I've had several atv's bikes etc.. manual says change oil after the 1st 20hrs then 100hrs from then on..I think thats what I remember reading.

however, what do you guys recommend? I have approx. 3hrs on it now. I was harder on this one than my others on the break in. On fourtrax 300's I've had in the past I babied them for several days..However, on this 400ex I rode it pretty easy for about 20mins then I was going through the gears at sometimes full throttle..hope I haven't jumped the gun and it come back and bite me!

also on the oil I bought Pro Honda GN4 10w40 oil when I bought it....then got home and read the manual it says 10w30 then a page over where it covers what you CAN use says 10w30 or 10w40 or I think 5w30 depending on your climate..I'm in SC figure I should stay with the 10w40 or swap it for the 10w30 next time I'm at the dealer...I'm sure they would do it.

*one other thing do new atv's come with oil in them or do the dealers put it in? I figured the initial oil is a break in oil whether it be thicker or thinner and come in them from honda???

reason I ask the above question is mine is overfilled..it is approx. the width of my pinky finger over the full mark when I check it and no I'm not screwing the dip stick in to check it..I may drain a tad out think this will hurt anything?

 

first, most do not come with oil in them. Or at least from what I remember from working at a stealership years ago.

second, the oil they use is most likely cheap generic oil that they buy in bulk for as low a price as they can get... So, don't be afraid to change it out early.

third, the 400EX is a dry sump oil system. . . Over filling is only a little more oil in the res. can. Nothing to worry about there. It's not like extra oil will be up into the moving parts as it could with a wet sump oil system.

fourth, the pro honda oil is good. . . But remember it only has oil and air flow to cool the engine, conventional oil does not have the thermal protection that a good synthetic oil has.

Just my .02 but Honda's are known for their reliability no matter how hard you beat on them. As long as you don't beat on it the goal of blowing it up, you're not likely to hurt it.

 

This post is a old, and I think we answered all these questions in the Honda forum......