Synthetic oil advice

[Tony]

Red Line Oil doesn't recommend synthetic until after break-in. I'm inclined to follow their recommendation. Red Line is a well respected oil and lubrication company especially among the import racing community. It's not everyday that a company tells you not to buy their product.

From www.redlineoil.com FAQ:

Can I break-in my engine on Red Line Oil?

We recommend using petroleum 10w30 motor oil on break in to ensure proper piston ring seating. If you allow 1500 to 2000 miles in a street engine or 20 to 30 minutes on the dyno at low rpm, the rings will have had sufficient time to seat and the high initial break-in wear will have occurred.

[flstc2003]

HD is selling some bikes (I think the CVO's) with syn in the engine and tranie out the door. When I went to syn after 10k I was told to expect and did get some oil loss for about 2k. HD said the rings reseat with the slicker oil.

[aprilmaybe]

HD is selling some bikes (I think the CVO's) with syn in the engine and tranie out the door. When I went to syn after 10k I was told to expect and did get some oil loss for about 2k. HD said the rings reseat with the slicker oil.

Ducati is doing the same thing, my bike came with synth out the door.  Synth to start goes against everything I've learned about oil. I kept the Synth in case there is a warrenty issue. Haven't had a problem, of course the bike only has 5K miles on it.

[AP]

I tossed Shell Rotella T Synthetic 5w-40 in at 530 Miles.  The original oil it came with foamed up a bit and didn't look that great when I changed it.  I changed it again and put in a little less than 2 liters after 1960 Miles to see how the synthenic was looking compared to the dino oil from the previous oil change and the synth looked almost as good as when I put it in.  No oil burning so far and has been running great.  With the original oil I was getting false neutrals and clunker shifting.  At 12 bucks for enough for two changes and $4 for a stp oil filter I like changing it whenever the shifting starts feeling weird.  Almost hitting 3000 miles soon and I'll probably throw in some more or maybe try Mobil 1 MX4T.

[flstc2003]

Not sure if its true but, I heard you have to be very sure you get ALL the old syn oil out before you put in a different brand syn in, as they may react with each other.

Bob

[AP]

Not sure if its true but, I heard you have to be very sure you get ALL the old syn oil out before you put in a different brand syn in, as they may react with each other.

Bob

http://www.mobil1.com/why/faq.jsp#faq5

[flstc2003]

http://www.mobil1.com/why/faq.jsp#faq5

<like Emily Litella> Oh....Never mind!

[AP]

I still wouldn't mix any oils even if they say mixing is okay. Flushing the old out is probably good. Blending synth and mineral is supposedly okay. I would rather completely change them out than blend.

[Gixer]

Again, my 2 cents...

1. I would NOT recommend synth oil during break-in. It prolongs the break-in period. You want those rings to seat and seal asap, as well as the bearings. Remember the manufacturer's are not necessarily looking out for the best interest of the bike, after all, maintenance is money for them, so just because the factory is using synth don't mean anything to me. Enough said.

2. Switching from standard to synth and vis-versa. YES you MUST flush!! Buy 2 oil filters, enough for 2 oil changes. Change the oil, ride for 100-300 miles, and then change it again. If you don't, your bike will feel 'off' (rougher shifting, etc) due to the two types blending. I personally use synth blend because I change my oil so often, it doesn't matter. It's half the price, and STILL has the benifits of synth. I know it seems odd to flush-out natural oil only to run a blend, but I am speaking from my own experience, and yes it does make a difference.

-Allan

[sAm]

Running a Synth blend will give you a bad result in the clutch department.  Wet clutches share the same oil going through your engine.  I've read, at least on the VStrom forums that Synth oils will mess with the clutch.  Even semi-synth is not a good idea.  So check very carefully some forums for your type of bike. (Duc excluded.  That knocking around means the dry clutch is actualy healthy).