Which motor oil do you suggest?

[StratTuner]

I never saw one when I took the drain bolt out.
I drained into an oil pan and then poured that into a gallon plastic jug.
Didn't see one then.
I sincerely hope it's stuck to the engine!
the cost of finding that out will be another oil change.
I'll inspect and see if I can see it under the drain bolt.

When I look at it, there seems to be a washer under the bolt. (it's a bit hard to tell...)
It's not leaking oil...clean under the bike.

I will remember that there is a "crush washer" and look for it in 7,400 miles.
thanks for replying!

well... maybe 2000 miles... not sure if I want to go with the 8000 mile oil changes. I trust the OEM's judgement there, but still...

 

[dduelin]

Go look at the plug now. You wouldn't need another oil change. Worst case you could install a washer without loosing more than a couple ounces of oil by putting your thumb on the hole while you add the washer to the bolt. I suspect you may have too much oil in the engine anyway since you put all four quarts in.

Greg

+1.. Or lay the bike down on the right side and remove the drain bolt.

 

[showkey]

Should we be as worried about lower ZDDP level nowadays since the NC engine uses roller rockers?

Greg

I am not worried .................if it is a problem it is on older engines.........and agree roller rockers are part of the solution.

Every good oil thread needs ZDDP and zinc etc discussions.

I am kinda in the camp if there's oil in it and its not too slippery ................no real bad things are going to happen.

 

[dduelin]

Every good oil thread needs ZDDP and zinc etc discussions.

+1. It looked like this one was going to peter out without mention of ZDDP. I was obligated.

 

[StratTuner]

loosened the drain bolt enough to see (and spin) the washer underneath. No oil loss.

 

[670cc]

loosened the drain bolt enough to see (and spin) the washer underneath. No oil loss.

Aw, shoot! Technically, now that you tightened, then loosened it, the washer needs to be replaced! Ha,ha, it just never ends.

Seriously, you're fine. Come back to it in 7400 miles.

Greg

 

[bo7o]

+1. It looked like this one was going to peter out without mention of ZDDP. I was obligated.

well I had never heard of ZDDP until this thread and I looked it up! So at least I'm learning something! I have actually enjoyed this thread. While I am mechanically inclined and I'm not afraid to take things apart - I'm a newbie to engines and motorbike mechanics so it's a great learning experience. I plan to do all my own servicing (just bought the official service manual from Helm). StratTuner - I'm glad you are doing all this stuff a few weeks ahead of me - thanks for posting the good ... and the bad!

 

[StratTuner]

Aw, shoot! Technically, now that you tightened, then loosened it, the washer needs to be replaced! Ha,ha, it just never ends.

Seriously, you're fine. Come back to it in 7400 miles.

Greg

Sure! Tease the NEW guy! Seriously.... this forum means a lot to me. Many thanks to everyone!

 

[bo7o]

So far today we have:
Honda GN4 10w-30
Honda HP4S synthetic 10w-30.
Maxima Maxum synthetic 10w40
Maxima synthetic 10w30 pro plus
Motul 300V 10W40 4T double ester full synthetic
Motul 5100 10W40 4T semi-synthetic
Shell Rotella T6 5w40
Royal Purple Max Cycle 10w-40
In mine I put "Valvoline 4-stroke Motorcycle Oil 10w-40" 'cuz it was cheap.

Any more?

Beemerphile and Turbodiesel recommended Amsoil 10W-30 in another thread. It seems to meet all the requirements from the manual.

 

[JDE]

Beemerphile and Turbodiesel recommended Amsoil 10W-30 in another thread. It seems to meet all the requirements from the manual.

I too plan on using Amsoil at my next oil change.

 

[showkey]

Aw, shoot! Technically, now that you tightened, then loosened it, the washer needs to be replaced! Ha,ha, it just never ends.

Seriously, you're fine. Come back to it in 7400 miles.

Greg

Ah shoot. x2.............we could have gotten into annealing the washer will still on plug, plug loose in the engine with a slight oil leak to act as the quenching agent.

OR ..............Tighten it up and call it done..........

 

[Starwise]

I bought 4 liter bottles of Bel-Ray 10W-40 Bel-Ray EXL Mineral 4T Engine Oil | Bel-Ray Company, Inc from a service shop closeby and after oil change the engine runs noticeably softer.

