Engine oil 83 GSX 1100E

[Russell]

What is the correct engine oil to run in these old girls, i have been told 15w-50 Shell Advance SX4 should do the job but not sure. I have only owned this monster for the last 3 months and do not know what they were using before. Thanks :-|

[Mysuzyq]

Under ideal conditions, 10W-40 in the brand of your choice, as long as it is not an "Energy Conserving" automotive oil, which will cause problems with a motorcycle wet clutch....look on the container for the 'EC' starburst symbol to make sure, before buying. Folks in warmer climes use 20W-40 with good results as well.....Castrol GTX or similar is generally regarded as acceptable oil to run in the GS's. Use the 'Search' feature on this site to bring up several threads dealing with this topic, if you would like (much) more info on the subject.
Tony.

[Steve]

As mentioned, you do not want to use an oil with the "Energy Conserving" certification, but I am wondering...do you have the API "starburst" on the oil available in Oz?

The manual calls for 10w-40 or 20w-50 oils. By the way, I have not yet seen any oil with the "Energy Conserving" designation that was thicker than 30-weight, so as long as you use anything w-40 or 50, you should be good.

While it is nice to know what has been used in the past, I don't feel that it's all that important. What is more important is to use a quality oil, stick with one brand as much as possible, and change it regularly. Frequency of changes can vary, depending on useage. I know some people that change their oil every 1000-1500 miles. Personally, I can't afford that. Oil in all my road-going vehicles gets changed every 5,000 miles. We do enough miles any time we ride that the oil gets up to temp, which helps burn off some of the contaminants. If you do frequent short trips, like commuting, more frequent intervals would be prudent.


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[Nessism]

Diesel engine oil is good for motorcycles as long as the temperature is not too low - most oils like this are 20W-40. Auto oils are formulated to allow the catalyst to live thus they are lacking in some of the "good stuff" which helps protect the valve train and such. Synthetic oils are even better yet if riding in extreme temperature conditions since they hold up better to the heat - a good thing for an air cooled engine.

[Russell]

Thankyou for your replys to my question on engine oils, i have never heard of the Api " starburst" so i doubt whether it exists over here.

[Nessism]

Thankyou for your replys to my question on engine oils, i have never heard of the Api " starburst" so i doubt whether it exists over here.

http://bre.umd.edu/fact181b.htm

[Steve]

Thankyou for your replys to my question on engine oils, i have never heard of the Api " starburst" so i doubt whether it exists over here.

After all, it's the American Petroleum Institute, not the Australian Petroleum Institute. 8-[

Did not know if you had some similar agency looking over your shoulder, trying to protect you. While it's a good thing to have some standards, they keep changing the standards, and it's hard to keep up. The newer oils are better for the cars, as they tend to have fewer of the things that might affect the catalytic convertors if the oil should get that far past the rings. However, these same things that they have removed are what our bikes' transmissions need for longevity. Cars don't have their transmissions lubricated by the same oil that is in the engine, so their requirements are a bit different. That is one reason I try not to get the latest and greatest in the ratings, and, instead, use the Rotella synthetic, which is more of a truck oil, but happens to contain all the stuff that works well in the bike, too.


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