I've done some reading on the forums, but would to hear what everyone uses personally. Going to do an oil change tomorrow. Lots of people are talking about Rotella T4 and T6, what does everyone think about that stuff?
What oil do you run?
ComponY
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Of course not, however it is better.
We could just settle for an 80's GSXR 750, I'm sure we'd be able to buy them for around 1/15th the price of a new GSXR, I'm sure the new bike wouldn't be 15 times better than an older 750, definitely not in most riders hands... I still prefer to ride a bike that is well beyond my capacity that costs me far more... Is it a better bike? Of course, is it worth the extra? That's subjective, I'm sure people are happy to pay the difference even if they may not be able to take advantage of the difference. At the end of the day it is a better product....
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A better product how? Where's the data? Pretty easy to measure the technical and performance differences in bikes. So how is it better? Better lubricity? Last 5 times longer? Keeps the engine cleaner? More stable? Or is it better because they said so?
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Ester based, at least claimed so, others are not, and do not even claim to be. It is based on this, a superior product. As I mentioned earlier being a universally accepted group V oil as it is (at least claimed) Ester based means less additives/friction modifiers to get the same consistency over a higher range temperature/shear stability. This is especially important when the motor shares oil with a gear box/clutch.
What the above means to most people? Not much, if you think we'd be able to feel the difference in oil changes, then you're wrong. This does not mean the product is not better. I will say it can have a noticeable effect on clutch engagement, and depending on the health of the valves could make ticking noise go away.
Again is it worth it? Subjective.
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We have run, with good results, both T4 and T6 Rotella in a number of drag bikes including a 1340cc GSX-R1100. I know many other drag racers who like the lubricating protection, clutch performance, and lower cost of using Rotella. Whatever you use just keep it changed often and filtered properly. Good luck.
If you want to get serious about oil, particularly the high dollar stuff, you ought to be getting it analyzed. See this or this. I gather that the NAPA analysis is around $15 and Blackstone $28. The car people seem to be mainly focusing on extending the oil change intervals. But per this Blackstone seems to be set up to specifically check motorcycle oils. Not a lot of money relative to the price of some oils.
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The best oil is clean oil!!!
I've used Rotella, Mobil Delvac, and now I use Vavoline 20w50 motorcycle oil. Regardless of which oil I used, I changed my oil every 500 miles and did my last tear down with 10K miles on the clock with a stroker motor. As you know, this type of set-up is harder on the bearings and internals looked pristine. So now that I have seen it with my own eyes, I will continue to do what I'm doing. Never used Synthetic oil in my life and don't plan too. No need with the intervals that I do.
I've used Rotella, Mobil Delvac, and now I use Vavoline 20w50 motorcycle oil. Regardless of which oil I used, I changed my oil every 500 miles and did my last tear down with 10K miles on the clock with a stroker motor. As you know, this type of set-up is harder on the bearings and internals looked pristine. So now that I have seen it with my own eyes, I will continue to do what I'm doing. Never used Synthetic oil in my life and don't plan too. No need with the intervals that I do.
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Thanks all, some informative stuff.
What I would say is that I have owned a Toyota MR2 Turbo now for 20 years this April and for over 10 years it ran Mobil 1 5W-50 and then I switched to Castrol Edge 10W-60 when it came out and it now has 237,000Km on the clock and still going strong.
The point is they are both great oils and the engine will just about last forever on them. Reality is they are probably too good and too expensive and the engine would probably last long enough on something cheaper. If you plan on keeping it for a long time and think of it as an insurance policy then maybe its worth it.
The front runners for the Bike over here is the Mobil 1 4T 10W-40 and I notice that Castrol make the Power 1 Racing in both 10W-40 and 5W-40 which is easy to get hold of and the 10W-50 which looks very hard to impossible get hold of.
Bottom line is I wouldn't expect any engine issues using any of these with a regular service interval for the life of the bike. Would I spend twice as much as these on oils ? probably not for road use.
What I would say is that I have owned a Toyota MR2 Turbo now for 20 years this April and for over 10 years it ran Mobil 1 5W-50 and then I switched to Castrol Edge 10W-60 when it came out and it now has 237,000Km on the clock and still going strong.
