The OIL thread. All oil related questions here.

[maleko89]

Re: Got 600miles, time for service

According to online manual it's sync carbs only at 600 miles.

Personally, I'd check the coolant for dirt, change oil/filter, check fuel filter, change final gear oil, re-torque steering bearings, check spark plugs.

At 1500 miles I would check the valve clearances.

You won't void the warranty by not having Yamaha performing the maintenance for you but I would check with your dealer to be 100% sure.

For oil, Yamalube is pretty good as is Castrol with Actevo motorcycle oil. I've used Caterpillar, Castrol GTX and Shell Rotella diesel oils. They work good too just change them a little more often.

No worries on novice questions...or any questions. No such thing as dumb questions...that's what this forum is for!

Welcome!

Mark
#1098

 

[113s&s]

4000 miles

what gets me is..owners manual says change oil every 4000 miles....its well knows dino oil starts breaking down before 1500 miles because of shear action from tranny....just dont get it

 

[shawn kloker]

Re: 4000 miles

what gets me is..owners manual says change oil every 4000 miles....its well knows dino oil starts breaking down before 1500 miles because of shear action from tranny....just dont get it

And the oil wars begin?I change mine every 600 miles.

 

[113s&s]

Re: 4000 miles

And the oil wars begin?I change mine every 600 miles.

got me beat im at 1000 miles

 

[shawn kloker]

Re: 4000 miles

I run Castrol GTX 20w50.

 

[4gasem]

Re: 4000 miles

what gets me is..owners manual says change oil every 4000 miles....its well knows dino oil starts breaking down before 1500 miles because of shear action from tranny....just dont get it

Thread merged into the "oil thread"

I went the Mototuneusa.com way of breaking it in. I think mine had 26 miles on it when I changed it, then 150, and then I spread them out more and more and now I don't ride enough in one season to change it more than once but I use 5W40 Shell Rotella synthetic and it's awesome and gets rave reviews from everyone that tests it. Whilst breaking in I used Dino oil Shell Rotella 15W40 and it too was great but I want a little more multi weight in it for cold starts and hot running!:banana: I use a Mobil 1 oil filter M-110 I believe.

:cheers:

 

[maxcruiser]

After break in, I use Amsoil 10w40 full synthetic motorcycle oil and change oil every 3-4000 miles. Never had any issues, my last max had 112,000 miles when I sold it and the engine was solid.

Mike

 

[113s&s]

thanks for syn info...was thinking that route...would rather change oil twice a year then four times...a year.... i have so much old oil lying around from 1000 mile oil changes..it almost got out of control...getting rid of it a little at a time.....thats why i asked about manual 4000 mile oil change..funny they say any SAE oil and 4000 miles....I assume yamaha feels 4000 miles is not a problem with say castrol 20w50 oil or any other SAE regular oil......was looking at rotella 5w40 and amsoil 10w40 also thanks for info

 

[KJShover]

Re: Q&A start_part 2

Q: I?m about change my oil. I?m going to use, Castrol 10w-40 automotive oil, but was curious how many quarts does it usually take?

A: 4.02 quarts if filter is changed. Note that it is almost impossible to get all the oil out when doing an oil change so you may not be able to get 4 quarts back in.

Q: What is a good oil filter to use on my Vmax?
A: This is as varied as the riders themselves. For around $6 you can pick up the NAPAGold 1356, Carquest 85356, WIX 51356 oil filters.

Q: I heard if I overfill the oil slightly to get rid of the low level light on acceleration issue. I have always brought it up to the top of the sight glass and nary a light. For the first time ever today I actually noticed that there are marks/lines in the metal around the sight glass that clearly show acceptable high and low levels. Is is ok to fill with oil over the high level mark?

A: There are two marks on the right side of the window in the casing. The level shouldn't be above the upper mark.

 

[hobbes58]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

I just bought a carquest filter. It "fit" but the threads bottomed out before it was tight enough. It leaked bad with the engine running. Guess I'll tke the Duc and check out NAPA tomorrow.

 

[4gasem]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

I would go with the Shell Rotella 15W40 commercial truck oil KJ. When broken in change it up to the Synthetic Shell Rotella 5W40.

It's high in zinc which the tranny will like.

DO NOT use oil that states (Energy Conserving) on it.

Use the Shell. Check out the oil link in the VMF links page.

I use a Mobil 1 filter M-110 I think???:confused2: They're black and fit and work great.

I usually just fill to the upper mark. I don't try to out think the Yamaha engineers too much.:whistlin:

Chris

 

[lankeeyankee]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

I have watched the oil pressure a lot the past 3 weeks with new motor trying to figure out when VMAX engines starve

This is what I have found
If the oil level is in the middle of the site glass the oil light will come on under acc;eration and the oil pressure DOES flicker bounce 58-60 psi under high RPM

When I fill the oil level to the top mark on the site glass no shift lite and pressure is at a constant 63 PSI under high ROM (7500-9500)

At idle the oil pressure is at
20W50 Castrol Motorcycle Oil 12 PSI
20W50 Honda Non Synthetic Motorcycle oil never below 20 and is more constant doesnt jump as the Castrol does

I would becareful with 10W40 oil I have ALWAYS heard to use 20W50 unless the temps drop below 20f

 

[QuarterHorse]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

In the automotive world you should be seeing 1lb of oil pressure for every hundred RPM. 9000R's = 90lbs. I'm affraid to put a gauge on my bike now.

 

[4gasem]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

I stay away from the thicker oils on the water cooled engines. 20W50 is Harley oil! :biglaugh: J/K

Parasitic drag is less with the 15W40 too.

Chris

 

[lankeeyankee]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

In the automotive world you should be seeing 1lb of oil pressure for every hundred RPM. 9000R's = 90lbs. I'm affraid to put a gauge on my bike now.

90 damn Qaurter Horse I have never heard of that 1 psi for every RPM X 1000
Even with my old Trans AM with a 327 Vette motor built with a high vol oil pump that used to put out MAX 70PSI

I know with the VMAX that is pretty accurate once the oil gets up to temp but I have never seen my oil pressure go above 65PSI thank god and it never drops below 20 even at an idle (1500)

 

[maleko89]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

Yeah, on my Max it levels out. At hot temps I get 2-4 psi at idle.

 

[lankeeyankee]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

Yeah, on my Max it levels out. At hot temps I get 2-4 psi at idle.

Only 2-4 PSI at idle? :surprise: Is that normal? Is that even enough to get the oil up to the top end?

I am at 20 PSI at idle with a wick of the throttle its jumps up 60 PSI when temp is 190F

 

[maleko89]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

Yep, pretty close if I remember the manual right.

Over 66,000 on this engine and when I checked valves last cam lobes looked new.

 

[MSGU1-4936]

Re: Common oil questions about the VMax

Yep, pretty close if I remember the manual right.

Over 66,000 on this engine and when I checked valves last cam lobes looked new.

Mark you are correct,my calymer manual states the same, at idle 950-1050 you should see 3 - 3.3 PSI approx, thats what I see, mind you it almost looks like there is no pressure on my dial, but as soon as I touch the throttle it goes up

Ron

:cheers:

 

[113s&s]

Re: Q&A start_part 2

Q: I?m about change my oil. I?m going to use, Castrol 10w-40 automotive oil, but was curious how many quarts does it usually take?

A: 4.02 quarts if filter is changed. Note that it is almost impossible to get all the oil out when doing an oil change so you may not be able to get 4 quarts back in.

Q: What is a good oil filter to use on my Vmax?
A: This is as varied as the riders themselves. For around $6 you can pick up the NAPAGold 1356, Carquest 85356, WIX 51356 oil filters.

Q: I heard if I overfill the oil slightly to get rid of the low level light on acceleration issue. I have always brought it up to the top of the sight glass and nary a light. For the first time ever today I actually noticed that there are marks/lines in the metal around the sight glass that clearly show acceptable high and low levels. Is is ok to fill with oil over the high level mark?

A: There are two marks on the right side of the window in the casing. The level shouldn't be above the upper mark.

i use 4 qts with new filter thats ....sight glass is full with motor off tiny tilt to the left shows level in glass level is half way when motor is started Yamaha says 4 use 4