I have seen threads in the past about specific oils for wheelers/motorcycles, but I know that my manual showed that certain regular oils were acceptable back when it was written. I have an '87 250 fourtrax and was looking to run 5w-30 synthetic (Mobil or Valvoline). Anyone using these or other non-Honda/non-M rated oils or have feelings either way??

Thanks.

 

Why you don't want to run "car" oil....not even in your car: ThumperFaq: 4-Stroke Oil

More good stuff: Oils Well That Ends Well, Part 1 - Sport Rider Magazine

The different synthetics: http://www.maximausa.com/technical/l...beNews2002.pdf

The best oil for an enigne with an integrated transmission, is going to be a motorcycle specific and rated API SG/JASO MA.

Honda sells to a world wide market, and in many parts of the world motorcycle oils are just not available like they are here. That is why the owner's manual lets you run "car" oils that are NOT "energy conserving". Are these good oils for your quad???? No way! They will contain friction modifiers that are not great for your clutch, and will not have the robust anti-wear additive package that your transmission needs. Leave them for folks in Afganistan who can't find anything better.

Spend a couple extra dollars for motorcycle oil! Personally, I run nothing but ester based synthetics, from Redline and Maxima.

 

Do you even have an owner's manual???

Old school air cooled engines with slack tolerances, require thicker oils than newer water cooled engines with tighter tolerances. The thicker oils are needed to bridge the larger gaps between moving parts. While 5W30 is probably ok for very cold weather, go back to something like 10W40 as soon as the weather warms up again.

 

Valvoline 10w40 ATV oil.

 

yeah, i do have the owners (operator's) manual that is why I wondered what differences in oil that they were not able to forsee that far back. It had called for 10-30 to 10-40 weight oils in my climate temps. I usually feel that I can drop a weight with the synthetic formulas, but wondered about other variables. I know that my artic cat runs 0-40 synthetic but it is an '04. Looks like I'll have to beef up the viscosity in the summer here in Minnesota.