For those of you who use car oil because it is cheap, consider Valvoline ATV oil. It is available at Auto Zone @ 3.39$/qt. This price is very close to the cost of car oil. The Valvoline website has product info that states that its ATV oil has more than 12X the amount of phosphorus and 1.3X the amount of zinc than its car oil has. Zinc and phosphorus are anti-wear additives that must be limited in car oils (cat-converters don't like it). I can understand why some riders who change oil often do not want to buck up for synthetics or motorcycle dealer oil prices. At 3.39$/qt. and readily available, it may be a wise choice for those of you who use car oil because of the low price. No, I do not work for Valvoline or Auto Zone and I have not used it yet. I did buy all they had on the shelf and I plan to use it next oil change. I was a Honda GN4 user, but the GN4 has to meet motorcycle cat-converter specs and lacks the anti-wear package that Valvoline can put in its ATV oil.


Ocean

 

Why you don't want to run "car" oils...even in your car: http://www.thumperfaq.com/oil.htm


The best oils for a quad will be motorcycle sepecific API SG/JASO MA (which I assume this oil is???). The SG insures that it has at least minimal amounts of anti-wear additives, and the MA insures that it is safe for your wet clutch.

 

Valvoline ATV 4 stroke oil 10W-40, JASO MA, API SF/SG/SJ. I like that because it is an ATV specific oil, it has more phosphorus than a motorcycle oil can have (cat -converter equiped motorcycles hate phosphorus). It has about 8.8X the amount of phosphorus than Valvoline motorcycle oil. I love the smell of burning phosphorus- smells like victory! Did you ever see the word phosphorus so many times in one paragraph?


Ocean

 

Thanks for the tip, found it at Advanced Auto Parts too.

 

That's very good news. I've been using the Castrol Act-Evo 10W-40, which also meets all the aforementioned standards, but costs $5 per quart with shipping when ordering enough for two oil changes from Cycle Gear.

After my next oil change I just might try the new Valvoline ATV oil, after I use up the Castrol Act-Evo I've already bought. One important thing for me is how smoothly the transmission shifts with a different oil. The Castrol Act-Evo is a synthetic blend which seemed to help my transmission shift smoother from first to second gear, which had been a little stiff at times before I started using this oil. Maybe it was just that the transmission was so new at the time, and has now smoothed out from use, but we'll see. I have a lot of hours to put on before I need to buy more oil.

 

Hate to spoil the love fest and say that while an API SG petroleum oil is a good oil, it is only the bare minimum when it comes to protection for your engine! The synthetics have many advantages over basic petroleum oil, and the ester synthetics have decided advantages over the other two types of synthetics. If you run in very cold or very hot weather, you especially should be running a synth.

For those who want overkill when it comes to engine protection, I highly recommend spending a few extra dollars for an ester synthetic! After much study, I am running Maxima Extra for years now in all my quads and dirt bikes.

http://www.maximausa.com/techn...enews/LubeNews2002.pdf

 

I guess it boils down to each person having to weigh the cost vs. benefit in deciding which oil to use.

Let's assume that I want to use the very best oil, which for the sake of argument let's say is Maxima Maxum 4 Extra 100% ester-based synthetic 10w-40 motorcycle oil. I find it on americanmototire.com for $10.35 per liter (qt.) This seems to be a good price for this product. My Rancher takes 3 liters each oil change. I can minimize shipping cost by ordering enough for two oil changes at once. Six liters comes to $62.10, plus $11.54 shipping by ground to Oregon, for a total of $73.64, so the cost of oil for one oil change is $36.82. This is expensive, but the company literature on this product is very impressive, and one could easily believe it will make your engine last forever.

Maybe it's worth $36.82 each oil change (plus $6 for the Honda oil filter)to make the engine last forever. But this compares to $15 per oil change if I use Castrol Act-Evo synthetic blend 10w-40. This cheaper oil may not allow the engine to last forever, but given timely oil changes and other proper maintenance, will I live long enough to see the engine wear out? I don't think so.

The same oil change with Valvoline ATV 4 stroke oil 10W-40 comes to $10.17, based on the price ocean quotes, and this petroleum-based oil is still rated JASO MA, API SF/SG/SJ. Would I live long enough to see the engine wear out using this oil? I'm not sure I will ever ride enough miles to see it in this case either.

 

To each his on i use the same oil i've used since i got my first , second and third quad and iv've tried all the brands mentioned here ; but i have always come back to the first brand i first used ! Castrol GTX that meet's the SE , SF or SG API service classification 10w40 in winter and 20w50 in summer and all three still run as good as the day i got them ! I even ask my Dealer if it was ok to use the Castrol that i used in my 86' Honda TRX 350 Foreman , the 93' Suzuki LTF4WD 300 King Quad and the 2006 Arctic Cat 400 FIS Auto 4x4; and she said yes it was safe to use ! So that's what i used in them all , and it cost almost $4.00 a quart ; so if the Dealer say's it's good enough for her quad then it's good enough for me ! nuff said and have a good day ! ..................

 

VERY good point. When I was in to street bikes, my fellow riders would get wrapped up in this discussion frequently. Some would end up spending serious bucks on oil changes. Then someone would eventually bring up the question "How many engines have you seen ruined by the brand or type of oil one uses?" Most likely none. Maybe by the lack of oil changes but not by the brand or type.
Growing up, I personally thought Quaker State oil was junk, but I know people who have used it for thousands of miles with no problems.

As woodrat said, I don't think I would live to see if it ruined my engine or not either. To each his own.

 

why don't u just use a full syn. like amsoil and be done yes it may cost a good penny but it is worth it been usen it for awile now.