I change my oil about every 8 to 10 rides, too much or too little, costs 30 bucks a shot hope not too little.

 

manual says every 6mos but too much will never hurt...... a lot depends on the oil you are running, the climate you are in (how hot/cold, how dusty etc..) so really do it as often as you feel......

 

I use GN4

 

GN4 is a NON-synthetic dino oil so would change it more often than what the manual says..... Dino oils break down a lot faster than full or even partial synthetics.

 

what is the best oil to use that wont cost me too much

 

first im not sure if your bike takes anything special, but i use regular motor oil
look on the back there is a circle make sure it doesn't say energy concervation,
second check the letter's sj, sh, and i think sl, not sure on that one . but check your manual if it doesnt list synthetic, you should be in buiesness. there is one brand of mobil 1 syn that is listed for 4 strokes, as well as 1 brand of penzoil, castrol, and some generic auto store oil ,[ advanced auto ] i use and change often since its cheap and easy to get. i talked to a rep for one brand i use, they said because auto oil has so many rules and guidelines that it is held to a higher standard, there for it should be equal to [at least] most shelf bike/atv oil
how true that is , i don't know , but i've run it for 8 years. in my 650 with no prob's , as a side note if i was extremly hard on the clutch that day, i'll change it after one day . contamination kill's

 

No do not use any automotive oil in your z400....... You need the oil made for wet clutches because auto oils are not designed to stand up to the constant shearing of the clutch. And do not believe for one second that automotive oils are held to a higher standard, that is totally not true. Motorcycle oils are designed to a WAY higher standard since they are made for machines that routinely scream at 12,000 RPMs with compression ratios over 10 and wet clutches. There is NO comparison to a good motorcycle oil.

I use Amsoil, and change it about every 6 months or so. It is better to spend more on the oil and change it a little less, than it is to use to wrong oil and change it more.

 

+ 1 on what ss97 said....and the amsoil is a great product! The synth may be more expensive but to me it's worth every penny[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

makes sence.. thanks

 

if you no anything about oil all brands rated sj, sh, are for wet clutches and designed for 4 strokes . and is exactly what my service manual list's for my bike
sae 10 w 40 sj or sh, alot of manufactur's make ther own with ther special letters , to get you to buy there oil , do what you want, . but i put 5+ years on my yz 400, and 8+ on my ds, and when i recently installed my big bore , my motor looked new and clean inside, and got 4+ years out of my last clutch, . do you think all the big name's arn't interested in selling oil to people with wet clutches?
they are all rated SAE so if the letters match it is the same