Y2K_Kodiak, I've been away for a week so I couldn't reply to your comments before this. I didn't clarify my comments very well as I had a Kawasaki Prairie engine on my mind when I made them to Muddiver, but my point to him was that his Prairie will work fine on a GOOD automotive oil and there is no need to pay through the nose for ATV or motorcycle oil. I do NOT believe in going cheap on oils or filters and do NOT believe in a "use whatever fits" mentality. I apologize if I gave that impression. You are right that some of the specialty oils have different additives than automotive oils may have; for use with wet clutches etc.. I should have added that, but I have had a Honda XR185 dirt bike for years and have only used automotive oil in it and the clutch works great and has never been touched. If I was racing, I would probably want an oil specifically designed for a wet clutch, and I would certainly have a different opinion if I had experienced slipping or wear problems, but I haven't needed it in the Hondas I've had, or in a Yamaha ATC my Dad had (maybe we've been lucky with all of them). I've had disscussions with dealers on this over the years, and they have different opinions too, but I've never been told that there would be no warranty if I didn't use their oil. I think that many of them charge far too much for their oils and that the advertizing is sometimes missleading. In my XR's overhaul manual it says to use a 4-stroke motor oil for motorcycles "or equivalent" but gives no details. I think that if you Must have their additives, then they should be much more specific. In the Kawasaki Prairie overhaul manual it says to use SE, SF, or SG oil of various multi-grade viscosities. This as you know is a belt drive, so it does not have a wet clutch, and is a water-cooled engine which means it has a better controlled operating temperature range than an air-cooled engine, therefore it doesn't need any special oil. That was the point I was trying to make to Muddiver. You mentioned using "slick 50". I've been a mechanic for my whole working life and have been to seminars on oils put on by the oil companys, and I've always been told they don't feel that there is a need for additives like that. They will tell you that if those additives were of any significant advantage, they'd have something similar in the oil. Some engine manufacturers suggest that you don't use them in their products. I have never been convinced that they are worth the money, but obviously not everyone agrees. It is hard to tell how well a product like that works unless you were to have several identical engines and all were tested under the exact same conditions for the same period and then evaluated. Consumers Reports has done tests like this from time to time but I don't remember them ever saying that one of these additives produced any noticeable advantages. As far as filters are concerned, some are built more poorly than others, but the Wix one that I told Muddiver about is not. The one that fits the Prairie is a #51358. Buy one and cut it apart and compare it to the Kawasaki filter from Japan. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised. Please let us know what you find. Wix is a branch of Dana Corporation in Gastonia N.C.. Since you know lots about filters, I'm sure you already knew that, so I'm surprised that you think they are inferior. Wix has been around for many years and has a good name. If I thought they were poorly made, I wouldn't have mentioned them. It wasn't long ago that most motorcycles, ATC's and ATV's didn't even have oil filters (just screens) and were all air cooled, and most of them lasted well if serviced properly. As far as I'm, concerned, the most important thing is to make sure that the air filter is clean and sealing properly, and that you change your oil and filter before it is really dirty. Then, if you bought a well designed engine, it should last a long time. You know---most people spend far less time worrying about the type of oil and filter they use on their $50,000 car than we are on a $5,000 ATV!

 

Chris,

Give me a fork and show me my words. Spent a few minutes at Wal-Mart looking at the back of various brands of motor oil and did find several that touted their use of "friction modifiers". Decided to drop by the local ATV dealer to compare labels. Finally decided on a purchase of 20W-40 grade Yamalube since the front label clearly stated "Non-friction Modified".

Replaced the Valvoline 10W-30 oil along with a new filter to see if I could detect any improved performance from my Bayou 220. I must admit that the clutch appears to transfer power between gear shifts much quicker with the Yamalube.

One thing that I might add is that 10W-40 appears to be the most widely available oil made escpecially for ATV's. In this case I chose the 20W-40 grade of Yamalube knowing that with a smaller viscosity range, it contained more oil and less non-lubricating additives than any grade of 10W-40 oil.

Thanks for the tip.