Amsoil car oil in Pointy?

[Hovermn]

Hey guys, I just trade up from a GS500F to the SV. It's a 2005 SV650S with a touch over 5000 miles on the OD. I'm the third owner with the previous owner putting around 3K in 3 yrs on the bike.

After the transaction, the seller gave me a few odds and ends, including some extra oil. I didn't think much of it and went on my merry way. I just looked at the container and find it's Amsoil 10W-30 car oil!

I have no idea if that's what this bike has been running from new and the guy just continued using it, or he just started using it. All he told me is that he changed the oil 500 miles ago (last season).

An oil change was in order anyway just as standard practice, but do you think there was any damage done to the bike using this oil? I will say this, the thing shifted like butter, so who knows. I'll be changing over to Amsoil 10W40 bike oil as soon as it warms up a bit.

[Sid Squid]

There are several different Amsoil 10w30 car oils, it might be fine, it might not, but unless I were exactly sure of what was in there and for how long I would change it, and re-establish the service interval for certain.
I'm not doubting the honesty of the chap you bought it from, but starting again gives you a baseline from which to work and it's the best way of establishing the correct service intervals.

[Hovermn]

The bottle reads OE Original Equipment SAE 10W-30 for gasoline engines. The round symbol reads API service SN and Resource Conserving. I'm surprised the thing shifted at all knowing what I know now :)

Yeah, That oil is as good as gone when it gets above freezing. It's been a tough winter and now spring here in Minnesota. 8 degrees this morning!

[NTECUK]

Motorcycle oil is especially developed to work with the wet clutch.
Car oil can make it slip as it has different friction modifiers.
So

[SV650Racer]

Car oil is not designed to be used in gearboxes..or with wet clutches.

[NTECUK]

Oh no I've got it I'm my 1973 minis gearbox lol

[SV650Racer]

Oh no I've got it I'm my 1973 minis gearbox lol

Well thats fooked it then:smt098

[NTECUK]

mind you in sure if MattECU had some car oil in his old SV the outcome of togmie might have been different for him

[wideguy]

I've never used anything but automotive oil in my motorcycles (starting with a 1970 Ducati). I've been using mostly Mobile 1 since 1992, sometimes other brands of synthetic car oils.
Never had any problems with clutches or anything else.

[NTECUK]

To be honest the friction in a wet clutch is different to what the additive in car oils are designed to help with.
But I'd not chance it myself

[Bibio]

Car oil is not designed to be used in gearboxes..or with wet clutches.

i'll give you half a point for that :plod: :)

[wideguy]

Actually, engine oil isn't designed to be run in gearboxes, except that cars now run what is basically light synthetic motor oil in their gearboxes and differentials.
What gearboxes need is oil that is resistant to shearing, and synthetic oils are good at that.
Engine oil also needs good shear resistance, as well as high lubricity, among other things.
The only problem for wet clutches is the potential that the oil will be too slippery and the clutch will slip instead of hooking up. I've never had that problem. My RC-51, though not powerful by modern liter bike standards, does make 72 ft.lb. of torque, and the clutch has worked fine with Mobile 1, as have all the other bikes I've run with synthetic motor oil designed for cars.

[stuR]

Ive been using some decent car oil that is mercedes benz spec for all their cars (a freind is a merc mechanic so i can get 5l for £15) in my gsxr and had no issues at all.

[embee]

Aha, the old oil debate.

First, use whatever you want, I wouldn't suggest one way or another.

The "official" guidelines and recommendations usually revolve round a couple of issues. Additives capable of causing catalyst deterioration and friction modifiers.

Car oils have developed over the years to reduce the additives which will harm the efficiency of catalysts in exhausts for long term emission compliance, this basically means the extreme pressure wear additives containing phosphorus and metal based compounds (e.g. ZDDP). Engine oils made when the old Mini integral g/box was designed had loads of anti-wear additives. Modern "bike" oils typically have twice the phosphorus content of a similar car oil. Modern car engines are designed to limit contact stresses (usually in valve gear) to what the modern oils will support. Gear teeth contacts need some degree of "extreme pressure" protection, depending on the design loads.

Anything with "energy conserving" or similar on the label is more likely to cause wet clutch issues (not definite, but more likely). In order to demonstrate that an oil is OK with wet clutches a test is carried out, and if it passes the label will say "JASO-MA". That does not necessarily mean that absence of the label means bad, it means not tested. "Bike" oils will have the JASO-MA label.

It's up to you.

[wideguy]

embee's exactly right of course, but I recently had my '81 CB900F transmission apart, and after more than 75,000 miles running with automotive oil, lots of hard use including a season of racing and a few track days, there isn't any measurable wear on the transmission parts. It would probably be even better if I'd been running oil with more phosphorous.