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Oil What Kind to use?????????

151K views 47 replies 29 participants last post by  Dm93 
#1 ·
what oil do u all use in ur atv's ????? I know about car oils but not much about atv oils and what one to use???
thanks to all
 
#2 ·
I use GN4 Honda oil. Amsoil make a good oil for wet clutches also
 
#4 ·
honda gn4.almost everyone probly does
 
#5 ·
I use Honda GN4, but whatever kind you use, make sure it's for wet clutches or your clutch will start slipping.
 
#7 ·
You can use any oil that meets the manufacturers specifications AND is NOT an oil marked with "ENERGY CONSERVING" on the container. Those oils are made to use in applications with no shared system with a clutch. If you have a engine/transmission combination that shares the oil, The additives in the "energy conserving" oils will cause severe slippage in the clutch. One good oil is the Mobil Delvac 1300. I have been using it in my VTX 1800 for years and it performs very well. It is also much less $$$ than the Honda oil and exceeds their spec recommendations.

:icon_cool:
 
#10 ·
I use Amsoil 4-stroke Full Synthetic 0w-40. It works to substitute it for 5w-30, 5w-40 and 10w-40 oil. Because it is synthetic, it offers protection down to -30 degrees F during the winter. The best (in my opinion) all season Oil you can buy.
 
#38 ·
just my thought I have a2013 foreman I have used gn4 10 40wt but have switched to vavoline 10 40 for 4 strokes had as many miles as gn4 seems the valvolene came out pretty clean plus its about 1.25 qt cheaper at least here in Pittsburgh any way if you decide to go synthetic remember don't mix brands and don't go back and forth stay with one cause synthetic has a high amt of detergents which causes foam and in time will cause slippage if it dnt come with synthetic don't waste money go with a good brand sae oil for wet clutches hope this helps:icon_gd:
 
#15 · (Edited)
I wouldn't use anything that wasn't JASO MA certified. I've used automotive Castol 10W-40 without any problems, but it's been about 5 years ago since I've used it and the formula may have changed since then. It may contain friction modifiers by now. To be safe, I recommend nothing but ATV/Motorcycle oil.
 
#16 ·
Rotella T6 5W-40 full synthetic, it's marketed as diesel oil but carries the JASO certification. Walmart probably has it for $25 +/- for 4 L (blue jug). I think it's great, comes out clean at 800 miles. My 3 ATVs shift fine, run cool when it's hot out and turn over quick in the cold.
 
#17 ·
I hear that a lot at the Rincon and Foreman Forums. Many people use that Rotella.
 
#19 ·
I use the Rotella T not the synthetic but the regular in mine also simply because its available at wal-mart or the farm store. Here are a few things I've found around the web. It appears that the Rotella oil IS NOW JASO certified.

Mr. xxxxxxx,

Thanks for the opportunity to respond to your inquiry, and thanks for
using Shell products. (and my apologies for the delay in responding)

ROTELLA T SAE 15W-40 and ROTELLA T Synthetic SAE 5W-40 are universal
oils, meeting needs of many 4-stroke gasoline as well as most diesel
engines. They have performance credentials (API Service Categories SL
and CI-4 & CI-4 PLUS) for lubricating both kinds of engines. Consequently, ROTELLA T can be a good choice for four-stroke
motorcycle/ATV engines.

It's best to consult your owner's manual for recommended oil quality. If
your engine manufacturer recommends oil meeting any of these API Service
Categories; CF-4, CG-4, CH-4, CI-4 & CI-4 PLUS, and/or SH, SJ, and SL,
or any earlier but obsolete category, then ROTELLA T may be a good
choice.

