Frequently you’ll see posts online asking, “What oil should I use?” and some diehards will tell you “no synthetics”, “read the manual” (written long before synthetics were even dreamed of!) and “use what these bikes were designed for – get JASO-M oil.”
Well I don’t mean to burst anyone’s bubble but here are the facts.
JASO-M – it’s a Japanese standard and to use it on packaging, oil companies have to pay a huge fee to the Japanese folks, so most makers do not. But, if you dig into their documentation on the web, you’ll find their products “meets or exceeds” that standard.
Wet clutches – admittedly when synthetics were first blended with basic petroleum oils, there were problems with friction modifiers causing wet clutches to slip. This problem was quickly identified by customers and rectified by the manufacturers – about fifteen years ago!
“What our bikes were designed for” – just as surely as the factory service manuals are very precise, we have to allow for changes in technology, for such things as tires, fuel and lubricants which are now far superior to anything available when our bikes were designed.
Please note that I have posted this commentary online numerous times and people who have long careers in the oil industry as well as a passion for old motorcycles have agreed with these facts.
RETURN TO PREVIOUS SITE LEVELS: