On the Honda forum there is a topic on what oil to run in an ATV. I was just wondering what everyone is using, since my 375 has gotten its first oil change (10w-40 GTX). A Guy at work who has always owned bikes said that he uses automotive oil and has never had any ill effects. But dirt bikers have told me that motorcycle oil contains special additives for wet clutches. No I've read on the Honda forum that typical automotive oils can slip past the rings. But looking around on the Internet I couldn't find any info separating motorcycle/ATV oil from automotive. Any ideas?[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/img]

 

I found this article while searching around:

http://www.nightrider.com/biketech/oiltest1.htm

Anyone have any thoughts?

 

I was told the same thing about oil and wet cluthes by a mechanic/dealership owner. I don't know though, I have been using auto oil in my other quads and never once had a problem or any signs of a problem. I think if you planned on using the quad allot, like 30 miles a day, you drive it hard and plan on doing those 2 things for like 10 years, then I could see a difference but not over the short term.

 

The 375 is an auto, so you really don't have to worry about the clutches. I use the Quaker State Semi Synthetic. I have been for the past 2 years and haven't had a single problem with it. I just make sure that the little circle that has all the test standards on it doesn't say "Energy Conserving" If it says "energy conserving" it has the friction modifiers in it and it may cause some slippage. Just stay away from Energy Conserving oils and you should be fine.

 

Minehunter hit the nail on the head with his comments about friction modifiers. Make sure there are none present in the oil. As a general rule they are not used in 10W40. The other thing to look out for is the quantity of viscosity improvers that are used to make the oil a multi grade. The better the quality of the base stock the less VI used. There is lots of good information available on the net.

Cheers Jim