ROTELLA T does not contain friction modifiers that are added to many
passenger-car-only-oils, and it does not comply with all requirements of
ILSAC GF-1, GF-2 and GF-3 (the ILSAC oil specifications are often
recommended by many gasoline passenger car engine manufacturers). That
can be good for motorcycle/ATV use. Friction modifiers can upset wet
clutch operation. And the ILSAC requirements limit phosphorus content.
Diesel engines and other engines with highly loaded valve trains, as
well as transmissions, need extra (compared to passenger car engines)
extreme pressure wear protection, which is provided by an additive that
contains phosphorus.

One negative might be where the engine manufacturer recommends oil
meeting JASO requirements. Part of the JASO requirement limits ash
content to 1.2%. Ash content of ROTELLA T exceeds this limit. Oil ash
contributes to combustion chamber and spark plug deposits.


Best Regards,

Greg Raley
Tel: +1 281 544 8621=20
Email:
Internet: The Shell global homepage - Global


----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


Here's the scoop on ROTELLA T use in motorcycles.....

Shell ROTELLA T SAE 15W-40 and ROTELLA T Synthetic SAE 5W-40 are universal oils, meeting needs of many 4-stroke gasoline as well as most diesel engines. They have performance credentials (API Service Categories SL and CI-4 & CI-4 PLUS) for lubricating both kinds of engines. Consequently, ROTELLA T can be a good choice for four-stroke motorcycle/ATV engines.

It's best to consult your owner's manual for recommended oil quality. If your engine manufacturer recommends oil meeting any of these API Service Categories; CF-4, CG-4, CH-4, CI-4 & CI-4 PLUS, and/or SH, SJ, and SL, or any earlier but obsolete category, then ROTELLA T may be a good choice.

ROTELLA T does not contain friction modifiers that are added to many passenger-car-only-oils, and it does not comply with all requirements of ILSAC GF-1, GF-2 and GF-3 (the ILSAC oil specifications are often recommended by many gasoline passenger car engine manufacturers). That can be good for motorcycle/ATV use. Friction modifiers can upset wet clutch operation. And the ILSAC requirements limit phosphorus content. Diesel engines and other engines with highly loaded valve trains, as well as transmissions, need extra (compared to passenger car engines) extreme pressure wear protection, which is provided by an additive that contains phosphorus.

One negative might be where the engine manufacturer recommends oil meeting JASO requirements. Part of the JASO requirement limits ash content to 1.2%. Ash content of ROTELLA T exceeds this limit. Oil ash contributes to combustion chamber and spark plug deposits. Here’s the email I sent to Shell:
>There are many people using Rotella T in their motorcycles. Why not
do the few
>small changes to get it JASO certified and really increase your
sales. Also
>being able to get it at Wal-Mart is a big plus.The motorcycle market
is huge
>nowdays.
Here’s their technician’s answer:
Dear Sir,

Actually, we now have JASO MA approval on both Rotella T 15w-40 and
Rotella T 5w-40 Synthetic.

Best Regards,

Shell Technical

On Wed, 9 Sep 2009
 
#20 ·
Here’s their technician’s answer:
Dear Sir,

Actually, we now have JASO MA approval on both Rotella T 15w-40 and
Rotella T 5w-40 Synthetic.

Best Regards,

Shell Technical

On Wed, 9 Sep 2009
The JASO designation is shown on the back of the containers.
 
#21 ·
Make sure it's JASO MA certified and not JASO MB certified. JASO MB isn't suitable for wet clutch use. Here are a few articles to read. The source link is listed above each excerpt.

SOURCE

The Japanese Automotive Standards Organization (JASO) has created their own set of performance and quality standards for petrol engines of Japanese origin.

For 4-stroke gasoline engines, the JASO T904 standard is used, and is particularly relevant to motorcycle engines. The JASO T904-MA and MA2 standards are designed to distinguish oils that are approved for wet clutch use, and the JASO T904-MB standard is not suitable for wet clutch use.

For 2-stroke gasoline engines, the JASO M345 (FA, FB, FC) standard is used, and this refers particularly to low ash, lubricity, detergency, low smoke and exhaust blocking.

These standards, especially JASO-MA and JASO-FC, are designed to address oil-requirement issues not addressed by the API service categories.

