DON'T RUN SYNTHETIC OIL

[bignomadmike]

ran syn in m y 04 clutch started to slip at 33000 miles in hi gear only when i did 80 or 90 gadget page said when that happens change clutch spring anyway rode bike one morning clutch went it heated up and didn't work till it cooled down mechanic said kaw and suzuki shouldnt use syn bythe way i need new clutch packp.s. dealer gave me the synthetic advise last time i listen to those morons!!!!!!!

[lomax]

...ok, here's my take on your post. There are literally thousands of Kaws running synthethic oil and not having problems. There are some oils, synthethic and dino that should not be run in a bike that runs a wet clutch. These are oils that are marked as "energy conserving" or having "friction modifiers" and if used will cause clutch slippage. I, and many others, run Kawasaki synthethic oil and there are many others that run other brands of synthethic oil and they work very well. As far as your clutch spring, many springs last longer than yours and many don't last that long. Last night I took mine apart to replace the spring and I only have 12000 miles on it. The oil has nothing to do with how long the spring will last. Why have you been told you need a new clutch pack? Has it been taken apart and actually inspected? Here is a possible scenario of what might be happening. I'm not saying for sure but this is what may be causing your grief. You asked a couple days ago about a whining you were hearing on decel and an accompanying clicking noise. You are saying that your clutch quit working when it got hot and worked again when it cooled down. These are common symptons that show up when your front bevel gear bearing is on its way out. The heat buildup from the worn bearing heats the brake fluid at your clutch slave cylinder until the fluid will not do its job anymore, until it cools and then it starts to work again. If I were you, I would at least get this checked out. Its reasonably cheap, and something you can do yourself, to change out this bearing. If its left as is, the bevel gear assembly may have to be replaced and that could cost alot more. Like I said, this may be your problem. I Hope its something simpler to deal with. Good luck with it.. :) :)

[bignomadmike]

thanx for info lomax will check out the bevel gear too

[radco]

I have been using FULL synthetic oil in my bikes since 04.. have 28K on the Honda and14k on the Nomad,,,,,,I use Mobile 1 MX4T 10/40 in the Honda Sabre, and our Mobile 1 V Twin 20.50 in the Nomad,,, I will go to 10/40 this spring,,,, ALOT use Mobil Diesel oil ( no modifiers)as it matchs MC rated oil pretty close...I think its 5/ 40 or 15/40... I may try that,, several Wing owners use it and love it,,,, BIG key as stated NO ENERGY CONSERVATION oils in our WET CLUTCH system,,, Thats my 2 cents,,,,,,Rich

[rickmeister56]

when i traded my 05 in for a 08 nomad. the 05 clutch was starting to slip at 35,000miles.i had used dino oil the entire time i had the 05. the problem was my clutch spring. not the type of oil i had been using. i am not hard on clutches. this just seems to be about the time the spring gets weak on some nomads and you do have 33,000 miles.just my 2 cents worth. you will get better advice on this website than from a dealer that doesnt know his ass from the bikes he sells.

[ringadingh]

I also replaced my clutch spring at about 38,000 miles. As said earlier I don't think its the oil that caused this to happen. Check what lomax advised, as I also think its something else causing the noise you hear.

[mikesth]

I won't ever run Dino

Makes no sense to advocate giving up a product because it maintains slipperiness longer - that is what oils is supposed to do.

Literally thousands of motorcycles are running synthetic and to blindly lump "kaw and suzuki" together in such a statement is ludicrous\\BTW, my Bandit ran synthetic with no clutch slippage as well as the several thousands on MaxZuki...

[lomax]

....Last fall, my clutch started slipping, so I thought I would chage up the oil just to be sure the oil wasn't breaking down or something, and causing slippage. Because the bike only has about 12000 miles, I figured that was way to early for the clutch spring to be going. So I put in dino oil, cause its cheaper and I figured if I had to change the clutch spring this winter, I would probably dump the oil again. Anyway, the purpose of the rant is just to say that when the dino Rotella 15-40 was put in, I was shocked to hear all the extra noises coming from my engine. It was a very noticable difference. So I have Syn oil ready to go back in after the clutch spring change. Its more expensive, but does go longer between changes and keeps my engine running quieter!! :)

[Top Cat]

Originally Posted by rickmeister56

when i traded my 05 in for a 08 nomad. the 05 clutch was starting to slip at 35,000miles.i had used dino oil the entire time i had the 05. the problem was my clutch spring. not the type of oil i had been using. i am not hard on clutches. this just seems to be about the time the spring gets weak on some nomads and you do have 33,000 miles.just my 2 cents worth. you will get better advice on this website than from a dealer that doesnt know his ass from the bikes he sells.

[dhomoney]

Originally Posted by radco

I have been using FULL synthetic oil in my bikes since 04.. have 28K on the Honda and14k on the Nomad,,,,,,I use Mobile 1 MX4T 10/40 in the Honda Sabre, and our Mobile 1 V Twin 20.50 in the Nomad,,, I will go to 10/40 this spring,,,, ALOT use Mobil Diesel oil ( no modifiers)as it matchs MC rated oil pretty close...I think its 5/ 40 or 15/40... I may try that,, several Wing owners use it and love it,,,, BIG key as stated NO ENERGY CONSERVATION oils in our WET CLUTCH system,,, Thats my 2 cents,,,,,,Rich

The reason not to use energy conserving oil it that unlike cars and trucks we have a wet clutch. Slippage occurs because of the addition of molyb.

[soldierboy3502]

I'm running 5w.40 full syn rotella in my nad with 37,000 and no problems...

[redeye]

Originally Posted by lomax

....Last fall, my clutch started slipping, so I thought I would chage up the oil just to be sure the oil wasn't breaking down or something, and causing slippage. Because the bike only has about 12000 miles, I figured that was way to early for the clutch spring to be going. So I put in dino oil, cause its cheaper and I figured if I had to change the clutch spring this winter, I would probably dump the oil again. Anyway, the purpose of the rant is just to say that when the dino Rotella 15-40 was put in, I was shocked to hear all the extra noises coming from my engine. It was a very noticable difference. So I have Syn oil ready to go back in after the clutch spring change. Its more expensive, but does go longer between changes and keeps my engine running quieter!! :)

Read about my results trying to extend oil changes, using Rotella syn in the http://kawanow.proboards77.com/index...ay&thread=8234 Thread.

[stretch]

Originally Posted by Cabby

I'm running 5w.40 full syn rotella in my nad with 37,000 and no problems...

Me Too!! Ran same in my Intruder also. No problems. Change every 3000. :)

[landman]

mobil 1 synthetic rules.

[pablo]

I've been running Royal Purple Max Cycle 20w/50 in the summer and 10w/40 in winter since 600 mile service. No problems, no clutch slippage. This is the smoothest running engine I've ever experienced on a motorcycle.