Aren't you supposed to use mineral oil well over 5K mark, even 10? Before switching to use synthetic that is.

 

[Beemerphile]

I bought 4 liter bottles of Bel-Ray 10W-40 Bel-Ray EXL Mineral 4T Engine Oil | Bel-Ray Company, Inc from a service shop closeby and after oil change the engine runs noticeably softer.

Aren't you supposed to use mineral oil well over 5K mark, even 10? Before switching to use synthetic that is.

Honda makes no such requirement. That is kind of "old practice". Porsche, Mercedes, and Corvette all have synthetic oil as the factory fill. Corvette has been doing it for twenty years - Porsche a little longer than that. You can change to synthetic at the 600 mile change or the 8000 mile change without worry.

 

[Starwise]

I guess that's inherited from my dad and his buddies, they always said to break in new engines with the "real stuff". I'm not going to run the engine to 8k for the next oil change though, will do next one at 5k mark or thereabout.

Dealer service guys recommended 2000-3000 mile intervals and that feels a bit short.

 

[Beemerphile]

I guess that's inherited from my dad and his buddies, they always said to break in new engines with the "real stuff".

That is historically correct. I did it too "in the day", however times change.

I'm not going to run the engine to 8k for the next oil change though, will do next one at 5k mark or thereabout.

I felt the same way. In fact, today I changed my oil at 5,000 miles. I am using Amsoil 10W-30 motorcycle oil. I was surprised at how good the oil looked and felt. I am sure that it would have been fine for the additional 3,000 miles. The filter was essentially empty when I cut it open. This change I used Amsoil 10W-40 Scooter Oil that I had left over from my Yamaha TMax. That is not a very Beemerphile-like thing for me to do, but it met all the requirements in the service manual... JASO MA, SG+, and the 10W-40 weight is allowed. Too expensive to throw away and too difficult to sell.

Dealer service guys recommended 2000-3000 mile intervals and that feels a bit short.

Dealer service guys are selling dealer service. They still put 3,000 mile oil change reminders on your car at some quick change places. I normally would not have that data point except i couldn't crawl under the wife's Suburban to do a change after one of my recent surgeries.

 

[bikerguy]

I have always used Mobil oils in all my vehicles with good results.

 

[Old Can Ride]

The brand of oil you use is not as important, as the fact that No motorcycle oil for "everyday street use" should contain "molly". That oil is for high performance racers that have a sponsor who is paying for their new clutch. In a time span of always over 25,000 miles molly will cause clutch plates to slip. When you see clutch plates that are ruined by molly there is no doubt, they are blue in color. Most high performance motorcycle oils, including Honda high performance synthetic , do have molly in them. Yes molly does give a slight performance bust, and racers look for anything for speed. Honda GN oils do not have molly, that's why it is recommended for this bike.

A Honda engineer went to great lengths explaining to me what that blue stuff is on the slippery clutches is! That's "molly". Yes synthetic molly is better oil that GN, you'll be a hair faster and the engine will last a little longer , but at a clutch cost.

Always use molly oils in your automobile. Autos have a dry clutch, but motorcycles have wet clutches.

 

[MZ5]

Since this seems to be our 'oil thread' of choice, I've attached the first UOA I've run on my NCX. This is Lubrication Engineers' 10W30 all-fleet oil (meaning both gasoline and diesel rated), LE-8130. As is nearly always the case with L-E products, IME, wear is low. Fuel content is quite surprisingly high (since all I do is commute on highways & freeways in warm weather), which makes the low wear all the more impressive.

 

[Beemerphile]

Since this seems to be our 'oil thread' of choice, I've attached the first UOA I've run on my NCX. This is Lubrication Engineers' 10W30 all-fleet oil (meaning both gasoline and diesel rated), LE-8130. As is nearly always the case with L-E products, IME, wear is low. Fuel content is quite surprisingly high (since all I do is commute on highways & freeways in warm weather), which makes the low wear all the more impressive.

I thought my oil smelled a bit strong of fuel when I changed it recently. Not enough to thin the viscosity noticeably but enough to smell.

Just so I can be the first to ask ... Is the LE oil JASO MA rated?

 

[StratTuner]

this thread has some really good information. I refer back to it often.