Has anyone used Mobil 1 or any of the other synthetic oils in a Rancher es with the auto clutch ? Or any other atv with the same set up ?
Just curious if its ok or not. New to this and havn't seen any msg's about this subject. Thanks to you all.

01 Rancher ES 4x4
2000 warn
soft rear rack bag won at ATV stuff .com

 

I've used Mobil 1 10w-30 in a Rancher ES and Recon once I figured they were broken in. It exceeds any petroleum oil in any application, and should have even more of an edge in hot air-cooled engines. Some guys have talked about the special needs of a clutch/gearcase for which they make a special motorcycle Mobil 1--have to look into that and see if it's necessary.
I also use Mobil 1 gear oil in the rear axles (the Rancher is 2wd)--for the few ounces they take the extra $ is nothing, and like the engine oil it's much better in hot and cold weather. Where you live it could be hotter and colder than out here.

 

I would never argue that synthetic oil will outperform conventional, especially in such severe conditions as extreme heat (pulling heavy loads at slow speeds on hot days), severe cold (below zero conditions) or between unusually long oil changes. Still, I agree with those who feel the extra cost does not justify any increase in performance under more normal conditions and proper maintenance (oil changes as required intervals).

Another approach that many have taken to justify the expense is to simply change oil at twice the interval of that required for conventional oil. When you think about it, that is probably what many manufacturers consider when setting the price of synthetics.

 

If you equate "outperform" with less wear, which to me is the most logical way for judging oil (for all practical purposes the only way?), than I think synthetic certainly justifies the extra expense. I spent a lot of money on these toys and another $2/qt (or about $4 for each oil change) is small peanuts if I needn't worry so much about what's going on inside that finned cylinder.
And I don't think it has to be 0 deg or 110 to see an advantage. Clearances in any engine I would imagine are much different at 40F than 85F for instance, and an air-cooled engine I would also suppose often runs cooler on the front of the cylinder than on the back, and can change temp very quickly once the vehicle is in motion. And even at a steady and easy clip of 20mph temps must be a lot different at 40deg than 85. A tough chore for an oil.
As a side note, my '86 Mazda pu has 204,000 mi on it, and beneath the valve cover it's as clean as the day I bought it. I've changed Mobil 1 every 8,000 mi, filter every 4,000, and I could well have gone beyond that if I had had the better filters that are around today. And I know that a bunch of other vehicles have gone further than that with conventional stuff, but the point is: synthetic is proven to be greatly superior to regular goop in reducing metal-to-metal wear in such tough areas as the cam/rocker shear surface, and it "cooks" at a much higher temp, which would seem a definite advantage in an air-cooled engine.
I don't know--my Hondas may still wear out sooner than I would like, or I might trade the Rancher for a Rubicon and thereby have wasted the extra bucks spent on oil. (I'll get them to knock off another $10 on the Rubie, which should cover it.) But I like well-made machinery and the companies which produce it, so I try to give it all the help I can.

 

HEY GOOCH,
IM PICKING UP MY RANCHER AND RECON TOMORROW AND WANTED TO ASK YOU HOW LONG SHOULD THE MOTOR BE BROKEN IN FOR. ALSO ARE YOU USING MOBIL 1 10W-30 FOR AUTOS OR MOTERCYCLES. I FEEL THE WAY YOU DO. 9 OUT OF 10 GUYS SAY ITS NOT NESCISARY BUT IN THE LONG RUN I DO BELIVE IT HELPS. ONE MORE THING HOW LONG TO YOU TYPICALLY GO BETWEEN CHANGES.
THANKS HENNYHOG

 

Your comments would lead one to believe that engine owners are foolish to buy anything but synthetic oil. There are millions of vehicle owners out there (both past and present) that have logged billions of problem free miles while using conventional oil. I myself have logged over 700,000 miles combined in four separate vehicles. When it comes to longivity, I'll take my chances by placing more emphasis on the quality of the engine rather than in making sure I use synthetic oil.

 

Thanks for all the imput on this subject.
A few yrs back the wife bought a turbo charged Pontiac and we toured the factory at KC and talked to some of the engineers and when we asked about synthetic oil they said we can't tell you that you should use it but, they did admit they had it in their own personal autos.

 

I have always run snythic after breakin.. but this winter I figured my old 86' 200SX isnt worth it anymore and dumped in honda GN4 10W40 standard oil as I figured id only be puting around the house, but then all my friends wanted to ride sled trails. Long story short= after 2 strait hours of full throttle in 5th trying to hold 45MPH the engine got super hot and has developed a lovely rythomic knock that sounds like lower rod or camshaft as it only knocks on the power stroke. Convintional oil NEVER AGAIN!
91' XR250R, 85'XR500R, 84'Big Red200es always fed Amsoil 20W50 and never had a engine problem
77' Dodge van 5.9L with 450,000 miles on same engine=Amsiol 10W30
88' Hyundai 300,000 miles=Amsiol 10W30
90' Toyota 4x4 155,000= Amsoil 10W30
all oil changed yearly on quads/bikes and every 5K miles on cars.

 

hennyhog:

As for break-in, being new to atvs when I got mine back in March I generally went with what more experienced guys said around here. I think it was 2-3 tanks of gas? They did seem to loosen up some after that and run a little smoother. Just take it easy on the thumb throttle til then.
I suppose leaving it in 2-3 times longer than conventional oil would do ok, but that's what I did for the truck--maybe these engines should be done a little differently. And change the filter once or twice in that time I guess. One thing I don't like about the Recon is its lack of an external filter--having to open up the case to get at a screen is goofy--how much would it have cost Honda to put on a real filter?
I would think any oil's useful life is dependant on a good filter to remove contaminents. After all, oil can't dissolve metal particles, and I wonder how efficient those screens are. With an engine without a real filter like the Recon maybe the oil should be changed more often to purge that stuff better. But there's another question--once it's broken in, how much harmful stuff is produced? And I've heard bad things about Fram filters lately--does anyone know of a better one for a Rancher?

 

Yes I am a also a firm believer in Sythetic oil. And I did alot of research on it and have found that Mobil 1 is indeed one of the very best.
I will not use Sythetic to break in an engine because it lubricates so well that nothing will seat properly so for a break-in period I would use regular oil but after that I would most certanley use Synthetic. Besides it is only a little bit more and if you are anything like me your bike is your baby and it deserves the best......lol
These are just my thoughts on the subject though so you should make up your own mind.

Have a good one