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what the hecks the difference?


oldschoolsdime92

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Whats the difference, other than the obvious weights. I went to the triumph dealer and they don't sell a single quart of the 15w50. no where else sells mobile one 15w50. But i found this. A gallon of the triumph stuff is 60 bucks. four quarts of the other stuff is a lil over 40 bucks.

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I use the stuff on the left too, because that's whats typically available. I've never seen the stuff on the right in that weight.

The stuff on the right should provide some more protection (thicker), but you might lose a few ponies because of it (and by a few I bet it's < 2, maybe even < 1)

Maybe it's just in my head, but I like to use thicker oil in all my high rpm machines just for a protection/peace of mind aspect, but I bet you wouldn't even notice a difference between the two. Once the bike gets up to temp, you're running 40W vs. 50W oil... the 10 vs. 15 is only useful if you ride in ultra low temp situations.

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I looked at the Mobil website, and from what I can tell, Mobil 1 4T 15W-50 isn't currently available in the USA. I did find it on the Australian Mobil website.

Don't get Mobil diesel 15W-50 confused with the motorcycle oil.

The Mobil diesel 15W-50 will be marked API CD or API CF.

The Mobil motorcycle 15W-50 will be marked API SH and JASO MA.

The weight of an engine oil is part of the engine's design characteristics. The way the oil flows in the engine, is in part controlled by the weight of the oil. That's saying the oil could move too quickly, or not fast enough, or distribute within the engine in a way not intended if it's the wrong weight oil. In most engines it won't make much difference.

If anything, I would substitute a 10W-50 if I couldn't get a 15W-50. The first number is the weight (viscosity index) of the oil when it is cold. So a 10W will get moving quicker.

Repsol makes a 15W-50 for motorcycle.

As does Klotz, Silkolene, Motorex, and Motul.

Edited by ReconRat
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According to the Mobil 1 website, 15W-50 for racing/street use has been replaced by 0W-30 and 0W-20 for racing use only and is not for the street. Also it is not for wet plate clutches. Maybe that stopped the 15W-50 production for motorcycles as well.

If it were me, I'd get Castrol 10W-50 for motorcycles, as an alternate.

The 50 weight number is more important, when looking for a substitute.

Belray, Motorex, Lucas, Motul, and KalGard make a 10W-50 motorcycle oil also.

Ummm, I noticed on the internet that some people say the Sprint manual says to use 15W-40?

If so, the 10W-40 is an acceptable substitute. Everyone makes a 10W-40 motorcycle oil.

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rotella t full syn for 18 a gallon

Just say no. Don't use cheap ass WalMart diesel oil in a real motorcycle.

Bumping up to the 50W, when it's not recommended for an engine, will increase the oil pump pressure, and change the filter bypass pressure, oil film thickness on pistons, and all sorts of things generally not wanted.

but on the other hand, from what I can see on the internet, there is a lot of differences in the Sprint manuals recommendations for oil weights.

One of the manuals even says:

" All Triumph fuel injected engines must be filled with 10w40,15w40 or 15w50 semi synthetic motorcycle oil that which meets API-SG or API-SH specs, or fully synthetic that exceeds these minimum requirements."

Just as well, looking for 10W50 would be traumatic. It's not easy to find, if at all. 10W40 wins.
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castrol..no thanks. Castrol Power RS R4 4T got beat out by standard valvoline motorcycle oil in the recent motorcycle oil study.

I'm always interested in reading oil studies. Even if it might be one sponsored by Valvoline. Independent studies do it better. Link it if you find it.

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I've been using Mobil 1 Full Synthetic 15w-50 car oil for the whole year. No slipping in the clutch at all and it shifts a little smoother. The Aprilia guys have been using it for years with no issues.

Make sure you get the specified weight of oil for the Trumpie. 4 quarts of Mobil1 15w-50 cost me $38.

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JASO MA, MA1 and JASO MA2 standards for motorcycles were created to control the marketing of oils beyond the development of standard automotive SG oils. SG oils were fine in motorcycles. (Back in the day when there were no special motorcycle oils.) There are additives and differences in the oils made to the newer automotive standards, that are not controlled or indicated to the consumer. Typically these are "energy conserving" or "higher fuel mileage" differences. These differences may or may not cause problems or effect the motorcycle, depending on the quantities and types of additives, and whether the motorcycle actually cares about it or not. The wet clutch is the most obvious of the problems. There are many other differences between automotive oil and motorcycle oil.

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This is all a can of worms just waiting to go around :D

I use Repsol 4T Full Synthetic 10w-40/50 myself with no issues for years. But I also like the peace of mind of using a thicker oil that can get beat around and not go bad too fast with the 4 cyl/1kcc engines.

Edited by SJC1000rr
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I looked at the Mobil website, and from what I can tell, Mobil 1 4T 15W-50 isn't currently available in the USA. I did find it on the Australian Mobil website.

Don't get Mobil diesel 15W-50 confused with the motorcycle oil.

The Mobil diesel 15W-50 will be marked API CD or API CF.

The Mobil motorcycle 15W-50 will be marked API SH and JASO MA.

The weight of an engine oil is part of the engine's design characteristics. The way the oil flows in the engine, is in part controlled by the weight of the oil. That's saying the oil could move too quickly, or not fast enough, or distribute within the engine in a way not intended if it's the wrong weight oil. In most engines it won't make much difference.

If anything, I would substitute a 10W-50 if I couldn't get a 15W-50. The first number is the weight (viscosity index) of the oil when it is cold. So a 10W will get moving quicker.

Repsol makes a 15W-50 for motorcycle.

As does Klotz, Silkolene, Motorex, and Motul.

joes cycle shop sells the 15w50 for 59 bucks a gallon. thats what triumph recommends be ran. What got me started on all of this was, was I went to joes today and tried to buy a single quart. I thought it would be nice to have an extra quart incase i ever needed to top off, on a long trip or somthing. They informed me that a quart of the 15w50 does not exist as they are only allowed to import by the gallon. So I bought the oil on the left at auto zone. for 9 dollars a quart.

Edited by oldschoolsdime92
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