SOURCE

JASO MA
Japanese standard for special oil which can be used in 4-stroke motorcycle engine with one oilsystem for engine, gearbox and wet clutchsystem. Fluid is non-friction modified.
JASO MB
MB grade oils are classified as the lowest friction oils among motorcycle four-cycle oils. Not to be used where a JASO MA grade oil is required.

SOURCE

All quality motorcycle specific oils should also carry the JASO Motorcycle Specifications, which are either the JASO-MA specification (no friction modifiers) or the JASO-MB specification (with friction modifiers).

Another good link to read:

ThumperFaq: 4-Stroke Oil
 
#22 ·
Shell Rotella T - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Appears to be JASO MA from this article.
I've used this oil in my motorcycles with no troubles, but I still use amsoil synthetic motorcycle oil as my main engine oil for all my machines.
The good thing about the Rotella T is the price of it, so if your a serious mudrunner, or in allot of dusty conditions all the time where your cleaning your air filter after every ride, its a good deal so you can change your oil often without breaking the bank. Dirty synthetic oil will do more damage to an engine than clean conventional oil.
 
#23 · (Edited)
By reading that article, it appears that the Shell Rotella 10W-30 isn't JASO MA certified, but it says the 15W-40 and the synthetic T6 5W-40 is JASO MA certified. Seems like I read somewhere that none of the 10W-30 conventional oils are JASO MA certified, but I don't remember where I read it.
 
#26 ·
Yes, that link explains it well.
 
#25 ·
Here is the link where I read that none of the 10W-30 oils are JASO MA certified. It also says that none of the 5W-20 is JASO MA certified.

Here is an excerpt from the link:

"Some oils contain friction reducing chemicals. These oils are unsuitable for motorcycles. All 5W20 and 10W30 non-motorcycle engine oils have these friction reducers. Oils with an operating weight of 40 or greater are not required to have friction reducers. These oils are unlikely to cause clutch slippage."

SOURCE

It says that conventional 10W-40 oils aren't required to have friction modifiers, but it doesn't say that all 10W-40 doesn't have friction modifiers and this would explain why I haven't had any clutch slippage when I used Castrol 10W-40 automotive oil. Note that when I tried to use Pennzoil 10W-40 automotive oil, my clutch did start slipping by the following day, so evidently Pennzoil 10W-40 does contain friction modifiers.
 
#27 ·
Does Honda actually manufacture their line of oil, or is it just a label and made from someone else? I've even heard that Mobil makes it for them, but we all know how that is, we like proof.
 
#28 · (Edited)
It's just a label, but I don't know who manufactures it. I think Mobil does make the Honda automotive oils, but I'm not sure about the motorcyle/ATV oils.

ADDED: I'm looking at a bottle of GN4, now, and it just says "DISTRIBUTED BY: American Honda Motor Co., Inc. Torrance, CA 90501. Made in the USA from Domestic & Imported Components."
 
#32 ·
Welcome to the forums. If you're talking about the '86 Fourtrax 250 utility model, it holds 2.2 quarts.
 
#34 ·
The Rotella 15W-40 is regular oil, the 5W-40 is the Rotella T6 synthetic which I highly recommend, it's at walmart and others about $23 for gallon jug - it's dark blue
 
#35 ·
I'm not a synthetic oil snob like some people at the same time synthetics are usually a "thinner" viscosity oil. Using a 15w-40 oil is a "thicker" oil and you may see upper engine wear using it versus 5W oils. The majority of engine wear occurs during start up. The thinner oils reach the top of the engine sooner therefore securing good lubrication quicker on start up even in temperate climates. Once they are warmed up then it's no longer an issue. I highly recommend the thinner regular oils (5W) or a synthetic. If for some reason you just have to use 15W-40 then I would recommend an oil heater prior to starting your bike. You can use a search engine and find easily....just type in atv oil heater.
 
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