The point is they are both great oils and the engine will just about last forever on them. Reality is they are probably too good and too expensive and the engine would probably last long enough on something cheaper. If you plan on keeping it for a long time and think of it as an insurance policy then maybe its worth it.
The front runners for the Bike over here is the Mobil 1 4T 10W-40 and I notice that Castrol make the Power 1 Racing in both 10W-40 and 5W-40 which is easy to get hold of and the 10W-50 which looks very hard to impossible get hold of.
Bottom line is I wouldn't expect any engine issues using any of these with a regular service interval for the life of the bike. Would I spend twice as much as these on oils ? probably not for road use.
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Maxima (349128B) Syn Blend4 10W-40 50/50 Motorcycle Engine Oil. $29.00 on Amazon for a gallon. Half synthetic, so will not leak through seals like a full synthetic can on an older bike. Used on my 2005 GSXR 600 and I would highly recommend it.
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Rotella is a Shell product right ?
Interesting but it doesn't exist in this country, probably squeezed out by Castrol because that gets made across the ditch in Australia most likely. I noticed this with the Castrol Edge, it stopped Mobil bringing in their 10W-60.
Shell also recently pulled the plug on all their Gas Stations here in New Zealand so its possible all their products may disappear over here.
Looks like the best oils over here are NZ$25 for a litre or basically NZ$100 for a 4 litre pack. Looks like the 750 takes 3 litres with an oil & filter change so plenty left over.
Will use either Mobil 4T 10W-40 or the Castrol. Not sure why they have both a 5W-40 and a 10W-40 but it could be bike brand specific as they both are approved by different manufacturers.
Probably makes no difference which of these gets used in the GSXR750.
Interesting but it doesn't exist in this country, probably squeezed out by Castrol because that gets made across the ditch in Australia most likely. I noticed this with the Castrol Edge, it stopped Mobil bringing in their 10W-60.
Shell also recently pulled the plug on all their Gas Stations here in New Zealand so its possible all their products may disappear over here.
Looks like the best oils over here are NZ$25 for a litre or basically NZ$100 for a 4 litre pack. Looks like the 750 takes 3 litres with an oil & filter change so plenty left over.
Will use either Mobil 4T 10W-40 or the Castrol. Not sure why they have both a 5W-40 and a 10W-40 but it could be bike brand specific as they both are approved by different manufacturers.
Probably makes no difference which of these gets used in the GSXR750.
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"Wat."
What kind of false equivalence fallacy is this nonsense? You sound like someone brainwashed by one of those no-knowledge AMSOIL reps. I can certainly believe that there are oils out there made of base stock that may last longer, but the oil change duration on these bikes is so short that it's not relevant for me. Fun fact: you can send your oil to be analyzed, and they will give you a pretty good idea of what your oil is doing.
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You may not agree, doesn't mean it's all nonsense.
Better base stock, means less friction modifiers, that is better for wet clutches.
"Rotella is a Shell product right ? Interesting but it doesn't exist in this country"
Shell sold their NZ service stations to Z Energy, which interestingly make 2/3 of their profits from food, not fuel sales. Per this Rotella is a mainly North American and Chinese product. It's unavailable in Australia, let alone New Zealand. Rotella is apparently easier to come by in Nepal or Kazakhstan(!) than Europe, Africa, or South America.
P.S. After looking more closely at the Chinese locations, it seems that the map is bogus and that only North American locations are listed. I'm unimpressed that a major international corporation could screw up like that. Who knows but Rotella might only be available in the US & Canada.
Shell sold their NZ service stations to Z Energy, which interestingly make 2/3 of their profits from food, not fuel sales. Per this Rotella is a mainly North American and Chinese product. It's unavailable in Australia, let alone New Zealand. Rotella is apparently easier to come by in Nepal or Kazakhstan(!) than Europe, Africa, or South America.
P.S. After looking more closely at the Chinese locations, it seems that the map is bogus and that only North American locations are listed. I'm unimpressed that a major international corporation could screw up like that. Who knows but Rotella might only be available in the US & Canada.
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My 2005 GSXR 600 took very close to the whole gallon to fill it all the way to the "F" line in the sight glass window. I think it's roughly 3.7-3.8 quarts to fill it up all the way. Have to look at my service manual to confirm but based on how little I have left it's about right.
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