Oil change light

[SportsterDoc]

Lot of good background in post 20, Ron...may explain a lot.

My rough guidelines remain:

Dino oil: 3K intervals
Synthetic blend: 4K intervals
Pure synthetic: 5K intervals

No way I am going 6K or more between oil changes, even with pure synthetic.

I would have done the first change by now, but the factory oil still looks new. I do plan to switch to 10W50 Castrol synthetic by summer.

Factory oil is rated, per the manual, up to 104 F and I have been in 111 F already, but not high speed or long distance.

Most of my M/C served well with Castrol 20W50, both Sportsters used H-D 360 (no particular good reason) and the Moto Guzzi Motoul 10W60.

My first synthetic experience was Castrol 20W50 in the Bonneville. With an oil cooler and twin oil pumps, although air cooled, never behaved hot, even across the desert from LA to Las Vegas in the summer and a ~500 mile one day trip on the Extraterrestrial Highway loop.

Not pushing Castrol, but do recommend selecting a quality brand, then continue with same.

In 1977, I sold a 71 Chevrolet Chevelle Malibu to a friend. I had used only 10/30 Quakerstate, since new; but my friend liked Castrol (which I have mainly used for Japanese bikes). He switched, but complained that it was using oil. The 307 (Quad carb, aluminum high rise manifold, Hooker headers, aftermarket dual exhausts) had about 70,000 miles, but no oil consumption could be noted on the dip stick, between 3,000 mile interval oil changes.
After a couple years, he in turn sold it to a mutual friend, who went back to the original oil and then had no notable consumption between oil changes. Did the additives conflict?

 

[EdMat]

It is interesting that the shear characteristics for both the 998 and the 1330 engines are very similar. Allowing for riding styles, loading and environment variables. I would say that they are nearly identical (other than the relatively high oil usage of the 998, which really does not affect this conversation).

The service interval for the V-Twin is still 4,500 miles (all the way up until the last production year of 2016). This has not changed. Which is interesting because 4,500 miles is about where the oil really starts to show a steep decline in viscosity. Makes sense to change at this point.

So, why would the 1330, which is arguably at least as hard on oil as the 998, have a service interval over twice what is required for the 998. It is know that there was a lot of pressure on BRP to reduce service costs and extend service interval times for the new Spyder engine which came out in 2014.

.

One might think that from the oil in the 998 getting freshened on a regular basis it might even out perform the oil in the 1330. Could it be the clutch not locking up as quickly with the 998 caused the oil to breakdown a little faster? Just some thoughts.

 

[PW2013STL]

Why if you use the proper oil you can go the full 9200 miles

You can. I did on our RT without any issues. Traded it in at 84,000 miles and it was running strong. We took the RT to Alaska and back on one oil change (9600 miles) I then sent that oil in for testing. The results were good, and it was recommended to go an additional 1000 miles, or 10,600 on the fresh oil, and have that tested.
I did not do that, but I do go 9200 between changes. I do use full synthetic.

 

[Mazo EMS2]

Uhhhh guys.....I think this one fell off the tracks, going from "is there an oil change light" to an oil brand debate......Who lured you in?..LOL

 

[VStarRider]

Back on topic ... when I drain my oil, I like to start up the engine and run it wide open for 5-10 seconds ... polish up the cylinder walls and pistons.

 

[Greven]

Back on topic ... when I drain my oil, I like to start up the engine and run it wide open for 5-10 seconds ... polish up the cylinder walls and pistons.

Gotta get rid of that pesky cross hatching in the bores!! Also dont want old bearing materials, ewww, better to shave some off!

 

[AeroPilot]

Uhhhh guys.....I think this one fell off the tracks, going from "is there an oil change light" to an oil brand debate......Who lured you in?..LOL

Because there is something about smelling that fresh oil, and watching that "golden elixir" pour back into our rides that gives us the feeling that Boy this engine is running smooth and right now!!!

Gotta love jumping on an oil thread...Sorry, now back to the regular programming!

 

[IdahoMtnSpyder]

I suggest you dive into researching "used oil analysis".
I can assure you that at 9200 miles, your 40 weight oil will check in at a 20 weight.
By 4000 miles, you are in the 30 weight range because of the shearing effects on the viscosity improvers in the oil.
If everyone thinks that's OK, go ahead and change with a 5w20 oil in the first place. If 20 weight is good enough at 9000 miles, it must be good enough at zero.
Do what you want, your choice.
There is more to oil science than a manufacturers recommendation, because their goal is only to get past warranty.

Sorry, but my experience and oil analysis doesn't support your contention. The viscosity of 40w oil ranges from 12.5 to 16.3. See the chart here: https://wiki.anton-paar.com/en/sae-viscosity-grades/. As you can see in the three analysis results below the viscosity of the Amsoil 10w-40 oil I use has stayed at 13+ for 10,719 miles, 4200 miles, and 8150 miles. The mileage for the 2020 results should be the 2020 miles minus the 2018 miles. From what I have read the number that really matters is the Base Number and as long as that is above 3 it is good to neutralize engine acids.