Most folks neglect regular oil changes, much less seasonal ones....but the savy owner will change to a thinner oil for winter!

Consult your owner's manual for what to run at whatever temperature you are at. Try to stay in the MIDDLE of the recommended range, and stay away from the extremes. Just because 10W40 can do a cold start at 15 degrees F, doesn't mean that that is a greatest idea!!! For most machines, that means at least 10W30, or more likely 5W30 or even 0W30 for very cold weather. If it is synthetic, all the better!

Remember....most engine wear occurs at a cold startup! The thinner the oil the more "pumpable" it will be, and the sooner it will get pumping and get out there to protect your engine! Also, thick oil will bog down your crank, so you will be down on power. Thinner oil can mean better performance!!!

I run Redline 10W30 in my sport quads, becasue they get ridden in the relatively mild desert in winter, but for the Ranchers which get ridden in the mountain snows, I run Maxima 530MX or Maxima Ultra 0W30 if it were extremely cold....all high quality ester synthetics that are extremely pumpable at low temps.

 

I have used Aeroshell 15W-50 Semi-Synthetic in all my Aircooled Quads for years now. I have had good luck with starting down to -10F, I used to put Phillips XC 20W-50 in the Bayou 220, because it wasn't used in the winter and I was unsure what the semi-syn would do to the wet clutch. You can't beat an oil designed for aircooled engines, for an aircooled application.

P.S. I won't plow if it colder than -10F, I'm too old for that sh...

 

question for reconranger, im currently using 10-w40 in my foreman, the average temp is 20 degreese outside. where on the net could i buy some 5w-30 synthetic? and what brand woulr you recomend? thanks a bunch

 

2W- Polaris oil is thin enough for me. I used to use 0W- Polaris oil. I don't think it gets any thinner than 0.

 

what temp you rideing at jumbofrank?

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: cherokee99

what temp you rideing at jumbofrank?</end quote></div>

I don't know exactly, but probably below zero in winter up to the 90's in summer. It gets too hot and too cold in Michigan. Both the 0W-40 and 2W-50 work all year.

EDIT: After I thought about it a couple days I'm probably NOT riding below zero. Not anymore. If it gets too cold to snow I don't have to plow and I'll stay in where it's nice and warm. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: cherokee99

question for reconranger, im currently using 10-w40 in my foreman, the average temp is 20 degreese outside. where on the net could i buy some 5w-30 synthetic? and what brand woulr you recomend? thanks a bunch</end quote></div>

In my Honda owner's manuals, 10W40 goes down into the high teens....but that doesn't mean that it is a good idea to run it down there. The occasional cold start down there might be ok, but to do it continuously is just silly, seeing that you can do a quick oil change and get a margin of safety that you otherwise would not have.

See your owner's manual, but my 01 Rancher recommends 5W30 for the lower temps. The ester syntetic oils have big advantages over everything else! I like Maxima 530MX, but this is a very high tech oil and is expensive. I think Klotz makes an ester 5W30 as well. Honda has a new synthetic (red bottle) that is 5W30, as I recall (???). For those on a budget, Maxima Premium is a reasonably priced petroleum based 5W30.

http://www.maximausa.com/produ...oke/maxum4premium.asp


http://www.maximausa.com/products/4stroke/530mx.asp

On the net, I would try onoffroad, rockymountain, or chaparral for hard to find oils. (530MX is a fairly new product, so if you don't see it in the catalog, call them and ask....)

 

http://powersports.honda.com/d...Oil_and_Chemicals.pdf


Honda appears to make reasonably priced petroleum GN4 in 5W30, and HP4 synthetic/petroleum blend in 0W30, and full synthetic HP4S in 10W30. You might find these easily at your local dealer????

We don't see these thin Honda oils very often here in the southwest. Our deserts are fairly mild in winter (but Las Vegas got snow this week!), but we do have mountains where it gets very cold (my local mountains got 3' of snow this week!), and the hills right behind my house have snow on them right now!

 

so redline 10-30 in my ex is your recommendation? i need to change before i go sunday. and yes, we did get snow in Vegas! in fact some is still on the ground. we went for a little ride in it wed. night after work which was when the big storm hit. froze myself, but it was a blast. we got about 4.5" or something, the record is 7" in 1979.

 

<div class="FTQUOTE"><begin quote>Originally posted by: strkmad

so redline 10-30 in my ex is your recommendation? i need to change before i go sunday. and yes, we did get snow in Vegas! in fact some is still on the ground. we went for a little ride in it wed. night after work which was when the big storm hit. froze myself, but it was a blast. we got about 4.5" or something, the record is 7" in 1979.</end quote></div>

That's what I run for winter desert riding (motorcycle oil in the black bottle, not car oil in the white bottle.) Might be hard to find though, and it is pricey! I don't take the 2wd quads to the mountains in winter, so I don't go any thinner than 10W30 for them. If you can't find Redline, give Honda HP4S a try.