil filter. Don't waste your money on K&N or those stainless steel filters.

[MtnEX]

Originally posted by NacsMXer
I run the Mobil 1 15w50. It used to have the red cap but now has the silver cap like you said, but with a red label.

Pretty easy to identify, no friction modifiers that the other Mobil 1 oils may contain so perfectly safe for these engines. Stuff works great in the summer when it gets hot. I personally wouldn't bother with the 20w50 Mobil 1, it's essentially the same thing. I would rather have a 15w oil on cold startup than a 20w oil personally.

http://www.mobiloil.com/USA-English/MotorOil/Images/Products/M1_15w50_top.gif

As far as oil filters, just get the Honda filters from the dealer. You can also buy Emgo filters in bulk off of Ebay for cheap, they are an equivalent quality oil filter. Don't waste your money on K&N or those stainless steel filters.

Yeah, I just bought the 15w50 Mobil 1 just like that.
$6 a quart, right off the shelf, no additional effort.

I guess I could have went e-shopping for the other stuff.
But this bike is new to me at this point.... and what is the point?

I'll go out of my way for something else IF for some reason I don't like the Mobil 1.

[MtnEX]

I also decided to go with a Wix filter, which I can get at the local O'Reilly Auto Parts, or through the local NAPA, as their brand filter is a Wix. NAPA POWER SPORT PS4944.

I had to go to the 'other' NAPA to get the oil filter and found they have a larger selection of Amsoil products. They stock Amsoil 20w50 motorcycle at $10 qt. I may try that next time around to make it a one stop shop. They also have the new Mobil 1 Extended Performance 15w50, which I forgot to check the doughnut label on.

Anyways, I also bought a can of Amsoil MP HD motorcycle chain lube.
Anyone use this stuff?... I've never tried it.

[drew416ex]

Originally posted by MtnEX
I also decided to go with a Wix filter, which I can get at the local O'Reilly Auto Parts, or through the local NAPA, as their brand filter is a Wix. NAPA POWER SPORT PS4944.

I had to go to the 'other' NAPA to get the oil filter and found they have a larger selection of Amsoil products. They stock Amsoil 20w50 motorcycle at $10 qt. I may try that next time around to make it a one stop shop. They also have the new Mobil 1 Extended Performance 15w50, which I forgot to check the doughnut label on.

Anyways, I also bought a can of Amsoil MP HD motorcycle chain lube.
Anyone use this stuff?... I've never tried it.

$10 a quart, they are really marking up the price. I get it from amsoil for around $7.

[justin1022]

Originally posted by drew416ex
$10 a quart, they are really marking up the price. I get it from amsoil for around $7.


the honda stuff its expensive GN4 i run it all the time in my quad good stuff.. only problem is it isnt sinthetic.

[NacsMXer]

Originally posted by justin1022
the honda stuff its expensive GN4 i run it all the time in my quad good stuff.. only problem is it isnt sinthetic.

Yeah, GN4 is decent but still expensive and just a conventional oil. I used to run HP4, it is semi-synthetic, but again not worth the money to run at about $8+ a quart.

I'm more than happy to spend under $6 a quart at Costco to run a high quality full synthetic like Mobil 1.

[MtnEX]

Well, it's been over a week and I've been tinkering here and there. But I still haven't gotten the oil changed. Since then my wife has been on several shopping trips, and now I have 4 quarts of mobil 1 here. The two 15w50, and also two 20w50 V-twin.

Are these two really actually pretty much the same oil?... other than one is slightly thinner when cold?...

I know they probably do... but I'd really hate to think they charge extra for absolutely nothing.

[MtnEX]

Well I started digging around out of curiosity, and best I can tell so far the Mobil 1 motorcycle is indeed a bit different breed of oil by other specifications.

The first immediate difference I saw was the considerable difference in flash point... 518 F v/s 455F... and 455 is pretty darn good, but 518 is way up there.

The next is pour point of -60 v/s -38... which does not apply to me at all period, but it's opposite of what I expected.

Viscosity @ 40 C... pretty much identical...
Viscosity @ 100 C (212 F)... pretty much identical also...
Viscosity Index... likewise...


So, it is my opinion that in my operating temperatures, as far as the engine is concerned on circulation of the oil and viscosity, there would be no difference.

Judging from the rest, I would have to guess that the motorcyle oil starts with a higher quality base stock. So it is probably a tougher oil. Harder to break down, burn off, consume... But does the difference really honest to goodness MATTER?.... In my opinion, probably not.