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Rotella T6 Oil - motorcycle specific?

12K views 23 replies 11 participants last post by  Boomer914 
#1 ·
I have always bought oil that are specifically made for motorcycles, but as i have searched on this forum it seems a lot of you favour the Rotella T6 (5W40) Do they make these specific to motorcycles or is it the same oil that is used on automotives too? Sorry if this is a dumb question! but i have always bought oil specific to bikes in the past!!

Also thinking about going the Purolator PL14610 route for the oil filter (courtesy of this forum! :D)
 
#4 ·
Absolutely agree...
I use Havoline 20/50 V twin dino and purolator 14612..:D
 
#5 ·
I use Rotella synthetic T6 5w40 in all my bikes. Its great oil. Even better for the price.

Rotella is developed for diesel engines. Its designed to resist the higher journal bearing forces developed from the higher compression. This makes it better suited for use in motorcycles that use engine oil in the transmission. Similar to bike specific oil.

I also like the lighter weight on cold startups. It helps to minimize wear at this most critical time.

The JASO MA rating is for use in a wet clutch. Also important for motorcycles.

Standard automotive oils breakdown faster than motorcycle oils or diesel oils because of the high film shear forces in a motorcycle transmission and they typically are not wet clutch rated.

Nothing wrong with bike OEM oil. I believe rotella is better and 2/3 the cost.

My $0.02
 
#6 ·
Purolator?

I have heard bike OEM's praise their superior filters almost as much as boat OEM's. I'll share my Mercruiser story.

New Mercruiser 4.3 v6. First oil change. I bought all the stuff at the dealer. I was told that due to the water and wet environment and severe use in boating that mercruiser used ONLY very special oil filters. Apparently mercruiser installed my oil filter incorrectly. When I spun the factory painted one off The FRAM label was facing the engine! It didn't get painted! Exact same filter as my 4.3 in the van.

I've had three kawi's. Ninja 250 and 500 and v2k. My buddy has two kawi 4 wheelers. All have same kawi OEM filter. They are not bike specific.

I use purolator
 
#9 ·
thankyou pacomutt, that is excellent info! i appreicate the advise. This is my first cruiser, my previous experience has been with more performance oriented bike (currently have a zx10r as my second bike) so i wasnt sure if the oil is put through the same demands on a cruiser engine as it would on a sportsbike. i used to use Amsoil when i owned a BUell and it worked out fine. Just too pricey for my blood!
 
#11 ·
Rotella = $5.25 per quart
quality motorcycle oil = $8.00 - $12.00 per quart

Rotella = 2500 - 3000 miles and all used up in my bike. Shifts funky, clutch is funky, engine is noisey.
Quality motorcycle oil = 6000 - 7500 miles and still useable in my bike.
 
#13 ·
only thing we know for sure about any so called Mc specific oil is the viscosity and that it is JASO MA rated..... no one even knows who makes the OEM oils.....one thing we know for sure is that it is not made by kawasaki !!! for all we know kawi OEM oil could actually be shell rotella t !!!! the biggest argument some people use aginst it is because the transmission uses the same oil and it dont hold up well to the gears..... well ever look inside a large diesel engine? gear driven camshafts, gear driven fuel pump, gear driven oil pump, gear driven power steering pump....lotsa gears in those big ol cats, cummins, and detroit diesel engines !!!
 
#18 ·
It's not the gears any one is concerned about (well at least those who know anything about how and why) it's the friction between the clutch plates that's the issue.

Back in 1977 I knew a guy who ran out of gas a couple miles from home on a -20*F night. Dumped a liter of everclear and four cans of Pabst in his gas tank and drove home.

Moral of story is: it worked but not approve. :D
 
#15 ·
If we're comparing apples to apples here the length won't be a problem in the V2K as it's mounted horizontally instead of vertically. I use one longer than OEM and the only issue I've seen thus far is it's a little harder to get my wrench in there.
 
#16 ·
thanks for all the advise fellas.. but i finally decided to stick to "quality motorcycle oil" and Wix filter. It cost me about $41 after tax for a 4L container. I already had another 2L of the same at home from what was left after i changed oil in my zx10R. the more i read about Rotella on the oil and lubrication section, the more i was leaning towards OEM oil. I just dont wanna go cheap on my baby :)!!
 
#17 ·
just remember that a lot of what is in the oil and lubrication areas is hearsay assumptions and missinformation... and since we have no idea who actually makes that "OEM oil" one is only making the assumption that it is of better quality.... For all we know that OEM oil could very well be nothing other than rotella t in a kawasaki bottle at triple the price !!
 
#20 ·
You don't need OEM oil to have a motorcycle specific oil. Most all name brand and even some store brand make Motorcycle specific oils.

Just to name a few:
Castrol
Mobil
Amsoil
Redline
Royal purple, I think.
There's more to choose from but you get the picture.

I highly doubt OEM is Rotella since Rotella doesn't make a Motorcycle specific oil, not even sure Shell does and that's who makes Rotella.
 
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